I have a lot of hope for the future. I know that my role is more than teaching the academic skills needed for kindergarten. It is teaching them how to have a voice and communicate their needs in appropriate ways to other kids and adults.
Many undocumented students face this reality every day. At every step the walls of bureaucracy are higher and wider than anything we could have imagined.
A school board and administration that decides to limit public comment sessions to two hours, that withholds public records, that holds illegal secret meetings, that denies legitimate researchers data because they suspect bias, has become so insular and defensive that it has lost its grip on reality, not to mention the public’s trust.
I aspire to be a candidate for all of Denver, regardless of (my DCTA) endorsement, so I want to succinctly explain some of my key beliefs so that everyone knows where I stand.
Sia: As someone who has been the president of a teachers union and worked in charter schools, I have a unique perspective on both sides of the issue.
At Cole Arts & Science Academy we are intentional about supporting our Hispanic students in a way that feels authentic to their educational experience and to the experiences of their families living in our communities.
Denver school board member Scott Baldermann, running for reelection in southeast Denver, favors taking away much of schools’ autonomy over how they spend their money and giving that responsibility back to the central office.
Educator Cesar Sanchez: My love for teaching started when I was a kid. When I came to the United States at 14 years old and faced challenges, I knew education was where I needed to be to fuel that passion.
Resign DPS Board’s primary survey takeaway is the following: The incumbents who seek to remain in office and the Denver community are further apart than ever in what they want from DPS. Community members across Denver want DPS to focus on two things: Ensuring our staff and students are safe and improving academic outcomes for all students.
I was deeply disappointed to learn that a time limit had been set for the DPS community to speak up because I knew that would limit me as a working mother from giving my perspective as a Hispanic/Latina/Mexican constituent.
Maybe it is time for all of us to say NO to the board’s request for a $44 million mill levy tax increase. I am torn. Denver’s teachers need to be paid more. But I do not see how Denver will ever do better by most of its students without a clear plan, transparency, honest discussion of progress, and real accountability for student success — none of which this board has offered.
News broke midday Thursday that DJ Torres, who has served on the Denver Public Schools Board of Education, had resigned, effective immediately. So what happens now? And how will this affect the problematic board dynamics? We invited to the podcast to discuss this Parker Baxter, Scholar in Residence and Director of the Center for Education Policy Analysis at the School of Pubic Affairs at the University of Colorado Denver. Baxter is also a lawyer, and spent 20 years working on education policy, including a stint in the central office of Denver Public Schools during the Tom Boasberg era.
Alleged antisemitic statements by Denver school board member Monica Hunter aimed at her colleague Amy Klein Molk are problematic. Equally troubling, however, is why the superintendent and board president sat on them for nine months until it became politically expedient to release them. In this episode, co-hosts Alexis Menocal Harrigan and Alan Gottlieb discuss whether board relationships and trust in board President Xóchitl Gaytán and Superintendent Alex Marrero are irreparably damaged, and if so, what should happen as a result.
This is High Rockies Community School, a K-8 public charter school located at Sacramento Creek Ranch outside Fairplay. The four-day-a-week school is most notable for holding almost all of its instruction outdoors.
The Denver school board on Thursday, Sept. 17 voted unanimously to launch an investigation into allegations that board Director Monica Hunter made anti-semitic comments about fellow board member Amy Klein Molk, who is Jewish. In this episode, co-hosts Alexis Menocal Harrigan and Alan Gottlieb discuss the meeting’s bizarre twists and turns, and impacts on Denver Public Schools students, with Nicholas Hernández, executive director of the advocacy group Transform Education Now.
At the September 17 Denver Public Schools Board of Education public comment session, 14 people addressed the board and community about allegations leveled against two board members by the board President Xóchitl Gaytán, with an assist from Superintendent Alex Marrero. Two comments stood out, so we are publishing them here.
In its 2024–25 State of Charter Schools Report, the Colorado Department of Education concluded that charter schools had lower chronic absenteeism rates than non-charter schools in each of the previous three years.
In this episode, cohosts Alexis Menocal Harrigan and Alan Gottlieb discuss the latest Denver school board imbroglio, including potentially serious allegations, and its implications for Colorado’s largest school district.
Last week, Boardhawk published a detailed analysis of Denver Public Schools’ 2026 state test score (CMAS) data, as well as an evaluation of the state school performance framework rating of DPS. We invited the author of the piece, Cody Ostenson, on the podcast to discuss the findings.
Students across rural Colorado have been back in school for a few weeks now. In far too many of their classrooms, they were greeted by a brand-new teacher. In some, they’ll find a rotating substitute, a class merged into one down the hall, or simply no permanent teacher at all, because the position was never filled. While not a perfect proxy for teacher effectiveness, the data that is available on turnover, vacancies, and certifications are the best available proxies we have in Colorado.
Should Denver voters say no to DPS mill levy?
Maybe it is time for all of us to say NO to the board’s request for a $44 million mill levy tax increase. I am torn. Denver’s teachers need to be paid more. But I do not see how Denver will ever do better by most of its students without a clear plan, transparency, honest discussion of progress, and real accountability for student success — none of which this board has offered.