There was so much emotion and political warfare surrounding the teacher tenure bill that legislators approved Wednesday, you might have thought the measure was going to end public education as we know it.
For better or worse, that's unlikely. But it will, for the first time, hold Colorado teachers accountable in a fair and objective way for the learning that happens in their classrooms.
The measure also puts Colorado at the vanguard of education reform nationwide. It is designed to refocus the educational mission, making great teaching and student achievement a no-excuses proposition.
Beyond policy, the tenure bill tested traditional alliances at the Capitol, as Democrats who believed in the reform found themselves at odds with a longtime ally, the powerful Colorado Education Association teachers union.
The passage of the bill, hard fought through the final hours of the session, makes the evaluations of teachers and principals dependent, in part, on the educational advancement of their students. Those who repeatedly fail to move their students academically risk losing their tenure and perhaps even their jobs.