DPS investigates de-escalation room at McAuliffe International School
UPDATE: McAuliffe International School Interim Principal Micah Klaver sent a letter to parents Friday addressing the de-escalation room at the school.
Denver Public Schools is investigating a de-escalation room, or seclusion room, at McAuliffe International School. DPS board members say that a whistleblower told them that students of color were being locked inside the room.
This is the latest investigation into McAuliffe International School after the principal, Kurt Dennis, was sent a termination letter by the district last month. Dennis had shared concerns regarding student pat downs on kids who are deemed a safety threat, saying he had concerns about student privacy laws. The DPS school board will make the final decision on his termination on Aug. 24.
The school, the largest middle school in DPS, has been at the center of controversy since the termination announcement, citing that Dennis had released confidential information.
RELATED: Denver middle school principal fired, allegedly broke student privacy laws
During a news conference on Thursday, at least one DPS board member said the police need to investigate the locked room at the school and how students of color are treated at the school.
"I received an email from a whistleblower that identifies as a member of the McAuliffe staff and stated in their email, "Students of color were locked in multiple times last year and this lock is on the outside of the door," said DPS board member Auon'tai Anderson.
DPS released pictures of locks placed on doors and windows at the school. The locks were placed on the outside of the de-escalation rooms for students with behavioral issues.
According to DPS, this was not a proper de-escalation room, according to district policy. Policy doesn't permit a student to be left alone in a room. DPS told CBS News Colorado that information from the general council is that mainly male students who are brown and Black were placed in that room.
An attorney representing Dennis told CBS News Colorado the room or rooms are to provide students with disabilities or behavioral issues a place to calm down.
"Part of their individual educational plan -- which my understanding is that is devised with counselors with admins, parents and psychologists, everybody agreed the IEP with these two students includes the de-escalation room because they get out of control and they can get violent," said David Lane.
Lane says Dennis did put a latch on the door of the room that was used in January but only used it for a short period of time.
"Kurt Dennis has not used this for 9 years. They engage in a tug of war because DPS says you can't lock them in, so don't lock them in," he said.
In a Friday email to McAuliffe parents, Interim Principal Micah Klaver said the school community will make healing a priority.
"This community has scars of racial discrimination and trauma that have existed long before McAuliffe," the more-than-1,000-word email read, in part. "The lack of historical context both in our school community and the community at large creates attitudes and behaviors that allow implicit and explicit biases to persist. We have to start talking. We welcome those who desire to have hard conversations and ultimately turn words into action. We have started this work and are developing structures that we hope will bring community stakeholders from our Black, Latino, Asian, and White communities together to begin engaging in this journey."
The full letter can be found below. If you have difficulty viewing this on your device, click here.
