Jones taking vision statewide

Dwight Jones built a reputation on the idea that war, poverty and race are not excuses for students to fail — and he backed it up with test scores.

Now, as the lone finalist for the state’s top education job, the Fountain-Fort Carson School District 8 school chief plans to take that mission to 177 other school districts.

The Colorado State Board of Education made the announcement at its Thursday meeting and expects to officially hire Jones in two weeks. Jones, 44, would replace William Moloney, who has held the post for 10 years and implemented the Colorado Student Assessment Program, statewide standardized achievement tests.

The education commissioner is the chief executive officer of Colorado’s public school

system and oversees about 300 employees. The Education Department is responsible for state standards and testing, school district accreditation, teacher licensing, compliance with No Child Left Behind, and other regulatory and policy issues.

Jones is a passionate advocate of school accountability and using data to help students achieve more. At the same time, he believes the world of educational statistics can be confusing for parents and hopes to bring some clarity to it.

He came to Fountain-Fort Carson — and Colorado — in 2001 as an assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction and was promoted to superintendent two years later. Before then, he worked for four years as operational vice president for the New York-based Edison School Program, a for-profit company that contracts with school districts to manage elementary and secondary schools. He got his start in education as an elementary school teacher in Junction City, Kan.

More than half the students in Fountain-Fort Carson are from military families, and a high percentage are poor or minorities. Yet the district has seen steadily improving achievement despite deployments, war-related deaths, and students’ problems at home.

The district has one of the lowest minority achievement gaps in the state, and Jones has served on a state committee to address the issue.

Jones also initiated a program this year to issue every Fountain-Fort Carson High School student and teacher a laptop computer as part of a sweeping initiative to prepare every student for a technologydriven economy. The program was piloted this December and is expected to go schoolwide beginning in the fall.

State education officials and politicians have taken notice of the district south of Colorado Springs. Former Gov. Bill Owens, in his 2005 State of the State address, praised Jones for leading one of the most dramatic turnarounds in achievement in Colorado in spite of the challenges.

Mike Miles, who worked as an assistant superintendent under Jones and is now superintendent of Harrison School District 2, welcomed Thursday’s news. “I think Dwight will serve us well. I’m glad to see an educator who’s been there helping the state out in that role,” Miles said.

He said his former boss was a coach for principals and had a knack for communicating his passion for education to others.

Jones said he hopes his experience as a superintendent and teacher will help him as he engages educators in tough discussions about student achievement.

“I do not believe that there is a superintendent in this state . . . that does not want to do what’s best for the kids in their district,” he said.

State board member Peggy Littleton, R-Colorado Springs, said she was drawn to his sense of urgency in getting students to acceptable proficiency levels.

The Fountain-Fort Carson school board will likely meet next week to discuss how it will replace Jones, said board president Dave Herrmann. Herrmann said he was sorry to see Jones go but happy for him and excited about what he can do for Colorado.

“He is someone that truly believes that every student can learn, and I think that’s been proven out in the results that we’ve seen in our district,” Herrmann said.