Denver school board’s weekend swearing-in ceremony draws scrutiny

The Denver General Schools Board of Coaching swore in three newly elected members and a reelected director Saturday a move that drew criticism over its timing and initial plans to elect new officers to lead the governing body of Colorado s largest K- district Board members scheduled the population meeting after the Denver Clerk and Recorder s Office alerted four candidates X chitl Gayt n Amy Klein Molk Monica Hunter and DJ Torres on Friday that their referendum to the board was certified The school board originally scheduled the swearing-in ceremony for Dec but the timing of the notice meant DPS had to swear in the new members by Nov according to the district It s a tricky situation because all of DPS is on break and I really believe that the people that work so hard to make our district run deserve a break Molk revealed I was surprised it was going to happen on Saturday DPS officers including incumbent board member Gayt n and spokesman Scott Pribble disclosed the meeting was scheduled for Saturday because state law only gives the district calendar days after voting process results are certified to swear in new members and a multitude of district staffers and school board members are unavailable this week because they are traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday Saturday was the only time DPS could get a judge and all four of the new directors in a room together Pribble declared We really felt like we had our hands tied he stated Members of at least one neighborhood group Educate Denver mentioned they were surprised that the meeting occurred so suddenly and on the weekend especially given that directors were originally scheduled to elect new officers including board president and vice president Related Articles In Colorado governor s race two heavy-hitting Democrats cleared the primary field But the fight s just starting Denver school board censures John Youngquist over his therapy of DPS staff Denver schools foundation restarts pandemic-era food fund to help feed families during SNAP delays Outgoing Douglas County school board debates transgender athlete ban rejects -year charter extension Northfield one of Colorado s fastest-rising football programs trounces Skyline in Class A playoffs EDUCATE Denver is disappointed that the DPS Board of Development has opted to conduct its first order of business with its new board members in a largely non-public way the coalition of former board members and politicians wrote in a report issued on Saturday The decision to hold the polling for new board officers on a Saturday with barely hours of general notice is disrespectful to the Denver district which has long been calling for more transparency around board decision-making The board decided Saturday to postpone the poll of officers until Dec because two members Kimberlee Sia and John Youngquist weren t able to attend the weekend meeting Pribble mentioned I m glad they took a minute to think about it Educate Denver Co-Chair Rosemary Rodriguez mentioned of the decision to postpone the vote That s something the general should be able to view Get more Colorado news by signing up for our Mile High Roundup email newsletter