Denver Public Schools chief Michael Bennet announced Thursday that a union leader, an East Coast academic chief and a former city councilwoman will help lead his new team.
Bennet’s much-anticipated pick for chief academic officer is Jaime Aquino, who is an instructional superintendent in the New York City Department of Education.
Bennet described Aquino, who will earn $180,000 a year, as an “irresistible choice” to work for DPS because of his strengths in teaching math and science and his ability to reach out to English-language learners, who make up 20 percent of the district’s students.
Aquino, whose second language is English, said he doesn’t believe in “good programs, but good teachers.”
“I’ve seen teachers take a traditional approach in teaching math and do wonders,” he said.
Both he and Bennet stressed that they will spend time and money for teacher training.
Many Denver teachers have been anxiously waiting to see whom they will get to work with as chief academic officer. The former chief, Sally Mentor Hay, who stepped down with Superintendent Jerry Wartgow, was unpopular among many teachers because of her top-down approach to curriculum instruction.
“I think it’s interesting and important that they picked a Spanish speaker,” said Margaret Bobb, who teaches at Horace Mann Middle School. “I’m glad it’s happening quickly and we can now move on to work.”
In addition to Aquino, Bennet announced the appointments of former union leader Brad Jupp as senior academic policy adviser, former City Councilwoman Happy Haynes as assistant to the superintendent for community partnerships, and Sarah Kendall Hughes as his chief of staff.
All three positions were created by Bennet, though the district’s administration is technically in a spending freeze. Haynes and Jupp each will make $87,000 a year, and Hughes will make $88,000.
“At the end of the day, I think we have an obligation to be as efficient and frugal with the resources as we can,” Bennet said. “These aren’t the last people who will be added to the district, but my hope is that the net amount (spent on salaries and benefits) is less than what was spent when I got here.”
Jupp has been working for the past six years on ProComp, the district’s pay-for-performance plan for teachers that will go before voters in November. From 1989 to 2004, he helped lead the union side of negotiations between the district and the Denver Classroom Teachers Association.
In his new job, he’ll be helping Bennet form the district’s strategic plan, to be released in November.
Jupp also will make sure that efforts in the district – such as the annual $2.5 million revitalization of struggling schools – is in line with district goals, Bennet said.
Teachers union president Kim Ursetta said that Jupp joining the administration is “bittersweet.”
“We hope he’ll remember what it’s like to be in contact with students,” she said. “I hope he uses the things he’s learned as a union member.”
Haynes, currently serving as Mayor John Hickenlooper’s City Council liaison, will work on mentoring and after-school programs, Bennet said.
Staff writer Allison Sherry can be reached at 303-820-1377 or asherry@denverpost.com.
