AURORA —Thousands of Aurora kids are brushing off their backpacks and sharpening up their pencils as they get ready to head back to the classroom this week.
The Aurora Public Schools district, which is expecting some 40,688 students, is kicking off the year a little earlier than most. Middle and high school students reported Aug. 6, while most elementary students begin Aug. 8. Preschool and kindergartners start on Aug. 13.
Aurora’s other district, Cherry Creek Schools, will begin class two weeks from now on Aug. 19. Both districts will welcome new superintendents. Rico Munn takes over for John Barry at APS, while Harry Bull succeeds Mary Chesley in Cherry Creek.
Munn, a former attorney who also served as the executive director of the Colorado Department of Higher Education, took over as superintendent for APS on July 1. Last week, the district hosted a meet-and-greet reception for Munn, who has two kids in the APS system.
Among other things, Munn said he hopes to take a deeper look this year into the effectiveness of the district’s wide array of programs.
He praised the work that has been done to improve the district’s workforce readiness and college preparatory initiatives, but said he hopes to get a better grasp of which programs are working and which are not.
“We’re trying to make sure we have a strong focus and sense of clarity in the district,” Munn said. “I want to improve our overall achievement and focus on doing a few things better and other things as well as we can.”
To that end, Munn is working with staffers to crunch as much data as possible to help unearth any trends or patterns. For now, though, he simply aims to stress the basics — notably reading and writing at the elementary school level.
“There is no singular goal,” Munn said. “Our job is to educate kids every day, accelerate learning and close learning gaps.”
Construction crews, meanwhile, have been busy over the summer months sprucing up facilities in the district. Several projects will wrap up this week, including an entire building remodel of Tollgate Elementary School of Expeditionary Learning, said Rebecca Herbst, bond and communications specialist for APS.
The school, located at 701 Kalispell Way, was outfitted with a new classroom, cafeteria and office space, among other things, she said. In addition, two other schools were renovated this summer to expand classroom space, including Kenton and Side Creek elementary schools, Herbst said.
Those renovations and others are being funded with the proceeds of a $215 million bond issue passed by voters in 2008. Only a few projects remain on the docket, including heating and air conditioning repairs at Gateway High School, a two-classroom addition at Sixth Avenue Elementary and a new kitchen remodel at Virginia Court Elementary.
In all, the entire bond program is slated to conclude by the beginning of the 2014-15 school year, Herbst said.
Joey Kirchmer: 303-954-2650, jkirchmer@denverpost.com or
