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Candlelight vigil for Castle Rock childrenBy Rhonda Moore | Posted: Friday, May 27, 2011 8:44 pm

The community of Founders Park is reaching out with a candlelight vigil and memorial fund for the family of two children found dead in their Castle Rockhome.

The community will say goodbye to Liam and Madigan Murphy at 7 p.m. May 26 at the Founders Park pavilion. The pavilion is a short walk from thehome where police found the bodies of Liam, 9, and Madigan, 6, after their mother called authorities May 23.

The children’s mother, Kelli Murphy, 41, called police saying she was killing herself and that her children were “in heaven.” Kelli Murphy faces twocharges of first-degree murder in the deaths of her children.

The parents whose children shared a kindergarten classroom at Rock Ridge Elementary School with Madigan Murphy organized a candlelight vigil forthe children at the park near the elementary school.

Friends and supporters of the Murphy children have erected a makeshift memorial in front of the Murphy home on Cherry Street. Flowers, windmills,stones and messages have been placed at the memorial.

“There are some (children) who don’t know, and there are some that are not taking it well at all,” said Jody Murphy. “There are some kids who can’tbelieve a mom would do this, and some are just in shock.”

Jody Murphy, no relation to the victims’ family, has a son who goes to Rock Ridge Elementary and said neighbors had seen no warning signs.

Authorities report the children’s bodies showed no visible signs of injuries and the autopsies were inconclusive. Douglas County Coroner Lora Thomassaid lab tests to determine the cause of death could take up to six weeks.

The candlelight vigil is in the Founders Village subdivision in Castle Rock. Visitors are asked to bring their own candles. Any flowers donated at the vigilwill be forwarded to the children’s funeral.

A memorial fund for the Murphy children was established at FirstBank in Castle Rock, Jody Murphy said. Donations can be made payable to the Liamand Madigan Murphy Memorial Fund at any FirstBank location or mailed to P.O. Box 150097, Lakewood, CO 80215-9981. Donations can also be madeat the candlelight vigil.

Castle View links sixth in 5A debutBy Benn Farrell | Posted: Friday, May 27, 2011 9:00 am

The Sabercats are now a top 5A golf team.

In its first season at Class 5A, Castle View High School girls golf qualified three of its iron-swinging Sabercats to postseason action.

Dani Look, Sara Swaney and Andrea Ballou hit the links May 23-24 at Lone Tree Golf Club for the Class 5A girls golf state championship tournament.As a team, View finished in a tie at sixth place with Fairview with 534 points, fewer than 10 strokes behind fifth-place Chatfield.

Douglas County sent two qualifiers this season in Sonny Scheer and Alyssa Markham to the wet, rain-delayed, two-day state tournament.

Sara Swaney finished in a tie for 20th place after shooting 172. Swaney birdied on the 18th hole, helping her to shoot 84 the first day. She parred eightholes in Round 2 for an 88.

Dani Look finished 35th overall with a score of 178. Look shot 88 in Round 1, but she fell into some double-bogey trouble the second day. She birdiedthe No. 15 hole.

Andrea Ballou finished in a tie at 39 having shot 184. She had a birdie on the No. 8 hole the first day to help her to a 90. She shot 94 in Round 2.

Sonny Scheer moved up in the final placements of the field from last year. Last season, Scheer finished state in a tie at 53. This year, she finished in atie at 45 while shooting 187. Scheer shot 88 in the first round and had trouble in Round 2, walking away with a 99.

Alyssa Markham finished in a tie at 70 with 208 on her scorecard. She shot 102 in the first round and 106 in the second.

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Mother faces multiple charges in children’s deathsBy Rhonda Moore | Posted: Tuesday, May 24, 2011 9:00 am

The bodies of Liam Murphy, 9, and his sister Madigan, 6, were identified as the two children found dead in a Castle Rock home, according to theDouglas County coroner’s office.

Liam and Madigan were allegedly killed by their mother, Kelli Murphy, who faces charges of first-degree murder and child abuse.

The bodies were discovered in the family home in Founders Village on May 23, after Kelli Murphy called 911 to report she was killing herself.

Kelli Murphy was treated for nonlife-threatening wounds to her wrist and arrested after she was released from the hospital.

She made her first court appearance May 24 in Douglas County. Murphy was estranged from her husband, Eric Murphy, and reportedly distraught overa pending court date.

In a press release issued May 24, coroner Lora Thomas released the names of the children and reported her office is working with Castle Rock police,the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the district attorney’s office on the murder investigation.

Thomas’ office performed autopsies on the children and says additional testing is required to determine the exact cause of their deaths. The necessarytesting could take up to six weeks, and the coroner’s office will not release any further information until a conclusive cause of death is determined,according to Thomas.

At Eric Murphy’s request, an officer with Castle Rock police visited the Murphy home the night before the children’s bodies were discovered. EricMurphy, who was living separately from his family, called police May 22 for a welfare check on his children.

The Murphy family released a statement of thanks for the public response of “prayer and support during this most difficult time.”

“Thank you for also giving us the privacy our family needs to grieve this terrible loss,” the statement says. “The family requests that any memorialdonations be sent to National Jewish Hospital in the names of Liam and Madigan Murphy.”



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by: Heather Sackett, YourHub.com

Article Contributed on: 5/25/2011 1:49:37 PM

Despite its small size, Parker's Mountain View Elementaryhas taken third place in a nation-wide recycling contest.

Mountain View competed against about 500 schoolsthroughout the country, many of them much bigger, to earnthird place in the Dream Machine Recycle Rally, put on byPepsiCo, Waste Management and Keep America Beautiful.The rally is designed around PepsiCo's goal of increasing theU.S. beverage container recycling rate from 34 percent to 50percent by 2018.

The program also supports post-9/11 veterans.

"We only have 430 kids here and we are K-2, so we are alllittle kids," said Building Engineer Rodney Howe. "We havevery few kids, and the amount of stuff they brought in wasjust outrageous."

Students, teachers and parents gathered in the gymnasiumlast week for an awards ceremony with officials from PepsiCo, Waste Management and Entrepreneurship Bootcamp forVeterans with Disabilities. Decked out in matching Recycle Rally T-shirts, students sang a song about recycling Howe hadtaught them.

Howe is the one who signed the school up for the program in November and led the campaign for recycling. Studentscollected 1,149 containers per student.Howe said the project started out small, but by the end of the rally, 70 bags of plastic drink containers and aluminum cansa day were being brought to the school and Waste Management was emptying the recycling dumpster five times a week.

"The kids are embracing it," he said. "They are going through the trash cans at the basketball courts."

Each item's bar code was scanned and entered into a computer, equipment that was provided by the rally. Eventually, asecond scanner was needed to keep up with the volume of containers that flowed into the school.

Parker resident Robyn Brown, whose kids attended Mountain View, was very involved in the rally. Every Saturday from 8a.m. to 2 p.m. Brown manned the community drop-offs at the school. Brown also picked up recyclables from areabusinesses.

Brown, who used to live in California where recycling is mandated, said she was happy to see the practice taking off inColorado.

"I don't think people realize what a difference it can make," she said. "It has a huge impact on our environment."

Although Mountain View did not win the $100,000 first-place prize of a green school make-over, the experience inspiredHowe to expand the recycling program for next year.

"We've already expanded our program to collect things throughout the summer and we expanded to electronics," he said."We are going to blow it up bigger than what it was this year."

Heather Sackett: 303-954-2457 or [email protected]

Mountain View Elementary takes third place innation-wide recycling contest


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Principal Drew Francis talks to students at Mountain ViewElementary School in Parker last week. The students won thirdplace in the nation-wide Dream Machine Recycle Rally.

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Mountain Vista brings home second girls soccer titleBy Benn Farrell | Posted: Friday, May 27, 2011 9:00 am

It was strange to see the Golden Eagles struggle to figure out an opponent.

But as it did all season, Mountain Vista High School girls soccer figured out which pegs go into which holes to defeat Dakota Ridge and earn its secondClass 5A state championship.

Vista, the No. 1 seed, defeated No. 3 Dakota Ridge 3-1 May 25 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City. The Eagles won the title despitetrailing 1-0 at halftime.

Almost 20 minutes into the game, Dakota Ridge’s Kelsey Loupee sneaked a free kick into Vista’s net from just outside the 18-yard box.

Vista’s offense fell into 40 minutes of frustration as its forwards came up with seven scoring chances that were either ripped wide of the goal or hit thecrossbar or the post. That all changed in the second period. Just over 15 minutes past the half, Vista’s Gabby Miranda, a sophomore midfielder, drilled along ball from nearly 35-yards out into the corner of Ridge’s goal to tie it 1-1.

“I was in shock,” Miranda said. “We had been struggling all game (until then). ... I’ve never worked so hard in my life.”

With almost five minutes remaining, senior Bri Pugh, who’d failed to find the back of the net in the first half, finally tucked one in the left corner of thegoal, assisted by Tailor Smith. Less than a minute later, Kortney Hix capitalized on an unlucky bounce that went over the head of Dakota Ridgegoalkeeper Haley Millhollan for the nail-in-the-coffin goal. Jenna Owens was credited with an assist.

Pugh said the difference between halves for Vista was having trouble figuring out Dakota Ridge’s defense.

“We couldn’t do our usual through balls,” Pugh said. “Once we got them figured out, we got it like we have all season pretty much.”

Dakota Ridge wasn’t without their moments. Several opportunities were put together, but Golden Eagles goalie Danielle Cushing only had to make onesave with the Vista defense breaking up most of Ridge’s attacks.

Mountain Vista’s first state championship came in 2005 after the Eagles beat Arapahoe in a shootout.

Mountain Vista finished with a 17-0-2 record in its 2011 championship season.

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New teacher-evaluation rules in Colorado got their first roll-out Wednesday at the state Board ofEducation.

The proposed rules set a new four-tier grading system for teachers. The grades are "highly effective,"''effective," ''partially effective" and "ineffective."Teachers rated "ineffective" for two consecutive yearswould lose tenure, or what the state calls "nonprobationary status." New teachers need two subsequentyears of "effective" ratings to make tenure. Half of a teacher's rating would be based on student tests.

The state Legislature required new statewide teacher evaluations last year. The teacher evaluations are setto begin statewide starting in 2013.

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All-Continental League baseballPosted: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 9:00 am

First team: Jordan Serena (Chaparral), Tyler Servais (Douglas County), Ryan Mcguire (Heritage), Ryan Burr (Highlands Ranch), Tony Audino (HR),Bobby Dalbec (Legend), Dane Donegan (Littleton), Tommy Clouthier (Mountain Vista), Travis Orwig (Ponderosa), Brandon Kimbrel (Pond), MitchGibbons (Pond), Evan Escobedo (Regis Jesuit), Sam Cameron (RJ), Brett Lisle (ThunderRidge), Marcus Schulke (TR)

Second team: Chase Wheeler (Castle View), Jacob Nath (Chap), Keven Halpin (Chap), Max Kuhns (Chap), Brett Wallace (Chap), Taylor Craft (DC),Cody Powers (Hert), Adam Gauthier (HR), Hunter Brown (HR), Jordan Maynard (Pond), Brandon Mikulka (Pond), David Johnson (Pond), Drew Merten(RJ), Peter Bayer (RJ), Josh Newell (TR)

Pitcher of the year: Travis Orwig (Pond)

Player of the year: Jordan Serena (Chap)

Coach of the year: Jarod Nicholson (Pond)

All-Continental League girls soccerPosted: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 9:00 am

League champions: Mountain Vista

Player of the year: Jenna Owens (Mountain Vista)

First team (strikers): Bri Pugh (Mountain Vista), Mackenzie Stewart (Douglas County), McKenna Schmitt (Chaparral), Gabby Miranda (MV), Liza Heap(Highlands Ranch), Alex Peters (Heritage)

Second team (strikers): McKinzie Rieber (ThunderRidge), Alexis Andriunas (TR), Michaela Neuhaus (HR), Erin Webb (Rock Canyon), Liza Heap(HR), Taylor Yenhert (Legend)

First team (midfield): Jenna Owens (MV), Fran Garzelloni (Ponderosa), Maddie Kiebel (Chap), Tailor Smith (MV), Maggie Fischbach (DC), EmmaCastleton (Hert), Kaycie Young (RC)

Second team (midfield): Brooke Moody (Regis Jesuit), Tommi Goodman (TR), Layla Ashouri (Chap), Kelly Mozena (HR), Katelyn Kennedy (CastleView), Morgan Storch (RC), Alex Debenedictis (DC)

First team (defenders): Haile Conroy (MV), Annie Johansen (Littleton), Kaylyn Cooper (Chap), Michelle Manning (TR), Laura Tita (HR), Kate Meyer(Chap), Susie White (MV)

Second team (defenders): Jenna Pinto (Hert), Lianne Seyferth (TR), Amanda Peppers (Pond), Laura Kalamanka (RJ), Miranda Alm (HR), BethRamsey (CV), Jackie McArthur (Chap)

First team (keepers): Sam McCurley (Litt), Dani Sheppard (HR), Danielle Cushing (MV)

Second team (keepers): Marisa Santarella (TR), Sam Mickens (DC)

Coaches of the year: Terry Banfield (Litt), Theresa Echtermeyer (MV)

Sportsmanship award: Littleton, Legend

All-Douglas County boys lacrossePosted: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 9:00 am

Coaches of the year: Mark Miyashita (Castle View), Mike Magrin (Chaparral)

Player of the year: Tom Gerwick (Highlands Ranch)

Sportsmanship award: Legend

First team (goaltenders): Derek Kopp (Chaparral), Eric Arthurs (Highlands Ranch)

Second team (goaltenders): Stephen Hill (CV), Kyle Tosch (Mountain Vista)

Honorable mention (goaltenders): A. J. Wilkerson (ThunderRidge), Kyle Brouillette (Legend), Jake Massey (Douglas County)

First team (face-off specialist): Jordan Heck (MV)

Second team (face-off specialist): John Wendt (TR)

Honorable mention (face-off specialist): Tyler Sandt (Ponderosa), A. J. Cocetti (Rock Canyon), Declan Smith (HR), Tyler LaPlaunt (Chap)

First team (defensive midfielder): Grant Arthurs (HR)

Second team (defensive midfielder): Adam Basiger (Chap)

Honrable mention (defensive midfielder): Andrew Louderback (Chap), Eric Williams (RC), Cooper Ryburn (RC), Gus Marker (CV), Damon Mango(Pond), Grant Giltman (MV)

First team (long-stick middie): Jarred Coleman (Chap)

Second team (long-stick middie): Sean Morris (CV)

Honorable mention (long-stick middie): J. P. Tulloch (Legend), Zach Cash (MV), D. J. Patone (Pond), Tyler Dulleck (CV), Nick Merrill (RC), JasonInglis (HR), Justin Klimczak (HR), Ryan Masterson (TR), Zeb Hogan (DC)

First team (defense): Tom Gerwick (HR), Garrett Henry (Chap), John Sage (MV), Drew Stormo (RC), Conner Ervin (RC), Phil Grow (CV)

Second team (defense): Lane Forbes (HR), Isaac Gonzales (Chap), Patrick O’Bryant (DC), Dane Schamel (CV), Kyle Shefferly (Pond), Collin Devlyn(MV)

Honorable mention (defense): Dylan Mandego (TR), Brian Meek (Chap), Rob Ericson (HR), Christian Storeh (RC), Nick Blasi (MV), Dan Blattmon(Leg), Shawn Reyes (Leg), Garrett Butler (Pond)

First team (attack): Wilkins Dismuke (RC), Mitch Nelson (MV), Trevis Thompson (Chap), Tyler Doskins (HR), Colton McCaffrey (Chap), Will Dohne(TR)

Second team (attack): Chase Lamdin (CV), Jack Suttman (MV), T. J. Thompson (Chap), Jordan Smith (HR), Eric Wendt (TR), Will Fay (HR)

Honorable mention (attack): Jameson Mountfort (TR), Andrew Wilson (RC), Trey Bucklund (RC), Conner Strickland (RC), Ethan Howard (CV), JoeyMeier (Pond), Nathan Grim (Leg), Alex Outzen (DC), Chris DeRosa (DC), Alex Outzen (DC)

First team (midfield):Tyler Sandt (Pond), Taylor Wiggin (TR), Zach Wilson (Leg), Dan Zarnora (MV), Christian Thomas (MV), Nick Tuttle (CV), ParkerJackson (RC), Eric Haines (Chap), Joe Hansley (HR)

Second team (midfield): Jake Doyle (Pond), Daniel Fuller (TR), Evan Schuster (DC), Pat Taggart (MV), Gus Marker (CV), Eric Baarson (CV), BrianCorliss (RC), Cody Knepper (Chap), Jon Gratrix (HR)

Honorable mention (midfield): Austin Laliberte (Pond), Kevin Vlibarri (Chap), Travis Rabun (HR), Timmy Cusick (MV), Luke Behrends (Leg), CadeTrudo (Leg), Evan Schuster (DC)

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E-mail snafu gives parents brief scareSubmitted by KDVR Staff (/content/kdvr-staff)

Wednesday, June 8th, 1:58 pm

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Chris Michlewicz (mailto:[email protected]) /Highlands Ranch Herald

An e-mail snafu by the Douglas County School District momentarily increased the heart rate of parents ofRock Canyon High School students.

A secretary at the Highlands Ranch school inadvertently sent a brief message May 27 to every parent’sinbox: “your student has to attend summer school.” The error was immediately noticed and a correctionwas dispatched to those who received the e-mail, including the families of graduating seniors.RandyBarber, spokesman for the school district, said the staff member was composing a message when sheaccidently pressed ‘send.’ The e-mail went to Rock Canyon families, which are connected to the InfiniteCampus system. The software contains student information, including class schedules, and has the abilityto send mass e-mail and phone messages.

The message was “supposed to notify families whose students were expected to take part in summer schoolabout the specifics of this summer’s program,” Barber said in an e-mail. Read more...(http://www.ourcoloradonews.com/highlandsranch/news/article_9392cc24-0230-535a-b53f-2ce596a0ba5f.html)

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E-mail snafu gives parents brief scareBy Chris Michlewicz | Posted: Tuesday, June 7, 2011 7:18 pm

An e-mail snafu by the Douglas County School District momentarily increased the heart rate of parents of Rock Canyon High School students.

A secretary at the Highlands Ranch school inadvertently sent a brief message May 27 to every parent’s inbox: “your student has to attend summerschool.” The error was immediately noticed and a correction was dispatched to those who received the e-mail, including the families of graduatingseniors.

Randy Barber, spokesman for the school district, said the staff member was composing a message when she accidently pressed ‘send.’ The e-mailwent to Rock Canyon families, which are connected to the Infinite Campus system. The software contains student information, including classschedules, and has the ability to send mass e-mail and phone messages.

The message was “supposed to notify families whose students were expected to take part in summer school about the specifics of this summer’sprogram,” Barber said in an e-mail.

The secretary was testing the system, but no summer school message was actually going out at the time. The principal decided against sending it afterthe mistake.

The district apologized for any confusion or disruption. Barber chalked up the mistake to simple human error.

“I think most of us have hit the send button a little too soon when writing an e-mail and that was certainly the case here,” he said. “We hope all of theRock Canyon High School students, including those that actually do have school during the break, enjoy the summer.”

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Roller-coaster revenue rideWritten by Nancy Mitchell on Jun 6th, 2011. | Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org

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School boards across Colorado are finalizing 2011-12budgets this month, with most putting a final stamp of approval on cuts not quite as deep as district

leaders feared in February.

Denver Public Schools unfroze $10 million for schools, the Adams 12 Five Star district put back 22teaching jobs and Aurora Superintendent John Barry assured staff in a parting-for-summer email thatfurlough days were not on the horizon – at least for next year.

In this story

Jeffco: Sticking to the planDenver: Unfreezing dollarsDougco: Asking for helpCherry Creek: Into classroomsAdams 12: Adding back teachersAurora: Preparing for recurring cuts

Find your district’s numbers

Go to the EdNews’ database.

Gov. John Hickenlooper’s proposed state budget, released Feb. 15, slashed K-12 funding by $332million and sent district leaders scurrying to adjust numbers that had been based on former Gov. BillRitter’s more upbeat projections.

By May 6, when Hickenlooper finally signed the state budget, legislative negotiations had dropped K-12funding cuts to $227.5 million – or an average reduction of $344 per student instead of nearly $500.

“When we first heard the governor’s original proposal, we threw everything on the table – bus fees and alot of other things that we didn’t want to have to take a look at,” said Cherry Creek School Districtspokeswoman Tustin Amole. “And then when the final numbers came in, we were relieved that asserious as those cuts are, they didn’t have to be even deeper.”

Here’s a look at the roller-coaster budget ride endured by the state’s six largest school districts in recentmonths, and where they’re ending up:

Jefferson County: Sticking to the planLeaders of the state’s largest school district held a press conference March 11 to announce a grim rosterof reductions, including:

Jeffco’s funding changePer-pupil, 2010-11 to 2011-12

Hickenlooper plan: -$475Final budget: -$335

Closing two elementary schoolsCutting all employees’ pay by 3 percentReducing 212 jobs across the districtTrimming two days from the school yearCharging students to ride school busesSuspending a popular outdoor lab program

School board president Dave Thomas said the district “had very few choices” in its efforts to cut nearly$40 million.

“None of them were pleasant,” he said. “This is a lesson in frugality, unfortunately.”

On May 5, Jeffco became the first of the large metro area districts to approve its 2011-12 budget. Butwhile state K-12 funding had improved, little had changed in Jeffco’s plan.

Jeffco School Board Member Dave Thomas and

Superintendent Cindy Stevenson at March 11press conference announcing cuts.

Lorie Gillis, Jeffco’s chief financial officer, said those meeting at the employee summit where theoriginal cuts were sketched out had anticipated some changes in the state funding picture.

But because the district had been drawing down its reserves in prior years to close budget gaps andavoid deep cuts, she said they decided to move ahead with the plan.

“Our gap is not only closing the reduction in revenues from the state but it’s also balancing and actuallyreducing that level of reserve spend-down,” Gillis said. “We want to close the gap we’ve been usingreserves for.”

Board members did tweak some parts of the original March budget proposal, including lowering theannual fees for students to ride buses from $150 to $100 for neighborhood schools. They also agreed tokeep the outdoor lab schools open, after a community fund drive raised about $300,000.

Denver: Unfreezing dollars for schoolsIn January, Denver Public Schools announced $10 million in increased funding for schools, citingcentral-office budget cuts, record enrollment increases, savings from a 2008 pension refinancing and thewinning of more than $80 million in grants over two years from the likes of the Bill & Melinda GatesFoundation.

After Hickenlooper’s budget proposal dropped, the district put the plan on hold.

“We effectively froze that $10 million,” said Superintendent Tom Boasberg. “And when the changeswere made this spring, we unfroze that $10 million.”

DPS funding changePer-pupil, 2010-11 to 2011-12


DPS uses student-based budgeting, meaning dollars follow students. So schools with enrollmentdeclines will not see more money.

Still, “No furloughs, no layoffs,” Boasberg said, referring to steps being taken by some strugglingdistricts. Instead, “We will expect to see a significant net increase in teaching positions in the DenverPublic Schools next year.”

The additional funding could hire about 150 teachers, though those decisions are up to schools so “itcould be more, it could be less,” he said.

DPS is projecting an enrollment increase of nearly 1,700 students for fall, with slight increases in itspopulation of English language learners and those participating in the federal lunch subsidy program, anindicator of poverty.

Since 2005, the district’s enrollment has grown by more than 8 percent, topping 78,000 students thispast fall.

Final budget approval is scheduled June 23. Teacher pay is not on the table – both the union and schoolboard signed off on a two-year contract in May 2010 that essentially freezes compensation for 2011-12.

Douglas County: Dipping into reserves, asking for helpDouglas County’s finance chief released two budget plans in March – one black and one blue.

And while a formal vote isn’t expected until June 21, all indications are the black budget will be chosen.

Dougco’s funding changePer-pupil, 2010-11 to 2011-12


The key difference between the two is the black budget draws more from district reserves, inanticipation of putting tax increases for schools before voters in November.

As the state funding picture has fluctuated, the major change in the black budget has been fewer dollars

coming from reserves.

Friday, the district issued a news release stating Superintendent Liz Fagen will recommend two ballotquestions – tax hikes for building and operating schools – to school board members.

Board members would formally vote on the tax questions in July or August, though they’ve beendiscussing the idea for months while getting advice from bond consultants and political gurus such asformer state Sen. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction.

Polling data

Read what 500 registered voters said about vouchers, tax increases and more.

Polling data released Friday shows a fight ahead. The survey of 500 registered voters found 52 percentopposed to an increase for operating dollars, though that number improves slightly if the increase dropsoff after five years.

In fact, the only scenario under which an operating increase tilts in favor of passage is when thequestion specially states the money “would not include the funding” of vouchers.

A polling question about vouchers found mixed but strong reactions – 39 percent strongly in favor and36 percent strongly opposed.

“We are certainly aware that this is a tough climate when it comes to elections,” said district spokesmanRandy Barber.

Other steps in the black budget include reducing funding for middle and high schools by $100 perstudent. But the bulk of the $21 million in savings would come from pulling $13 million from reserves.

The district is still in negotiations with its teachers’ union.

Cherry Creek: Reaching into the classroomIn March, as state lawmakers scrambled to find ways to improve Hickenlooper’s K-12 funding plan,Cherry Creek Schools Superintendent Mary Chesley testified the cuts could be significant.

Instead of the “50-ish” loss of staff in 2010-11, she told members of the Senate Education Committee, itwould be closer to “300-ish.”

“We will no longer be able to have our cuts just make it to the classroom door,” Chesley said. “Theywill be well within the classrooms.”

The final budget figures have softened the blow, though Cherry Creek school board members will voteJune 13 on a budget that includes 150 fewer jobs.

Ch. Creek funding changePer-pupil, 2010-11 to 2011-12


Of the 150, 72 positions are gone due to increasing the student to licensed staff ratio in schools from18:1 to 18.5:1.

That doesn’t equal class size – that ratio is how schools are staffed, not how classrooms are filled – but itlikely will mean some classes in some schools are slightly larger.

Licensed staff includes teachers but also counselors, librarians and social workers and schools decidehow to best use their dollars.

“It will look different at every school because each school is given their staffing ratio and then they willdetermine their needs based on their individual community,” Amole, the district spokeswoman said. “Itmight mean one extra student somewhere in the building in a classroom.”

The loss of those 70 jobs will be through the non-renewal of probationary teachers working on annualcontracts, she said. Virtually all of the total 150 jobs going away will be handled through retirementsand normal attrition.

Administrations and other non-classroom employees will have their salaries frozen for a second year.

Teachers, in the second year of a two-year contract in 2011-12, will receive a 2 percent raise for anotheryear of experience but no cost-of-living increase.

Adams 12 Five Star: Adding back teaching jobsThe district serving Northglenn and Thornton became one of the first in the metro area to begin chargingstudents to ride the bus in 2010-11, along with cutting 188 jobs.

Adams 12 Superintendent Chris Gdowskiannouncing his budget plan March 16.

Earlier this year, Superintendent Chris Gdowski announced similarly tough cuts for 2011-12, reducinganother 180 positions including 94 classroom teachers.

May’s better budget news dropped the district’s gap from $30 million to $25.5 million and allowed it toadd back 22 teachers and three administrative jobs.

In addition, the district increased funding for librarian or media center help from 1.5 hours to 5 hoursper day and to put $550,000 into reserves in preparation for next year’s round of cuts.

Board members are expected to vote June 15 on the revised plan, which still includes a reduction of 164jobs.

Adams 12 funding changePer-pupil, 2010-11 to 2011-12


Joe Ferdani, the district’s communications manager, said the teaching positions added back include 15 inelementary schools, four in middle schools and three in high schools. The administrative jobs include anassistant director to help with a growing demand for special education services.

Ferdani said the district has yet to finalize its 2011-12 contract with its teachers’ union though officialsare hopeful that negotiations will be complete by the budget vote later this month.

Aurora: Preparing for recurring cutsNearly 100 teachers, parents and community members attended a town hall meeting on the Auroraschools budget in late February, when the estimated gap was $25 million.

They talked about cost-cutting measures included staff furlough days and increasing employee healthinsurance premiums, just a few of the 45 cost-cutting options developed by the district.

Audience members at Aurora's budget town hallasked questions and offered suggestions.

On May 18, with the school year winding down, Barry told Aurora staff that the budget gap haddropped to $20 million and he was “confident” that four furlough days would not be necessary.

“I wanted you to have that information before we ended the school year,” he wrote in an emailed update.

The budget up for final approval on June 21 does not include furlough days. But it does include a delay

in implementing new curriculum, no raises for staff and new health insurance co-pays for employees.

Casey Wardynski, the district’s chief finance officer, said the better state budget news in May has beenmixed with bleaker financial news on other fronts – local property tax collections are down and there’sconcern about specific ownership tax because of sluggish car sales.

“So the state picture is a little brighter but the local revenue picture is a little darker,” he said.

Aurora’s funding changePer-pupil, 2010-11 to 2011-12


Wardynski, who now puts the district’s budget gap at $24 million, said he’s focused on cutting recurringcosts so the annual reductions are easier to bear.

For example, the district has shifted expenses from its general fund to other funds to alleviate thepressure. Metering schools to get a better understanding of utility costs revealed about 20 percent ofsuch costs typically come from the kitchen. So the district has begun charging a share of utility expensesto its nutrition services fund, a separate and self-sustaining fund in many districts.

“We may be in a tough budget situation for many years,” he said. “Let’s do things that yield recurringsavings … If we have to go through the pain, let’s not go through the same pain next year.”

About two-thirds of the $24 million gap is coming from changes that will yield recurring savings eachyear, he said. Still, much of the final third is coming from reserves – about $9 million.

“Children get one shot at an education,” Wardynski said. “Our country is going to have good times andbad times. Education shouldn’t fluctuate based on fluctuations in the economy.”

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Zonta club sponsors free lunchesJune marks program launch for Castle Rock students

Posted: Tuesday, June 7, 2011 7:14 pm

By Rhonda Moore | 0 comments

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When Zonta Club member Susan Meeker heard about the kids at South Elementary, she had to act. Through hervolunteer work with the Zonta Club of Douglas County, Meeker discovered that, of the 570 students enrolled atSouth, 40 percent are on Colorado’s free and reduced school lunch program.

The challenge was: what were these students going to do for food during summer break? The answer came by wayof Hunger Free Colorado. Zonta’s volunteer efforts and a door-to-door campaign that Meeker hopes reaches morethan 50 percent of the kids in the neighborhood where the need is highest.

“I knew this area really needs some help,” Meeker said. “It’s under everybody’s radar. If you go look around, meet thepeople and see the children, you know right away, we have a problem right here in Castle Rock.”

The “problem” is a pocket of poverty within one of the country’s wealthiest counties, Meeker said. The families whosechildren attend South Elementary comprise a mix of middle income residents to those who struggle to keep food onthe table, she said.

And food is what Meeker hopes to deliver through the month of June to those children who might not otherwise havea mid-day meal.

Working with Hunger Free Colorado and through the Colorado Department of Education’s summer food serviceprogram, the Zonta club enlisted the help of volunteers from surrounding churches and neighborhoods in adoor-to-door campaign to enroll children in the free summer lunch program. The Douglas County School Districtcannot sponsor a summer lunch program for South students unless the school’s free and reduced lunch enrollmentis 50 percent or higher, Meeker said.

Her effort reached each home in the area, with a goal to sign on 51 percent of the children in the neighborhoodssurrounding South Elementary. Regardless of how many children enroll, once 51 percent of those children qualify,every child who enrolled is eligible to participate in the free summer lunch program, she said. A week before Zonta’sfirst free lunch distribution, Meeker had 32 kids between the ages of 2 to 15 on the list for a mid-day meal.

The Zonta club will sponsor free meals for kids and teens twice a week through the month of June. Zonta pays thedistrict for meal preparation and gets reimbursed by the Colorado Department of Education. Meeker hopes this

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All-League girls lacrosse selectionsPosted: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 9:00 am

Coach of the year: Bruce Barker (Regis Jesuit)

Player of the year: Meredith Micho (ThunderRidge)

Sportsmanship award: Chaparral (Ponderosa, Legend)

First team (goaltender): Grace Goodbarn (Highlands Ranch), Chelsea Toledo (Chaparral)

Second team (goaltender): Tori Bealer (RJ), Morgan Dowling (Heritage-Littleton)

Honorable mention (goaltender): Natalie Cukale (Rangeview)

First team (defense): Andrea Friesen (ThunderRidge), Maddie Hosack (H-L), Kirby Leyshon (Chap), Haley Gordon (RJ)

Second team (defense): Rachel Deits (RJ), Samantha Fleck (H-L), Ellie Claxton (Chap), Brooke Stormo (TR)

Honrable mention (defense): Kayla Svee (Chap), Ellie Richardson (Chap), Kaila Stassi (Douglas County), Marrissa Ennis (DC), Virginia Vaughan(TR), Kate Moreland (H-L), Alexis Stein (H-L), Michelle Vega (Rang), Kristen Brush (Rang), Lauren Blumhardt (RJ), Gabby Vecchiarelli (Valor Christian),Heather Stouffer (VC)

First team (attack): Anna Salemo (H-L), Haley Kroll (TR), Kasey Griese (Chap), Maddy Krause (RJ)

Second team (attack): Abby Szlachta (TR), Kelly Wolf (Chap), Kellie Barker (DC), Taylor Walker (RJ)

Honrable mention (attack): Melissa Jackson (VC), Katie Hollern (VC), Christina Henderson (RJ), Maggie Rogan (RJ), Hallie Kurtz (H-L), Maddie Griffin(Chap), Kassie Easter (Chap)

First team (midfield): Meredith Micho (TR), Rachel Baines (Chap), Erin Sungelo (RJ), Hannah Annalora (H-L), Erin Schilmoeller (RJ), Kathryn Dunn(H-L)

Second team (midfield): Taylor Phelps (TR), Claire Richardson (Chap), Maddie DeWinter (Chap), Courtney Gielow (RJ), Stacey Zuppa (H-L), BrookeKnoll (DC)

Honrable mention (midfield): Michelle Johnson (H-L), Claire Stouffer (VC), Brooke Ahbe (VC), Kaitlyn Shriver (VC), Faye Hubregsen (RJ), KathrynBlumhardt (RJ), Kortnie Horne (DC), Lexie Locken (DC), Brianna LeCompte (TR)



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by: Clayton Woullard, YourHub.com


Elementary students in the Douglas County School Districtwill be able to grow their own food this year and enjoy thefruits of their labor.

Gardens are being grown at 20 schools across the district aspart of an effort between the school district and the AmericanCulinary Federation Colorado Chefs Association to get kidsto know where their food comes from and, hopefully,establish healthy eating habits as they grow. The gardenprogram is an extension of CCA chefs' involvement in FirstLady Michelle Obama's Chefs Move To Schools program,part of her larger Let's Move Campaign to combat childhoodobesity.

The program is made possible due to a $50,000 specialprojects grant as part of their Communities PuttingPrevention to Work through the Tri-County HealthDepartment for sustainable projects in nutrition or physicalactivity. The money is only going toward the cost of suppliesand tools for the gardens, some of which are being plantednow and others which will be planted when the nextschool-year starts for short crops.

"The garden is the perfect way to get the kids to know not only there are a lot of fruits and vegetables maybe they nevertried before, but that celery doesn't just come from the grocery store but grows in the ground," said Sue Anderson, nutritionservices garden project director.

Alan McQueen, principal of Heritage Elementary in Highlands Ranch, has had a plan to create a garden for his school fortwo years, but just needed the funds for it. He plans to use the garden as a learning tool, like the other schools growinggardens this year. He plans to have his kids track the growth and health of the plants.

"If we can get kids to be able to experience real agricultural and horticultural problems and then come up with21st-century-solutions to them, then we're preparing them well to be able to handle the problems we're going to face in thefuture as a global society," McQueen said.

Some schools are just growing salsa gardens, salad gardens or other themed gardens, but McQueen is trying to growseveral and have the gardens be a long-term project. In the fall students will harvest the plants and work with their mentorchefs from the CCA to come up with meals for a big celebration at each school.

ACFCCA Executive Director Joan Brewster hopes what the chefs are able to do in Douglas County expands elsewhere inthe state.

"It's bringing not only the chefs to the students, but it's bringing the whole community of Douglas County out," Brewstersaid. "It's a truly sharing thing that this program is doing."

Anderson said there has been interest from middle and high schools in growing gardens, but there are no immediate plansfor them.

Clayton Woullard: 303-954-2953 or [email protected]

Dougco Schools growing a healthy program




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Zoey Schell plants beans last week outside Fox CreekElementary School in a garden that sprung from her ownimagination. Schell wrote a letter to the principal at Fox Creeksuggesting a school garden, and the American CulinaryFederation-Colorado worked with school administrators to makethe garden come to life.

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Local high school students have completed training in thissummer's rotary sprinkler nozzle retrofit program. DouglasCounty Water Resource Authority received a grant from theColorado Water Conservation Board to perform the retrofitsthis summer. Four dozen local high school students werehired, and trained in how to perform the retrofits. Collegeaged adults will supervise the work of the high school agecrew members. The popular program targets 1,000 yards forretrofits this summer, with rotary nozzles which are up to30% more efficient than traditional designs. Use of thenozzles can save water and save money. Over six hundredhomeowners signed up for the opportunity in the first thirtyminutes it was offered! Look for these nine teams of highschool students as they move througout the region thissummer retrofitting sprinkler systems with these moreefficient rotary sprinkler nozzles. Follow their progressatwww.dcwater.org.

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Seeking state-local balance on evaluationsWritten by Todd Engdahl on Jun 8th, 2011. | Copyright © EdNewsColorado.org

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A central issue in Colorado’s year-old educator effectiveness law – the amount of flexibility schooldistricts should have in evaluating teachers – was at the forefront Wednesday as the State Board ofEducation discussed rules for implementing the law.

In other action

Board approves 3 DPS innovation applicationsHope online wins 2 appeals

The board got its first formal look at the 30 pages of draft regulations for implementation of Senate Bill10-191, the educator effectiveness law that requires annual evaluations of principals and teachers,

basing 50 percent of evaluations on student growth and removing teachers from non-probationary statusif they receive two ineffective evaluations.

“This is an exciting day, an historic day,” noted Deputy Commissioner Diana Sirko.

A key issue in the draft regulations is whether districts should opt in or opt out of the model system tobe developed by the state. The draft rules were prepared by Department of Education staff and are basedon the recommendations of the State Council for Educator Effectiveness.

CDE is recommending that each district “shallimplement the state model system” unless a district has developed its own system that meetsrequirements set by the department.

Sirko said a district “can use their own system; they just need to clearly demonstrate how it aligns” withstate requirements.

“I think you’ve arrived at a very appropriate compromise,” said board member Elaine Gantz Berman,D-1st District.

But Michelle Murphy, a lawyer who works for the Colorado Association of School Boards, told theboard that requiring an opt-out evaluation system “is an issue of real concern for CASB.”

She argued that state law assigns different roles to CDE and to districts, with the state responsible forcreating an overall framework for educator evaluations and districts allowed to design evaluationsystems that meet their individual needs.

“There’s a critical difference between guidance … and technical requirements” issued by the state,Murphy said. She added that CASB feels an opt-out model system “clearly seems to exceed theauthority granted by the legislature. … We’re not a one-size-fits all state.

“The local districts, the local communities need to have the right to develop their own systems.”

Berman said she didn’t quite see the problem Murphy was raising, saying districts are “asking, they’rebegging for a model they can adopt.”

District flexibility has been an issue since the legislature was debating the effectiveness bill during the2010 session. While school districts have a substantial measure of local control under the stateconstitution, one goal of the effectiveness law is to create a system of evaluations that would measureteacher effectiveness in comparable ways district to district. The hope is that a district would be assureda teacher was truly “highly effective” or “effective” when hiring that person from another district.

CASB has supported the effectiveness law since it was being debated in the legislature. But, as theassociation did raise concerns about local flexibility during the deliberations of the effectiveness councilover the last year.

Do your homework

Full text of draft regulationsSlides summarizing the regulations

The proposed regulations cover several broad areas: definitions of effectiveness, quality standards andperformance ratings for principals and for teachers, duties of local districts, CDE duties and the role ofstudents and parents in evaluation. The regulations eventually will contain rules for evaluation of otherlicensed professionals (counselors, librarians, etc.), but language hasn’t yet been drafted on that subject.

In addition to the local control question, some other key issues facing the board include exactly how todefine the first teacher quality standard, which requires teachers demonstrate knowledge of the contentthey teach; the specific definition of student growth and how districts will be permitted to measure it,and how CDE will monitor districts’ compliance with the law.

The proposed rules contain the four levels of principal and teacher effectiveness recommended by thecouncil: Ineffective, partially effective, effective and highly effective.

Paula Noonan, a Jefferson County board member who testified Wednesday, suggested that the state

board might want to consider at least five levels, to make the system easier to use for districts that wantto tie evaluation to compensation. She said that’s Jeffco’s intention.

Here’s a look at some other provisions in the rules:

Probationary teachers would receive at least two observations and one written evaluation a year.Written evaluations would have to be presented to employees no later than two weeks before theend of the school year.Every principal would have a professional performance plan.Districts would be required to set up Advisory Personnel Performance Evaluation Councils madeup of administrators, teachers and citizens. District and school accountability committees wouldalso have advisory roles in the new system.Evaluators would have to have training, and teachers could serve as evaluators.Districts would be “encouraged” to involve parents in their evaluation systems and “encouraged… when appropriate” to use student survey data as part of the “multiple measures” ofeffectiveness that will be used to evaluate teachers.

Charter schools, for the most part, would be exempt from the law, which applies to licensed teachers.Charters don’t have to hire licensed teachers, but Sirko said schools probably will have to detail in theircharters how they are meeting the intent of the effectiveness law.

Some major elements of the new evaluation structure remain to be fleshed out, including detailedevaluation scoring systems, an appeals process for teachers who receive “ineffective” ratings and thesystem for measuring student growth in subjects that aren’t included in the CSAP tests.

Some of those things will be fleshed out based on what happens during a pilot period, when evaluationsystem trial runs will be held in about half a dozen districts. That process starts this fall and runs throughJuly 2013.

The state board is required to issue final regulations this autumn, and they will be reviewed by thelegislature early in 2012.

DPS innovation plans approvedThe state board unanimously approved innovation status for three Denver schools, including High TechEarly College, Collegiate Prep Academy and the Denver Center for 21st Century Learning at Wyman.The first two schools are part of the district’s reorganization effort in Far Northeast Denver.

The three innovation applications were approved by DPS board May 19 on split votes.

The three schools approved Wednesday, as well as three others approved earlier this spring, arecontroversial because of the issue of faculty involvement in innovation applications. The stateinnovation law requires majority faculty sign-off on an innovation application. But, because theseschools are new and don’t have existing faculties, there have been no votes. Instead, teachers applyingfor jobs at the schools have been informed of the innovation plans and told accepting them is arequirement for being hired.

The Denver Classroom Teachers’ Association has said it plans to file a lawsuit challenging thoseinnovation designations.

Among other things, innovation status gives schools freedom from various personnel rules andprocedures, greater control over budgets and freedom to choose curriculums.

Hope Online wins two appeals

State Board ofEducation memberElaine Gantz-Berman,D-1st District.

The state board voted 4-3 to grant two appeals by the Hope Online charter system. Hope, which is

supervised by the Douglas County schools, sought to force the Eaton and Harrison schools districts tosign memoranda of understanding with it.

Hope operates brick-and-mortar “learning centers” as part of its online program, but state law requiresschool districts where learning centers are located to have the MOUs with online schools. Eaton andHarrison had declined to sign understandings with Hope.

The board votes require the two districts to negotiate such memos with Hope.

The vote split on partisan lines, with Republicans Bob Schaffer, 4th District; Marcia Neal, 3rd District;Debora Scheffel, 6th District, and Paul Lundeen, 5th District, voting for Hope. Democrats Berman, JaneGoff, 7th District, and Angelika Schroeder, 2nd District, voted no.

Berman said she voted no because of concerns about the academic quality of Hope. “I’m not in favor ofpoor quality online programs.”

Associate Commissioner Rich Wenning acknowledged that “we have a challenge” with the studentgrowth scores of all online programs in the state and that “Hope is probably in the middle of the pack.”

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Categories: Capitol News, Slider, Top NewsTags: Denver Public Schools, Online education, SBE, Teacher quality

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