The State Board of Education on Wednesday voted by a slim margin to support a troubled charter school’s bid for a second chance to serve Denver’s most vulnerable students.
The Denver school board in February voted to close the Life Skills of Denver charter school, citing low attendance and some of the district’s lowest academic scores.
Of 315 students enrolled in Life Skills this year, 63 remained in the school a full year, said Denver Public Schools attorney Patrick Mooney. Of the 63, 25 earned more than four credits, Mooney said.
But on Wednesday, Life Skills staff and administrators appealed the district’s decision to the state, saying they were making changes – including hiring a new principal, bringing in a new superintendent and raising expectations for students.
All of Life Skills’ students dropped out of traditional schools. Many face challenges, such as raising children, working full-time jobs, recovering from addictions or living in the foster-care system.
The state board voted 4-3 to require the DPS school board to reconsider its decision to close Life Skills. After reconsideration, the Denver board could still decide to close the school, and Life Skills could appeal that decision.
Charter schools are public institutions that operate autonomously under contract with public school districts. DPS chartered the school in 2002 and last year gave it a year to improve.
State board members struggled Wednesday to reconcile the school’s poor attendance rate and low test scores with what it described as DPS’s failure to serve those students.
Life Skills officials said they have graduated 144 students in four years, most of whom had dropped out of DPS.
“You are dealing with the most at-risk population that the school district itself has failed to serve,” said state board member Karen Middleton, who nevertheless voted against keeping the school open. “If they’ve graduated 144 students, that’s 144 that someone else missed.”
Board member Evie Hudak said she believes the school should have “one more year” to make changes.
“When you are saving kids, you are doing what public education is supposed to do,” she said.
Staff writer Karen Rouse can be reached at 303-954-1684 or krouse@denverpost.com.
