Families make emotional plea to board to keep some Denver Public Schools open amid closure proposal
Nearly 100 parents, teachers, and students with Denver Public Schools spoke out during a public comment session Monday night in an effort to dissuade school board leaders from moving forward with a proposal to close and or restructure 10 schools in the district.
"Are the savings worth the damages that you're inflicting, when neighborhood schools close, students are forced to attend schools that are farther from their homes, in locations that don't meet the family's needs," said Diana Kessel, whose children attend Palmer Elementary School.
The seven schools listed for closure as part of Superintendent Alex Marrero's proposal are:
- Columbian Elementary School
- Castro Elementary School
- Schmitt Elementary School
- International Academy of Denver at Harrington
- Palmer Elementary School
- West Middle School
- Denver School of Innovation and Sustainable Design
Three other schools would be restructured as part of the proposal:
- Kunsmiller Creative Arts Academy will lose its 1st through 5th grade classes, keeping only 6th through 12th grades
- Dora Moore ECE-8 School will lose its 6th through 8th grade classes
- DCIS Baker 6-12 will lose its high school classes
While Marrero cited the need for these changes, in part, because of a trending decline in enrollment and use of classroom space, many families argue the impact will do more harm to students than good.
"The closures deliberately target and impact Latino students in which the majority qualify for free and reduced lunch," said one high school student at Denver School of Innovation and Sustainable Design.
Monday's public comment session comes less than two weeks since Marrero announced the proposal. The following week, school board members hosted meetings at each school that would be affected.
Families feel like the process was rushed.
"I'm disappointed in the process he suggested with a vote on a package of school closures rather than individual schools. I'm disappointed in the extremely short timeline from recommendation to vote," said one Palmer Elementary parent.
Others expressed their concerns about how the announcement to close or restructure schools across the district will impact their children's mental health.
"That's what I'm worried about. These poor kids are caught in the middle of us adults. They shouldn't be discussing their school closing. They should be talking about normal kid stuff," said parent Karl Schuch.
Rosario C de Baca, who attended and spoke at the meeting, says her five children all attended DPS schools. She wants to ensure future families within the district have the same opportunities as her children.
"That the district stop making the families sacrifice so much," she said. "I want to continue helping the young parents succeed in their efforts to get their children educated."
This Thursday, the school board will make a final determination on whether to approve the proposal to close and restructure this list of schools.