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DPS investigating 'seclusion room' at McAuliffe International School after staff member blows whistle

According to the whistleblower, students of color were locked in the room multiple times last year. The former principal's attorney said it was used once.

DENVER — At a news conference Thursday, two days after Denver Board of Education members held a town hall meeting to discuss the firing of McAuliffe International School principal Kurt Dennis, new allegations against the principal came to light.

According to school board vice president Auon'tai Anderson, following the town hall held with McAuliffe parents on Tuesday night – where parents and community members brought their concerns about Dennis' firing – he received an email from a whistleblower who claimed McAuliffe had a room where students were locked up.

"Students of color were locked in this room multiple times last year, and this lock is on the outside of the door," Anderson said he was told by the whistleblower, whom he identified as a member of the McAuliffe staff.

School board president Xochitl Gaytan called the room a "seclusion room," and Anderson called it an "incarceration room." Dennis' lawyer, David Lane, told 9NEWS that it was a de-escalation room, which is a safe, quiet space that allows its user to calm down.

Anderson said the board can confirm that there have been students locked up alone in the room, which he said is violation of district policy.

The whistleblower's email also included a video that, according to Anderson, shows a "door that was modified with a barrel bolt latch outside of the door. This would prevent anyone inside of the room from exiting the room."

"Locking children into a room where you have locks placed on windows, and a barrel latch lock placed on the exterior side of the door is not in my opinion, supposed to be in any of our learning environments," Anderson said.

He said he recommends an investigation by the Denver Police Department and the Colorado Bureau of Investigations to ensure no students were held against their will and that no serious physical or emotional harm came to students. Anderson said the room was instituted during Dennis' leadership.

Denver Public Schools policy generally allows for the use of de-escalation rooms when those rooms are properly constructed for that purpose, said Bill Good, chief communications officer for DPS. He said that from what is presently known, McAuliffe did not adhere to these best practices.

Lane told 9NEWS that the door latch was put in place either this year or last year and was used only once as he said psychologists were concerned that a person could accidentally get locked in with a violent kid.

"Over the last year, two students at McAuliffe were put into a de-escalation room, and that was an approved plan from their individual education plans," Lane said. "Their psychologist approved that plan. Their parents approved of that plan. Administration approved of that plan."

Anderson said that after reviewing the whistleblower's video, he sent it to Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero for confirmation. Anderson said Marrero later confirmed the existence of this room at McAuliffe and that the district had no prior knowledge of this room. 

Anderson said he and board member Scott Esserman visited McAuliffe and discovered that in room 121E – the room in question – that locks had been placed on the windows of the room and that a vent in the room was destroyed. 

"The lock was removed from the door after a work order was submitted by a school employee citing that the room needed repairs," Anderson said. He added that the repairs included in the work order stated there were "multiple holes in drywall due to student rage and incarceration."

He said the board has been briefed on the timeline of these events, with witness testimony and the roles of several adults who may or may not have played a role in the creation and execution of the room.

Credit: Photo courtesy of Auon'tai Anderson
A lock on the window in what the Denver Board of Education calls a "seclusion room" at McAuliffe Middle School.

During Thursday's news conference, Anderson was joined by Esserman and Gaytan, as well as the executive director of Advocacy Denver, formerly the ARC of Denver, Pamela Bisceglia. Advocacy of Denver works with children and adults with disabilities.

Bisceglia said she met with Marrero a couple of weeks ago, where she expressed the organization's concerns about Dennis and said that although some of the community wanted the district to reinstate Dennis, her organization had a different position.

"Our agency has filed more complaints against McAuliffe than any Denver school," she said.

Bisceglia said her agency works with McAuliffe's diverse community of parents, but she said minority students – in particular Black students – have been the target for "the most egregious violations of the Individuals with Disabilities [Education] Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act," under Dennis' leadership.

According to Bisceglia, Dennis was a school leader that the agency knew to "forward the practice of fast-tracking minority male students into a separate school setting."

Bisceglia said that amid this and other complaints received, her agency will file a formal complaint with the Colorado Department of Education.

Good said that in reviewing the available photographs, it appears the room at McAuliffe was unfit for the purpose for which it was being used. 

Namely:

  • Plumbing fixtures and piping were not removed or secured
  • Electrical raceways were exposed
  • Fire Suppression System was unsecured
  • Radiator piping was unsecured
  • Radiator piping was exposed
  • No padding on the walls (although not mandatory

Good said that in accordance with DPS school district best practices, de-escalation rooms should adhere to these minimum standards of construction:

  •  All plumbing fixtures and piping must be removed or secured
  • All exposed light bulbs need to be removed or secured
  • Secure electrical raceways
  • Secure Fire Suppression system/piping
  • Secure thermostat covers
  • Insulate any radiator piping or equipment that may get hot
  • Remove any blinds or any window coverings that could be pulled down
  • Secure or limit all windows in the room
  • Furniture that is not plastic or secured will need to be removed from the area (this includes any pictures that are hanging on the walls)
  • Consider adding padding to the walls
  • Remove any cabinet doors
  • Cover any rugs/carpeting as completely as possible
  • Room should not have any bookshelves

>>>Video on what state law allows for monitored seclusion rooms

Marrero fired Dennis last month after Dennis told 9NEWS he was concerned about the district's requirement of daily staff pat-downs of students accused of serious crimes — up to attempted murder. 

A vote on Dennis' termination will take place at the next board meeting.

> Watch the full news conference below:


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