Denver Public Schools

Last updated

Denver Public Schools
Denver Public Schools logo.svg
Denver
, Colorado
District information
TypePublic
GradesPre-K through 12
EstablishedDecember 23, 1859;163 years ago (1859-12-23)
SuperintendentDr. Alex Marrero
Budget$1,271,873,000
NCES District ID 0803360 [1]
Students and staff
Students93,356
Teachers6,081.42
Staff14,445.08
Other information
Website www.dpsk12.org

The School District No. 1 in the City and County of Denver and State of Colorado, more commonly known as Denver Public Schools (DPS), is the public school system in the City and County of Denver, Colorado, United States.

Contents

History

Robert W. Steele Elementary School in Denver, 1918 Annual report of the Board of Education of School District Number One in the City and County of Denver, Colorado (1918) (14595904590).jpg
Robert W. Steele Elementary School in Denver, 1918

In 1859, Owen J. Goldrick established the Union School, Denver's first school, a private school that served thirteen students. [2] Other private schools opened shortly thereafter to accommodate Denver's rapidly growing population during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. In 1861, the new territorial government established Goldrick as the superintendent in Arapahoe County (which then encompassed Denver). Soon after the first two public school districts in Denver were formed: District One on the east side of the city and District Two on the west side. District Two opened the first public school in Denver on December 1, 1862 in a rented log cabin and District One followed suit soon after. On April 2, 1873 the first purpose built school building, the "Arapahoe School", opened. [3]

In 1902, the 20th Amendment to the Constitution of the State of Colorado, known as the Rush Amendment, created the City and County of Denver, separating it from Arapahoe County. In 1903, Denver Public Schools was established. All school districts in Denver County were consolidated into Denver Public Schools, and Aaron Gove became the first-ever DPS Superintendent. Margaret Tupper True was president of the Denver School Board from 1906 to 1908, one of the first women to serve in such a role in a major city. [4]

In 1994, Denver Public School teacher went on strike over classroom size, working conditions, and pay. [5]

In 2015, the Brookings Institution ranked Denver Public Schools first in school choice among large school districts in the United States. [6] [7]

In 2018, Denver Public Schools joined other regional districts in banning its students from attending school-sanctioned trips to the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge citing the history of the area's plutonium contamination and previous designation as a Superfund site. [8] [9]

In February 2019, teachers in the Denver Public Schools went on strike for three days as part of the larger wave of teachers' strikes across the United States that began in 2018. The teachers union, Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA), demanded higher pay and school funding as well as a change to the teachers' compensation structure, which they said was overly reliant on bonuses instead of salary increases. It was the first strike in the district in 25 years. [10] The deal that the union ultimately reached with the district kept some bonuses in place but also increased base salaries by 7 to 11 percent and created a new pay scale that puts more emphasis on teacher training and experience. [11] [12]

In 2020, all members of the board voted to remove police officers from schools in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. [13]

Organization

DPS is the sole public school district in Denver. [14]

DPS operates 207 schools, including traditional, magnet, charter and pathways schools, with a current total enrollment of about 90,250 students as of October 2021. [15] Of those, 52.1% of the school district's enrollment is Hispanic, 25.3% is Caucasian, 13.7% is African American, 3% is Asian, 4% is two or more races, and 1% is American Indian. [15] 140 languages are spoken, and 37% are English language learners. 11% of students have special needs. The poverty rate is 70%.

Under the leadership of Superintendent Tom Boasberg and guided by the tenets of the Denver Plan, DPS had the second-highest academic growth in the nation. [16] The total of DPS graduates has grown from 2,655 in 2006 to 3,608 in 2014. Drop-out rates have dropped from 11.1% in 2006 to 4.5% in 2014.

School Board

The Denver Board of Education is the policymaking body for DPS. The school board is made up of one representative from five districts and two at-large representatives, for a total of seven members. Dr. Carrie Olson was elected the school board president in 2019. [17]

Student demographics

  Hispanic (56.1%)
  White (22.6%)
  Black (13.8%)
  Asian or Pacific Islander (3.5%)
  American Indian or Alaskan Native (.6%)
  Two or more races (3.5%)
Historical student population [18]
YearPop.±%
200573,018—    
200673,399+0.5%
200778,873+7.5%
200875,269−4.6%
200978,352+4.1%
201079,423+1.4%
201181,870+3.1%
201284,424+3.1%
201387,398+3.5%
201490,150+3.1%
201591,429+1.4%
201692,331+1.0%
201792,984+0.7%

In the 2016-2017 school year, 92,331 students were enrolled in 207 Denver Public Schools consisting of 8 Early Childhood Education or K-12 schools, 92 elementary, 18 ECE-8 or K-8, 34 middle, 12 schools with grades 6-12, and 44 traditional high schools.

71.7 percent (62,977) of public school students qualified for free or reduced price lunch in the 2013-2014 school year. [19]

There are 11,932 employees of DPS; 4,329 of them are teachers. [20]

Race

Although Denver is more than 52 percent non-Hispanic white, minority groups represent double the regular Denver population. The reason for this has been white flight over the past few decades and extremely strong Hispanic school-age growth due to relatively high birth rates. The predominant heritage in the Denver Public School system is Mexican American. Denver has a high Hispanic percentage of roughly 32%, and they are a majority in the public school system.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston Independent School District</span> Public school system in Texas

The Houston Independent School District (HISD) is the largest public school system in Texas, and the eighth-largest in the United States. Houston ISD serves as a community school district for most of the city of Houston and several nearby and insular municipalities in addition to some unincorporated areas. Like most districts in Texas, it is independent of the city of Houston and all other municipal and county jurisdictions. The district has its headquarters in the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center in Houston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Columbine High School</span> Public high school in Columbine, Colorado, United States

Columbine High School (CHS) is a public high school in Columbine, Colorado, United States, in the Denver metropolitan area. It is part of the Jefferson County Public Schools district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago Public Schools</span> Public school system of the municipal government of Chicago, Illinois

Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the fourth-largest school district in the United States, after New York, Los Angeles, and Miami-Dade County. For the 2020–21 school year, CPS reported overseeing 638 schools, including 476 elementary schools and 162 high schools; of which 513 were district-run, 115 were charter schools, 9 were contract schools and 1 was a SAFE school. The district serves 340,658 students. Chicago Public School students attend a particular school based on their area of residence, except for charter, magnet, and selective enrollment schools.

Oakland Unified School District is a public education school district that operates a total of 80 elementary schools (TK–5), middle schools (6–8), and high schools (9–12). There are also 28 district-authorized charter schools in Oakland, California, United States, serving a total of 48,704 students across both district-run and district-authorized charter schools.

The Teaneck Public Schools is comprehensive community public school district serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade in Teaneck, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jefferson County Public Schools (Colorado)</span> School district in Jefferson County, Colorado

Jefferson County School District R-1 is a school district in Jefferson County, Colorado. The district is headquartered at the Jeffco Public Schools Education Center in West Pleasant View, an unincorporated area of the county near Golden in the Denver metropolitan area. Jeffco Public Schools serves almost 81,000 students in 166 schools. It is the second-largest school district in Colorado, having been surpassed in 2013 by Denver Public Schools, which has an enrollment of approximately 81,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East High School (Denver, Colorado)</span> Public high school in Denver, Colorado

East High School is a historical public high school located in the City Park neighborhood on the east side of Denver, Colorado, United States. It is part of the Denver Public Schools system, and is one of four original high schools in Denver. The other three are West, North, and South.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Detroit Public Schools Community District</span> Public school system of Detroit, Michigan

Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is a school district that serves Detroit, Michigan and high school students in Highland Park, Michigan. The district, which replaced the original Detroit Public Schools (DPS) in 2016, provides services to approximately 50,000 students, making it the largest school district in the state. The district has its headquarters in the Fisher Building of the New Center area of Detroit.

Puyallup School District is a school district that supports the City of Puyallup, Washington, United States, and its surrounding areas. It was the third school district formed in the state of Washington. It is the 8th largest school district in Washington. The district has 22 elementary schools, seven junior high schools, three senior high schools and an alternative school, which together serve over 22,534 students. The district employs more than 1,560 certificated, 1,450 classified staff, and 570 substitute personnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Littleton Public Schools</span>

Littleton Public Schools is a school district in Littleton, Colorado which serves several communities within the southern Denver metropolitan area. It is governed by a five-member Board of Education, and administered by a superintendent and six executives. Its headquarters, the Education Services Center, is located in Downtown Littleton. It is the fifteenth largest school district in Colorado. LPS operates 11 elementary schools, four middle schools, three high schools, several alternative programs, a preschool, and two charter schools.

The Cherry Creek School District 5, also known as Cherry Creek Public Schools, is a school district located in western Arapahoe County, Colorado. The current superintendent is Christopher Smith. Former superintendent Scott Siegfried, Ph.D. announced his retirement on January 22, 2021. It consists of elementary, middle, and high schools. The district headquarters are in Greenwood Village.

The Boulder Valley School District No. Re2 is a school district in Colorado, headquartered in the BVSD Education Center in unincorporated Boulder County, near Boulder. The district serves Boulder, Gold Hill, Jamestown, Lafayette, Louisville, Nederland, Superior, and Ward. Its area also includes portions of Broomfield and Erie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DSST Public Schools</span> Charter school in Denver and Aurora, Colorado, United States

DSST Public Schools (DSST), formerly known as the Denver School of Science and Technology, is a public charterSTEM network comprising 16 schools on eight campuses in Denver and Aurora, Colorado, United States, in partnership with Denver Public Schools. DSST is ranked among the top 200 public high schools in the US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manual High School (Colorado)</span> Public high school in Denver, Colorado, United States

Manual High School is located in the Whittier neighborhood on the east side of Denver, Colorado, United States.

The Prospect Park School District is a community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade from Prospect Park, in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its only school, Prospect Park Elementary School, has expanded multiple times to accommodate its growing student body, including a $1.5 million preschool expansion completed in 2012.

Englewood Schools is a school district located in Englewood, Colorado, United States, in the Greater Denver area.

Auon'tai M. "Tay" Anderson is an American politician and community organizer from Denver, Colorado. A member of the Democratic Party, he is serving as one of the Directors of the Denver Public Schools Board of Education since 2019. In September 2021, he was censured by the board for "behavior unbecoming of a board member" following an investigation of allegations against him.

Jennifer Bacon is an American attorney, educator, and politician serving as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives from the 7th district. Elected in 2020, she assumed office on January 13, 2021.

From 1968 to 2012 at least 839 teacher strikes have occurred in the US. 740 of these have been in Pennsylvania. Teacher strikes and walkouts have since increased in popularity outside of Pennsylvania due to the Red for Ed movement in 2018-19.

Tim Hernández is an American schoolteacher and activist who is the member-elect for the 4th district in the Colorado House of Representatives. Hernández was appointed to the chamber in August 2023 by a vacancy committee. Once sworn in, Hernández will be the first member of Generation Z to hold a public office in Colorado.

References

  1. ↑ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for School District NO. 1 In The County Of Denver And State Of C". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Denver Public Schools: History". dpsk12.org. Denver Public Schools. Retrieved February 18, 2016. The first school bells in Denver rang out on October 3, 1859 when professor Owen J. Goldrick opened his "Union School". The school, a log cabin, was located on the west side of 12th Street between Larimer and Market Streets. It was a private school with an enrollment of thirteen children and lasted until late in the winter of 1859-60...School resumed classes on May 7, 1860 with Goldrick and an assistant, Miss Miller.
  3. ↑ Smiley, Jerome C. (1901). History of Denver: With Outlines of the Earlier History of the Rocky Mountain Country. Times-Sun Pub. Co. pp. 735–760. Archived from the original on January 28, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Southwestern States". Journal of Education. 74: 179. August 16, 1906.
  5. ↑ "School Strike Is Settled in Denver". The New York Times. Associated Press. October 16, 1994. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  6. ↑ Whitehurst, Grover J. (2015). "Education Choice and Competition Index 2015" (PDF). Brookings.edu. Center on Children and Families, Brookings Institution. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  7. ↑ Asmar, Melanie (February 4, 2016). "Denver Public Schools ranks first for school choice among large districts nationwide". Chalkbeat . Chalkbeat Colorado. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Denver Public Schools Latest District to Ban School Visits to Wildlife Refuge". District Administration. May 1, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  9. ↑ John Aguilar (April 29, 2018). "Nearly 300,000 Colorado Public School Students Now Barred From Making Field Trips to Rocky Flats". The Denver Post. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  10. ↑ Campbell, Alexia Fernández (February 11, 2019). "Denver teachers are striking for the first time in 25 years". Vox . Retrieved February 13, 2019.
  11. ↑ Campbell, Alexia Fernández (February 14, 2019). "The Denver teachers strike is over. They won". Vox . Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  12. ↑ Ragan, Kelly (February 14, 2019). "Denver Public Schools teacher strike ends after three days". Fort Collins Coloradoan . Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  13. ↑ Lewis, Sophie (June 12, 2020). "Denver school board votes unanimously to remove police from public schools". CBS News . Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  14. ↑ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Denver County, CO" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved July 22, 2022. - Text list
  15. 1 2 "Facts & Figures: Denver Public Schools by the Number". Denver Public Schools. Retrieved October 1, 2022.
  16. ↑ Education Resource Strategies (March 2017). "Denver Public Schools: Leveraging System Transformation to Improve Student Results" (PDF). Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  17. ↑ Asmar, Melanie (December 4, 2019). "'Flipped' Denver school board elects former teacher as president, after new members sworn in". Chalkbeat . Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  18. ↑ Denver Public Schools. "Indicators of growth in enrollment, achievement and graduation 2005-06 to 2016-17" (PDF). Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  19. ↑ Denver Children's Affairs, facts sheet Archived 2015-05-26 at the Wayback Machine
  20. ↑ "Facts & Figures". Denver Public Schools. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.