Week in Review

Happy Friday and welcome to December!

Our schools are certainly in the holiday spirit. I had the absolute pleasure of attending the holiday choir concert at Rock Ridge Elementary this morning. We have such talented students in our district. I encourage our community to come out for some upcoming musical performances. 

It’s hard to believe next week is already Thanksgiving Break. The first half of this school year is going to fly by before we know it! I’m so thankful for all that our school district has accomplished and for the hard work of our teachers and students, and the partnerships we have with our families and community!

Bond Progress

It’s so exciting to see progress from our 2024 Bond. Many schools are receiving much-needed upgrades, and we are starting to break ground on new construction projects. This fall we’ve held groundbreaking ceremonies for a new automotive program coming to Highlands Ranch High School and Phase 2 of the Legacy Campus. In early 2026, we will break ground on our two new elementary schools (in RidgeGate and Sterling Ranch), an expansion of Sierra Middle School, and a new Cosmetology program at Douglas County High School. These are exciting milestones, and we are so thankful to our taxpayers for saying yes to the 2024 Bond! Stay up-to-date on all Bond progress via our interactive Bond map.

Yesterday, we broke ground on construction of Phase 2 of our Legacy Campus! Thank you again to our taxpayers for saying yes to the 2024 Bond and making this possible. Starting in August 2026, the Legacy Campus will offer additional pathways to our students including construction trades, electrical technology, advanced manufacturing and aerospace, and automotive technology including electric vehicle and hybrid innovation. Learn more about the Legacy Campus at its upcoming Showcase Night.

This past Tuesday was Election Day. Welcome, again, newly-elected Board directors: Clark Callahan, Kelly Denzler, Kyrzia Parker and Tony Ryan. We look forward to partnering with them to serve our 62,000 students in DCSD. Read my full welcome message here. Statewide, voters said yes to continuing with the Healthy Meals for All program. This means that school meals will continue to be provided to students in DCSD schools with costs being covered by the state program. Learn more about student meals on our Nutrition Services website.

It has been so much fun seeing the photos of kids enjoying Halloween celebrations at their schools today. We have loved seeing all of the creative costumes worn by students (and staff)! If your family is heading out to Trick-or-Treat this evening, enjoy the moment (and, please be safe).

One Book One District

Next week marks our school district's 5th annual One Book One District event. Each year, this event promotes literacy and community by encouraging all students, staff, and families to read and make connections with a selected book. This year’s book is To See an Owl by Author and Illustrator Matthew Cordell. Our schools will have the opportunity to participate in a virtual author visit with Matthew Cordell on Wednesday, November 5. One Book One District is hosted by the DCSD Library and Digital Media Center and sponsored by the Foundation for Douglas County Schools.

I hope you had a wonderful Fall Break! It has been so much fun having students back in the classrooms in time for Halloween parties, Trunk or Treats and other celebrations.

This week was full of some fun and informative events at the district level as well. On Wednesday, we hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for a new Automotive program at Highlands Ranch High School. This will be the first DCSD Automotive program on the west side of I-25, making the program more accessible to students across Douglas County. Thank you again to our amazing community for saying yes to the 2024 Bond which is making the construction of this new automotive program possible!