Welcome to the
Office of School Reform
and Innovation
District Charter Collaboration
Collaborative Council
The purpose of the Collaborative Council is to discuss and develop policy recommendations to improve the way that Denver Public Schools and its charter schools work together. The Council brings together senior leaders from the district and elected school leaders. Members of the Council are guided by commitments to:
- the three equities of responsibility, access and accountability
- the value of sharing best practices and collaborating among multiple school types
- sustaining charter school autonomy
The Collaborative Council provides leadership and direction to a number of working groups (currently five) that bring together school leaders and district personnel to problem solve specific issues or categories of concerns. When working groups arrive at a recommendation regarding a policy change for the district or for charter schools, that recommendation is vetted by the Collaborative Council and then shared with the Superintendent. If the Superintendent agrees to move forward with the policy change, the members of the Collaborative Council will take a leadership role in communicating the change to the broader charter community and to district departments respectively. All members of the Collaborative Council will leverage their teams and resources to ensure that policy changes are implemented effectively.
Click HERE for a full overview and details of the Council.
Council Members:
Rich Barrett - Principal - Pioneer Charter School
Cyndi Bush-Luna - Principal - Colorado High School
Chris Gibbons - Chief Executive Officer - West Denver Prep
David Hart - Chief Financial Officer - Denver Public Schools
Debbi Blair-Minter - Principal - Omar D. Blair
Shayne Spalten - Chief Human Resources Officer - Denver Public Schools
Jennifer Walmer - Chief of Staff - Denver Public Schools
Alyssa Whitehead-Bust - Chief of Innovation & Reform - Denver Public Schools
Collaborative Council Schedule of Meetings for September 2012 – June 2013:
|
September 7th, 2012 12:00pm - 1:30pm DPS Administration Building - 900 Grant First Floor Boardroom Agenda Minutes |
February 8th, 2013 12:00pm – 1:30pm Pioneer Charter School 3230 E 38th Avenue 80205 Agenda Minutes |
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October 19th, 2012 10:00am – 11:30am Colorado High School Charter 1175 Osage St. #100 80204 Agenda Minutes |
March 8th, 2013 12:00pm – 1:30pm DPS Administration Building - 900 Grant First Floor Boardroom Agenda Minutes |
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November 9th, 2012 12:00pm – 1:30pm DPS Administration Building - 900 Grant First Floor Boardroom |
April 22nd, 2013 3:00pm – 4:30pm STRIVE - Highland 2960 N Speer Blvd Bldg 1913 80211 Agenda Minutes |
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December 14th, 2012 12:00pm – 1:30pm STRIVE Prep Campus TBD |
May 10th, 2013 12:00pm – 1:30pm DPS Administration Building - 900 Grant First Floor Boardroom Agenda Minutes |
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January 11th, 2013 12:00pm – 1:30pm DPS Administration Building - 900 Grant First Floor Boardroom Agenda Minutes |
June 7th, 2013 12:00pm – 1:30pm DPS Administration Building - 900 Grant First Floor Boardroom Agenda Minutes |
Click here for 2011-2012 meeting agendas and minutes.
Meetings will either be held at 900 Grant Street (DPS Administration Building) or at a hosting school site.
Meetings are open to the public for observation. If you would like to attend a meeting, please contact Taamiti Bankole with the Office of School Reform and Innovation, to obtain details about the location of the meeting.
Council Working Groups:
Based on charter leader input from a January survey regarding the most critical areas of focus for district-charter collaboration work, the following working groups are organized. All recommendations from the working groups will come to the full Collaborative Council for deliberation. Each working group will have at least one representative from the Collaborative Council who will co-Chair the working group. An additional co-Chair will be selected by working group members at their first meeting. Working groups will also have at least one appointed member and one staffer who is also appointed.
The groups are:
- Special Education
- Financial Collaboration & Accountability
- OSRI Advisory
- Alternative Education
- English Language Learner's
DISTRICT-CHARTER COLLABORATION COMPACT
A Collaboration for High-Quality Education for All Students in Denver Public Schools
In fall 2010, Denver Public Schools (DPS) Superintendent Tom Boasberg, the Office of School Reform and Innovation (OSRI) and all charter schools in DPS, signed a compact committing all parties to improve collaboration between the district and charters. This compact served to accelerate several initiatives that were underway already to improve equity among schools, as well as enabling both parties to examine new opportunities to better collaborate.