Offer of free tutoring ignored by families

The Denver Post reports:

Last year, when students at Skyline Vista and Baker elementary schools missed federal math and reading goals for a third consecutive year, officials in the Adams 50 School District did what the law required.

They sent letters to parents in English and Spanish, notifying them that under the federal No Child Left Behind act of 2001, their children were eligible for free tutoring.

Parents, the letters said, could choose from a list of state-approved tutoring companies. The district, the letters said, would spend up to roughly $1,000 and tutoring would be provided by private companies such as Catapult Online or PLATO Learning.

More than 650 families were eligible. A few parents called with questions, but when the sign-up period concluded, "none of our families took us up on that," said Cynthia Davis, a district coordinator.

The triumph of public education.