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Bruce Randolph School may get freedom it seeks

By Nancy Mitchell, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published December 20, 2007 at 12:30 a.m.

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Stein says DPS regulations add to challenges he faces.

Stein says DPS regulations add to challenges he faces.

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A Denver school's bid for autonomy from district and union red tape appears to be headed for approval today, after a majority of teachers at Bruce Randolph School formally voted in favor of the plan.

It also appears likely that Bruce Randolph will not be the only school seeking such freedom.

"I have a lot of respect for what they're doing over there and I'm very interested in it," said Manual High School Principal Rob Stein.

"I think what they're doing is reacting to a need that I'm experiencing as well, which is to have more control over decisions that affect my students."

Denver Public Schools board members will vote tonight on the Bruce Randolph autonomy agreement, a first-of-its-kind proposal by Principal Kristin Waters and her staff to waive district policies and teachers union rules.

Waters and four teachers presented the plan to school board members on Monday, prompting praise from some and concerns from others.

Board member Michelle Moss, for example, was worried by reports that all Bruce Randolph teachers were not fully informed of the details of the proposal.

But a vote Tuesday at the school eased those concerns. Waters said 33 teachers voted yes, 14 voted no and two abstained, for a 67 percent approval rate.

"Having the teachers in that building supporting this by at least a two-thirds majority takes a huge burden off of me," Moss said, "and makes me feel comfortable moving forward."

Board members also received a legal analysis from DPS attorney John Kechriotis, who labeled as "false" and "misleading" a number of claims by the Colorado Education Association, the state teachers union.

The CEA, in a document circulated at Bruce Randolph, claimed teachers would lose job protections and health benefits if the agreement were approved.

"(I)t seems fairly clear that the CEA analysis is, at best, misleading and overreaching, and more often than not, false," Kechriotis wrote in his response.

If board members vote yes tonight, the Bruce Randolph proposal still must be approved by the governing board of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association, the city chapter of the CEA. The board meets Jan. 8.

"We still have some questions," said DCTA President Kim Ursetta. "We're going to keep working with the Bruce Randolph staff."

It's clear that the proposal has sparked interest from other DPS schools. Stein, who came to Manual after eight years running a private school, likened district regulations to a "logjam" that makes the challenges at his school "worse, not better."

"Virtually everything I need to do, it takes a lot longer and a lot more work because I'm an extension of an unwieldy bureaucracy," he said.

DPS Superintendent Michael Bennet noted that "many people in the district, both principals and teachers, have asked about this." But he declined to say whether he expects a rash of similar proposals - or how he would react to them.

"I think we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Bennet said. "What we have in front of us right now is a request by an incredibly committed staff of people and I hope we can support it."

Comments

  • December 20, 2007

    6 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    jane writes:

    I don't understand why the press never says exactly what it is they are asking for and what they will do. It just keeps saying "free from district and union rules." Which ones and why?

  • December 20, 2007

    8 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    StringBass writes:

    I agree that the article should have explained the 'free from district and union rules" further. Wouldn't the story have carried additional interest if it were linked to the previous comparison of the two charter schools in Denver to DPS schools (Monday, 12/17)? Lastly, is there an additional story regarding how well the teachers throughout the district are informed about this school's attempts to, presumably, improve its abilities to teach its children - which, one would hope, this is all about.

  • December 20, 2007

    1:06 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    jacka writes:

    DPS needs to charter HS's - one votech and one tech prep. Make the kids test to get in and kick out the unions!