Board News
February 16, 2006
Board Of Education Approves Proposal To Close Manual High School For 2006-2007 And Reopen In 2007-2008
The Board of Education today (Thursday, Feb. 16) accelerated steps to reform Manual High School by approving a motion that closes the school for the 2006-2007 school year and re-opens it in 2007-2008.
The motion, proposed by Board vice-president Bruce Hoyt, includes an assurance that every current Manual High School student will receive support in making the decision to transfer to a high-performing high school - such as East, South, George Washington or Thomas Jefferson high schools - for the 2006-2007 school year.
The action went a step further than a staff proposal to not enroll a ninth-grade class next year at Manual and begin with a new program in 2007. Under that plan, students in grades 10, 11 and 12 in 2006-2007 would have been required to attend a school other than Manual beginning in 2007 while the new program would have been launched with ninth-graders only.
But Board member Hoyt said that plan didn't go far enough.
"As I thought about the superintendent's proposal...it seemed clear to me that it was wise to just close it now and start that transition," he said. "The status quo is simply unacceptable." He pointed out that there are only 95 seniors today from an entering class of 475 freshmen four years ago and that 54 percent of students in the neighborhood attend other schools outside of the Manual neighborhood.
As enrollment declines, he argued, the resources shrink, leaving fewer athletics, fewer electives and less opportunity.
Board member Jill Conrad submitted a motion to delay the proposal for a week while the idea was evaluated by the community and some elements of the plan were fleshed out, but her motion failed without a second. The motion passed 6-1, with Conrad casting the lone dissent.
Board member Lucia Guzman said the move is consistent with the Board's mandate to Superintendent Michael Bennet to take bold action. "It will not be popular, but will be bold," she said. "It would be immoral if this board of education did not take these steps."
Added Board member Kevin Patterson: "We can't keep looking for simple solutions to these complex problems. We can't continue to sit there and watch Manual like it's going to die on the vine."
And Board president Theresa Pena, speaking to a room full of students and Manual community members: "There are many of your peers who have dropped out, transferred to different schools, or flat out disappeared. Manual worked for you - it did not work for 75 percent of you." She predicted the final result at Manual would be a "crown jewel" for the district.
Superintendent Bennet supported the stepped-up pace for reform. "Tonight is not the end of Manual, tonight is the beginning of a sustained, relentless, painful effort to rebuild the schools in our district," he said. "This is a hard thing to do, but it is the right thing to do and I'm optimistic about our children's future."
In other business Thursday, the Board of Education:
- Greeted two new principals who will open two new schools in far northeast Denver next year. Damon Smith (currently assistant principal at Rachel B. Noel Middle School) will be the new principal at Picadilly K-8 School in Green Valley Ranch; Kevin Fletcher (currently northeast area arts specialist) will be the new principal for the Montbello Village K-8 school in Montbello. (Permanent names for both schools are pending.)
- Heard feedback from the Student Board of Education and the District School Improvement and Accountability Council about The Denver Plan, the district's roadmap for reform.
- Recognized two teachers, Mary Carlson (Park Hill K-8 School) and Krista Skuce (Slavens School), who recently received National Board Certification status.
- Recognized ten student female athletes in support of National Girls and Women in Sports Day - Alma Chavez (Abraham Lincoln), Mary Higgins (East), Kira Newman (George Washington), Allison Ipson (John F. Kennedy), Britany Ortega (Manual), Shatoria Nelson (Montbello), Estella Amparan (North), Candace Wilson (South), Frances Annan (Thomas Jefferson), and Angelica Chavez (West).
- Approved construction contracts for renovations and mechanical upgrades for Barrett, Beach Court, Bradley, Carson, Colfax, Columbine, Cory, Doull, Ford, Garden Place, Goldrick, Holm, Johnson, Marrama, McGlone, Munroe, Oakland, Remington, Samuels, Smith, Swansea, Traylor and Valdez elementary schools; Hill, Lake, Horace Mann, Place and Rishel middle schools; and John F. Kennedy, Manual, Montbello, North, South and Thomas Jefferson high schools. In addition, approval of a construction project at All City Stadium and approval of a grant agreement with the Gates Family Foundation for renovation of tennis courts at Rishel Middle School.
- Approved a cooperative agreement with the City and County of Denver for use of tennis courts at City Park for the benefit of East High School.
- Ratified an agreement with the Vocational Teachers Federation.
- Approved an extension of the collective bargaining agreement with the Communications Workers of America.
- Approved the naming of the new Denver Center for International Studies (a magnet program formerly housed at West High School and set to open for the 2006-2007 school year at the former Baker Middle School site).
- Approved the 2006-2007 school year calendar for Continuous Year Schools.
- Approved a contract for the new West Denver Preparatory Charter.
- Approved contract renewals for Odyssey Charter School and Wyatt Edison Charter School.
- Approved a one-year, probationary contract renewal for Life Skills Center and a three-year contract probationary renewal for Ridge View Academy, both charter schools.
- Granted a 30-day extension of the Skyland Community School charter school contract.
- Approved reconfiguring Del Pueblo, Garden Place, Swansea as K-5 schools in 2006-2007 and holding constant the grade levels currently at Columbine (K-6), Harrington (K-6), Mitchell (K-6) and Whittier (K-7) elementary schools for 2006-2007.
- Under new business, the Board considered a draft policy on Student Academic Achievement that establishes the Board's "core beliefs" including: 1) All students will learn at grade level or higher and reach their full potential. No excuses. 2) High quality teaching will drive student achievement. 3) Accountability for performance at all levels of the system. 4) Provide intentional, positive culture where every adult serves an important role. 5) Include parents and the community as valued partners to ensure student achievement. The proposed policy also spells out a "theory of action" for change that provides a framework to drive the strategic plan, policies, resources and district operations.
For more information, contact the DPS Communications Office at 720-423-3414.