Members of elected board broached concerns about a lack of trust among directors at a daylong retreat Monday, a conversation that started prickly but ended with signs of momentum toward better working together.
The seven directors and Superintendent Alex Marrero gathered as tensions have mounted this summer over relations between the school board and the DPS leader, leading to questions about his future with the district.
At the on Monday, the school board members got vulnerable, aired grievances and brainstormed solutions for better board dynamics with the help of a conversation facilitator.
After a morning of ice-breaking activities in which directors divulged truths about themselves — family dynamics, notable concerts, cultural norms, class barriers, favorite childhood meals — school board members reached a level of vulnerability that led to more frank conversations about trust, respect and frustrations with the bureaucracy of the board.
“I feel very strongly that we lack trust, and I don’t think we can move forward until we figure out a way to move past that, move through it,” said Amy Klein Molk, an at-large director elected in November.
With facilitator Keith Gruen, the board broke down what trust was — consistency, willingness to engage, integrity. The board could not have trust without respect, Gruen said, before discussing “radical candor,” or being honest in a caring way.
Board members used the public retreat to practice honesty while maintaining civility.
The three newest directors — Klein Molk, vice president Monica Hunter and treasurer DJ Torres — shared frustrations about board bureaucracy.
Torres said it wasn’t clear how to get an item on the school board’s agenda and it felt like his attempts to put forth agenda items had been thwarted. Klein Molk said it was difficult to obtain data she wanted from the district. Hunter said she felt like some board members had irreparably violated her trust.
In recent months, Marrero has described his relationship with the school board as “increasingly untenable,” as he accuses the directors of overstepping their duties and board members have raised concerns about the superintendent’s job-hunting.
The board met behind closed doors late last month to discuss Marrero’s contract, and Hunter attempted to schedule a follow-up meeting about the superintendent earlier this month, but that fell apart over a lack of board majority for the move.
The superintendent’s employment was not a topic of conversation during the nearly eight-hour retreat Monday, although Hunter noted some board members want things to change while others don’t.
“In the absence of trust, we still have a job to do,” Torres said, adding that he didn’t get elected by promising to get along with everyone.
The retreat conversations highlighted tensions between the newer board members and the veteran. The most recently elected directors said they wanted their constituents’ priorities heard and sometimes felt stymied by board policies and procedures. Longer-serving members acknowledged incoming board directors face a tough transition plopped into the middle of board business and adopting a past board’s visions and tasks.
“How do we get to where we need to go?” asked director Kimberlee Sia,.
Klein Molk said the board had no choice but to figure out how to get along and move forward because the work — bettering Denver kids’ futures — needed to get done, regardless.
The conversation — which Gruen praised for the board’s willingness to share and Marrero called “one of the most robust conversations we’ve had” — evolved throughout the day from reticent replies to the facilitator’s prompts into lively discussions about in-depth board policies and processes.
By mid-afternoon, board members were knee-deep in talks about making the agenda-setting process more collaborative and efficient.
“This is the most collaborative I’ve ever seen the board,” Klein Monk said toward the latter half of the meeting. “I am so proud to be here right now.”
Board president Xóchitl Gaytán largely took a listening role during the retreat, saying she sought clarity around what her fellow board members wanted. She said she remembered being a new board member dropped in the middle of ongoing business and struggling to feel heard.
By the end of the retreat, Gaytán said she found “some clarity” on moving forward with improved agenda-setting.
Gruen, the facilitator, left the board with a homework assignment: go have coffee with a fellow director and get to know them on a more personal level.
“I think this was a good day,” Gruen said. “The more willing you are to be vulnerable about things you care about, the easier these conversations get.”
