Re: “Critical misinformation in school board debate,” Dec. 7 Chuck Plunkett column, et al.
The Denver Post has published numerous editorials, articles and letters about the contentious Denver Public Schools board meeting last month. The underlying reason for such strong feelings when it comes to board elections and school reform is, I believe, the shared desire among all parties to do right by the 75,000 DPS students, whose future is shaped every day by many excellent teachers and administrators.
Yet while The Post was spending time and resources writing about the unacceptable behavior of the “adult” leaders who run the board and the district, more important things were happening throughout the district — in the classrooms, on the playing fields, and in the school hallways in which our students are learning and growing every day.
I wish more articles were devoted to the students of DPS, not the adults. How about covering an uplifting story about The Surveyor, the student newspaper at George Washington High School. For the third year in a row, the newspaper won the Pacemaker national award from the National Scholastic Press Association. It is the only DPS newspaper to win an NSPA award in the past three years.
The 16-page newspaper was selected from among hundreds of high school newspaper entries around the nation. In addition to accepting the award, the staff of about 20 students, along with their teacher adviser, attended workshops on newspaper publishing, copy editing, and learning how to become a professional journalist. The newspaper staff is a diverse group of students who are role models for other students in the school.
As the parent of three daughters who have attended DPS (and two who have been on the GW newspaper staff), I am proud of how this school, in particular, is educating future writers and journalists. It seems a shame to let adult matters overshadow student news. Let’s remember that we are all on the same side when it comes to providing the best education to all of our students. Our adults should be role models for our students, not the reverse.
Robin Kane of Denver was executive director of Human Resources at Denver Public Schools from 2002 to 2005.
