Give principals guidance on how to be good instructional leaders. Give teachers a stronger voice at the table. Let high schools develop their own plans for closing campuses at lunch.
These were among 15 pages of mostly minor changes a special committee proposed Monday for Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet’s sweeping “Denver Plan” for reform.
The Denver Plan Committee was charged with taking Bennet’s big ideas for change and tinkering with them from the trenches. The 36 members were teachers, principals, nurses and literacy coaches.
Bennet has said that the committee members, who met biweekly for two months, could “tear the plan apart” if they desired.
But, mostly, they didn’t.
Committee members wanted to ensure elective choice in high schools and good professional development at all levels.
They agreed that trying to make grading more uniform was a good idea, but they didn’t want to lose the art of teaching in the process. They believe that there is room for marketing DPS schools but that quality academic programs will ultimately sell all schools.
“This will help,” said Robert Woodson, committee member and principal at Maxwell Elementary. “We’ve (the district) not been totally successful. Pockets have, but across the district there are still problems.”
Bennet’s 83-page reform plan upends much of how DPS operates. Through the plan, which calls for changes as varied as more nutritious food offerings, a different science curriculum and closed campus lunches for high school students, the superintendent hopes to turn around dismal student achievement across the city.
More than half of DPS high school students don’t graduate, and more than 75 percent of freshmen are not at grade level in math.
But Bennet hopes the Denver Plan will address the needs of students from all academic and socioeconomic levels.
“If the question is, is it for rich kids or poor kids? It’s for both,” he said. “We can’t call ourselves a healthy school district if we’re not serving all populations well.”
One controversial idea to require all freshmen and sophomores who are below grade level in math and reading to double the number of those classes was scaled back to just freshmen because district officials worried they wouldn’t be able to find enough math teachers to meet the need.
The idea would require between 15 and 30 new math and reading teachers, which means some people who teach “choice” elective courses might have to move elsewhere in the district.
“I don’t think there will be any real noticeable effect on electives,” Bennet said.
He has until Thursday to incorporate changes recommended by the Denver Plan Committee and present the plan to the school board.
Middle school math teacher and committee member Doug Tucker described many of the meetings as “very long” but said Monday, “I felt like we were listened to. And that has been great.”
Staff writer Allison Sherry can be reached at 303-820-1377 or asherry@denverpost.com.
