Local education-related agencies on Monday released a report illustrating in stark terms what they see as the trouble with Denver schools.
The report draws conclusions they say should be used as a “rallying cry of everybody in Denver” to demand reforms.
“The results are unacceptable on all levels — the dropout data, graduation rates, achievement and achievement gaps,” Alex Medler, vice president for research and analysis at the Colorado Children’s Campaign, said of the report, “Denver’s Public Schools: Reforms, Challenges and the Future.”
The report was by the Children’s Campaign, A-Plus Denver and Metro Organizations for People.
It shows that Denver student performance is improving but continues to remain very low on nearly every measure when compared with the district’s goals, state averages, demographically similar districts in Colorado and other urban districts across the nation.
Specifically, the report says:
• Persistent and wide gaps in achievement continue to exist among students of different backgrounds.
• Few students perform at grade level, and as they get older, more students fall below grade level.
• Although students show academic growth from year to year, almost none improve fast enough to rise back up to grade level if they fall behind.
Medler said the group doesn’t want this to be another report of depressing findings. Instead, he would like it to spark community engagement among Denver residents to demand more for the city’s students.
Tom Boasberg, superintendent of Denver Public Schools, said the report didn’t surprise him.
“We are very aware of the data, which is why we strongly believe that the status quo is unacceptable,” Boasberg said. “This report is a clarion call for our need to accelerate our reforms.”
Denver’s school board this year set goals for improvement:
• Decrease students scoring “unsatisfactory” on state assessments by 3.5 percent a year.
• Increase the proficiency among English-language learners by 3.5 percent a year.
• Increase high-school graduation rates by 5 percent a year, from about half of all students graduating in 2007 to 85 percent in 2013.
• Increase students scoring 20 or more on the ACT by 3.5 percent a year.
Staff writer Claire Trageser contributed to this report.
Jeremy P. Meyer: 303-954-1367 or jpmeyer@denverpost.com
