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September 4, 2014 VOLU M E 27 | I S S UE 42
HighlandsRanchHerald.net D O U G L A S C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
A publication of
School funding all over the map
SURF’S UP!
Formula factors in size of district, student poverty LEFT: Two children dance to the Beloved Invaders, an instrumental surf band that performed Aug. 28 at Civic Green Park in Highlands Ranch for the last of the Summer’s Sunset Concert series, sponsored by the Highlands Ranch Community Association and the Highlands Ranch Metro District. ABOVE: Teens play a makeshift volleyball game Aug. 28 at Civic Green Park during the concert. It was one last blast of summer for the crowd that gathered at Civic Green Park Aug. 28 for the last of the Summer’s Sunset Concert series, co-sponsored by the Highlands Ranch Community Association and the Highlands Ranch Metro District. For an hour-and-ahalf, the Beloved Invaders entertained the crowd with instrumental surf music, playing original songs and well-known tunes such as “Pipeline.” “Everybody thinks of surf music,” lead guitarist Bob Cannistraro said, “and they automatically think of the Beach Boys.” So, naturally, as part of their set, the band gave the crowd what they wanted: a medley of Beach Boys songs, which got the children dancing, and the beach balls bouncing.
PHOTOS BY CHRISTY STEADMAN
By Jane Reuter
jreuter @coloradocommunitymedia.com The Douglas County School Board long has expressed dissatisfaction with the state’s education funding, saying county residents shoulder an unfair tax burden. It is not alone in concerns about K-12 funding. A Colorado Department of Education official said the department’s complex formula for school districts has changed little in 20 years, but is designed to factor in changes within districts. “We’ve been using this formula since 1994. There have been some little tweaks around the edges, but there haven’t been significant changes,” said Leanne Emm, the CDE’s assistant commissioner for school finance. “I think it depends on what kind of district you live in whether you like the formula or not. “But the formula does adjust, or attempts to adjust, for the demographics within individual districts.” DCSD continues on Page 9
WHAT THEY’RE GETTING
The Beloved Invaders, an instrumental surf band, comprised of Bob Cannistraro, left, on lead guitar, Kurt Reber on drums and J. Scott Johnson on bass guitar, perform Aug. 28 at Civic Green Park in Highlands Ranch. The concert was sponsored by the Highlands Ranch Community Association and the Highlands Ranch Metro District.
Responding with the quickness Littleton Fire Rescue in trial phase of Quick Car program By Christy Steadman
csteadman @coloradocommunitymedia.com Littleton Fire Rescue is amid the trial period for a program designed to speed response times and conserve resources. Using vehicles called Quick Cars is an “out-of-the-box and innovative way” to better serve the community, said Littleton Fire Rescue Chief Chris Armstrong. The department is testing two types of vehicles for the Quick Cars, a Ford F-150 and a Chevrolet Suburban. In early August, the department launched the trial period of the program, an alternative method to using emergency resources to respond to non-emergent calls. They “allow us to keep the big red trucks, as we call them,” LFR District Chief Jeff Pasker said, “for acute medical calls.” An emergent call, Pasker said, is one that needs immediate 911 attention. A non-emergent call would be one that a person calls 911 for water problems, somebody stuck in an elevator or an odor investigation, he said. The department is studying data on the Quick Cars, including tracking response
Estimated 2014-15 per-pupil funding for a sampling of Colorado school districts (after the negative factor): District Amount Branson $6,557 (lowest in state) Lewis-Palmer $6,661 Douglas $6,752 Littleton $6,758 Jeffco $6,842 Cherry Creek $6,947 Pawnee $15,567 (highest in state)
Campaign ad courts women Romanoff team says Coffman fudging history By Vic Vela
vvela@coloradocommunitymedia.com
Littleton Fire Rescue recently launched the trial period of the Quick Car program, an alternative first responder vehicle that can be dispatched to non-emergency calls. Photo by Christy Steadman times, savings in fuel costs, utilization rates and decreasing fire engine and ambulance hours. Staffing is also in consideration. Pasker said eight people are needed for one fire engine or medic unit, but a Quick Car only needs two people. Personnel of a Quick Car includes a para-
medic and an emergency medical technician who have access to advanced life support equipment and supplies, cardiac monitors, gas detectors, thermal imagers and onboard computers inside the vehicle. Emergency responders in a Quick Car are able to assess Vehicles continues on Page 9
Locked in a tight re-election campaign, U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman on Aug. 26 released his first television ad, targeted at a demographic that will be crucial in determining whether he keeps his seat. The ad aims to appeal to women voters by touting Coffman’s congressional record on issues like sexual assault reform in the military and gender discrimination in health Coffman insurance pricing. But Democrats, especially Andrew Romanoff, Coffman’s opponent in this fall’s 6th Congressional District race, hope CD 6 continues on Page 9