Editor’s note: The SHIFT Chronicles is a monthly feature dedicated to amplifying student voices, where those most impacted by the public education system share their thoughts, reflections, and experiences. In collaboration with FaithBridge SHIFT fellows, these commentaries offer a genuine glimpse into the challenges students are facing within our city’s schools. These students represent a diverse range of schools across the city, each with distinct cultures and expectations, yet all united under the DPS banner. A special thank you to all the student writers who contributed their entries.
This month’s entries focus on student views of the appropriate role of the Denver school board.
Audrey Goodman, senior, East High School
The decisions that school board members make shape almost every part of students’ school experiences, from the textbooks we use to whether we have counselors to talk to.
Denver Public Schools’ mission promises that students will receive an equitable education, will be prepared for college and the future, and will thrive in schools where they belong. As a student, I want to see a school board that takes clear actions to ensure fairness in resources, budgets that reflect a commitment to academic excellence and well-being, and a connection to student voices.
One of the main things I want from the school board is a commitment to equity in its policies.
Students should not have vastly different educational experiences simply because of the neighborhood they attend school in. I want the board to ensure that resources are distributed fairly so that every student can access working air conditioning, updated technology, enough textbooks to learn from, and more.
The focus should be on equity rather than equality, giving more support to historically neglected schools. When basic resources are inconsistent, some students start at a disadvantage before they even step into the classroom.
I want the school board to turn DPS’s promise of equitable education into reality by implementing clear policies that guarantee fairness.
I also want to see leadership truly connected to students, not just focused on test scores or statistics as if no real lives are attached to those numbers.
At East High School, students pushed against a plan to build a vestibule, which many saw as an illusion of safety rather than a real solution. Leadership listened, and the project was paused, showing how student voices can create more effective safety measures.
Students know what safety feels like in our own school buildings, and when leaders listen, solutions are more meaningful. A school board that values student input ensures that schools are safe, supportive, and designed for students to succeed both academically and emotionally.
On that note, I want the board to make budget choices with students’ daily lives in mind and be transparent about how funds are spent. Families and students deserve to know where money goes so we can trust that our needs are prioritized.
I want the board to fund extracurriculars, which are just as important as academics, and ensure enough mental health counselors to support student well-being. Transparency in budgeting builds trust and ensures that resources truly benefit students, reflecting the DPS mission of creating environments where students can thrive.
Finally, I want the board to prepare students for life beyond high school. Funding should support robust college readiness courses, career prep, and life skills classes.
DPS’s updated graduation requirements for the class of 2027 and beyond include a semester of health and a financial literacy standard, which help students gain skills they need in the real world. I hope to see the board taking more actions like this so students are ready to flourish beyond high school.
As a student, I want a school board that promotes fairness, listens to students, makes thoughtful budget decisions, and prepares us for life after high school. School board directors’ choices shape not only our daily experiences but also our futures, and when the board acts with equity, transparency, and care, every student can feel supported, safe, and ready to succeed.
Jada Pulsipher, senior, East High School
As a student, I think that the school board needs to take into consideration students and teachers’ opinions when changing policies that apply to the general population at schools. Hi
A lot of the time the most emphasized school board policies are the ones that affect specific groups of students, for example students who take the bus, or students who have low test scores.
Specific policies like this are extremely important and groups that require extra assistance should be focused on to maximize the success of students at DPS schools. However, more general policies that apply to all students should also have a large place in the discussion.
This year at my school, Denver East High School, new grading policies were implemented that affected every single student. One of these is the distribution of grades. The new policy is that formative, or process assignments, are worth 80% of a student’s grade, while summative, or product assignments are worth 20%.
Before this policy was adapted teachers had the ability to set the standards for grading in their own classroom to go along with the coursework, curriculum, and students.
Now, teachers’ freedom is more limited. For all classes this sets a negative standard for the way they should be run. Secondly, it has caused issues with Advanced Placement classes. The school board is less involved in nationwide curriculum like this where different types of essays and multiple choice are worth different points under the College Board.
This complicates students’ understanding of the class and the final test in May.
To the school board, a policy like this appears to be a simple and basic change that would have minimal effect. Still, many of my teachers have been affected by this change, troubleshooting and trying to figure out how to navigate it.
Students’ grades have looked strange in the first two months of the school year with random 130% or 12% grades. If anyone knows how classes should be graded it is the administrators and teachers who are teaching them and they deserve to have either freedom in the way they grade or a larger say in the policy.
Grading policy significantly affects students’ paths after high school. This problem may be temporary, but I think that close attention should be paid to each and every policy. Smaller groups of students that need extra support, like providing bus passes or creating more effective behavioral policies, should absolutely get the attention they need.
But the general population should always be taken into consideration and the work of understanding the impact of all policies is worth it. Maintaining cognizance of butterfly effects like this is as easy as gathering more teacher input and ensuring that the outcome of policies is positive.
Katie Cole, senior, South High School
As a student, I want to see the school board listen to and include students’ voices when making policies.
The school board holds the ability to make the school system more supportive of students, staff, and families. Listening to students helps the board gain a broader understanding of students’ diverse, firsthand, and unique perspectives on what needs to change inside schools, while also fostering student engagement and nurturing innovation and creativity.
If school boards listen to students’ perspectives and suggestions, the policies they put in place will align with the values of both the community and the board. One of the most important responsibilities of the board is to set school policies. These school policies dictate everything from academic achievement to the well-being of students and families.
School board members only have a limited view of what happens in schools on a daily basis. Students, on the other hand, bring a diverse set of experiences in schools, which can help the board determine if policies are effective, supportive, and equitable. Including student voices in the policy-making process can make the policies more relevant to the people who are directly affected by them.
Parents often make decisions that they think are best for us, based on the information they have. The same is true with the school board. Board members may set policies that they believe will be beneficial, but without the student perspective, they often miss what is really going on and how it will translate into a classroom.
If students and adults work together, we can find a practical solution that balances the needs and perspectives of both sides. When students are being heard, schools are more supportive and tailored to our needs, making us more connected to our education.
Policies addressing our challenges leave more room to succeed. A 2016 report developed by the Quaglia Institute for School Voice and Aspirations found that, “students who believe they have a voice in school are seven times more likely to be academically motivated than students who do not believe they have a voice.”
When students feel like they have a voice in school, they start to believe that their opinions matter. This builds self-confidence and sparks motivation. Jua Fletcher, a class of 2018 graduate from Denver South High School, explains that the “growth that comes with understanding the true value of students in education; that students have the voice, strength, and knowledge to enact change in any system, and have just as much right as anyone to do it, especially in education. Without that understanding, I wouldn’t have been able to recognize those values in myself.”
If students’ opinions are valued, it makes them want to work harder because we can start to see school as a place built with students, not just for them.
The problem is that many students don’t feel like their opinions matter. Findings from the March 2025 “Your Voice” student survey conducted by Denver Public Schools showed that out of 33,087 responses, 64% of students agreed, in some capacity to the prompt, “I am asked to take part in making important decisions at school.”
While a majority of students feel they are included in important decisions, 36% of students don’t. That means that over 11,900 students in DPS alone feel like their voices are not being heard in the place where they spend most of their time.
This is a significant problem because a district can not fully meet the needs of their students if over a third of them feel left out of the decision making process. The school board has the ability to fix this by making student perspectives a priority when it comes to making important decisions and policies.
DPS has many ways for students to get their voices heard. For example, DPS has a Student Board of Education where students can create policy solutions and advocate for change. The problem is that opportunities like these are not widely known or promoted, so many students don’t take part in them..
Younger students also deserve to have a say, not just those in high school. One way they could be included in making decisions is by creating projects at their levels where they could share what they think could improve in their schools, giving them experience in advocacy early on.
In 2019, a coalition of youth advocates from Colorado presented a bill to the state legislature that would have allowed 16 and 17 year olds to vote in school board elections, but the effort was unsuccessful. Even though it didn’t pass, it shows that students care about having their voices heard.
DPS should move in a direction that creates more visible and accessible opportunities for students to give their input, but also allows students to make impactful decisions, like voting for school board members.
The school board has the ability to make schools stronger, more supportive, and more effective for students, staff, and families. Students bring unique perspectives because they live the realities of school every day, and their input can help create policies that are practical, fair, and motivating.
DPS has taken many steps to hear students’ voices, but there is still more work to be done. All students need real opportunities to influence decisions and should be taken seriously.
If DPS and the school board commit to listening and acting on student voices, schools will not only reflect the values of the community, but also give every student an equal chance to succeed.
Lily Becker, junior, George Washington High School
Throughout my academic journey in DPS I have mostly seen board members involving themselves with others in district leadership, not with families and frontline educators.
DPS leaders need to know the real situations parents, students, and teachers are facing at schools.
Before joining FaithBridge I had no idea who the superintendent or the board members were, nor did I have any knowledge of their responsibilities. I know that many other students and families also face that lack of knowledge, or many parents and students are not informed on how to contact anyone on the school board.
I want to see more involvement from the DPS board members/the superintendent with the 99% of parents instead of the 1% who can afford skipping work to attend a DPS public comment. One possible approach to this dilemma is to have school board officials attend local school events.
For example they could attend school games, where many students, parents, and teachers are present. . This would give school board officials the opportunity to get feedback from the 99% of the community that has involvement with DPS schools.
Also, I think it is important for school board members to see first hand how their policies affect DPS schools. Even with the DPS’s $28 million budget increase for the 2025–2026 school year schools are still struggling.
At my school for homecoming week we had several after-school events to increase school spirit.One of the events was a juniors vs. seniors football game. However, to participate in the event, each student had to pay $20 because the school needed funding for certain event-related costs and educational resources.
Students should not have to pay for a school necessary event.
DPS board members need to witness this side of their policies, the side of the 99% who are struggling and whose cries are not being heard. They need to put more effort into trying to get the full perspective of the people, not by families who all drive BMWs.
