Colorado Senate Bill Seeks to Protect Students Who Opt-Out From Assessments

Under current law, a local education provider shall not punish a student whose parent excuses him or her from taking a state assessment. The bill clarifies that a local education provider also shall not prohibit the student from participating in an activity or receiving any other form of reward that recognizes participation in the state assessments. If a local education provider does not comply with these restrictions, the department of education must note the failure to comply on the performance report prepared for the local education provider and for the specific public school if the local education provider is a school district or board of cooperative services. If a local education provider fails to comply 3 or more times during a school year, the state board of education must impose a significant penalty, as provided by rule, on the local education provider in calculating the local education provider’s accreditation rating for that school year.

Apparently, the current law was not clear enough.

This is a bipartisan bill co-sponsored by State Senator Andy Kerr (D-Lakewood), State Senator Chris Holbert (R-Douglas County), State Representative Paul Lundeen (R-Monument), and State Representative Tracy Kraft-Tharp (D-Arvada).

The bill has been referred to the Colorado Senate Education Committee.