Each year, roughly 20,000 young Americans age out of the foster care system. A quarter will experience homelessness, many struggle to find steady work, and roughly 21% of individuals who went through foster care suffer from substance abuse.

That should not happen in a nation built on the promise of opportunity and the American Dream.

Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, we are bridging the gap between foster care and adulthood, ensuring that young Americans leaving foster care have a real pathway to independence.

At the Department of Housing and Urban Development, we are working closely with local housing authorities, child welfare agencies, and community partners to deliver practical, results-driven solutions.

Through the , our team empowers public housing authorities to provide housing for young adults transitioning out of foster care. Youth are also provided with supportive services, which may include job training and financial skills, to equip them with tools to live successful, happy lives.

Under the Trump administration, HUD has supported more than 1,200 youth with roughly $16.6 million in Foster Youth to Independence funds. We have over 7,500 awards in more than 360 public housing agencies nationwide — including 187 active awards in Colorado that support 50 young Americans in Denver.

Foster Youth to Independence is part of the Trump administration’s broader commitment to forge a stronger future for foster youth. That commitment was reinforced in the president¶¶Òőap executive order, “Fostering the Future for American Children and Families,” which was led by first lady Melania Trump and mobilizes public-private partnerships to forge educational and job opportunities for foster youth.

As part of this effort, HUD, , are hosting a series of nationwide roundtables. Our goal is to hear directly from former foster youth who are willing to share about the unique obstacles they face when transitioning out of the system. Our very first roundtable took place right here in Denver last week, and it was edifying to speak with young Americans who emphasized that they need grace, compassion, and the tools to achieve self-sufficiency.

These discussions are grounded in the commonsense idea that those who actually experienced and lived through the foster care system are best positioned to find solutions. What we hear will directly inform how we tailor policies using a whole-of-government approach to ensure that support is responsive, targeted, and focused on long-term success that is built on a foundation of financial stability.

First lady Melania Trump has been leading the way through , relentlessly championing more opportunities for success for youth who have experienced foster care. She has worked to get foster youth the resources and assistance they need, providing millions of dollars for the Foster Youth to Independence initiative at HUD. And the first lady helped smooth the path for youth leaving foster care by securing $30 million in a funding bill earlier this year.

The Psalmist declares that children are a “reward” and a “heritage from the Lord.” The young are our heritage and our hope for the future, and they need our protection and service to bridge the abyss of an uncertain future after foster care. Under President Trump’s leadership and with the first lady’s vital work, HUD is coming alongside foster youth to make sure they can enter the future with certainty, hope, and everything they need to forge their own paths.

Scott Turner was confirmed by the United States Senate on Feb. 5, 2025, to be the 19th secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Turner previously led the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council, driving the Opportunity Zones Initiative. A lifelong Texan, Turner represented the 33rd District in the Texas State Legislature and played nine seasons in the National Football League.Ìę

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Children enter foster care for reasons beyond their control – often because of abuse, neglect, or the ripple effects of addiction, incarceration, or untreated mental health conditions in their homes. Some have lost a parent or guardian and suddenly must navigate a world that feels uncertain and overwhelming.

They deserve to be seen for who they are, not defined by what they’ve survived. This holiday season, and every season, let¶¶Òőap make sure every young person knows they belong somewhere – and with someone – who believes in them.

And anyone reading this can be that person. Start by learning about Colorado’s foster care system. Volunteer with organizations that connect with youth. Advocate for policies that uplift kids and families. Even greater, consider becoming a foster parent and/or an adoptive parent.

Perceptions may deter you, but the reality is that opening your home and your heart to one of the 3,448 children waiting for a home can truly change that young person’s life. Being their one caring adult can change everything.

These children are not bad. They are not unlovable. The stereotypes surrounding foster youth are not only inaccurate – they’re harmful.

We adore babies. We smile at them in grocery store lines and ask about their first words and steps, seeing them as full of potential. But somewhere along the way, especially for kids in foster care, that perception shifts. Instead of being seen as full of promise, they’re too often viewed as problems.

When kids hear, directly or indirectly, that they’re “damaged” or “difficult,” those words can take root, chipping away at their sense of self-worth. But when someone steps in – a teacher, a neighbor, a mentor – and sees them for who they are, those harmful narratives can start to unravel. We can choose to see youth not by what they’ve endured, but by the futures they’re capable of building.

Every child needs someone who believes in them. Someone who shows up, offers encouragement, and provides a sense of safety and belonging. Foster youth are no different. Their dreams are just as big, their potential just as real.

I’ve seen how simple, consistent support can change a young person’s trajectory. One teenager I work with was hesitant to apply to college because she struggled in high school and didn’t believe she could succeed. She mentioned interest in her local community college, so we researched it together, looked at programs, and contacted the school to get her questions answered. She applied, was accepted, and now attends college. Without that encouragement, she might never have taken that step forward.

Another misconception is that teenagers in foster care don’t want families. In my experience, when these young people feel safe enough to share their thoughts, the overwhelming sentiment is that they long for someone on their side. I currently work with a teen who has been in several foster homes and dreams of a forever home where she can share meals, laugh at silly jokes, and be surrounded by people who truly want her there. She doesn’t need perfect parents – just someone who genuinely cares.

We must remember that foster care is meant to be a temporary solution – a safe space during times of crisis. Real healing happens through permanent, supportive relationships, whether through adoption, reunification with family, or lasting connections with caring adults. My role isn’t just to help identify supportive adults, but to be one of those steady, reliable people in a young person’s corner while they navigate so much change. Those relationships, even small ones, can be turning points.

At Raise the Future, we help kids build genuine connections every day. This is not work that one person or organization can do alone – it takes a community. It takes mentors who invest their time, employers who offer that first opportunity, and neighbors who welcome kids without judgment.

I invite you to join me in being an adult who stands up and shows up for these children. They deserve that from us. They deserve to be known not by their past, but by the bright futures they dream of and are working to build.

As the holidays approach, I’m reminded that every child deserves a place to feel safe and cared for – a home where someone asks how their day was, saves them a seat at the table, and believes in their future.

Foster youth are no exception. This season and beyond, let¶¶Òőap make sure every young person in Colorado knows they belong – and that someone believes in them.

To learn more about Raise the Future, visit www.raisethefuture.org. To meet children currently waiting for adoption, visit www.raisethefuture.org/waiting-children.

Laura Rivera is a youth connections advocate with Raise the Future, a national nonprofit that connects youth in foster care with permanent, supportive families. She lives in Denver.

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Last year, a change in state law made it easier for “kinship” caregivers to get certified as foster care providers for a child they know. Once a kinship family gets certified, they receive the same daily rate as foster families that take in children they don’t know, which ranges from $43 to $66 per day, depending on the child’s age.

The law change also allowed kinship families who hadn’t completed the certification process to get paid . In July, those families will become eligible for half the normal rate.

Now, family members who want to get certified can complete a shorter training course and a than families who are fostering children they don’t know have to go through. Uncertified families also have to complete some paperwork, such as background checks on the adults in the house.

DeAndrea Beres, of Delta, underwent the more-intensive certification process when she took in her nephew in December 2022, and now guides families through the simplified version as a caseworker. She adopted the boy, now 3, in June.

The training was “a lot,” particularly at a time when she was rearranging her life to prepare to care for a child, Beres said. At the time, she was traveling frequently between Delta and Denver for work and had no plans for motherhood.

“It definitely changed my life, for the better in a lot of ways,” she said of fostering and then adopting her nephew.

Streamlining the process made it easier for more families to step up, Beres said. Easing certification has particularly helped grandparents and others on fixed incomes who can’t raise a child without the financial support that foster families receive, she said.

“For a lot of my families, this has made a big difference,” she said of the change to state law. “You can do it if you want to open up your heart and your home.”

‘The more grace we’re able to give’

As of Sept. 3, the state had certified 813 kinship families, up from 588 in early September 2024, said Toilynn Edwards, placement resources administrator with the .

The number of children in out-of-home placements — including both traditional foster care and kinship homes — has remained stable, so it appears that more kinship families have been able to make it through the certification process, she said.

About 41% of 2,385 children in certified placements as of early October are in kinship homes. The group only includes families caring for kids who are in the child welfare system; an unknown number of people are caring for children of their relatives or friends without any state involvement.

Kids who live with a kinship caregiver tend to have fewer placements because going to stay with a relative is less traumatic than moving into a stranger’s house, Edwards said. In addition, kinship providers are less likely to give up on kids with challenging behaviors related to trauma, since they know the child’s story and already have a relationship, she said.

“The longer that we’ve known somebody, the more grace we’re able to give people,” she said.

Previously, kinship families had to complete 27 hours of training to get certified, as traditional foster families do, Edwards said. Now, they only have to complete six hours of initial training, with continuing education and support throughout the child’s stay, she said.

“We’ve taken down those barriers,” she said.

The first round of training focuses on keeping the child safe, how the foster system works and dealing with behaviors resulting from trauma, Edwards said. It also covers ways to handle changing roles when a grandparent or aunt becomes a full-time caregiver, she said.

Families going through the process now tend to report less stress than those who had to take the full training, which wasn’t always feasible for people working full time, said Suzanne Daniels, family engagement division manager for Boulder County.

“Six hours is so much more manageable,” she said.

‘The opportunity to focus on parenting’

The larger counties have designated kinship workers to help families with whatever resources and training they need while caring for a foster child, Daniels said. Generally, that works better than trying to teach everything they might need to know when the child first moves in, she said.

“We’re able to support families, get them the financial assistance they need, while allowing them the opportunity to focus on parenting,” she said.

Kinship families still have to complete a and an given to other foster families.

Exactly what that involves will depend on the child’s age and needs, Daniels said. For example, a teenager doesn’t need the same level of child-proofing as a toddler, but the family would need a safety plan if the teen has a history of self-harm, she said.

When a child first enters the system, the department has instructed counties to ask parents who the important people are in the child’s life who might be able to either take them or help support their foster family, Edwards said.

Reunification with the birth family is the best outcome, but when that’s not possible, a permanent placement with someone the child already knows is the next-best option, she said.

“We’re really trying to broaden who the village is around that child,” she said.

The 18-year-old Evergreen High School student who was wounded during a shooting at the school last week warned fellow students about the attack as it unfolded, his uncle said in a video statement released Wednesday by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

Matthew Silverstone remains in critical condition after the shooting and may be facing a “lifelong recovery,” his uncle, Kris Koehler, said in the statement.

He read get-well cards from Silverstone’s schoolmates that praised the teenager for his quick thinking and for warning others during the attack.

“For the last week or so, we have heard a lot about the shooter — what might or might not have been in his mind,” Koehler said. “And rather than dwelling on that, we wanted everyone to know about Matthew. That he’s not just the critically injured victim. That’s true, but there is so much more to Matthew than that. So much life, so much love.”

Silverstone was shot at the very end of the nine-minute attack on the high school carried out by a 16-year-old student at the school.

A witness on Tuesday told The Denver Post that he saw two boys — later identified as the shooter and Silverstone — fighting and grappling near the intersection of Buffalo Park Road and South Olive Road before the shooter threw Silverstone to the ground and shot him.

Representatives for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office did not answer questions Wednesday about how the two boys came into contact or how their interaction unfolded. The office also did not answer questions about the shooter’s route through the school or where inside the building the other victim, who has not been publicly identified, was shot.

The 16-year-old attacker died by suicide shortly after shooting Silverstone, as law enforcement officers closed in.

“He’s still fighting for his life,” Koehler said of Silverstone in the video statement. “Every day we have glimmers of hope. …To see him there, it’s great when he will squeeze a hand, but at the same time, it is so painful to see. That anyone, especially a kid, that anyone would have to endure that.”

Silverstone was adopted by his mother, Paige Silverstone, after joining her in foster care as a 6-month old, Koehler said, adding that the infant was pulled out of an abusive situation.

Paige Silverstone has not left her son’s side since the attack, he said.

“She has had this feeling of that she failed him by not being there to protect him, to guard him when this happened,” he said.

Matthew Silverstone is a typical teenager, Koehler said. He loves to eat, to hang out with friends and to spend time at the skate park. He is gentle, kind and is quick to jump into action during unexpected or emergency situations, his uncle said.

The family this week as they’ve started to realize how much long-term care Matthew Silverstone may need, Koehler said.

“We are coming to grips with what could potentially be a lifelong recovery and all the needs and extra burdens that is going to put on my sister,” he said, adding later, “At that first glance, you just want to melt in pain for him… And you immediately realize this is not the same kid you knew a week ago.”

Their conversation, captured on a body-worn camera, concerned the investigation into the Feb. 18 death of their 7-year-old son, Isaiah.

The cause and circumstances of the boy’s death were deeply unusual. Isaiah died from ingesting too much sodium, the coroner found, likely due to drinking olive brine. The parents had used olives and olive brine as a form of punishment, a mandatory reporter later told a child abuse hotline. Isaiah was also malnourished at the time of his death.

The Starks were well-known in the small mountain community of Grand County, especially in law enforcement circles, with Jonathan Stark serving as an officer in the .

Ninety minutes into their conversation, the assistantÌęcoroner, Tawnya Bailey, told the parents, “I will do everything in my power to make sure this stays here,” according to a report by the . She added that the sheriff’s investigator, Bobby Rauch, would do the same.

The Starks asked what the district attorney would do with the autopsy findings. The DA would review the report and “throw it aside,” they were told. Rauch assured the Starks that “the case was done.”

The suspicious circumstances surrounding Isaiah Stark’s death and subsequent revelations about the ensuing investigations have prompted serious concern from child welfare workers, who question whether officials in the rural Colorado county adequately and impartially probed the child’s fatality.

The , tasked with investigating child safety concerns, explicitly called out the and , as well as the , for neglecting several key portions of a normal death investigation. The state’s , which compiles reports on youth deaths, divulged little information about Isaiah’s death, but concluded it was “needless and could have been prevented” if only medical and mental health professionals had appropriately monitored the situation.

In all, at least seven separate entities reviewed the case over the past five years, including one outside county investigation that found the parents had committed “fatal medical neglect.” The local district attorney, however, declined to bring charges.

“We have many unanswered questions, and those responsible for giving these answers are unwilling to do so,” said Stephanie Villafuerte, the ombudsman, in an interview.

The Starks declined to comment for this story.

, in a statement, said his office declined to prosecute this case “because the autopsy, and then subsequent additional review by medical professionals, could not confirm the exact cause of death nor establish any culpable mental state required for a criminal prosecution under applicable Colorado statutes.”

Publicly available information about the autopsy shows the coroner did, in fact, rule on the cause and manner of death, and an independent pathologist later said the boy was so dehydrated it may not have taken much olive brine to kill him.

The Grand County Sheriff’s Office, in a statement, said it conducted a “comprehensive, professional death investigation into this matter.”

“This has been classified as a death investigation, and while this is a tragic death, there are no findings to support a criminal case, and specifically not a ‘homicide’ classification,” the statement read.

But The Denver Post’s investigation reveals that some in the child welfare system, including the child protection ombudsman, believe Isaiah Stark’s death underscores how vulnerable children can fall through the cracks of Colorado’s human services and criminal justice systems and highlights the conflicts of interest in small, close-knit communities.

The Post compiled this report through documents obtained through open records requests with the ombudman’s office and a heavily redacted investigation produced by the CBI at the behest of the ombudsman. The Post also reviewed a limited report from the Child Fatality Review Team, as well as a medical review performed by an outside doctor.

The Grand County Sheriff’s Office declined to provide case investigation documents to The Post, including the body-camera video from the park, saying that disclosure of the records would be “contrary to the public’s interest.”

‘I am desperate for help’

Isaiah Stark was bornÌęJan. 15, 2013, to a substance-using mother, according to a 2023 letter sent by Villafuerte’s office to the CBI. The boy, who was also born with multiple developmental issues, had been in the Starks’ care since he was three months old, placed with the family through the Florida foster care system.

The met with the family monthly for three months in 2016 and 2017, noting no safety concerns, the ombudsman’s letter states.

But caseworkers expressed concerns about the validity of the difficulties that Elizabeth reported regarding Isaiah’s behavioral health issues, including , a rare but serious condition in which an infant or young child doesn’t establish healthy attachments with parents or caregivers, the letter says.

Caseworkers noted that the mother also appeared overwhelmed by parenting in general.

On March 22, 2017, the Starks legally adopted Isaiah.

Two years later, the family contacted Isaiah’s doctor, requesting a change in his medication.

“I am desperate for help,” Elizabeth said, according to the records reviewed by the ombudsman and described in the letter. “Is there a stronger medication that you can prescribe ASAP that will take the ability away from him to keep him awake and completely force his body to sleep?”

These messages continued at least once a month.

On Feb. 16, 2020, Elizabeth sent the doctor another urgent request.

“I am still having significant problems with his sleep,” she wrote. “He says he is sleeping at night, and he seems to be, but he is wanting to sleep all day and we are held hostage by this, unable to do anything because he keeps falling asleep.”

The following day, Elizabeth sent another message, noting that things are “getting worse.” Isaiah was vomiting and engaging in other unwanted behaviors, according to hospital and law enforcement records reviewed by the ombudsman.

The parents decided to take Isaiah to in Aurora. But on the way there, Isaiah became unresponsive.

Elizabeth reversed course, bringing her son to the in Granby. He died the following day.

At his funeral on Feb. 22, 2020, at the in Tabernash, the mother described Isaiah’s death as “God rescuing him,” according to transcripts included in a 2023 CBI report. She said this was not the outcome she wanted or prayed for, but she felt his death “set him free from his disorder.”

Jonathan Stark, in an that day, wrote, “My son is not lost to us, was not taken from us. He is well and whole with his Father.”

“This is the greatest pain I’ve felt and some of the greatest joy for my son’s peace,” he wrote.

‘More than an accident’

An autopsy showed the 7-year-old died of severe , a condition characterized by a high concentration of sodium in the blood. The likely culprit, the coroner determined, was olive brine. Isaiah was also malnourished and dehydrated at the time of his death, with his small and large intestines markedly .

Deadly cases of hypernatremia are quite rare, saidÌęShireen Banerji, poison center director at Denver’s .

Normally, if someone ingests too much sodium, their body will protect them by throwing it up, she said. If a large amount of sodium manages to be absorbed into the bloodstream, it can cause the lungs and brain to be overloaded with fluid.

“It would have to be more than an accident,” Banerji said. “You’d need to drink it like a beverage; you’d need a good amount.”

The Grand County coroner ruled the manner of death to be accidental.

The coroner, Brenda Bock, in April sent Karzen, the district attorney, and Grand County Sheriff Brett Schroetlin the autopsy report.

“I do not believe this is anything more than a tragic accident,” Bock wrote, according to an account of the email included in the CBI report.

That same day, the Starks met with the sheriff’s investigator and deputy coroner at the Granby-area park. Bailey, the assistant coroner, told the parents that if she were to receive a records request, she would respond with, “Geez, I can’t find that file” and that she “would take a long time to find that record,” the CBI report states.

Autopsy reports for children are . The coroner only divulged certain autopsy information to The Post as required under the new law.

Bailey, in a statement to The Post, said the coroner conducted an “unbiased, professional and thorough investigation into this death that is based on facts. My office has cooperated and complied with any ()-related requests regarding this death as is statutorily required by law.”

Reported to child abuse hotline

Despite numerous red flags, Isaiah’s death wasn’t reported to the state child abuse hotline until November 2021 — nearly 21 months after his death. Three mandatory reporters called it in.

Colorado law requires that counties aware of egregious incidents of child abuse and/or neglect, or near-fatalities or fatalities of any child, must report that information within 24 hours to the state’s .

One of the mandatory reporters told the hotline that the parents had been using olives and olive brine as a punishment for the child’s behavior, according to the ombudsman’s letter. This information, the reporting party said, was relayed to the coroner at the time of the boy’s death, but no one had reported it to the statewide hotline for abuse or neglect.

“The reporting party was concerned for the other children in the home and the potential for excessive discipline,” the ombudsman’s letter notes.

Given Jonathan Stark’s job with the Granby Police Department, officials at the Grand County Department of Human Services referred the new investigation — based on the report to the child abuse hotline — to their counterparts in Jefferson County.

On Dec. 20, 2021, the 14th Judicial District Attorney’s Office said it would not file criminal charges because the case “cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt,” the CBI report states.

Four months later, concluded that both parents were determined to be “founded” for fatal medical neglect and “neglect injurious environment” of Isaiah, the ombudsman’s letter said. Jefferson County declined to provide this report or discuss the investigation with The Post, citing child confidentiality laws.

“Founded,” as defined by the , means that the abuse and/or neglect assessment is established by a “preponderance of the evidence that an incident(s) of abuse and/or neglect occurred.”

“Fatal neglect” is when the physical or medical needs of the child are not met, resulting in death. An “environment injurious to the welfare of a child” is when the environment caused injuries to the welfare of the child or “reasonably could be foreseen as threatening to the welfare of the child and is in control of the parent,” the regulations state.

Findings of child abuse and neglectÌęgo into a parent’s record in the state’s child welfare database, and could impact theirÌęability to be foster parents in the future. Reports of known or suspected child abuse or neglect by the county department to the district attorney’s office and to local enforcement.

Often, prosecutors work closely with human services and others involved with a child abuse case, including the person who conducted the autopsy and mandatory reporters who worked on the case.

Multiple experts consulted by The Post for this story said they were surprised that, given the facts of this case, no charges were filed.

Jonathan Stark expressed concerns that the Jefferson County findings would impact his employment and was encouraged to speak to an attorney, the ombudsman’s letter says.

Karzen, the district attorney, told The Post he was “aware” of the Jefferson County report, though he didn’t say whether he received or reviewed it as part of his charging decision.

A Jefferson County spokesperson declined to say whether officials provided the report to the DA. After this story’s publication, however, a different Jefferson County spokesperson confirmed to The Post that the county sent the report to Grand County prosecutors.

Karzen said he believes Jefferson County investigators received additional information from independent medical experts, but did not know whether they re-evaluated their conclusions in light of that medical evidence.

Grand County boy’s suspicious death would have remained a rural-Colorado secret if not for watchdogs. More transparency is needed. (Editorial)

A limited child fatality review

The ombudsman in May 2022 received a complaint about Isaiah's death. The reporting party expressed concern that the fatality did not appear to have received a thorough investigation due to Jonathan Stark's job in law enforcement.

The ombudsman's office reviewed a host of records from the sheriff's office, including body-worn camera footage, incident reports, video, dispatch records and calls. Villafuerte, the ombudsman, said the criminal investigation did not include crucial information such as interviews with surviving siblings, observations of the family's home, and a review of medical and child welfare records.

She also expressed concern with the assistant coroner's statements at the park and the relationship between Jonathan Stark and the district attorney.

"We don't have any facts before us that indicate the child’s death was reviewed in a manner that would quell concerns from the community -- period," Villafuerte said in an interview.

In February 2023, the ombudsman sent a letter to Karzen, the district attorney, saying she had reason to believe his office never received the Jefferson County assessment, as is required by law. Villafuerte asked for a 15-minute meeting to discuss the case.

That conversation never happened, she said.

In June 2023, the Child Fatality Review Team conducted an assessment of Isaiah's death, with its shedding light on the parents' struggles dealing with Isaiah's needs.

The Child Fatality Review Team conducts in-depth case reviews of all incidents of egregious child abuse or neglect, near-fatalities, and fatalities substantiated for abuse or neglect when a family has had previous involvement with a county human services agency within three years prior to the incident.

Elizabeth Stark admitted that the boy was "different and difficult to parent" from the time of his placement to the time of his death, the report notes under a subsection detailing identified risk and contributing factors that may have led to the incident. She said Isaiah, at just two months of age, "hated her." The parents described the child as "damaged" when they took him into their home as an infant.

The mother, the report states, blamed every negative aspect of his life on his Reactive Attachment Disorder. The parents attributed Isaiah's actions to "manipulative behaviors and willfulness."

Other risk factors included the children being homeschooled, a lack of available resources in rural Grand County, and a lack of referrals made regarding Isaiah's extremely low body mass index and other medical issues that "should have been red flags in the medical community."

The review team said the death was "needless and could have been prevented had the child received appropriate monitoring and intervention from medical and mental health professionals."

The report, though, made no recommendations and did not detail the circumstances surrounding Isaiah's death. The review team included a rare , saying "it is not in the best interest of the child or the child’s family to release the full CFRT report."

The review team issued 50 reports in 2021. Only five included non-disclosure statements.

The Colorado Department of Human Services told The Post that state law does not allow the agency to share additional information about specific cases.

'We have been denied answers'

In September 2023, Karzen, at the behest of the ombudsman, asked the CBI to investigate Isaiah's death.

Two months later, Karzen referred the case to "to avoid any possible conflict of interest," the CBI report states. But in February 2024, King's office said it would not make any prosecutorial decisions, citing a misunderstanding over which office would handle the prosecution.

The parties agreed that the case should be referred back to Karzen's office to determine whether a special prosecution was necessary for a filing decision, said Brionna Boatright, a spokesperson for King's office.

The First Judicial District's DA was never appointed as special prosecutor.

In April 2024, Karzen requested the state attorney general's office review the death. The DA did this, he told The Post, because human services workers "seemed to believe the criminal declination decision was not appropriate."

The AG's office consulted an independent forensic pathologist to look at the circumstances that may have caused Isaiah's death. The doctor reached three conclusions, according to a summary of his findings provided to The Post by Karzen: Isaiah had compromised kidney function at the time of his death; Isaiah was significantly dehydrated at the time of his death; and a small amount of olive brine could have been fatal to someone in Isaiah's condition.

The pathologist, Dr. Michael Arnall, said Isaiah's lab results showed he was suffering from a renal impairment, causing his kidneys to function at only 50% to 66% of normal at the time of his death. This impairment, known as , can be caused by dehydration and reduces the body's ability to excrete sodium, causing sodium levels to rise.

Isaiah's dehydration was significant, Arnall found, and likely contributed to elevated levels of sodium in his bloodstream at the time of his death.

The pathologist's research showed four ounces or half a cup of olive brine could be a fatal dose for an otherwise healthy child. However, for someone in Isaiah's condition, the amount could be as little as one to three ounces.

Arnall, though, said he could not determine the exact cause of Isaiah's death. It's possible, the summary states, that the boy succumbed to hypernatremic dehydration and renal impairment alone, without the ingestion of a large sodium load.

But these two conditions made Isaiah extremely susceptible to a large amount of sodium, the doctor said. If he ingested olive brine in this state, his body would have been unable to excrete sodium fast enough, inducing fatal hypernatremia.

"I do not believe that I will be able to prove which alternative this case represents or the relative contribution of each (cause)," Arnall stated in the summary.

Eventually, the case made its way back to Karzen.

In a March 25 letter to the CBI, the DA said his office had, for the second time, declined to prosecute anyone connected to Isaiah Stark's death. The initial autopsy report classified the death as an "accident," he wrote. Additional review by medical experts revealed "substantial uncertainty as to exactly what events and medical conditions led to the death of (Isaiah Stark)."

"Because there is insufficient evidence of any crime related to the death, specifically a lack of scientific evidence establishing the required culpable mental state for criminal liability, prosecution of this matter is again declined," Karzen wrote.

Villafuerte, meanwhile, is still trying to figure out how a series of systems failed this 7-year-old boy. This situation, she said, is symptomatic of a much larger problem.

"Ultimately, we adults need to ask ourselves: When it comes to a child fatality, was the death preventable? And what can we learn about all of our roles? What can all of us learn from a child’s death so we don't repeat it again?" Villafuerte said. "We have been denied answers to those questions. That's the biggest concern here."

Updated 3:15 p.m. May 19, 2025: This story was updated after a Jefferson County spokesperson told The Post, after the article's publication, that the county had forwarded its human services investigation of Isaiah Stark's death to Grand County prosecutors. A different Jefferson County spokesperson had previously declined to say whether that had happened.

Updated 10:30 a.m. May 21, 2025: This story was updated to correct photo captions that had misstated that Isaiah Stark lived in Hot Sulphur Springs. The family bought their current home there after the boy's death.

Getting a state foster care certification that would allow the Weld County family to receive financial help would take significantly longer.

The children arrived at her home in Dacono in August 2023, and while the caseworkers were helpful in getting clothes, car seats and other items they needed immediately, the first check to partially offset the costs of feeding a much larger family didn’t come until November.

Gardinier and her husband Stacy, who have an 8-year-old daughter, agreed to serve as “kinship” caregivers to their former neighbors’ five children after Larimer County officials determined the kids weren’t safe with their parents. They still are caring for them more than a year later.

Almost half of children removed from their homes in Colorado now stay with other relatives, neighbors or friends of their families while their cases work through the system, and state officials hope a new law making it easier to get monetary assistance will allow others to step up.

Obviously, families shouldn’t take in children for financial reasons, but easing the path to get some help could mean that more kids have the option to stay with people they know and trust, Gardinier said. In her family’s case, they dipped into savings to make ends meet, because they knew the children well and wanted to help them move past the trauma they’d lived through, she said.

“It was tough, but we made it work,” Gardinier said.

Earlier this year, the Colorado legislature , but haven’t undergone the full foster home certification process, to receive 30% of the rate the state typically pays foster families. Families that complete the certification process to care for a relative or other child they already have ties to are eligible for the full rate that the state pays to households willing to foster children they don’t know.

In the first six months of the year, an average of 2,949 children were in foster homes of some type on any given day in Colorado. More than half were with traditional foster families whom they didn’t know before placement, 24% were staying with kinship families who hadn’t completed certification and 22% were with certified kinship families.

Since the law took effect in September, uncertified kinship families can receive daily allowances of less than $20 per day for each child. The full rate paid to certified foster familiesÌęranges from about $42 to $65 per day for each child, with larger amounts allowed for teenagers than for younger children.

The estimated it would increase the state’s costs by about $13.5 million, including payments to families and administrative fees. In 2023, the state spent about $68.7 million on payments to foster families, with about $9.9 million of that going to kinship families that completed the certification process.

In July 2026, uncertified kinship families will become eligible for up to half of the rate, said Jeannie Berzinskas, kinship care program administrator with the Colorado Department of Human Services.

“That’s going to have a significant impact on your ability to care for that child,” she said.

The new law also requires the department to look for ways to make it easier for kinship families to complete the certification process, without compromising children’s safety, Berzinskas said. While they don’t know what all of those changes might entail, ideas include reducing the minimum square footage that a family must have available per person and requiring fewer hours of training, she said.

Adults living in kinship homes have to complete background checks and get their home checked for safety hazards . About three-quarters of kinship families for children in the system haven’t gone through the certification process, Berzinskas said.

In certified homes, the parents have to undergo 27 hours of initial training and provide more information, including an overview of the household’s finances, health assessments of all family members and proof of citizenship.

County human services offices have an obligation to look for potential kinship placements before putting a child in an unfamiliar home, and about half the time they find someone who can care for the child immediately after removal from the birth family, Berzinskas said.

Some other children also ultimately end up with relatives or neighbors who needed a few days to prepare.

Staying with someone they already know well is less traumatic to children than having to move in with strangers, however well-trained and well-meaning, she said.

“It’s much easier for them to stay with grandma than to stay with someone they don’t know,” she said.

has paid out about $420 million on 82,000 claims since it rolled out in January, said Tracy Marshall, FAMLI division director at the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. The number of people served may be different, since one person could have had two or more events that qualified them for leave, she said.

Recipients took 53 days off, on average. Initially, most were new parents who had a child in 2023, but now more people with medical conditions are applying, Marshall said.

Most people will qualify for up to 12 weeks of job protection and partial income replacement while they deal with their own illnesses, care for a relative, or take steps to protect themselves from domestic violence. People whose doctors sign off that they need additional time because of serious complications from pregnancy or childbirth can get an additional four weeks, Marshall said.

“The vast majority of people, it shouldn’t be a problem” to qualify, she said.

How do I know if I’m eligible for FAMLI?

This seemingly simple question has two parts, because FAMLI offers protection from losing your job, as well as income replacement.

To qualify for protection from being fired or disciplined, you must have worked for your current employer for at least six months. If your tenure is shorter than that, you can still ask your human resources department if you have any other options, such as short-term disability insurance you’ve paid for. Protections through the federal Family and Medical Leave Act don’t kick in until you’ve been on the job for a year.

For the income replacement part, you must have earned at least $2,500 in wages subject to the fee that funds the program over the previous five quarters. If you’ve worked for less time, but still earned the minimum amount, you qualify.

If you’re , you must commit to paying premiums for three years. You only need to have paid for one quarter before you can take leave, though.

for their employees. If they have, you can still opt in to income replacement by agreeing to pay premiums for three years. All government agencies are subject to the federal FMLA, so you already have job protection for up to 12 weeks.

If you work for the federal government, you aren’t eligible for income replacement.

When can I use FAMLI?

If you’re eligible and you need to:

• Care for a new child, including adopted and foster children
• Take care of your own serious health condition
• Care for another family member who has a serious illness or injury
• Make arrangements when a family member will soon deploy with the military
• Keep yourself or family members safe from domestic violence or sexual assault

If you brought a child into your family in late 2023, before the law creating the program took effect, you might still be able to take some time. You can take family bonding time at any point during the first year of caring for a child.

How much am I paying for this?

If you’re a local government employee or self-employed person who chose to opt in, 0.45% of your wages. Otherwise, your employer can deduct 0.45% from your check. If they have 10 or more workers, they have to match employees’ contributions. Payroll deductions started in January 2023.

The premium applies to the first $168,600 of earnings. If you make $40,000 at a job that’s subject to FAMLI, you’ll pay about $180 per year, and your employer will pay the same. If you earn $200,000 a year, you’ll pay $759, with your employer matching your contribution.

How much will I receive?

The is $1,100 per week.

The program replaces 90% of the first $736 you typically earn in a week. After that, it replaces up to 50% of your earnings, until you get to the $1,100 maximum. (The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment has a .)

Our $40,000 earner in the above example would get about $679 per week. The $200,000 earner hits the maximum of $1,100 a week.

Colorado doesn’t tax FAMLI benefits, but the federal government considers them similar to unemployment insurance payouts and taxes them accordingly.

How do I apply for FAMLI?

You can fill out your application on the webpage.

• Your W-2 from your current employer, or some other document that has their Federal Employer Identification Number
• A “Serious Health Condition” form, completed by a health care provider who is aware of your condition (or your family member’s, if you’re applying for leave as a caregiver)
• A birth certificate, certificate of adoption or documentation of a foster care placement if you’re applying for time to bond with a child
• Possibly an email address for your employer’s human resources department

You can apply for leave in advance if you’re expecting a baby or have a medical procedure scheduled. But you have to complete the process once your leave actually starts, even if that may not be top of mind when you’re healing. You have 30 days after your leave starts to complete the process, though the program sometimes will accept claims filed within 90 days if you can show a good reason for the delay.

Employers can choose to essentially privatize FAMLI for their employees. The only requirements the state has are that any company administering those benefits has to offer at least as much as the employees would get if they went through the state-run program, and that they can’t make it harder to qualify. In this case, you’re going to have to rely on human resources for guidance on their process.

Once the state has your complete application, it has two weeks to make a decision and send the first payment, if you qualify. You can have the money deposited directly into your bank account, or opt to receive a prepaid debit card.

If you need more help, you can call 866-263-2654 (CO-FAMLI).

By the end of July, more than 31,000 4-year-olds matched with state-funded preschool providers for the coming year, according to the most recent data for the core program from the Colorado Department of Early Childhood. Most will receive up to 15 hours of free classtime per week, though about 11,100 of them — about 3,000 more than last year — are expected to qualify for 30 hours each week, after state officials expanded eligibility criteria for the extra class time.

The participating in the program — in-home day cares, private practices, religious schools and public schools — has grown by about 150, to more than 2,000 statewide for this school year, Universal Preschool Program Director Dawn Odean said.

Taken together, that data points to the year-two stabilization of a program whose inaugural year, hiccups and all, was akin to “building the plane as we were flying it,” Odean said.

Colorado’s program was officially born in April 2022, when Gov. Jared Polis signed the bill to create it and the new Colorado Department of Early Childhood. The program was set for a fall 2023 launch. That left about 16 months to stand up the department, bring about 1,800 participating providers into the new system and sign up tens of thousands of families.

Officials also had to find and fill the gaps between concept and reality — including budget crunches caused by a participation rate about 20% higher than expected.

But entering year two of the $344 million program, Odean and local coordinating organizations are hopeful the initial struggles were growing pains associated with its launch. Department officials expect to meet or surpass last year’s sign-up numbers soon, and they hope to see enrollment increase by up to 5%.

“In a nutshell, I’ll tell you things are much better,” said Elsa HolguĂ­n, president and CEO of the Denver Preschool Program. It’s one of the local coordinating organizations, or LCOs, that act as a link between the state department and on-the-ground providers. “Things have gotten better for the families, things have improved for the child care providers and things have improved for the LCOs.”

But, she added, there’s always room for refinement.

“Are we where we need to be? No. We still have some work to do across the spectrum,” HolguĂ­n said.

The rollout of year two is still underway, with parents now able to walk through local providers’ doors to sign up for free preschool, space permitting, rather than being required to apply online. The full enrollment figures for this year won’tÌębe available until the fall.

Adapting to last year’s high enrollment

Ahead of last year’s launch, expectations for the first year began shifting about as soon as public planning for it began.

A promise of 10 hours a week of free classtime for all preschoolers turned into 15, with some students qualifying for double that time — considered full-day schooling — based on family circumstances. But months later, officials raised the threshold to qualify for 30 hours as overall enrollment rates shot up about 20% higher than expected, leaving some families feeling like the rug was yanked out from under them.

Initially, the state had planned to offer extra time to children deemed at risk if they qualified under an eligibility category — by having an individualized education plan, being a dual-language learner, coming from a low-income family or being in foster care.

When demand outpaced expectations, state officials changed the criteria to add base household income limits, at a middle-class level, as an additional qualification. Students still had to qualify under at least one other factor.

Meanwhile, providers and families were chafing at a confusing enrollment process that drew critical attention from state lawmakers.

But officials point to a number of under-the-hood changes since then to smooth out operations.

Voters in November approved a ballot measure last fall that allowed the state to keep $23.7 million in excess tobacco tax proceeds that help pay for the program. Officials expanded the criteria for 30 hours of free classtime to include all families who are at or below the federal poverty line, expanding access to some 3,000 more children. And the state streamlined enrollment processes to smooth out some of those first-year wrinkles.

“We’re ecstatic with year one as far as the number of children served and the number of providers participating — but (we) certainly knew that we stood up the program, and the process to enroll and register, in a fairly compressed timeline, which created some challenges,” said Odean, the state’s preschool program director, in an interview this week.

She also acknowledged the legal battles that played out in the first year.

A group of school districts had sued over the rollout, claiming that it hurt students with special needs and left school districts in a lurch. A judge ruled in July that the districts lacked standing to sue, while also acknowledging the “headaches” they faced, .

In a separate January lawsuit, two Catholic schools sued over a nondiscrimination clause for preschool providers. That suit was , but not before the state removed the nondiscrimination clause. About 40 religious schools are registered as universal preschool providers in the state this school year.

Odean said she couldn’t comment on the particulars of the lawsuits, but she appreciated the conversations they spurred about how to make sure families get the preschool they want — even if she wished they didn’t take the form of litigation.

Private providers’ low enrollments “concerning”

When it came to preparing for school this year, HolguĂ­n, the Denver Preschool Program’s CEO, said preregistration for families and other changes to enrollment, in particular, “changed our world” by making it easier to connect them with preschool providers.

Diane Smith, director of the Douglas County Early Childhood Council, another LCO, likewise said the state’s program is better positioned this year “in many ways” — though it¶¶Òőap still too early to make a definitive call.

She still identified a number of focus areas for the future, including a desire for more lead time between announced changes to the program and when they’re implemented, along with more predictable, consistent funding for providers. And, of course, the unending work of making sure every family that wants to participate knows about the program and how to enroll in it.

In short, the first-year growing pains haven’t quite waned, Smith said, even as she excitedly reports that more providers have signed up to provide universal preschool in her area.

“Some people are bigger worriers than I am,” Smith said. “I’m the type who says ‘Yes, this is a little bit of a challenge, but I think intentions are always good.’ We’re looking to move forward and we have.”

Dawn Alexander, executive director of the Early Childhood Education Association of Colorado, which advocates for private preschool providers, warned that some of her members were starting to fret about “concerning” lowÌęearly enrollment numbers — though she, too, cautioned that it was too early to raise a red flag.

Many families seem to be choosing school districts’ programs for their 4-year-olds, Alexander said, meaning that private preschools lose out on those enrollments. The older, less care-intensive preschool children help round out the rosters of many facilities that also provide day care for infants and toddlers, she said. Losing those populations can put their entire business at risk.

That, coupled with other strains associated with tight margins and fluctuating enrollment, add up for providers, she said. Many staffed up based on expected enrollment — and corresponding state funding — that¶¶Òőap so far not materialized, she said. She and other private providers raised similar concerns last year.

“You get too many frustrations and you go, ‘I’m out,’ ” Alexander said. “And you don’t want private providers to opt out of the system. It’s critical they be a significant part of it.”

Odean said there was still work being done around funding, including how to make it easier for families to qualify for — and providers to benefit from — the myriad state and federal preschool assistance programs.

There’s also a balance to strike between stable, predictable funding and ways to allow it to fluctuate so it meets current needs, she said. A smoother year two will make it easier for officials to be intentional about steps forward, she said.

“Things change, communities change — and so we have to continue to be responsive,” Odean said. “We just want to have some clear processes in place where we’re continuing to hear from families and providers, and we have a stable system and environment … so we can continue to improve.”

Maybe it was the fatigue of the trip. Maybe it was the years she spent herding this class to the finish line. The hours answering their phone calls, figuring out plan Bs, worrying about them at every setback.

As she addressed the crowd, Law was nearly overcome with emotion. She paused before regaining control. There was so much to celebrate.

On this day, 14 students donned caps and gowns, the largest graduating class in the school’s history. Among them were a record four students who graduated at least a semester early and three who were dual enrolled in a community college. Eight were headed to college or Job Corps.

For a tiny school that lags far behind conventional performance measures, these were significant wins.

The school, which serves a majority of Native American students, reports higher-than-average rates of foster care, homelessness and involvement in the criminal justice system. Some 70% of students live in single-parent households or have a deceased parent. In 2018, the on-time graduation rate was 0%.

I spent four months visiting the school during the semester before graduation this year. Data points can’t capture the hurdles they faced — lost loved ones and an education system that¶¶Òőap historically failed Indigenous students.

But what the seniors had to their advantage was an advocate and a reliable source of support: Principal Katie Law. An athletic white woman, Law often engaged in tasks that went beyond traditional principal duties. She made sure to learn the personal lives, history and family dynamics of all her students.

Well before Law was recently awarded Principal of the Year by the Wyoming Association of Secondary Schools in a surprise ceremony, it was clear she had a rare level of commitment.

“You’re not going to find another principal or educator that puts as much time in as she does in the evenings, on the weekends,” District Superintendent Curt Mayer said.

Law helps students get their driver’s licenses, chaperones college visits and makes calls when kids get arrested. Students have gone to Law with news that they are pregnant, and she has later cared for their infants in her office while they attend class.

The motivation is simple. “I want to see these students succeed, and I’m going to do what it takes,” she said.

Law grew up in Colstrip, Montana — 30 miles from the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation. She was the daughter of educators, and never thought she would enter that world.

But she wanted to help people, and education ultimately became the vehicle for that. During her first year of teaching in Nebraska, she found a distraught student crying in the bathroom one day and sat comforting her for an hour. When Law saw her years later, the student told her she was a pivotal teacher. It dawned on Law then that she’s different.

“I get a lot of, ‘That¶¶Òőap not your job,’” she says. “I’m like, ‘I know, but whose job is it?’”

She was hired to teach in the Arapaho school district 18 years ago, at age 23. The school was rough. Drug use and gang violence were common. She kept her head down, helped where she could. Slowly, she started building relationships.

The work can be devastating, and many fixes don’t last. Law isÌęstubborn. “I think my biggest asset is, I won’t give up.”

Law doesn’t pretend to share a background with her reservation students, but she uses her own experiences to build empathy. School didn’t come easily to her. Her brother died young from diabetes. And she witnessed a murder at age 14. These are experiences her students can relate to.

It seems to work. At graduation, the seniors handed out roses to people who were meaningful. Law received six roses, and six heartfelt hugs.

It¶¶Òőap not realistic to expect all struggling schools to find administrators like Law, who live and breathe their jobs and don’t burn out.ÌęStill, parents and educators can take this to heart: One caring adult can make an enormous difference in a student¶¶Òőap life.

Katie Klingsporn is a contributor to Writers on the Range, writersontherange.org, an independent nonprofit dedicated to spurring conversation about Western issues. She lives in central Wyoming, where she reports on education and outdoor recreation for WyoFile.com.

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Re: “Colorado finally will license funeral home directors,” May 25 news story

Rep. Matt Soper would have been correct if he’d referred only to the Return to Nature and Sunset Mesa funeral homes as a “dark, dark world.” His mistake was in painting the entire death-care industry with that broad brush.

I have been in the business for more than 15 years at Colorado’s oldest family-owned funeral home. It is a place of light and love, committed to dignity and compassion for the dead and to helping grieving loved ones find a path to walk.

The vast majority of people in my industry are dedicated to these ideals and operate as my co-workers and I do: with true care and empathy both for the dead and for their survivors. The appalling actions taken by the few bad actors who made the news for all the wrong reasons in the past few years should not reflect on the rest of us.

In fact, many of us have been concerned by Colorado’s lack of oversight compared to other states and looked forward to seeing a carefully crafted regulatory program that treats good operators fairly while protecting clients from harm.

It¶¶Òőap easy to make broad, general statements. But people, especially our elected officials, should take care not to group the good in with the bad.

Jamie Sarché, Denver

Editor’s note: SarchĂ© is director of pre-planning atÌęFeldman Mortuary in Denver.

Work to keep children with parents

Re: “Keep kids out of foster care by supporting parents,” May 25 commentary

Shari F. Shink’s article is eye-opening and very thoughtfully worded. It presents evidence that an ounce of prevention creates a pound of cure. What most fail to see is that the rewards from this are not only for the individual children and families but for society as a whole. Remember the “family values” movement? This is what that should have been about. Helping families survive and thrive.

I’m reminded of a dear childhood friend back in the 1960s whose family of five children was scattered to various foster homes when their father died suddenly, and their mom couldn’t provide for them. She spent two years without her family and siblings while her mom got back on her feet. In the end, the sisters were able to reunite with her, but the three younger brothers were not. I’ve often wondered what happened to them all. Shink’s article makes me wonder if receiving aid would have kept them all together.

In election years, we often hear cries about spending, with one group yelling, “Don’t spend any more of my money.” Shink demonstrates that there are those who need assistance to get out of the hole so all can benefit the greater society.

Krista Igoe, Littleton

Electoral College necessary for fair representation

Re: “Our presidents should be popularly elected,” May 22 letter to the editor

The idea of electing presidents by popular vote means that Colorado and the other less populated states will never see candidates appear in their state. They will concentrate their time and policies on the more populated states as the concerns of the smaller states will not be addressed.

Our nation would not have come together had our Founding Fathers not agreed to the Electoral College. The smaller states knew that if the president was elected by popular vote, whoever won the largest cities in the most populous states would win every election, leaving the smaller states with no say in presidential elections. The same remains true today.

Our Democrat-controlled legislature passed the popular vote measure simply as sour grapes since Hilary Clinton did not win. Had she won the Electoral College and lost the popular vote, the issue would never have been brought before the legislature.

I am not and have never been a supporter of former President Donald Trump or his policies. I am a supporter of Colorado and other smaller states having some say in presidential elections. I don’t want California, Texas, Florida and New York controlling our elections. Before advocating for a popular vote, please learn why our Founding Fathers did not adopt that procedure.

Wayne Patton, Salida

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