Good Morning, Colorado, you’re listening to the Daily Sun-Up with the Colorado Sun. It’s Thursday August 26th.

 

Today - Between rising housing costs and a lack of affordable child care many rural school districts are struggling to hire new teachers, and keep existing ones. One approach to addressing this problem is by opening up child care centers of their own.

 

But before we begin, let’s go back in time with some Colorado history adapted from historian Derek R Everett’s book “Colorado Day by Day”:

 

Today, we take you back to August 26th, 1776 when a Spanish expedition consisting of two priests, a cartographer, two aristocrats, and five other men arrived at an area on the Uncompahgre River. They named their campsite “La Cienega de San Francisco”. It still stands today on the south side of Montrose near History Colorado’s Ute Indian Museum.

 

Now, our feature story.

 

Some rural school districts in Colorado are struggling to hire and retain teachers because of a double-whammy of soaring housing costs and a lack of affordable child care. 

 

Faced with chronic staffing shortages, some have decided to open up child care centers of their own in an effort to attract more teachers. Colorado Sun reporter Shannon Najmabadi and Erica Breunlin recently spoke with staff and administrators at local schools to find out more.

 

Najmabadi and Breunlin talk with fellow Sun reporter Daniel Ducassi about what they learned.

 

To read Shannon and Erica’s article, go to coloradosun.com

 

And Before we go, here are a few stories that you should know about today:

 

Beloved Hanging Lake may be mostly off limits to hikers for the next year, but Forest Service managers see opportunity in the hiatus created by massive mudslides in Glenwood Canyon. During a walk up the trail ruined by mudslides the managers said they expect to create a more sustainable trail to the travertine lake that will be better able to handle the crowds of hikers that visit this year. About 15,000 reservations to hike the trail were canceled when the trail was closed earlier this month. The company that manages them said many people are opting to contribute their $12 fee to the trail rehab work.

 

Colorado voters will decide in November whether to raise marijuana taxes to boost out-of-school learning. The Colorado Secretary of State’s Office ruled Wednesday that supporters of Initiative 25 gathered enough signatures to secure a spot on the upcoming ballot. Backers of the Learning Enrichment and Academic Progress Program Initiative, also known as LEAP, easily met the 124,632-signature threshold to qualify for the 2021 statewide election. The initiative would impose a new 3% sales tax on recreational marijuana starting on Jan. 1 and increasing to 5% by Jan. 1, 2024. That's in addition to the existing 15% state sales tax on recreational marijuana.

 

Colorado has only paid out about 7.4% of the $444 million in federal rental assistance funds it had available. The amount of money being paid out is increasing monthly, but the state has hired a new payment vendor to get the money out to tenants and landlords who have been waiting for months for help. Including the $246 million local governments had to hand out, the state started with almost $700 million in federal aid available to people at risk of eviction. 

 

For more information on all of these stories, visit our website, www.coloradosun.com. And don’t forget to tune in again tomorrow for a special holiday episode. Now, a quick message from our editor.

 

The Colorado Sun is non-partisan and completely independent. We're always dedicated to telling the in-depth stories we need today more than ever. And The Sun is supported by readers and listeners like you.

 

Right now, you can head to ColoradoSun.com and become a member. Starting at $5 per month for a basic membership and if you bump it up to $20 per month, you’ll get access to our exclusive politics and outdoors newsletters. Thanks for starting your morning with us and don’t forget to tune in again tomorrow.

 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good Morning, Colorado, you&rsquo;re listening to the Daily Sun-Up with the Colorado Sun. It&rsquo;s Thursday August 26th.
&nbsp;
Today - Between rising housing costs and a lack of affordable child care many rural school districts are struggling to hire new teachers, and keep existing ones. One approach to addressing this problem is by opening up child care centers of their own.
&nbsp;
But before we begin, let&rsquo;s go back in time with some Colorado history adapted from historian Derek R Everett&rsquo;s book &ldquo;Colorado Day by Day&rdquo;:
&nbsp;
Today, we take you back to August 26th, 1776 when a Spanish expedition consisting of two priests, a cartographer, two aristocrats, and five other men arrived at an area on the Uncompahgre River. They named their campsite &ldquo;La Cienega de San Francisco&rdquo;. It still stands today on the south side of Montrose near History Colorado&rsquo;s Ute Indian Museum.
&nbsp;
Now, our feature story.
&nbsp;
Some rural school districts in Colorado are struggling to hire and retain teachers because of a double-whammy of soaring housing costs and a lack of affordable child care.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
Faced with chronic staffing shortages, some have decided to open up child care centers of their own in an effort to attract more teachers. Colorado Sun reporter Shannon Najmabadi and Erica Breunlin recently spoke with staff and administrators at local schools to find out more.
&nbsp;
Najmabadi and Breunlin talk with fellow Sun reporter Daniel Ducassi about what they learned.
&nbsp;
To read Shannon and Erica&rsquo;s article, go to coloradosun.com
&nbsp;
And Before we go, here are a few stories that you should know about today:
&nbsp;
Beloved Hanging Lake may be mostly off limits to hikers for the next year, but Forest Service managers see opportunity in the hiatus created by massive mudslides in Glenwood Canyon. During a walk up the trail ruined by mudslides the managers said they expect to create a more sustainable trail to the travertine lake that will be better able to handle the crowds of hikers that visit this year. About 15,000 reservations to hike the trail were canceled when the trail was closed earlier this month. The company that manages them said many people are opting to contribute their $12 fee to the trail rehab work.
&nbsp;
Colorado voters will decide in November whether to raise marijuana taxes to boost out-of-school learning. The Colorado Secretary of State&rsquo;s Office ruled Wednesday that supporters of Initiative 25 gathered enough signatures to secure a spot on the upcoming ballot. Backers of the Learning Enrichment and Academic Progress Program Initiative, also known as LEAP, easily met the 124,632-signature threshold to qualify for the 2021 statewide election. The initiative would impose a new 3% sales tax on recreational marijuana starting on Jan. 1 and increasing to 5% by Jan. 1, 2024. That's in addition to the existing 15% state sales tax on recreational marijuana.
&nbsp;
Colorado has only paid out about 7.4% of the $444 million in federal rental assistance funds it had available. The amount of money being paid out is increasing monthly, but the state has hired a new payment vendor to get the money out to tenants and landlords who have been waiting for months for help. Including the $246 million local governments had to hand out, the state started with almost $700 million in federal aid available to people at risk of eviction.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
For more information on all of these stories, visit our website,<a href="http://www.coloradosun.com/"> www.coloradosun.com</a>. And don&rsquo;t forget to tune in again tomorrow for a special holiday episode. Now, a quick message from our editor.
&nbsp;
The Colorado Sun is non-partisan and completely independent. We're always dedicated to telling the in-depth stories we need today more than ever. And The Sun is supported by readers and listeners like you.
&nbsp;
Right now, you can head to ColoradoSun.com and become a member. Starting at $5 per month for a basic membership and if you bump it up to $20 per month, you&rsquo;ll get access to our exclusive politics and outdoors newsletters. Thanks for starting your morning with us and don&rsquo;t forget to tune in again tomorrow.
&nbsp;See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.

The Daily Sun-Up

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we’re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at https://coloradosun.com/.

Our intro music is by Matt Skellenger Group: https://mattskellenger.bandcamp.com/album/subspace-transmission 

Welcome to The Colorado Sun's daily podcast, The Daily Sun-Up. Every day we&rsquo;re sharing an in-depth look at one of our top stories, followed by a quick summary of important things happening in our state. For more visit us at <a href="https://coloradosun.com/">https://coloradosun.com/</a>.
Our intro music is by Matt Skellenger Group: <a href="https://mattskellenger.bandcamp.com/album/subspace-transmission">https://mattskellenger.bandcamp.com/album/subspace-transmission</a>&nbsp;