The Democrats for Education Reform-Colorado Advisory Committee is pleased to announce its endorsements for the DPS School Board races.
Members of the DFER-CO Advisory Committee are: State Board of Education member Elaine Gantz Berman, former Speaker of the House Terrance Carroll, Lt. Governor Joe Garcia, Hollie Velasquez Horvath, Senator Mike Johnston, Tom Kaesemeyer, Donna Lynne, Courtney Messenbaugh, former Lt. Governor Barbara O’Brien, former State Representative Christine Scanlan, Van Schoales, and Mary Shay.
DFER interviewed seven candidates for the At-Large, District 1, and District 5 races. Based on candidate questionnaire responses and our interviews with the candidates, DFER-CO is endorsing the candidates whom we believe most closely align with our vision and priorities for Denver Public Schools.
Overall, these candidates will approach DPS’s future with a practical approach that is driven by what’s best for Denver’s students. Each of these candidates has a laser focus on using the best practices in schools and districts around the country to drive student learning and achievement in Denver. None of these candidates is tied to one particular policy, program, or school structure other than those that are working or show great promise of working for kids. While other candidates might “talk the talk,” each of the candidates we are endorsing “walk the walk” when it comes to these specific principles:
- Work in partnership with the Superintendent to aggressively pursue strategies to raise student achievement and close the achievement gap among students
- Support “outside the box” strategies to provide quality public school options for students in all areas of the city
- Support using student achievement data as a criteria in teacher, principal, and school evaluations