Press Release

February 12, 1999

For Immediate Release

SUPERINTENDENT IRV MOSKOWITZ ACCEPTS POST WITH UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN COLORADO; RESIGNATION EFFECTIVE JUNE 30

Superintendent Irv Moskowitz, who has guided Denver Public Schools through five years of innovations and progress, today announced he has accepted a position to develop a Center for Urban Education for the University of Northern Colorado. The center will be based in Denver.

Moskowitz' resignation will be effective June 30, after the current school year.

"I have enjoyed my time and I want to thank everybody, including the dedicated staff and the hard-working students, for making it a privilege to work here," said Moskowitz. "The opportunity with the University of Northern Colorado represents a unique challenge for making change in public education. It's one I can't pass up."

The Center for Urban Education will seek to prepare teachers for urban education, deliver alternative preparation programs, and provide professional development for teachers and administrators on urban education issues. Moskowitz will fill a newly created endowed chair for this mission.

"It will be difficult to find someone with Irv's vision, leadership, and ability to put things in place that make a difference for kids," said Board of Education President Sue Edwards. "The progress that students have shown during his time is significant. He's put us on the right track. He's a visionary."

Edwards said it's "no surprise" to her that Moskowitz would be continuing in a line of work that will also, ultimately, improve public education and potentially have a "significant impact" on schools beyond DPS. Nonetheless, she added, "it's difficult to imagine our district without him."

In his five years as superintendent, Moskowitz led the district through a dramatic reshaping. He focused achievement issues around literacy and brought a variety of new ideas designed to improve achievement.

Under his leadership, the district has:

• Shown progress with achievement in every grade level and among every ethnic group of students.
• Cut the dropout rate by one-third (to 6.2 percent).
• Led the district to successful passage of a $305 million bond election and a $17 million mill levy election in November, 1998.
• Successfully completed negotiations for a proposed court settlement of the district's longstanding English Language Acquisition issues.
• Managed a smooth transition from desegregation to a neighborhood school student assignment plan.
• Increased high school math and science requirements and earned a "meritorious" ranking from the National Science Foundation.
• Opened Pioneer Charter School (in conjunction with the University of Denver) to test the use of differentiated staffing as a means for public schools to offer more services to children within existing revenues.
• Opened a summer school for students behind in reading.
• Helped negotiate three straight years of smooth teacher contract talks.

Moskowitz first worked in Denver as a principal, planner, and assistant superintendent in DPS from 1974 to 1985.

During that time, he was instrumental in designing the Fred N. Thomas Career Education Center.

In 1986, he was offered the position of superintendent for the Cleveland Heights-University Heights school district in Ohio. Three years later, in 1989, he was hired as superintendent for the Pomona Unified School District in California.

Moskowitz served in that position for five years before being hired by the Denver School Board in 1994.

Edwards said the Board of Education would soon schedule a meeting to begin the process of finding and hiring a new superintendent.