News Release
Dec. 3, 2004
DPS Commission On Secondary School Reform Holds Community Forum On Thursday, Dec. 9
The Denver Public Schools Commission on Secondary School Reform will hold a community forum from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 9 in the Manual Educational Complex auditorium, 1700 E. 28th Ave.
The commission would like to gather input from community members in order to inform its recommendations. The evening will continue a conversation about school reform with the Denver community, and there will be more opportunities for community involvement in the upcoming year.
Specifically, the commission is interested in hearing responses to the questions: what do you think is going well in Denver's public high schools; what would you like to see change; and what should Denver's high schools look like in the future?
At the forum, those interested in speaking will have a short period of time to express their ideas to the commissioners. It is not necessary to sign up to speak before the forum.
If community members choose not to speak at the forum or are unable to attend, they may submit their comments in writing to the commission that evening or by emailing Liz Aybar at Elizabeth_Aybar@dpsk12.org.
The commission began its work on May 21 and has spent the past six months analyzing information about the current state of Denver's high schools, reviewing research about high schools, and hosting activities to learn more about what will be best for Denver's high school students. These activities include discussing their ideas and findings at monthly meetings; shadowing students in Denver's high schools in September; hosting a colloquium on high school reform models that brought in nine national models to discuss their ideas, successes and challenges in October; and holding a student and teacher forum in November. Commissioners and commission staff have also talked with teachers, principals, DPS personnel and people in the education community and the general public.
The commission's charge is to make recommendations to the DPS Board that will significantly improve the success of all students, increase graduation rates and lower dropout rates. The commission will identify priorities for the Board of Education and DPS administrators for the use of the funds from the mill levy that voters approved in November 2003. The mill levy initiatives included $2 million earmarked for secondary school reform. The commission also will suggest how existing resources can be maximized to make positive changes in high school education.
The commission has 27 members, including students, postsecondary educators, and representatives of foundations, think-tanks, businesses and community organizations.
The commission is co-chaired by Lucia Guzman, vice president of the Denver Board of Education, and Dorothy Horrell, president of the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation. Patricia McNeil serves as the executive director of the commission and Elizabeth Aybar as the assistant director.
The commission's recommendations are due to the Board of Education in January 2005.
Minutes from the commission's meetings are posted online at dcssr.dpsk12.org along with details on the 27 members of the commission.
For more information about the commission, please visit the website or contact Liz Aybar via phone at 303-594-1509 or via e-mail at Elizabeth_Aybar@dpsk12.org.