The president of Cherry Creek Schools’ Board of Education reiterated Friday that the district is freezing employee travel and district contracts following last week’s resignation of Superintendent Christopher Smith, but still has not detailed why the school board is undertaking what she characterized as “a serious review.”
School board directors will vote on a resolution Monday to confirm Deputy Superintendent Jennifer Perry as the district’s interim superintendent, Board of Education President Anne Egan said.
“This is the start of a process for the health and success of this district,” she said, reading from a prepared statement. “With the board’s action last week, we have taken action to freeze certain travel, freeze contracts and begin a serious review of district policies and procedures across the board.”
Her comments came ahead of a meeting of the school board Friday morning.
Egan previously said directors will discuss the upcoming search for a new superintendent and the district’s contract, travel and conflict of interest policies during the meeting, but little of the conversation took place in public.
The school board met in executive session — which is not open to the public — for nearly four hours to receive legal advice regarding Cherry Creek Schools’ search for a new superintendent and the district’s budget, including as it relates to travel expenses and contract requirements, according to the meeting agenda.
“Combined with Dr Perry’s leadership, I am confident that we are headed in the right direction,” Egan said. “Because the mission of every person in this room is to do all we can to promote the education of the students in our district and provide accountability to our taxpayers.”
Egan said later in the meeting that the districtap travel freeze is for the entire district — not just administrators.
“This is throughout the district, “ she said. “Hopefully not touching students.”
Smith unexpectedly resigned last week and Cherry Creek Schools placed his wife, Brenda Smith, the district’s chief human resources officer, on administrative leave earlier this week without explanation.
District officials have repeatedly declined to say why the school board is reviewing the district’s contract and travel policies following Smith’s departure, other than to acknowledge “there were some questions.”
The district is investigating employee travel, contracts and Brenda Smith internally, spokeswoman Ashley Verville said.
Travel expenditures obtained by The Denver Post via a public records request showed that Christopher Smith and Brenda Smith spent $23,499.31 and $38,492.48, respectively, on travel — including airfare, food, hotels and parking — during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 fiscal years.
Brenda Smith’s spending stands out when compared to that of the chief human resources officer at Denver Public Schools, who spent $13,385 during the same period. DPS is the state’s largest school district.
The travel expenses are a small part of Cherry Creek Schools’ $840 million budget. Like other districts across Colorado, Cherry Creek Schools, which has 51,844 students, is facing declining enrollment and expects to run a $15.4 million deficit this year.
District officials have previously said they are looking for ways to cut spending, such as by limiting overtime.
Christopher Smith’s contract wasn’t expected to expire until June 2027. He earned a base salary of $332,601.15. Brenda Smith’s base salary is $232,142.40.
Egan said earlier this week that both the district and Christopher Smith have “obtained legal counsel.”
The Smiths were married before either began working at Cherry Creek Schools, with district officials hiring Brenda Smith two years before her husband was named superintendent.
Brenda Smith began reporting to Perry, the deputy superintendent, to comply with the districtap staff conduct policy after Christopher Smith became superintendent. That policy states employees may not engage in a direct or indirect supervisory relationship with an immediate family member.
A last month said Cherry Creek employees alleged the Smiths’ marriage affected the work culture at the district.
During Friday’s meeting, Perry, the interim superintendent, shared a copy of the districtap organizational chart with directors.
The conversation that followed was brief, and board members alluded to allegations of conflicts of interest within the district, with Vice President Angela Garland referring to the claims as the “elephant in the room.”
But directors did not address the allegations directly, although several board members made clear that they don’t believe relatives working together is an issue as long as a proper management structure is in place.
“We are a very large employer and we’re a great place to work, and if people who are related come to work here, how are we going to address that?” Garland asked Perry. “Those things need to be clarified and addressed.”
Director John-Claude Futrell asked Perry to explain how district officials are addressing potential conflicts of interest among employees.
“We’re trying to access where people believe that happens,” Perry said.
Futrell, when approached by a reporter, declined to comment for this story, citing the “process” underway.
One parent said she was “disappointed” that the school board didn’t discuss the travel, contract and conflict of interest policies in more detail during the public portion of the meeting.
“To barely touch on it, it’s such a common theme with this district right now,” said Molly Lamar, who had three children graduate from Cherry Creek High School and a fourth who might attend next year. “…We have lost a superintendent and chief of HR. We have some serious issues coming to light.”
