Editor’s Note: Candidate Deborah Sims Fard has dropped out of the race. Her name will still appear on the ballot as those have already been printed.

Candidates vying to serve on two seats of the Denver Board of Education made their case to voters at a September forum hosted by Central Park United Neighbors (CPUN).

District 4 Candidates: Harris, Hunter, Jackson, and Quattlebaum

Four candidates are running for the District 4 seat, which serves northeast Denver. The seat is currently held by Michelle Quattlebaum, who is running for re-election. Her three challengers are funeral home director Jeremy Harris, former Denver Public Schools (DPS) teacher and current teachers union employee Monica Hunter, and youth violence prevention advocate Timiya Jackson.

At-Large Candidates: Klein Molk, Magaña, and Sims Fard

Three candidates are seeking the at-large seat that serves all of Denver. The candidates are DPS special education paraprofessional Amy Klein Molk, DPS middle school principal Alex Magaña, and DPS teacher Deborah Sims Fard.

A Call for Accountability

In recent years, the Denver school board has generated headlines for in-fighting among members, operating behind closed doors, internal investigations, and school closures. Candidates at the CPUN forum made only a few passing references to those problems.

Harris took the sharpest swing. “We have simply lost trust in our school board and in our superintendent. We know that our school board is not being accountable or transparent when it comes to governing our district,” he said. He believes the greatest problem in Denver schools is racial inequities. “Right now, DPS has one of the highest achievement gaps in the state. Almost a 50-point difference between black and brown kids and their white counterparts. That is not equity, and that is not justice,” Harris added.

Jackson stressed the need for accountability. “This is something that needs to take place at every level of our district. When things are not going well, we have to own up to that,” said Jackson. “We have to have leadership on this board that is willing to work alongside community to understand what those solutions are, to put strong policies into play, to be clear about how we’re going to get there, and to have the monitoring tools in place to ensure that we are making progress.”

DPS in Crisis? Or Closing Gaps?

“DPS is in crisis,” Magaña said. “We have too many gaps in our education, especially right now with our black and brown students.” For third graders, “we have only about 30–35% of students that are reading at grade level while we have white students that are reading at a much higher grade level,” he said. “What we should be doing is providing additional resources and training so that all kids are growing, closing that gap right at the very beginning.”

Incumbent Quattlebaum was quick to respond. “We are closing gaps in Denver public schools,” she said. “I celebrate the efforts that our educators are putting in and the achievement that our students are having. I want to say that it’s not good enough, and I understand that. Which is why we are investing in high-quality education curriculum.” Throughout the forum, she reiterated that theme. “We’re in unprecedented times right now,” she said. “In spite of that, we’re making headway in Denver Public Schools.”

A Call for Resources

Nearly every candidate zeroed in on the need to provide schools with more resources. “We need to support our teachers with fair pay, smaller class sizes, and real resources,” Klein Molk said. “We need to create schools that are safe and future-ready so that our kids feel protected and prepared for the future. For decades, DPS has followed a privatization playbook of closures, competition, and privatization. A reformer playbook that I do not agree with. We need to fight against it, or our current administration will win.”

Hunter said one of her highest priorities is providing money for mental health services. “What we’ve noticed since Covid is that mental health has declined not only in students but in teachers as well,” she said. “We have to first start by destigmatizing mental health, and we have to ensure that schools have the resources to serve students. These schools are operating without full-time nurses, psychologists, and therapists. Many of those jobs are contracted out, and the teachers and psychologists I’ve talked to are burnt out.”

Sims Fard, who has taught under six different superintendents, said her focus is on creating safe schools. “My platform is simple,” she said. “Safety. We know that learning does not happen if classrooms are not safe.” She also wants to see more money spent on training and support for teachers. “We should be able to see policies that are rooted in equity and inclusivity and diversity. That is how we get all children to have the optimal learning opportunities.”

Reactions from audience members after the forum were mixed. Park Hill resident Savannah Madrid-
Andrews would have liked more focus on closing the achievement gap. “I wanted to hear more about literacy rates and math scores. The candidates didn’t address that enough.”

Central Park resident Ellen Miller Brown said she was pleased that so many candidates talked about keeping students at the center of their work. “I do think it is most people’s north star,” she said. “But I’m not sure they always stay committed to that when they get elected and face all kinds of pressures.”

District 3 Candidates: Blanke, Esserman, and Torres

Candidates for District 3, which covers south Park Hill, Montclair, and Lowry were not included in the Central Park forum. That seat is currently held by Carrie Olson, who is unable to run again due to term limits. Candidates running in the District 3 race include former preschool center director Caron Blanke, current at-large school board member Scott Esserman, and former DPS teacher DJ Torres.

Front Porch photos by Christie Gosch