Colorado Schools Get New Report Cards

Colorado schools are getting their first report cards under new performance standards approved by lawmakers last year.

Under the program, 111 school districts were rated as accredited or higher. Only 14 got a higher rating of accredited with distinction.

Gov. Bill Ritter says the new reports are better than the old report cards that graded schools based on student scores on statewide tests because it also measures long-term academic growth, identifies gaps in performance and measures career development.

The associate executive director of the Colorado Association of School Boards, Jane Urschel, said the reports still stigmatize schools. She said rating schools should be left to local school districts and not the state.

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