Colorado Democrats drafting a legislative proposal to consolidate Sheridan School District with another district, potentially Denver Public Schools, no longer plan to introduce a bill in the last two weeks of the session.
Instead, they will focus on figuring out a long-term plan for the tiny Denver metro district after the session ends, with consolidation still one possibility, according to State Sen. Jeff Bridges, a Greenwood Village Democrat who led the initial charge to merge districts.
“What’s most important is kids have their teachers back,” Bridges wrote Tuesday evening in a text message to The Colorado Sun. “That gives us time to work over the interim on a way to get Sheridan students the resources they need in a way that preserves this vital community.”
Bridges has repeatedly said he has long wanted to find a way to get more resources to kids in Sheridan School District, which is in its third year on the state board of education’s accountability clock due to students’ struggles to meet grade-level expectations in subjects like reading and math. Most of the district’s 924 students are growing up in poverty.
Bridges’ decision to take more time before taking action on the future direction of the district coincides with sharp pushback against consolidation from Sheridan’s school board.
During a meeting Tuesday evening, the four-person board unanimously approved a resolution opposing consolidation, with one member saying blending Sheridan School District with another district would “erase” both the district and the Sheridan community. During the same 45-minute meeting, board members unanimously ratified an agreement reached last week with the local teachers union, the Sheridan Educators Association, officially ending a teacher strike that ran more than three weeks.
“Consolidation is not a solution,” Board Vice President Sally Daigle said during the meeting. “Consolidation is a takeover. And the consequences would reach far beyond our school. If Sheridan is absorbed into (Denver Public Schools), our district would no longer exist. Our board of education would be dissolved. Our superintendent’s authority would end.”
Daigle, also mayor of Sheridan, rattled off a long list of concerns she worries could come after consolidation: Schools closing, students having to ride buses far from their community, staff required to reapply for their jobs, the potential annexation of Sheridan by Denver, housing developments that would price residents out, among others. Located in Arapahoe County, Sheridan has roughly 6,000 residents.
“A shift like this would reshape the community almost overnight,” she said. “And once gentrification takes hold, it does not stop. It does not reverse. It does not negotiate. Sheridan is more than a place on a map. It is a community with history, identity, connection and pride. We are small, but we are strong. We are resilient. We are rooted. And we will defend what generations have built.”
Board President Karla Najera echoed many of Daigle’s concerns, saying that consolidation would create ripple effects far beyond Sheridan schools.
“If this were to happen, it would be irreversible,” Najera said. “Sheridan School District is special. Beyond learning opportunities, our district has and continues to provide critical services to members of our community that would be difficult to replicate in a larger system. We are unique in many ways, and I believe we should continue to serve our community in the way we know best — stronger together.”
Parents and community members have also spoken out against lawmakers’ pitch for consolidation, launching an online petition rejecting consolidation, asking for community forums and demanding “transparent decision-making processes” that include students and families.
One parent who spoke during the board meeting, Nelly Limon, called on attendees to sign the petition, adamant that local community members should be the ones in the driver’s seat of any decisions about the district’s future.
“We’re a small district, but our voice is there,” said Limon, executive director of the nonprofit Sheridan Rising Together for Equity. “No one should be making decisions about our school without including us.”
And Sheridan Educators Association members have added their voices to the growing list of those rejecting consolidation.
“When that idea was put on the table, we were willing to talk about it, but once it was made extremely clear that was not something the community was interested in, we stopped talking about it all together,” Kate Biester, president of the union, told The Sun.
During the board meeting, Daigle accused leaders from the Sheridan Educators Association and the Colorado Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, of approaching Bridges with the idea of consolidating Sheridan and another district.
Biester and Bridges dispute that claim. Biester said consolidation is not something the union ever endorsed.
The longstanding tension between district leadership and the local union resurfaced Tuesday, with board members heavily criticizing union members for several actions during the strike, including allegations that union members sped past board members’ homes while honking wildly. Daigle added that she called police multiple times to stop individuals on the picket line from blocking children and parents from school entrances.
Both sides say they are ready to work on restoring trust with each other and with families. Their agreement spells out a healing process as one of their next steps, according to Biester.
“This is a win for our community,” she said. “It was a struggle, but I think this is the right direction to move our community in passing this vote tonight.”
The agreement also reinstates a contract for teachers through December, allows for classified staff members, such as bus drivers and janitors, to be recognized as part of a bargaining unit and amends district negotiating policies.
“This has been a difficult time for many,” Najera, the board president, said after apologizing to students for disruptions to their learning during the strike. “I’m hopeful that we can come together to heal and move forward, stronger and more united than before.”