Window 7.18.13
July 18, 2013
50 cents
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourwestminsternews.com
Adams County and Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 68, Issue 39
Cash flow challenge targeted Bill aims to allow pot businesses to bank By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com
Students in the Adams 12 Five Start School Districts summer PEAK program work on a science experiment at Federal Heights Elementary. Photo by Ashley Reimers
Summer school program expands By Ashley Reimers
areimers@ourcoloradonews.com With help from grant funding, more students are benefiting from the Adams 12 Five Start Schools Summer PEAK Program. The program is now serving double the number of students, with up to 240 children receiving extra educational opportunities. The district received two Expanded Learning Opportunities grants from the Colorado Department of Education totalling $78,000 that allowed the program to expand and offer transportation services to students. The Summer PEAK Program is at four schools, Rocky Mountain, Federal Heights, McElwain and North Star elementary schools. The program at North Star focuses on literacy and goal setting while the program at the other three schools focuses on STEM, science, technology, engineering and math, education. “At North Star, the focus is really on literacy and we work with the Center for Safe Schools to also focus on the students’
‘Their engagement in the classroom is improving as well as their performance. Their attendance is even better, so I know PEAK is making a difference.’ Stephaine Hansen, director of program
social and emotional development,” said Stephanie Hansen, director of the Summer PEAK Program. “At the other schools we have certified staff delivering the science curriculum in a way that is engaging and fun.” The program is offered to students going into grades third through fifth and the student must be at least a grade level behind in reading. The program is an extension of the district’s after school program. During the summer students attend the program from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday through Thursdays. Hansen said with transportation services now available, she’s already seen a
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huge difference in terms of enrollment. On the first day of the program, there were 59 students at the North Star location, compared to 36 students total at the school last summer. “The grant has really allowed us to expand our services to the kids by being able to offer transportation to and from the program as well as being able to hire more staff,” she said. “This summer we are also going to be able to have some field trips for the students.” Hansen said at this point in time she doesn’t have any hard data on students’ progress in the PEAK Program, but she is looking to hire an outside consultant to help pull out numbers and data information. Even without statistical data, Hansen said she can definitely see a difference within the students who are participating in the program. “The teacher and parent surveys are all very positive and we can definitely see growth in the kids,” she said. “Their engagement in the classroom is improving as well as their performance. Their attendance is even better, so I know PEAK is making a difference.”
A lot of green will come and go from storefronts when retail marijuana businesses open in Colorado next year. Nevermind the drug, it’s the color of money. Stores that are legally able to sell pot typically operate on a cash-only basis because federal laws prohibit banks from doing business with them. But Colorado Rep. Ed Perlmutter is seeking a change with a bill that would allow legitimate pot shops the ability to access banking services. “We gotta do it,” Perlmutter, the Golden Democrat, told Colorado Community Media in a recent interview. Perlmutter “We have got to get away from having them only deal with cash, which creates a lot of problems.” Perlmutter, along with Rep. Denny Heck, D-Washington, have introduced the Marijuana Business Access to Banking Act in Congress. The bill would shield banks and credit unions from prosecution for doing business with places that sell pot. “Right now we have a situation where a banker tells someone, ‘Wait a second, I’d love to do business with you, but I have law enforcement agencies Pot continues on Page 20
Governor tips hand in support of tax-hike ballot proposal Ballot question would fund school finance overhaul By Vic Vela
vvela@ourcoloradonews.com Gov. John Hickenlooper acknowledged on July 10 that the tax hike being proposed to fund a new school finance formula is not his “exact preference,” but it is one that he thinks is “winnable” and will support. The governor’s comments, which followed an unrelated Capitol press conference, mark the first time Hickenlooper has told reporters he supports the specific tax initiative tied to a school funding overhaul that advocates have recently decided to pursue. The two-tiered tax hike — which will have a greater impact on higher wage earners — would fund Senate Bill 213, the “Future School Finance Act,” so long as voters approve a ballot initiative that will create about $950 million in new Tax-Hike continues on Page 20