Declining Enrollment Community Update Nov 2021

Posted November 17, 2021

Icon

Leer en Español – 

Vietnamese Đọc bằng tiếng Việt

SUBJECT: Small schools and declining enrollment update 

Nov. 15, 2021

Dear DPS Families, 

On September 30, Superintendent Alex Marrero announced a pause in the Small Schools process, which was intended to address declining enrollment. At the Board of Education Work Session on November 4, Superintendent Marrero presented an update on the Small Schools process and led a discussion about options to address declining enrollment moving forward. 

One of the potential paths forward, Option 4, would require the district to work along with the community to develop a set of criteria that would be used to identify schools that would be considered in the closure or consolidation process moving forward. The board agreed that this was the best way to continue the work needed to address declining enrollment and asked Superintendent Marrero to explore this criteria approach further. 

DPS anticipates that the criteria will include the enrollment data shared in the Strategic Regional Analysis (SRA) along with other information about school programs, operations and facilities.  To clarify, this means that the process will be starting again and our school is not currently being considered for closure or consolidation. However, if the new approach is used moving forward, there is the possibility that our school could be identified in this new approach. 

Declining enrollment remains a challenge district-wide, and is greatly impacting our region. By addressing declining enrollment we can work to ensure your student has access to robust academic programming and support. 

We know that you may have a lot of questions about what this all means for our school, and we will continue to share information as it becomes available in the coming weeks. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to reach out to me with questions and concerns or call the Family and Community Helpline at 720-423-3054.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as the organization continues to work toward the best possible solution to this complex issue.

Sincerely,

Denver Public Schools