By Moira Cullen, DFER-CO State Director and Van Schoales, DFER-CO Advisory Committee member
On June 30th, the Denver Public School Board voted unanimously on nine separate proposals for new charter and innovation schools. That’s right, the DPS Board that is notorious for its contentious 4-3 split on nearly every major policy (turnarounds, innovation schools and charters) voted 7-0 in favor of these promising new schools. Here’s hoping that this is a sign of the Board’s commitment to putting kids first with our new reform minded mayor-elect, Michael Hancock.
The new charter schools, which will be located in all quadrants of the city, include: an all-boys K-12 charter modeled after a school in New Orleans and backed by former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, two additional West Denver Prep middle school campuses and a new West Denver Prep high school, a new KIPP elementary school, two new Denver School of Science and Technology campuses, a K-5 performance school being started by a current DPS principal and district educators, and a new preschool-8 charter school started by a Get Smart Schools fellow.
In addition, with hopes of turning around the performance of some of Denver’s most struggling schools, the Board approved “innovation status” for a number of existing district schools, which will provide school leaders and staff with autonomy and flexibility from district regulations. The Board also approved a turnaround plan for West High School – which has the lowest graduation rate and highest remediation rate in Denver – and will require the phase out of the traditional high school and, in 2012, the beginning of two new 6-12 programs, both run in partnership with NY based Generation Schools and College Board, in its place.