A lawsuit was dismissed between Denver Public Schools and an architectural firm that claimed the district consistently and women-owned businesses in selecting contractors for projects.
In a joint statement, both sides said they want to continue talks aimed at boosting minority hiring.
Ron and Mike Roybal, brothers who co-own Roybal Corporation Architects, filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in late July, alleging DPS was neglecting to award contracts to minority-owned contractors even after recent efforts to select a more diverse pool of candidates.The Roybals said that after putting in bids for multiple solicitations from DPS, their company was rejected for all of them. They also were turned away from the renovation of the district’s Swansea Elementary School, even though officials were to award to at least 70 percent of the construction work to minority- or women-owned businesses.
DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg said the Roybals’ lawsuit had no merit, saying the district passed a new policy in 2014 focused on hiring more diverse contractors.
In the joint statement released Monday, they said they are “committed to collaborating to improve the district’s MWBE (Minority-and-Women-Owned-Business-Enterprise) program.
“The Roybals and DPS have achieved this level of trust and collaboration as a result of a series of negotiations,” the statement read. “Both parts will work collaboratively to achieve an MWBE program that best serves the children and families of the DPS community.”
