Author: Melanie Asmar
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Colorado test scores a ‘mixed bag’ — again — at innovation schools, new report finds
For at least the third time in the 15 years since Colorado lawmakers created them, innovation schools have gotten middling marks in a new report meant to measure whether freeing the schools from bureaucracy boosts student test scores. The report by the Keystone Policy Center found that students who attend innovation schools did no better…
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Auon’tai Anderson is dropping out of the Denver school board race to run for a state House seat
Denver school board Vice President Auon’tai Anderson is dropping his re-election bid and will run instead for a seat in the Colorado House of Representatives. The 24-year-old is the most high-profile member of the Denver school board, and his exit from the race will mean a change in the dynamics of the board, which has been…
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13 Denver campuses will have police officers after spring break
Thirteen Denver high school campuses will have at least one police officer stationed on campus next week when students return from spring break, a police department spokesperson confirmed Friday. That’s well short of the number spelled out in the Denver school board’s recent direction to put as many as two police officers at all high…
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Denver will close its pandemic-era online elementary school despite parent pleas
Denver will shut down its pandemic-era online elementary school at the end of this school year, district officials announced at a school board meeting Monday. Parents and teachers pleaded to save the school, describing the range of students who have benefitted, including neurodiverse students who find in-person classes overstimulating, students with high anxiety, those whose…
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Where are the kids? Colorado school enrollment trends shed light on closure discussions
As three large metro area school districts grapple with school closures due to declining enrollment, a common question looms: Where did all the children go? To help answer that question, Chalkbeat looked at school enrollment data, county birth rate data and U.S. census data showing the number of children under 18 living in each school…
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Five DPS schools on closure list may get reprieve
Five Denver schools recommended for closure could get a temporary reprieve. Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero announced late Thursday that he was changing his recommendation. Out of 10 schools initially recommended for closure, five are still a high priority to close because they get the largest budget subsidies, he said in a press release.…
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10 Denver schools recommended for closure
Eight Denver elementary schools, one K-8 school and one middle school could close at the end of this school year if the school board follows recommendations Superintendent Alex Marrero announced Tuesday. The 10 schools would consolidate with other schools in the district. All 10 are district-run schools. The board will hear a presentation on the…
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Denver School of the Arts not supportive of disabilities, parents say
Charlie Perlow and her mother remember meetings with Denver School of the Arts administrators where they would say Perlow “just needs to try harder.” “That was super discouraging for someone who is trying their best,” Perlow said. Perlow has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia, and though she graduated in 2020, the 20-year-old said she…
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Denver recommends closing alternative high school
A small alternative high school in far northeast Denver could close if the school board follows a recommendation from district leaders. Denver Public Schools leaders are recommending that Montbello Career and Technical High School shutter at the end of this school year, partly to make room for another school. Montbello Career and Technical, which serves…
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Superintendent Marrero offering new strategic plan for Denver Public Schools
A year into his tenure, Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero is rolling out a new strategic plan to guide Colorado’s largest school district. The plan, which Marrero calls a road map, focuses on three broad goals: improving the student experience, improving the adult experience for educators and families, and replacing “ineffective, destructive systems” with…