Bill Kurtz is CEO of DSST, a network of Denver charter schools focusing on science and technology. (Kathryn Scott Osler, Denver Post file)
Re: “Itap time to give DSST schools their due,” Sept. 3 Vincent Carroll column.
Vincent Carroll is right to congratulate the Denver School of Science Technology for the excellent work it does in propelling an economically diverse student body to very impressive test scores and to four-year colleges.
It is good to see Carroll also acknowledging (albeit implicitly) that investing in education makes a difference in student achievement. The DSST system’s website indicates 2012-13 donations of a minimum of $10.5 million. Itap those extra dollars that make possible the individual attention, access to technology, summer school, teacher preparation and other programs and services that contribute to the students’ success.
It does not take away at all from DSST’s success that it has accomplished these results with the generous support of individuals, foundations and companies. It does raise the question, however, whether the DSST schools would be able to make the same strides without the additional support. Or, conversely, how might other public schools fare if they were beneficiaries of the same level of investment?
Jamie Sarche, Denver
This letter was published in the Sept. 8 edition.
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