Parents, Teachers Worry Proposed School Board Changes Could Negatively Impact Thousands Of Students At 52 Innovation Schools

DENVER (CBS4) – Some teachers and parents are angry and disappointed at the Denver Board of Education, saying proposed changes up for a vote Thursday, March 24, would strip teachers of many of the freedoms they enjoy at innovation schools. They worry that lack of flexibility will also affect more personalized curriculum for students.

“As a teacher, I really value that I can look at our students and what they specifically need in our school, and in this neighborhood, and I can tailor my curriculum to best suit them, and that’s something I think would be a lot harder to do,” said Dennis Ho, a sixth grade math teacher at Grant Beacon Middle School, an innovation school in the district.

Ho is currently not a member of the Denver teacher’s union, it was a personal choice he made that he said was best for his situation.

But the proposal the school board will vote on this Thursday would eliminate teachers at innovation schools’ rights to waive union rules, unless that school is a failing school.

Ho says that change could have big impacts on the 52 innovation schools in the district that serve thousands of students.

“I think it could be the first step toward many other proposals down the line,” Ho said. “Which could take away a lot of the things that I personally really value about our innovation status.”

Parents agree.

“Having a one size fits all policy, teachers aren’t going to be able to do some of the things that they’re doing today in terms of personalized learning,” said Matt Sands, a father of two.

Sands says innovation schools have helped his kids succeed, thanks to more flexibility that other all-union schools don’t have.

Beatriz Penaloza says her son is thriving at Grant Beacon, and she doesn’t want to see that flexibility taken away.

“I’m not in agreement with the proposal, for me it’s important for our children to have a way for them to express themselves and find motivation in whatever they are discovering,” Penalosa told CBS4 in an interview translated from Spanish. “It’s something important for me and my son that students have that at this school.”

Both Penaloza and Sands tell CBS4 they do not believe the school board appropriately considered community voices when drafting the proposed changes.

“I’m disappointed, because I feel like this proposal was introduced without consulting the stakeholders, such as parents, teachers and students who are most impacted,” Sands said.

One former state Senator, Dan Grossman, even questions whether the changes would be legal.

“The proposal is not only a bad idea from a policy perspective, but it contravenes the plain language of the Innovation Schools Act, and would, therefore, be unenforceable,” Grossman reportedly wrote in a letter to the school board.

Tuesday, the Board of Education made some revisions to the proposal, formally called Executive Limitations, or EL, tabling for now how it would affect innovation schools’ calendars and budgets.

The school board says it did get community feedback about the proposal, issuing this slideshow with key takeaways.

“The majority of (innovation leaders) respondents indicated that the EL will negatively impact teacher, school leader, and staff retentions,” the slideshow writes. “Participants also indicated that passing the proposed EL will result in other problems such as: distrust between teachers and leaders, (and) feeling that what makes an innovation school unique is gone and thus they cannot provide the best education to their students.”

The school board also says it plans to continue to engage community members.

“We acknowledge the impact that this proposal had on our Denver Public Schools community; we remain committed to developing a community engagement plan as we continuously improve on working alongside our communities,” the board wrote in a written statement issued Wednesday. “Thank you for your continued engagement. We welcome your feedback on the revised executive limitation at [email protected].”

The school board also said in Wednesday’s written statement the Executive Limitations are meant to help protect employees.

“It is important to note that the Board of Education has one employee, Superintendent Dr. Alex Marrero. When the Board of Education passes an executive limitation, it is a directive to the Superintendent that we can hold him accountable if these standards are not met,” the school board said. “This new draft will not restrict innovation or innovative practices. This is a value statement from the Board of Education to ensure protections for all employees in Denver Public Schools regardless of school model or governance structure.”

But many innovation teachers feel they are already well protected, because schools are already required to write similar language of protections for their teachers that union teachers receive.

“I think that currently, things are effective and going well in our school, in the way that we support and work with students,” Ho said, “and I would very much not want to see that change.”