Other than in San Miguel County, voters in the region agreed with the rest of the state in defeating the measure. In Ouray County Proposition 103 was defeated with 54 percent opposed and in Montrose County a resounding 73 percent voted against it. Going against the grain, San Miguel County voters supported the measure with 52 percent in favor.
Perhaps the most contested race in the region was for an open District D seat on the Montrose County Board of Education where Barbara Bynam and Tom West are nearly in a dead heat. As of Wednesday morning, West had captured 50.4 percent of the vote with Bynam getting 49.5 percent. A Montrose County election official said at the time that it was too close to call.
In Ouray, 57 percent of voters said they liked the way Bob Risch was handling his job by reelected him mayor for another two-year term in office. Richard Kersen and Michael Underwoond were elected to the Ouray City Council by getting 41 and 35 percent of the vote, respectively.
The two open seats on the Ouray School Board were given to Jerry Hellman and Kantee Pasek while the two open seats on the Ridgway School Board were given to Roger Sagal and Sue Williamson, despite an impressive push by write-in candidate Steve Larivee.
Finally, in Ouray County, residents within the Ouray Fire Protection District overwhelming approved a de-Brucing measure (5A) by 71 percent.
In San Miguel County, Cheryl Miller, Paul Reich and Banks Brown were all elected to open seats on the Telluride School Board while Steve Swain, Michelle Barkemeyer and Clint Colson were elected to three open seats on the Norwood School Board.
One tax increase ballot initiative did survive this year’s election as the Town of Ophir’s Proposition A was approved by 60 percent of voters.
It seems to me a teacher can teach very well (assuming they are themselves reasonably well educated) simply by application of the same work ethic that the parents of their students must apply to put food on the table.
But just recently married again and my new wife is a teacher. She doesn't make 80k a year and comes home exhausted and I come to realize how tough teaching is and we really need good dedicated teachers to teach our kids well.
I believe teachers in our state are paid less then most other states so I would hope any raises go toward the teachers where the rubber meets the road
so in a a little bit of self interest and to keep the peace in my family I voted for the
increase
But I see yours and Faces points
Just throwing money at the problem is not working in light of our students achievements in the tough subjects such as Math ond science
I don't know what the solution is but our students seem to prefer the easier subjects while our top graduate schools are filled with foreign students who are willing to work hard
How do we change that?
All those countries that show superior results in math and sciences. I wonder if they spent as much per capita on their kids?
The Kids our America's future but I sometime I feel blackmailed that if I don't support these school tax initiatives that I am letting these kids down
Great points in your analysis. What I would like to see is a proposal that addresses the most needy of our children. By and large the metrics show that being from an impoverished family leads to poor educational prowess. So, Mr. Jarvis, show me a plan to get money to the poorest kids and I will throw my support behind it. Show me a plan that is used simply by bloated admin and under-performing teachers and I will work against it (ie, 103).
The bottom line is that we have too great a wealth disparity between rich and poor and we need to address this growing problem and fix it now. Supporting teachers at 80k for 9 months of work is not how this is done.
The Occupy bunch have a point. It is Us vs. Them and as a society we need to address this great wealth inequality. I am no 99 percenter by any means and I hear and see what the Occupy bunch are saying. They are correct!
Kids are at stake. Generations. I grew up in the south side of Chicago and I know whole neighborhoods of black kids who never got a chance for a decent education and thus were trapped. What makes me angry about last years budget cuts at Telluride Schools (600k) is that 2 few teachers were laid off, the admin did not take a pay cut but the people who really paid for the budget cut? The poor kids from Shandoka and out county who needed the additional computer and supply resources..80% of the cuts came from the poor kids resource pool. This is a fact; look it up.
Maybe it is Tax The Rich but if so, it shouldnt be Support the Union bunch with the new found money.
It's almost as if we're hearing that teachers don't have the necessary inherent independent abilities to convey a beneficial educational experience & that a much larger (and often bloated system) is where the key to success resides. I'm sure Laura Ingalls (Little House on the Prarie) and teachers way back when were often forced to learn how to be creative & productive with far far less.
I started out snowboarding 20 years ago on a $15 tattered board/bindings from a ski swap along with standard Sorels for my first season. I'm 100% convinced that I'm way better off now for this vs. if I had started out on an expensive new rig. I was forced to learn the nuances of how to ride whereas new equipment makes it easy to jump start your learning curve; however, I believe the latter often undermines a rudimentary understanding the underlying dynamics of what's at play.
While I recognize the need for administration, it's truly just an ancilliary aspect of the eductational experience and ought to be minimized to the greatest extent possible ... especially in trying economic times. Reminds me a bit how Jerry Krause (former GM of the Chicago Bulls) liked to take ultimate credit for winning NBA championships. Sorry, nobody would be wearing any rings without Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, etc. Sure, someone had to put the cast together ... but this is not where the "talent" resides. On the contrary, it's with the "boots on the ground". Good teachers will still be able to teach, even if every kid doesn't have an ipad at their desk.
I join the editorial boards of the Denver Post and many smaller newspapers. Governor Hickenlooper knew it was going to fail as he commented, " (Coloradans) have no appetite for a tax hike this year."
Facts are stubborn things and a sales tax increase has a disproportionate negative effect on the poor; it is regressive by nature.
It was predicted by a non partisan think tank that these combined tax increases would destroy 119,000 private sector jobs over the next 5 years.
Finally, 103 only provided for revenue increases to the schools and no cost controls or special mandates, ie no more administrative salary increases-any new money must be directed to working with poorer children or handicapped children. It was a sop to the admin and school unions and they were its biggest financial sponsors.
Beat my chest tonight! You betcha! This is a win for common sense and the regular man and woman.
RFP's comment is another one of his typical, chest beating answers that goes nowhere except to make himself feel good.
To say that school administrators have bloated budgets just isn't true. School districts in the region have made hard budget cut decisions the past four years. Their budgets are paper thin.
I, for one, feel for teachers and administrators who are having to do more with less to teach our children. I feel even more for those good teachers who may lose their jobs because of this economy.
Sacrificing future generations' education may be the worst effect to come out of this recession.
Keep up the good work teachers, students, parents, and administrators. There are some who still have your back.
Instead of just raising taxes (for the kids!) the school administrators will need to take a hard look at their own bloated administration budgets, ask more from the teachers union and demand more performance from the kids.
Just like the private sector-do more with less or in this case, do more with alot. State funding of schools is exceptional and performance does not reflect this abundance.
Great news!