This fall, voters will determine the future direction of Denver schools.
Three of the seven seats on the Denver school board are up for election. No incumbents are running, making a shakeup on the board all the more likely.
If candidates backed by the Denver teachers union win at least two of the three seats, union-backed members will have a majority on the board for the first time in recent history. That could set the stage for a shift away from encouraging school choice and school autonomy to more heavily investing in traditional schools.
For more on who has endorsed which candidates, read our stories here, here, and here.
All Denver voters may cast ballots for the at-large race, because that school board member represents the entire city. But only voters who live in southeast Denver may also cast ballots in the District 1 race, and only voters who live in northwest Denver may also cast ballots for District 5.
Each of the three races features three candidates, for a total of nine. We sent the same set of questions to all nine candidates. Below are their answers. We’ve edited them for clarity. We’ve also added links to our previous coverage in places where candidates referenced programs or initiatives — such as Prop CC or the para-to-teacher program — without a full explanation.
Originally posted on Chalkbeat by Melanie Asmar, Sam Park on October 11, 2019. Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.
Mr Anderson was part of a group during the ICE facility issue who had the nerve to call Casper Stockham; running in CD^6; a very nasty word though Mr Stockham is African American. Is this really who should be on the school board; much less interacting with DPS kids?
The tape is available as well.
jm fay, if the tape is available then why not reference it in your comment?
If you are talking about this video, https://www.coloradocitizenpress.com/did-a-denver-school-board-candidate-organize-the-anti-ice-protest-on-labor-day/ I did not hear him call anyone a nasty word as you put it. I heard him trying to calm the situation and telling the white people it is not ok to use the n-word. This is a valid point, so I am confused by your comment. I believe someone who tries to calm a volatile situation and make sure words that are incentive are not used is exactly who we want on the board.