Colorado ESEA Flexibility Amendment



Date: December 19, 2012

The Honorable Robert Hammond
Commissioner of Education
State Department of Education
201 E. Colfax Avenue, Suite 500
Denver, CO 80203-1799

Dear Commissioner Hammond:

I am writing in response to the Colorado Department of Education’s (CDE’s) request to amend its approved ESEA flexibility request. Following discussions between the U.S. Department of Education (Department) and your staff regarding the proposed revisions to Colorado’s approved request, the Department has determined that the revised request is consistent with principles of ESEA flexibility. For this reason, I am approving CDE’s amended request, which we will post on the Department’s website. A summary of CDE’s requested amendment is enclosed with this letter. As you know, any further requests to amend CDE’s ESEA flexibility request must be submitted to the Department for review and approval.

CDE continues to have an affirmative responsibility to ensure that it and its districts are in compliance with Federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, and age in their implementation of ESEA flexibility as well as their implementation of all other Federal education programs. These laws include Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

I am confident that CDE will continue to implement the reforms set forth in its approved ESEA flexibility request and to advance its efforts to hold schools and school districts accountable for the achievement of all students. If you have any questions regarding the implementation of your ESEA flexibility request, please do not hesitate to contact Victoria Hammer of my staff at Victoria.Hammer@ed.gov or 202-260-1438. Thank you for your commitment to Colorado’s students.

Sincerely,

/s/

Deborah S. Delisle

Enclosure
cc: Pat Chapman
Alyssa Pearson

Amendment to the Colorado Department of Education’s Approved ESEA Flexibility Request

The following is a summary of the Colorado Department of Education’s (CDE’s) amendment request. The Department is approving the following amendment because the CDE’s ESEA flexibility request, as amended, continues to be aligned with the principles of ESEA flexibility. Please refer to the Department’s website (http://www.ed.gov/esea/flexibility) for the CDE’s original and amended ESEA flexibility requests.


Last Modified: 01/31/2013