• New Lakewood High School
• School construction updates
• Legislative Forum
• Alameda High School vision
• Important Dates

The Key Communiqué is a publication for Jeffco Public Schools Key Communicators, a network of community residents and leaders whose opinions are well respected by friends, and colleagues.

District breaks ground for new Lakewood High School

Jeffco Public Schools will host a groundbreaking ceremony at 2:30 p.m. , Monday, Jan. 30, for the new Lakewood High School. The groundbreaking, open to the public, will take place at 9700 West 8th Avenue in Lakewood .

The original Lakewood High School was built 73 years ago; the new school replaces the second facility, which was built in 1958. Engineers deemed the existing building too costly for renovation, so plans call for the new high school to be built on the existing site. Upon completion of the new school, the older facility will be demolished. Students will continue to attend the current school during construction. The new school is scheduled to open by fall 2007.

Designed to accommodate 1,750 students, the $32.8 million addition and remodeling includes 170,000 square feet of new construction and 42,000 square feet of remodeling. The 28.5 acre site will also include new soccer, softball and multi-use fields, as well as reconfigured traffic and parking areas. Proposals of the new building's exterior design and the east and west commons area are available for viewing.

The school is being funded from bonds approved by Jefferson County voters in 2004.
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The Jeffco Public Schools Board of Education approved three contracts, as well as a land swap, for projects included in the 2005-2010 Capital Improvement Program.  The construction projects, selected contractors and budgeted amounts are:

Chatfield Senior High School is scheduled to undergo a major addition, renovation and site redevelopment, which includes new classrooms, expanded commons, increased parking and infrastructure improvements.  The Board of Education also approved a land trade with Jefferson County Open Space that will provide the school space for relocated athletic fields.  In the agreement, the district will swap 8.7 acres of land at West 20th Avenue and Denver West Parkway (near the Tanglewood facility) for 7.89 acres of county open space land north of Chatfield and adjacent to West Meadows Golf Course.

The majority of the existing Bear Creek K-8 School is scheduled to be torn down.  A new K-8 school will be built north of the realigned Dartmouth Avenue, approximately one block from the existing site.  The 120,000 square foot two-story facility is designed with a central organizational spine oriented south to north with academic areas to the west, and activities, after school programs and public areas to the east.  The groundbreaking for the new Bear Creek K-8 school is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 1.

Ralston Valley High School is scheduled to have an auxiliary gym and additional classrooms constructed, which will complete the orginal master plan.  The addition will increase the building's capacity to 1,750 students.

Schools with major bond projects have Web sites that provide overviews of the projects, including timelines, construction impact updates, frequently asked questions and, as available, current schematics and drawings.  All of the 2005-2010 Capital Improvement Program projects, funded from bonds approved by Jefferson County voters in 2004, are on time and on budget.  
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Public education in Jefferson County has a strong advocate in the Jeffco Schools Legislative Forum. The group consists of representatives from the district's board of education, administration, employee associations, PTA and the contract lobbyist. The group tracks proposed legislation and meets with state legislators from Jefferson County. The Legislative Forum has a steering committee that meets weekly in a roundtable format to discuss pending legislation.

The Legislative Forum has begun tracking bills that have been introduced since the Colorado State Legislature convened its 2005-06 session on Wednesday, Jan.11. Over the next five months the Colorado General Assembly will consider many bills that could impact education. Here's a summary, along with links, of a few of the educational bills as they have been introduced.

Senate Bill 07: State School Lands
At statehood, the federal government granted Colorado lands designated to support schools - the State School Lands. The management of these lands generates income from natural resources leases. Further, proceeds from the sale of any state school lands are held in a permanent school fund, named the Public School Fund. Only the interest earned on the fund can be directed towards school finance. Income from the management of state school lands and from interest on the Public School Fund contributes $31 million yearly to the state's portion of school finance.

Sen. Sue Windels and Rep. Joshua Penry introduced SB 7 to increase the Public School ("Permanent") Fund's balance to $2.35 billion in two ways:

•  a portion of the money presently used for school finance is retained within the Public School Fund; and
•  investment options are expanded.

By retaining interest income and by keeping all land management income, the Public School Fund will increase by an additional $31 million annually. This alteration to the account, compounded with the change in financial management investments, will result in the balance of the account growing faster than previously.

House Bill 1158: School Safety Inspections
This bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Paul Weissman and Sen. Ron Tupa, transfers responsibility for inspections of public schools and junior colleges for compliance with building and fire codes from the division of oil and public safety to the division of fire safety in the office of preparedness, security, and fire safety in the department of public safety. It directs the division to inspect public schools or authorize a local building or fire department to conduct the inspections at the request of local board of education.

House Bill 1001: Principals in Public Schools
House Bill 1001, introduced by Rep. Michael Merrifield, requires annual reporting by school districts to the Colorado Department of Education about principal licensure standards, and quality and effectiveness of principal preparation programs. HB 1001 requires that professional development for principal license renewal relate to improving the person's skills as a principal and that principals complete any professional development activities specifically identified by the employing school district. It directs each school district to review the leadership in its schools, identify areas of improvement for principals, and assist principals in attending appropriate professional development programs. The bill also requires school districts to provide observations and written evaluations of principals with the same frequency as they are provided to teachers.

House Bill 1150: Statewide Education Standards – School Start Dates
Rep. Lynn Hefley and Sen. Peter Groff co-introduced this bill which, beginning with the 2006-07 school year, establishes the Tuesday after Labor day as the start date for fall semester classes and the Friday before Memorial Day as the earliest concluding date for spring semester classes for all school districts in the state.

For additional summaries of bills relating to K-12 education visit the Legislative Forums website.
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A focused effort to identify needs and opportunities for enhancing a learning environment for students and cultivating community partnerships were the primary themes of a recent Futures Search Conference at Alameda High School.

Approximately 70 community members, students, parents, business leaders and school staff participated in the three-day conference designed to establish a common vision for improved student achievement and parent involvement. A vision for higher academic achievement with the desire to embrace the school's current and future diversity as a unique advantage for the community was the primary outcome of the work of participants. Student participants also called for more strategic planning to address short-term solutions to issues facing the school.

Action teams have been formed to identify the next steps in the areas of academic achievement, international and global community, partnership development, extracurricular achievement, student issues, and infrastructure. Strategy sessions by these action teams are underway and additional participants are encouraged to get involved.

First opened in 1959, Alameda High School has an enrollment of 1,035 students. To learn more about the school and its work, visit their Web site.
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The Board of Education holds Study/Dialogue Sessions (Seminar Room, 4th floor) and Business meetings (Board Room, 5th floor) at the Educational Services Center, 1829 Denver West Drive, Bldg #27, Golden, unless otherwise noted.