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The Adams 14 school district and its management company Friday could not agree on a report showing they had resumed working together, bringing into question whether the state will strip the district of its accreditation.
The state asked for written proof in the form of a joint report that Adams 14 and MGT, its private managers, would resume cooperation after the new superintendent blocked MGT from district schools earlier this year. Officials from Adams 14 and MGT worked late Friday, but ultimately district officials submitted a statement without MGT’s signature.
In it, they asked the State Board of Education to find the district was still in compliance and said MGT insisted on conditions that were not acceptable, including that the district agree not to sue the company.
Colorado education officials have often threatened school districts that failing to meet certain achievement standards over a long period of time could result in losing accreditation. But the state has never acted on those threats, and officials Friday afternoon were unclear about what wielding it against Adams 14 could mean.
The district is entering the third year under contract with the external company, MGT. The State Board’s orders required the district to contract with an external manager for a period of four years. The local school board hired its own superintendent this summer for the first time since being managed by the company.