Blog posts are the opinions of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of A+ Colorado.

Has Denver become Mississippi or maybe Chicago? 4 Takeaways from Denver’s NAEP scores

Denver has had a remarkable transformation from the sleepy cow town that I moved to 20 years ago. We now have five nationally recognized art museums (we had only one back then) and many new amazing restaurants, some with James Beard awards.  Denver has a thriving economy with a 2.8% unemployment rate with impressive growth…

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Wandering Towards Revolution

Anxiety combined with rising expectations is revolutionary rocket fuel. Amidst their wandering, can different generations of educational leaders come together for what we all know is possible? Or will they fail each other and future generations? I was recently speaking with a group of national education experts who were asking my opinion about current issues…

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Building The Portfolio’s Bandwidth: Bold & Better Interventions in Yellow Schools

Last month, the Denver Public School Board engaged in a conversation with the district leadership about the current state of yellow schools.  It was a welcome and long overdue conversation. In the DPS system red and orange schools are bound to draw the eye of both families, community leaders and DPS leadership. These are our…

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The Open System Podcast

This post originally appeared on the blog The Open System. I’m really excited about our March podcast. This month we get to talk to someone who I really love working with in the open system space – Reilly Pharo Carter. Reilly is the Executive Director of Climb Higher Colorado, an organization formed for the purpose…

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Our Family and DPS Choice

Guest Blogger: Alexis Senger “I don’t want to talk about it anymore!” My fifth grader was at the end of her rope.  No, we weren’t talking about her grades or her daily grind of Wolfgang at the keys. We were talking about choosing middle schools.  Denver Public Schools (DPS) has a school choice process for…

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An Open Response to A+ Colorado Orange Paper: Learn Together, Live Together: A Call to Integrate Denver’s Schools (February 2018)

An Open Response to A+ Colorado Orange Paper: Learn Together, Live Together: A Call to Integrate Denver’s Schools (February 2018)Author: antwan jefferson, Date: 26 March 2018 University of Colorado Denver, School of Education and Human Development—————————— In its February 2018 Orange Paper, A+ Colorado published a report entitled “Learn Together, Live Together: A Call to…

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A+ Colorado: Letters to Our Next Governor

A+ Colorado believes this fall’s gubernatorial race is one of the most critical elections in recent memory. That is why we’re dedicating space to it every month moving forward and publishing “Letters to Our Next Governor” from A+ Colorado and thought-leaders across the state.   Colorado has a critical election this fall determining who will…

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Closing the Gender Gap at the Superintendent Level

By Beth Dalton, AmeriCorps Vista at A+ Colorado Twelve school districts in Colorado are seeking new leaders.  While we believe that each school district should carefully select the candidate best qualified to serve their community, and that a person’s performance and not his or her race, gender, ethnicity, exceptionalities, sexual orientation, or creed should be…

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Where Should Send Your Child?  High School Choices Worth Exploring

We are in the midst of school choice season.  Thankfully, Colorado and many of Colorado’s large school districts have policies and practices that make it easier for families to find the public school that best meets their family needs. I wanted to pull together a list of high schools that families might consider as they…

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Driving Focus and Coherence in School Leadership

By Sean Precious, Instructional Superintendent at Denver Public Schools The fitness of focus and coherence in school leadership I tell people that I have one of the most enjoyable jobs in the world. After classroom teaching, coaching other teachers, and leading schools on the East Coast, I moved to Denver five years ago and am…

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