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Faced with possible school closures, Denver teachers seek clarity about their jobs
Approved, Chalkbeat Colorado, Local

Faced with possible school closures, Denver teachers seek clarity about their jobs

By Melanie Asmar | Chalkbeat Colorado At lunchtime meetings last week at Denver schools that may close or shrink, teachers were full of questions about their fate: Would educators at the closing schools be guaranteed jobs next year? Would they be able to follow their students to new schools? Unlike in 2023, when Denver Public Schools made a deal with the teachers union to guarantee educators at closing schools a one-year job at the schools that received their students, no such agreement exists now. With the Denver school board set to vote Thursday on whether to close or partially close 10 schools, many teachers are feeling uncertain. Students are, too. “I don’t think it’s right to close our school,” a fifth grader named Analizeth told school board members who visited Castro E...
Douglas and Arapahoe counties open long-term care facility for homeless families
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Douglas and Arapahoe counties open long-term care facility for homeless families

By Noah Festenstein | Denver Gazette Douglas and Arapahoe county officials on Wednesday celebrated the opening of a newly upgraded residential facility focused on helping homeless families. The care facility's mission includes serving families that entered through Douglas County’s homeless program. The long-term care facility is operated by Colorado nonprofit The Family Tree, an agency focused on working with domestic abuse, child abuse and family-related homeless cases. It's located in Aurora. The new residential care center for homeless families is called the GOALS facility, which stands for the "generational opportunities and achievement long-term success program." READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Two more elementaries to close in Western Slope district, school board unanimously decides
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Two more elementaries to close in Western Slope district, school board unanimously decides

By Jen Schumann | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice A special board meeting for Mesa County Valley School District 51 on Friday evening led to a 5-0 vote to close Clifton and Scenic Elementary Schools. The vote came after a presentation by demographer Shannon Bingham, and a discussion on the declining enrollment, demographic shifts and the district's finances. Shannon Bingham, the district's demographer, presented data detailing a decline in birth rates and a shift in housing. Both factors are causing reduced enrollment. “We are not getting student growth from the neighborhood. The numbers say that [enrollment] is going to continue to go down into the upper 20s,” Bingham explained. He pointed to projections of a 15-20% drop in kindergarten enrollment over the next five years. ...
What happened to JonBenét Ramsey? New documentary set to premiere this month
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What happened to JonBenét Ramsey? New documentary set to premiere this month

By Samantha Jarpe | Fox 31 News On Dec. 26, 1996, JonBenét Ramsey was reported missing from her home in Boulder. The family of the beauty pageant star had called the police about a ransom note that was left in their home. The 6-year-old was later found dead in the basement of the home. Her death was ruled a homicide by strangulation. Her case remains unsolved and has been the subject of a number of documentaries and books, most recently in the Netflix three-part series “Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey?” READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 31 NEWS
Fort Carson unveils largest, first-of-its-kind chemical battery installed on a DOD site
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Fort Carson unveils largest, first-of-its-kind chemical battery installed on a DOD site

By Mary Shinn | The Gazette A large new chemical battery at Fort Carson will help ensure the base can keep functioning during power outages and provide electricity when demand for energy is highest to save money.  "Diversification of our power distribution protects our community against power outages and any adversarial efforts," said Maj. Gen. David Doyle, who leads Fort Carson, during a ceremony on Wednesday. While the energy priorities of President-elect President Donald Trump, may be different than the current administration, Rachel Jacobson, assistant secretary of the Army Installations, Energy and Environment, said she expected energy resiliency for the Army would continue to be a priority and other installations would install similar systems.  READ THE FULL STORY AT...
Denver has spent millions in voter-approved bond money to upgrade schools it might close
Approved, Chalkbeat Colorado, Local

Denver has spent millions in voter-approved bond money to upgrade schools it might close

By Melanie Asmar | Chalkbeat Colorado Denver Public Schools has spent $22.6 million in voter-approved bond dollars over the past four years on schools that district officials are now considering closing or downsizing, according to information obtained by Chalkbeat in an open records request. That dollar amount only includes construction projects unique to the 10 school buildings that would be closed or partially closed if the Denver school board votes yes Thursday on a proposal by Superintendent Alex Marrero to shutter seven schools and shrink three more due to declining enrollment. It does not include districtwide projects. Of the 10 schools, five are located in standalone buildings that would become vacant. About $4.6 million of the $22.6 million in bond money was spen...
Graham: White liberal women are ‘The Mean Girls’
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Graham: White liberal women are ‘The Mean Girls’

By Ellen M. Graham | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Why do other women keep telling me they’ve been unfriended for voting for Trump? Why is this a thing? Having been through it myself, my pulse quickens and suddenly I’m in junior high and there they are.  The mean girls.  Today they are white, liberal, women, living in self-reflecting vacuums and their entitlement runs deep.  They are virtuous and experts on everything. Ruthless, alone, predatory in groups, these mean girls stalk the hallways of their modern neighborhoods, children’s schools and Whole Foods looking for those who aren’t worthy.  In the world of mean girls, wearing T-shirts that say BE KIND, your kindess will be taken as a weakness.  Weakness like the maturity of being a friend who l...
Mesa County commissioners updated on pretrial and corrections services programs
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Mesa County commissioners updated on pretrial and corrections services programs

By Lindy Browning | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice Matt Lewis, a former Mesa County sheriff and current Justice Services Director for the county, updated Mesa County commissioners on the status of their Pretrial Services (PTS) program and the County Community Corrections Services program on Tuesday, Nov. 19. PTS is a program for people who have been arrested to receive pretrial services in the jail, in addition to services while they are incarcerated. A pretrial assessment is completed for anyone who is booked in the Mesa County jail. This assessment is provided to the court, district attorney's office and public defender’s office to be used as a tool to inform the court as they are considering bond decisions. Setting the appropriate bond assists with maximizing releases from c...
Police investigating explicit traffic signs in Boulder area
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Police investigating explicit traffic signs in Boulder area

By Heather Willard | Fox 31 News Boulder police are investigating after four signs with explicit messages were found affixed to speed limit signs around the city on Tuesday. The signs were found at: Table Mesa Drive and South Broadway 28th Street and Jay Road 28th Street and Palo Parkway 28th Street and Diagonal Highway READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 31 NEWS
Pikes Peak Library District CEO responds to community concerns over Rockrimmon closure
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Pikes Peak Library District CEO responds to community concerns over Rockrimmon closure

By Debbie Kelley | The Gazette As Dec. 1 approaches and the Rockrimmon Library gasps its last breath, the Pikes Peak Library District’s Chief Librarian and CEO Teona Shainidze-Krebs said she feels the community’s pain over the decision to shutter the beloved space. “We know people have passion and love for their libraries, and so do we, the staff and the board of trustees,” she said Tuesday. “I understand the concerns — this is something very hard.” Working off a new master facilities plan that recommended closing some of the 15 branches, the board voted 5-2 at its Oct. 16 meeting not to renew the lease of the storefront library at 832 Village Center Drive, which opened in 1989 in northwestern Colorado Springs. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE GAZETTE