Barbara was raised in Lakewood, Colorado, the third of four children born to a wonderful set of parents. They taught her to be honest, hard-working, thrifty, and curious. Summers were spent at their mountain home or climbing Colorado’s Fourteeners; winters were spent skiing and snowshoeing. Barbara earned a degree in journalism from Colorado State University in Fort Collins. After graduation, she was one of 12 journalism majors in the country to be selected as a Pulliam Fellow in Indianapolis. However, her heart was still in Colorado, so she accepted a job with the Durango Herald. While there, she wrote about life in the Southwest and created an environmental column, for which she won an award for best column in the state.
As a public school teacher for 20 years, I have worked hard on building a robust education program on the Western Slope.
Despite the budgetary constraints, I worked across the aisle to pass several pieces of legislation that benefits Colorado's students. I passed a bill that gives non-traditional students the ability to earn college credit for the learning that they do while working.
As higher learning institutes move away from using standardized tests as a measure of success, I knew that it was important to pass legislation that gives students the choice to include their national test scores on their official high school transcripts.
I also worked across the aisle with my Republican colleagues to pass legislation that eliminates unnecessary testing. This bill eliminates the state-wide social studies assessment requirement, which hasn't been administered since the 2014-15 school year.
I also worked to streamline the requirements for educator stipends to increase the number of quality educators in rural areas, increase accountability in educator preparation programs, and remove arbitrary limits on the number of applicants for the educator loan forgiveness program to increase participation across the state.
Coloradan children and their families will need help adjusting to the new normal under COVID-19. This session, I will work together with my colleagues to ensure that all Colorado families have access to a quality, safe education whether they choose to educate their children at home or send them to school.