filled the four contested seats on the Douglas County
School District Board of Education. Preliminary
results indicate that the new members are:
District B: John Carson
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District D: Dan Gerken
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District E: Doug Benevento
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District G: Meghann Silverthorn
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“I look forward to working with the new Board
and bringing them up to speed on the amazing work
and accomplishments of this District,” says DCSD
Interim Superintendent Steve Herzog. “I also want
to thank the outgoing Board members who have
dedicated themselves to the District over the past four
years. Your work has contributed toward building a District that is a leader not only in Colorado,
but across the nation.”
The Board of Education (BOE) sets the policies that guide the public education of the students
in the community. Board members regularly assess community needs and aspirations to develop an
educational program consistent with community resources.
More information about the BOE End Statements and the Board of Education in general is
available on the District website, www.dcsdk12.org under the Board of Education link. Election
results can be found at www.douglasvotes.com.
students enjoyed participating in
the Denver Marathon on October
17 wearing t-shirts proclaiming
themselves the Saddle Ranch Trotters.
The students are participants in
the Kids Running America program,
which focuses on promoting exercise
and wellness. Students run a total of
26.2 miles by attending after school
runs on Tuesdays and Wednesdays,
and were able to complete their final
miles on the Denver Marathon course.
They even got to cross the finish line!
The District had a rare three-day
snow closure last week due to severe
weather that resulted in as much as two
feet of snow in parts of the county.
DCSD spans 870 square miles with
a terrain of varied elevations and large
rural areas. Crews go out at 3 a.m. to
assess the roads and conditions, which
the District believes is the best process
to ensure the right decision on whether
schools should be closed.
Last week’s storm remained in
Douglas County longer than the
other metro Denver areas. By Friday
morning, major arterial roads and
most side streets had not been cleared
sufficiently and snow from the plows
was blocking many of our bus stops.
School closures are not made
lightly as we must balance the safety
of children along with educational and
community disruption. We appreciate
the understanding of our community
as the best interests and safety of our
students is our highest priority.
More information on snow closure
procedures can be found at www.
dcsdk12.org > Parent and Student
Central > Snow Day Procedural
Information.
DCSD has won a $140,000 grant from the
Colorado Department of Education (CDE). The
Enhancing Education Through Technology
(EETT) grant program provides funds for
technology to be used to enhance teaching and
learning. The focus of the 2009-2010 grant
competition was Building and Sustaining
Technology Rich 21st Century Classrooms.
The grant monies will be used to create ten
Level 1 Skill Acquisition courses that show
teachers how to use the software the district
utilizes in the classroom, and four Level 2
Application courses which teach more advanced
application of 21st century tools on curriculum. These professional development courses will
encourage innovative teaching approaches for bringing more interactivity and engaging content to
curriculum, and help to ensure that teachers, librarians and administrators are able to work with
students as 21st Century collaborative learners.
“Technology is advancing in every area of the learning environment, and a technology rich
classroom is imperative in a 21st century school,” says Annette Fante, Assistant Superintendent of
Learning Services. “This grant will allow us to provide our educators with intensive professional
development to integrate technology with effective instruction.”
Funds will pay for the development of the new skill modules and application courses, for
implementation of the application courses in three geographic regions of Douglas County School
District over three semesters, for 90 Kindles loaded with five titles to be used in professional
development study groups and the Level 2 Application courses, and for evaluation of the training
according to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) National Education
Technology Standards for Teachers, which define the fundamental concepts, knowledge, skills and
attitudes for applying technology in educational settings.
phone 303.387.0033 • fax 303.387.0107 • email communications@dcsdk12.org • www.dcsdk12.org
The primary goals of the partnership are to introduce ESL families to the wealth of
information found in our libraries, to provide a venue where ESL families can network
with families in other schools, and to support ESL families with free adult ESL classes and
Citizenship Classes.
ESL teachers from the regional schools will answer questions regarding student progress,
and interpreters are provided upon request. We also include community service information for
families regarding health care and the college application process.
For more information on the next ESL family night, contact Parke Covarrubias at
303.387.0193 or Molly Elkins, Outreach Coordinator, DC Libraries, 303.791.7323 or melkins@
dclibraries.org.
The Douglas County Recycle/Reuse Resource Guide is available on the Douglas County
website! The guide lists recycling/reuse options available to Douglas County residents. The
guide can be accessed at: www.douglas.co.us/community/Recycle_Reuse_Guide.html.
In September of this year, the
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Student Assistance Offce
received
a four year grant in the amount
of $926,000. The primary focus
of the grant is to solidify truancy
prevention processes and expand
at-risk and expelled services.
will be coordinating
with Directors of Schools to set up
informational meetings with feeders
in November and December 2009
prior to the anticipated January
2010 kick-off.
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2009
Yearbook won first in state in
5A for the second year in a row.
The Colorado High School Press
Association presented the award
in Fort Collins on October 15.
Multiple students won state awards
including:
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students;
2nd Grade,
3rd Grade, and
3rd Grade were recognized for their
writing entries in the Tattered Cover
Spooky Story Contest. The girls
and their families were invited to a
reception in their honor on Sunday,
November 1 at the Tattered Cover.
 
At the reception they picked up their
prizes and received books with their
stories for them to take home.
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both members of
English department, participated
in the Denver Writing Project
this summer, thanks in part to a
scholarship from the Susie Royer
Syke Foundation.The mission of
the Susie Royer Syke Literacy
Fellowship is “to support dedicated
teachers in their quest to meet the
literacy needs of all students by
expanding knowledge and building
capacity to utilize the best research
based practices.”
This year’s DCSD Colorado Avalanche Community Night, sponsored by the Douglas
County Educational Foundation, will be held on Saturday, November 14. The Avs will host
the Vancouver Canucks starting at 8 p.m. Tickets will be $22 for seating throughout the Pepsi
Center, value range from $40 - $119, plus no ticket service fees! As a special incentive, the
Avalanche and DCEF will be donating $4 of each ticket sold directly to each school to help "Fill
the Gap"! To order tickets contact your local DCSD school or visit http://schools.dcsdk12.org/
dcef and click on the Colorado Avalanche Night ticket link.
The Douglas County Educational Foundation (DCEF) in cooperation with the Douglas
County Federation (DCF) and DCSD are pleased to announce that the nomination process
for the 2009-2010 Apple Awards is now open! The fifth annual fundraising event will
support the Foundation's newest initiative "Fill the Gap," a program that provides matching
grant opportunities to all schools within Douglas County. The Apple Awards will be held
on Saturday, March 6, 2010 at the Wells Fargo Theater in Denver. To nominate a deserving
Douglas County teacher today please visit http://schools.dcsdk12.org/dcef. The nomination
window closes Tuesday, November 24.
The Board received a report on the FY2008-2009 Audit and Comprehensive Annual Financial
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Report.
A presentation was made on first quarter budget to actual report for FY 2009-2010.
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The first reading of the application for the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
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(STEM) High School, Middle School and Academy Charter was presented to the Board.
The Board approved the parameters resolution for the General Obligation Refunding Bonds.
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The Board approved the authorization of financing for North Star Academy West.
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The following schools have performances this month.
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November 12 & 13 at 7 p.m.
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November 12 & 13 at 7 p.m.
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November 19, 20, 21 at 7 p.m.
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November 12 & 13 at 7 p.m.
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November 19, 20, 21 at 7 p.m.
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Novem
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ber 12-14 and 19-20, at 7 p.m. and November 21 at 2 p.m.
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November 18, 20 and 21 at 7 p.m.