Legislative Updates 

This week, I presented my bill (SB 204), The Role of Certain Southern Colorado University Campuses, in front of the Senate Education Committee.  SB 204 is a bill that is necessary to help CSU-Pueblo and UCCS, establish new roles which would expand their programming in select fields. In 2004, the American Assoc. of Colleges of Nursing issued a position statement that the Doctorate of Nursing Practice becomes the entry level for nurse practitioner practice in accredited universities. CSU-Pueblo, if granted the change, would be able to offer a Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) as an entry level degree for nurse practitioner practice instead of the current Master’s level.  Basically, this would enable the school to remain competitive with the other 120 established university programs in the country.  Four schools within the State of Colorado have initiated DNP programs in their schools and CSU-Pueblo would like to do the same.

This bill was important to me and important for Pueblo because 40% of graduates from CSU-Pueblo’s nursing program are practicing within Pueblo.  With our growing healthcare needs and with 12 of Pueblo’s surrounding counties designated as a Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) in 2009, it would seem logical to support the school in every way possible to help overcome that shortage by training students to their fullest potential. The bill passed unanimously out of committee and it felt good to run another bill that garnered bipartisan support. I want to thank Dr. Julio Leon, CSU-Pueblo interim president, for coming to testify in support of the bill.

The ASSET Bill (unsubsidized in-state tuition for undocumented students) cleared the Senate on Monday and is headed to the House. It will be heard in the House Education Committee on Monday, April 25th at 1:30 pm. Head on over to the HEAA website for more info on how YOU can be involved in getting it passed in the House and signed in to law.

Around Pueblo

On Friday, the Senate was not in session, but I was hard at work here in Pueblo.  Governor John Hickenlooper, Lt. Governor Joe Garcia and a few other legislators were present at the ribbon cutting at CSU-Pueblo’s newly renovated  Library. Steve Nawrocki and I were standing in the crowd of a few hundred people and they called my name to come help cut the ribbon! I stood next to Steve Titus, CSU-Pueblo Student Body President and Ken West of Houston Construction. Rhonda Gonzales, the Library’s Dean, even gave me a piece of the ribbon to take home. So, as a CSU-Pueblo alumnus, I proudly own a piece of its history and its future.  We also attend a luncheon, sponsored by Action 22, and it was great to have a number of the Governor’s cabinet members here in Pueblo. I spent the afternoon touring the steel mill with the Governor. Evraz is a major employer in the state with the ability to create new and additional high-paying jobs with plans to hire 50 additional workers in order to keep the mill at full capacity.

This month’s Community Coffee did not draw many constituents but, I knew I was up against Easter egg hunts and Earth Day festivities. I am committed to continuing to have monthly town halls (next one – Sat., May 21st at the Rawlings Library; topic – mental health) and coffees in order to provide opportunities for outreach to the folks here in Pueblo whom I represent.  My friend, Simon Tafoya, came to the community coffee this morning. Simon was in town visiting his family but came to Colorado last week on behalf of his boss, US Senator Mark Udall.  I had lunch with Simon to hear about the latest in Washington D.C. and pick his brain a bit about agriculture. Happy Earth Day, everyone - I’m celebrating by staying indoors – it’s freeeeezing outside!