DENVER — Denver Public Schools (DPS) said it hasn't been spared from the national trend of declining enrollment, and it's going to need to make some tough decisions in the future.
To walk DPS families through the process of potentially closing and consolidating schools, the district is hosting six public informational meetings.
"It's something that we're faced with that we have to address," Superintendent Dr. Alex Marrero said during Tuesday's meeting.
DPS said off the top of the meeting it would not be talking about what schools will be closing. However, according to the district's plan, it'll look at areas with clusters of schools to consolidate, consider factors like the number of kids on free and reduced lunch, how much it would increase the distance to and from school for families, and if closing a school would further segregate students by race, language or economic class.
Marrero said declining enrollment has been a challenge in the district for more than a decade, citing declining birth rates and families getting priced out of city-limit housing. The district said it expects to serve 6,000 less students, a 9% decline, between now and the 2028-29 school year.
DPS parent Dr. DJ Torres said he attended Tuesday's meeting because he wants to be involved in the conversation before a decision is made. He has a third grader at McMeen Elementary who he brought with him.
"I had no question, no hesitation, that McMeen would be where we sent our son and so for me, it’s really about the trust, comfort, word of mouth, positive experiences that my friends and former colleagues had about McMeen that made me very excited to have a kiddo be at that school," Torres said.
Torres said if difficult choices are to be made, he wants to be able to have a voice alongside school officials.
"While I’m a McMeen parent and having McMeen stay open is a high value to me, other parents across the district will likely have that same ownership and connection to their home schools," Torres said. "So how are we involving families like myself, kiddos like my son, as a part of that conversation and not just, again, not just a peripheral in the conversation and again being real owners in that conversation and process."
Torres said he hoped the district would be transparent and answer a lot of his questions.
"My partner and I adopted our son two-and-a-half years ago and so we look at these meetings with all different lenses, thinking specifically about equity, the racial dynamics, socioeconomic dynamics, all these things," Torres shared. "So I’m really interested to hear what the district, the central office staff, as well as the board have to say about issues concerning the ways these intersect and also impact school closure."
The district is hosting five additional meetings:
- Central Regional Engagement Meeting: Wednesday, Sept. 25, 6-7 p.m. at Manual High School.
- Northwest Regional Engagement Meeting: Monday, Oct. 7, 6-7 p.m. at CEC Early College.
- Southwest Regional Engagement Meeting: Monday, Oct. 14, 6-7 p.m. at Abraham Lincoln High School.
- Far Northeast Regional Engagement Meeting: Tuesday, Oct. 15, 6-7 p.m. at Montbello High School.
- Virtual Engagement Meeting: Tuesday, Oct. 22, 6-7 p.m. virtual via Zoom.
Nov. 7, Marrero is set to make a recommendation on possible closures and consolidations to the board.
The district said after, from Nov. 11-19, it'll host school-level meetings for community and staff before a decision is made. By December, the district expects to begin the final phase of its plan.