Slashing chronic absenteeism rates, boosting third grade reading scores, and ensuring high school graduates earn college credit or work experience alongside their diplomas are among the Colorado Department of Education鈥檚 .
The department has set five 鈥渨ildly important goals鈥� it aims to achieve over the next several years. Other state agencies, , are setting similar goals. Together, they represent some of the state鈥檚 biggest public policy priorities.
Education Commissioner Susana C贸rdova said her department鈥檚 goals are meant to address some of the 880,000-student system鈥檚 thorniest challenges.
鈥淪chools continue to face pandemic-related challenges including poor attendance, teacher shortages, and learning loss,鈥� she told the Colorado State Board of Education last month.
Here鈥檚 a look at three of the department鈥檚 goals and the state鈥檚 progress toward meeting them.
Reduce chronic absenteeism
Goal: Cut chronic absenteeism to 15% of K-12 students by the 2027-28 school year.
Progress: In the 2023-24 school year, .
if they miss 10% or more of the school days in a school year, or approximately 18 days. Chronic absenteeism is a problem because students who miss a lot of school can fall behind academically and find it hard to catch up.
鈥淚f they鈥檙e not there, I don鈥檛 care how great your instruction is, how great your building is, how many programs you have,鈥� State Board of Education member Lisa Esc谩rcega said at a meeting this week while discussing the goals. 鈥淚f they鈥檙e not there, they can鈥檛 learn.鈥�
Chronic absenteeism has always been an issue, . Schools across the country have struggled to improve student attendance in the years since. absenteeism rates largely remain higher than they were before COVID.
That鈥檚 true in Colorado. The state鈥檚 chronic absenteeism rate hit a high of 35.5% in the 2021-22 school year. It was a huge jump from before the pandemic, when the rate ranged from 18% to 24%.
to cut chronic absenteeism by half over a five-year period. The department鈥檚 goal of a 15% chronic absenteeism rate would be a big improvement on the pre-pandemic rate.
The department has already According to the website, more than 30 districts and schools have signed on. The department hopes 80% of Colorado鈥檚 178 districts will agree to participate by next October.
The department also aims to increase training for educators and grow the number of visitors to on how to foster a sense of student well-being and belonging in their schools 鈥� .
Increase third grade reading scores
Goal: 60% of third graders will meet or exceed state expectations in literacy by 2028.
Progress: In 2024, .
Third grade is considered a key year for reading. Some studies have shown that students who can鈥檛 read proficiently by third grade are less likely to graduate from high school.
Colorado tests students in grades 3-11 in reading, writing, and math each spring. The tests for third graders are called .
and are now climbing back up. Colorado鈥檚 third grade reading scores were actually slightly higher in 2024 than they were in 2019 before the pandemic. But state officials say the state still has work to do.
State Board of Education members emphasized the importance of helping students early.
鈥淚鈥檝e heard teachers say, 鈥楧on鈥檛 worry about your kid. They鈥檒l get it later on. It鈥檒l come to them,鈥欌�� said board member Angelika Schroeder. 鈥淔olks, it doesn鈥檛 come to a lot of kids.鈥�
Colorado has never come close to 60% of third graders meeting or exceeding expectations in literacy since it rolled out the CMAS tests in 2015. C贸rdova called this goal 鈥渧ery ambitious.鈥�
To get there, the department plans to offer more training to educators and ensure more school districts are using what it calls 鈥渉igh quality instructional materials.鈥�
The department also plans to redesign its awards to 鈥渃elebrate schools with strong results.鈥�
Boost postsecondary readiness
Goal: 100% of the Class of 2029 will have earned 12 college credits, a non-degree credential, or participated in a work-based learning opportunity.
Progress: The state doesn鈥檛 currently track this metric in this way.
Colorado has for several years been which refers to blurring the line between high school and students鈥� next steps. At its simplest, it鈥檚 an attempt to better prepare high school graduates for college or the workforce.
Dual enrollment programs, which allow students to take college-level classes in high school, have become wildly popular. Dual-enrolled high school students .
But most dual-enrolled students leave high school with only a few college credits. The department wants to drastically increase that number.
Officials also want to increase the number of students earning non-degree credentials that would allow them to work in high-demand fields, such as health care or early childhood education.
And they want to boost the number of students participating in apprenticeships, on-the-job training, internships, and other work-based learning experiences.
Colorado has a host of programs meant to accomplish these goals. , with different programs overseen by different departments. The programs also have differing amounts of funding from the state and buy-in from school districts.
includes recommendations for improvements, some of which may be taken up by policymakers in the upcoming legislative session.
The department also wants to increase the number of school districts participating in training sessions about postsecondary workforce readiness and the number that are including postsecondary workforce readiness strategies in their required improvement plans.
Melanie Asmar is a reporter for Chalkbeat Colorado. Her work frequently appears on-air at KUNC 91.5 FM and online at KUNC.org. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.