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A former Denver Public Faculties trainer who labored on districtwide fairness initiatives and whose son is a DPS scholar is working to signify central-east Denver on the varsity board.
DJ Torres, who described himself in an interview as “tremendous pro-union” and “extraordinarily pro-public schooling,” is vying for the District 3 seat at the moment held by faculty board President Carrie Olson. Olson is barred from working for reelection resulting from time period limits.
Torres, 40, taught particular schooling at Montbello Excessive College earlier than DPS closed it in 2010 for low check scores. (It has since reopened.) Torres additionally taught particular schooling at DPS’ Florence Crittenton Excessive College, which serves pregnant and parenting teen moms.
After incomes a Ph.D. in California, Torres returned to Denver and took an equity-focused job in DPS’ central workplace, the place he helped write and implement a 2020 faculty board decision to make the district’s curriculum extra inclusive of Black, Latino, and Indigenous historical past.
Torres left DPS to work on fairness initiatives for former Denver Mayor Michael Hancock’s workplace. His most up-to-date job was with Sandy Hook Promise, a nationwide gun violence prevention nonprofit began by relations of victims of the Sandy Hook faculty taking pictures.
Torres stated he was impressed to run for college board by the present political second, which he described as “a time of nationwide political unrest, the place public schooling is below assault,” and by his son, who attends the household’s neighborhood faculty, McMeen Elementary.
“The actually particular and distinctive cost of getting a son who’s every day impacted by the methods we’re doing this work as a district, I assumed now is an ideal time for me to wish to run and be a systems-level changer,” Torres stated.
4 seats on the seven-member Denver faculty board are up for grabs in November. Board members backed by the Denver academics union at the moment maintain the vast majority of board seats. However that might change within the Nov. 4 election, which comes at a key time for DPS.
Declining enrollment has led to greater than a dozen faculty closures previously two years, and the superintendent has put in place a coverage for low-performing faculties that might end in extra closures. DPS has discovered itself within the crosshairs of the Trump administration over an all-gender highschool restroom, and it has sued the federal authorities to guard immigrant college students.
DPS achieved its highest-ever commencement fee final 12 months, however some college students are nonetheless recovering from pandemic-era studying loss. Many academics are mad they had been denied greater cost-of-living raises whereas the superintendent acquired a bonus. And the varsity board lately ordered an investigation of one among its members over allegations of racial discrimination.
Torres identifies as Latino and overtly queer. When he and his accomplice adopted their son, Torres stated they felt strongly about desirous to enroll him in DPS.
If elected, Torres stated he would deal with enhancing faculty security via “softening” measures akin to increasing psychological well being providers for college kids and serving to them really feel related to their faculty group, which he stated lessens the chance of school-based violence.
Torres stated he’d additionally advocate for higher trainer pay and fairness at school sizes, each of that are main points for the Denver Classroom Academics Affiliation.
“How do we are saying we’re an fairness district when some college students are one among 35 and a few college students are one among 20?” Torres stated.
Torres stated “supporting immigrant, refugee, and weak populations is actually key,” and he’d work to enhance providers for English language learners and college students with disabilities.
The Denver faculty board lately voted to shut or partially shut 10 faculties resulting from declining enrollment. Torres stated he acknowledges the coed inhabitants is shrinking, however DPS can do extra to incorporate the group within the decisionmaking course of.
“I don’t assume anybody needs to be dealt arduous information in a transactional method,” he stated. “They need a task.”
Torres stated he opposes closing faculties primarily based solely on scholar check scores.
The college board is chargeable for hiring and firing the superintendent. Torres stated that whereas many citizens have requested if he helps Superintendent Alex Marrero, he doesn’t imagine it’s constructive for brand new board members to step into the position with their minds made up.
“I’m dedicated to being an excellent employer to what I hope shall be an excellent worker,” he stated.
Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.
