Aurora announces closure of all schools Thursday due to protest against education cuts

Many schools in the Denver metro area have announced closures Thursday due to staff attending a "No More Education Cuts" statewide Day of Action at the Capitol. In an update Wednesday, Aurora Public Schools announced that all APS schools will be closed on March 20.

In a release, APS said, "The Colorado Education Association is hosting its "No More Education Cuts" statewide Day of Action" tomorrow, Thursday, March 20 for educators to advocate for public education funding. Aurora Public Schools has also actively been advocating for fully funded education. While our primary goal is always to keep our schools open, due to a large number of staff members who have reported absences, we will unfortunately need to close schools tomorrow."

School officials said the ongoing public education funding crisis will significantly impact APS and districts across Colorado. They expressed concern over potential cuts to public education which would lead to reduced staffing, cutting programs, and having fewer resources to support the students.

"We stand firmly in the fight for fully funded schools because our students, staff and community deserve nothing less. We will continue advocating at the legislative level," said district officials.

Thursday will be a non-student contact day, meaning it will be a regular workday for all APS staff members who have not submitted absences.

The district apologized to families that may be impacted by the closures and said regular classes will resume on Friday, March 21.