Written by: Jodi Haller, Art Teacher
A new semester has started at D'Evelyn and the (virtual!) drama, music, and art rooms are bustling with more than 800 students engaged in some fantastically important work within the D'Evelyn educational program. Those students are not simply fulfilling a graduation requirement, but they are working toward satisfying one of the overarching components of the D'Evelyn educational philosophy: enriching and broadening our students' education through challenging electives that augment the required basic subjects (CU 05). This enrichment happens through making connections between the fine arts and other subjects, by questioning and exploring ideas from other disciplines through the lens of the visual and performing arts, and, perhaps most importantly, through the direct act of creating studio work and performing musical and dramatic pieces. A few years ago, D'Evelyn Founder Carolyn DeRaad wrote a Steering Committee article for Jaguar Tracks (August 2017) reminding us how one of the great strengths and benefits of a liberal arts education is the interconnectedness of all academic subjects. "Our teachers weave the courses together by showing how the disciplines interconnect. The study of the liberal arts--taught through the core disciplines--helps students understand that all knowledge is part of a whole." I believe the fine arts electives we offer relate beautifully to this in many ways, making further connections with our academic classes and expanding our sense of the "whole." In ceramics class students make all sorts of connections with their science classes as they learn about the chemical and physical transformations of the clay and glazes in the kiln. Or, maybe it's how anthropologists and historians know so many things about ancient civilizations because of the ceramic pieces created by those cultures. In drawing class we learn about the evolution of pictorial representation as civilization progressed from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. We look at those ideas in terms of the mechanics of linear perspective and the subtleties of portraiture. In the jewelry classes, students may be experiencing a culture not through the lens of history but through the evolution of beautiful metal work left behind. One of my favorite "connecting" moments happens each semester I teach soldering to my beginning jewelry class when a student stands at the soldering bench with me, mesmerized by the green flame dancing off the metal they are soldering and asks, "Why is the flame green, Mrs. Haller?" My response is, "Well, the green flame from the torch indicates the metal you are soldering is copper! Do you remember when you conducted flame tests of metal ions in chemistry to see what color of flame different metals produce? Here it is in your art class!" Cool, cool, and super cool! The fine arts at D'Evelyn are also a valuable part of a liberal arts education because they show students other ways of looking at ideas that they have been exposed to in academic classes. By exploring the work of artists, musicians, and playwrights, they learn there are different ways of representation, of interpreting social and political ideas, of expressing the experiences humans have in the world. We ask our students to analyze, investigate, challenge and interpret all sorts of events, ideas and concepts through written work, but creating art, or performing musical or dramatic works about these same (or different!) topics broadens them in unexpected and singular ways. It can expand their world and create deeper cognizance of art and human experience. "Through serious study of the Arts, each student will develop judgment and appreciation for the Arts, one of the highest creations of human effort. Armed with this background, the entire rich world of art is available for appreciation and understanding." (D'Evelyn Founding Document, Program Narrative, p. 16) But, truth be told, most students don't sign up for art, theatre, or music classes to make connections with other subjects or learn to appreciate the Arts. Students take a fine arts class because they love the act of creating, performing, or want to learn something new. They come to forget about English for a while--sorry, Mr. Haller! They need a break from their other classes. In our fine arts classes, students get that break. They get to make, perform, express. As they immerse themselves in the joy of an art discipline, they also unwittingly hone all sorts of skills including creative idea generation, discipline in mastering technical skills, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, interpretation, and other "executive functioning skills." They get to practically experience the intense work of the creative process. Innovation and creativity are invaluable skills students need to move onward in their lives beyond D'Evelyn. They are developing such skills, right here in our theatre, art, and music rooms. Anyone who has spent extended time studying, loving, and mastering any sort of performing or visual art knows the intrinsic value of the Arts in both education and in life. In the context of D'Evelyn's program, there are many valuable reasons why fine arts courses are a vital component of a liberal arts education, a few shared here. If we value depth and breadth in our students learning, making connections across disciplines, and nurturing creativity within the character of our students, all should be encouraged to take multiple courses in the fine arts during their time here. The fine arts are an invaluable part of our liberal arts program. Written by: Jeffrey London and Dana Miller SC Election Reminders Steering Committee candidates shall attend the second part of the “SC Candidate Training Workshop” following the conclusion of the Accountability Committee meeting on Tues., Feb. 9, 2021. This second training will begin at 6:30 pm. The application due date for all Steering Committee candidates is Sat., Feb. 16, 2021. Before the third week of March, all Steering Committee nominees will be interviewed. Nominees will receive interviews between Mon., March 1, 2021 and Fri., March 12, 2021. After the conclusion of the Tues., April 13, 2021 Accountability Committee meeting, all Steering Committee nominees shall participate in the 2021 D’Evelyn Public Candidate Forum. The 2021 D’Evelyn Public Candidate Forum will begin at 6:45 pm. The 2021 Steering Committee Election will be conducted within fourteen days of the 2021 D’Evelyn Public Candidate Forum (i.e., before Tues., April 27, 2021). CU - 06 Update The district waiver for the 4.5 grading scale has been approved by Tom McMillen (Community Superintendent) and Dan Cohan (Chief of Schools, Secondary) in accordance with Jeffco Schools policy CEB. The waiver stands for two years - August 1, 2021 - July 30, 2023 at which time we will need to reapply to extend the waiver. In the second semester, teacher teams will begin reviewing their courses in alignment with the Jeffco Schools Honors Course Review Process. Ultimately, those recommendations will be reviewed by the D'Evelyn Honors Review Committee, the Steering Committee, and district leadership. To stay up to date regarding CU 06 we invite you to attend our Steering Committee meetings. The meeting schedule and agendas (posted at least one day prior to the meeting) can be found here. January 12 - Hiring Committee training D'Evelyn values and requires parent involvement. If you are interested in serving on a future hiring committee, please attend the hiring committee training on Tuesday, January 12th at 4:30 pm during the Accountability meeting. The training will take 15-20 minutes and is required in order to serve on a future hiring committee. Virtual Steering Committee Meetings How to join/listen in and where to find the agenda? Due to COVID 19, the Steering Committee meetings will be virtual until further notice. Please visit the Steering Committee calendar for a list of all meetings and to find all meeting agendas and log in information. The link to connect will be available on the meeting agendas, available at least one day prior to the meeting. PLEASE NOTE: if you do not have a Jeffco email account, you will only be able to join by phone. The calendar is also where you will find all minutes once they have been approved (usually at the subsequent meeting). Public Commentary Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and remote Steering Committee meetings, public commentary will be delivered differently than when we host live meetings. Please email your public commentary to the entire Steering Committee no later than 3:00 pm the day before the meeting. We will read up to the first 5 minutes of your comment out loud during the scheduled time. As always, public commentary may be limited to a total of 20 minutes, which could further limit the length of the reading of your comment, though SC members will read them on their own in their entirety. Shorter, more concise comments will have the advantage of a full read out loud during the meeting. Written by Lynne Hobbs, Steering Committee Faculty Member
Many parents are wondering where things stand with CU-06, the policy passed in May of 2019 regarding honors labeling and weighting of core classes for grades 9-12. During the 2019-20 school year, Steering Committee was in the process of working out details for completing the district mandated honors review process when Covid-19 hit, and our attention shifted to on-line schooling. This year, we have restarted discussions. Following the recommendation of the honors task force assembled last year, Mr. Griffin will be working with our community superintendent Tom McMillen to request a waiver from the district, allowing D’Evelyn to weight honors courses at 4.5 instead of the district standard of 5 points. Among other things, this grading scale will differentiate between the weighting of AP courses and honors courses where Advanced Placement can be taken to replace regular track classes like Chemistry, U.S. History, U.S. Government, Economics, and Senior English. If this waiver is approved, we will begin the review process required by the district. Virtual Steering Committee Meetings How to join/listen in and where to find the agenda? Due to COVID 19, the Steering Committee meetings will be virtual until further notice. Please visit the Steering Committee calendar for a list of all meetings and to find all meeting agendas and log in information. The link to connect will be available on the meeting agendas, available at least one day prior to the meeting. PLEASE NOTE: if you do not have a Jeffco email account, you will only be able to join by phone. The calendar is also where you will find all minutes once they have been approved (usually at the subsequent meeting). Public commentary: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and remote Steering Committee meetings, public commentary will be delivered differently than when we host live meetings. Please email your public commentary to the entire Steering Committee no later than 3:00 pm the day before the meeting. We will read up to the first 5 minutes of your comment out loud during the scheduled time. As always, public commentary may be limited to a total of 20 minutes, which could further limit the length of the reading of your comment, though SC members will read them on their own in their entirety. Shorter, more concise comments will have the advantage of a full read out loud during the meeting. Virtual Steering Committee Meetings - How to join/listen in and where to find the agenda?10/10/2020
Written by: Dana Miller, Steering committee chair Due to COVID 19, the Steering Committee meetings will be virtual until further notice. Please visit the Steering Committee calendar for a list of all meetings and to find all meeting agendas and log in information. The link to connect will be available on the meeting agendas, available at least one day prior to the meeting. PLEASE NOTE: if you do not have a Jeffco email account, you will only be able to join by phone. The calendar is also where you will find all minutes once they have been approved (usually at the subsequent meeting). Public commentary: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and remote Steering Committee meetings, public commentary will be delivered differently than when we host live meetings. Please email your public commentary to the entire Steering Committee no later than 3:00 pm the day before the meeting. We will read up to the first 5 minutes of your comment out loud during the scheduled time. As always, public commentary may be limited to a total of 20 minutes, which could further limit the length of the reading of your comment, though SC members will read them on their own in their entirety. Thank you for your patience during this ever-changing time. We wish you good health! Written by: Jeff London, D'Evelyn Steering Committee Member
A friend recently asked me, “Why did you decide to send your daughter to D’Evelyn?” I told him that for me, D’Evelyn embodies the goal of raising ALL students up to a higher standard. While some schools focus on accelerated or IB students, D’Evelyn’s curriculum challenges all students to exceed educational expectations. Public education at D’Evelyn lives up to the promise of delivering a traditional liberal arts curriculum with enthusiasm and fidelity. My friend also asked, “Why on earth did you agree to serve on the D’Evelyn Steering Committee?” After I finished laughing, I had to think for a moment, because there were multiple reasons for my decision. As a parent, I wanted to learn more about my daughter’s school. As a member of the community, I wanted to express my gratitude by volunteering to help. As a Coloradan, I wanted to serve an amazing educational machine that benefits countless families and children. As an introvert, I wanted an excuse to meet the people (teachers, staff, administrators, and students) who have made D’Evelyn Colorado’s number-one publicly funded high school. As an academic, I wanted to learn how this unique educational machine functions so that I could contribute to its continued pursuit of excellence. Before deciding whether to pursue a position on the Steering Committee, I figured I should first know the committee’s essential purpose. My research quickly informed me that the principal function of the Steering Committee is to interpret D’Evelyn’s Founding Document and to uphold the academic “gold standard” articulated within the pages of that document. The school administration is then tasked with carrying out the policies and procedures that the Steering Committee sanctions and approves. Too often, even successful institutions succumb to mission drift and goal displacement. The Founding Document provides both a vision and a road map to equip D’Evelyn’s leaders to stay on course over time. Many people assert that D’Evelyn’s long-term success is largely due to students, teachers, staff, administrators, and parents all adhering to the commitment to academic rigor and high moral standards that are articulated in the Founding Document. If the past is the best indicator of the future, let us embrace the past and let us continue our tried-and-true course of educational excellence. There are no shortcuts to success. Having said as much, let us enjoy the journey as we work shoulder to shoulder to achieve our goals. D’Evelyn has taught me that the journey is about what we become, not just where we go. And what we become, is simply what we learn along the way. If you are interested in running for D’Evelyn’s Steering Committee, please attend the November 10th SC candidate training event at 6:45 PM. Virtual Steering Committee Meetings How to join/listen in and where to find the agenda? Due to COVID 19, the Steering Committee meetings will be virtual until further notice. Please visit the Steering Committee calendar for a list of all meetings and to find all meeting agendas and log in information. The link to connect will be available on the meeting agendas, available at least one day prior to the meeting. PLEASE NOTE: if you do not have a Jeffco email account, you will only be able to join by phone. The calendar is also where you will find all minutes once they have been approved (usually at the subsequent meeting). Written by: Melinda Bochner, Steering Committee Dear D’Evelyn parents, Welcome to the new and unusual 2020-2021 school year! We hope our letter finds you healthy and happy, despite current restrictions on social activities. We thank you for continuing your involvement and support of D’Evelyn through this trying time. Please know that Mr. Griffin, the school administration, and the fine teaching staff are working tirelessly to stay abreast of the changes surrounding the Coronavirus pandemic and to implement the plan for a successful new school year. Today, we are asking for grace and understanding. This school year will be different; nevertheless, the administration and faculty remain committed to the principles and legacy of D’Evelyn. Your students’ teachers will continue to provide a deep, rich, and rigorous education in the liberal arts. While D’Evelyn’s time-tested methods of whole-group, teacher-led, textbook-based instruction will require temporary modification in order to comply with state law and district regulations, please know that D’Evelyn remains thoroughly dedicated to the principles outlined in the Founding Document, and we will return to practicing those principles as soon as possible. Most importantly, D’Evelyn is firmly committed to ensuring the health and safety of students and their families. One D’Evelyn principle that remains unaltered is the importance and dependence upon parental involvement. Please consider volunteering your time to serve on the school’s Accountability Committee or Steering Committee. (We will send you detailed information about the application process in the early fall.) The Steering Committee serves as the governing body of the school, and all meetings are open to the public. We welcome your attendance and your public commentary. Feel free to reach out to us regarding D’Evelyn Steering Committee matters. We wish the best to you and your students this new school year. We are confident that together we will continue to provide our students with an exceptional education. With warm regards, The members of the D’Evelyn Steering Committee: Melinda Bochner 319.338.4414 Parent [email protected] Gina Coco 916.214.3866 Parent [email protected] Josh Griffin 303.982.2600 Principal [email protected] Jodi Haller 303.982.2618 Teacher [email protected] Lynne Hobbs 303.982.2634 Teacher [email protected] .us Greg Holland 303.519.4891 Parent [email protected] Jeff London 720-822-6883 Parent [email protected] Dana Miller 303.918.3920 Parent [email protected] Why D’Evelyn? Engaging Students in a Liberal Arts Education and Involving Parents in the Process8/11/2020
Written by: Dana Miller, Steering Committee Chair
Welcome back D’Evelyn community! It’s been an interesting six months to say the least. I hope you all have managed to stay healthy and enjoy this beautiful state we live in by engaging in outdoor activities with your families. I am excited for the 2020-2021 school year and hope that you and your students are as well. The events of the past six months have forced us to adapt and change how we live and they have opened our minds to new ways of doing things. One thing that has not changed is that D’Evelyn is committed to providing our students with a liberal arts education that helps them be engaged and thoughtful members of society while preparing them for their life after high school. D’Evelyn was founded by parents and “parental involvement will be strongly encouraged” remains a part of our Founding Document. I want to invite parents to be involved with the school by attending accountability meetings (usually the 2nd Tuesday of every month in the evening) and/or Steering Committee meetings (first meeting August 10th at 9 am). It is at these meetings where subcommittees are formed and parental involvement is needed and highly valued. Many volunteer opportunities exist, including hiring committees, curriculum review committees and textbook committees, in addition to other subcommittees that are often formed to tackle issues and make improvements within the school. This is your chance to get involved and give back to this great school of ours. In order to serve on a curriculum, textbook, or hiring committee, you must receive training. The curriculum and textbook review training sessions will take place at the first Accountability meeting on September 15th at 5:30 pm. Please plan to attend, get involved and give back to this great school. Virtual Steering Committee Meetings How to join/listen in and where to find the agenda? Due to COVID 19, the Steering Committee meetings will be virtual until further notice. Please visit the Steering Committee calendar for a list of all meetings and to find all meeting agendas and log in information. The link to connect will be available on the meeting agendas, available at least one day prior to the meeting. PLEASE NOTE: if you do not have a Jeffco email account, you will only be able to join by phone. The calendar is also where you will find all minutes once they have been approved (usually at the subsequent meeting). Public Commentary Please email all public commentary to [email protected] no later than 3 pm on the day of the meeting. We will read up to the first five minutes of your comment out loud during the public commentary time. As always, public commentary may be limited to a total of 20 minutes, which could further limit the length of the reading of your comment, though SC members will read them on their own in their entirety. Shorter, more concise comments will have the advantage of a full read out loud during the meeting. Thank you for your patience during this ever-changing time. We wish you good health! Written by: Donna Li, Steering Committee Vice Chair Dear D'Evelyn Community,
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Jodi Haller Teacher Candidate A proud faculty member at D’Evelyn since 1996, I was hired to teach the only art course offered, simply called “Art"--we've come a long way! In 2001, I was involved with opening the new DHS building, overseeing the equipment of our art studios, and developing our expanding art program. | David Goldstein Parent Candidate I am a proud husband and the father of three great kids, a D’Evelyn sophomore, 8th grader, and a fifth grader who will be coming to D’Evelyn soon. We joined the D’Evelyn community two years ago. Since then, we have been nothing but impressed with the quality of education, the dedication of the teachers, and the well-constructed curriculum that has given our school some of the best test scores in Colorado. | Greg Holland Parent Candidate My name is Greg Holland and I am a candidate for the D’Evelyn Steering Committee. I have two girls at D’Evelyn, Maggie, a sophomore, and Alex, an 8th grader. My wife, Deb Holland, has been teaching at D’Evelyn as a history teacher since 1997. | Jeff London Parent Candidate I’m Dr. Jeff London, but everyone just calls me Jeff. I received my doctoral degree from the University of Colorado. Shortly after that, I began working at MSU Denver. I am a Professor of Criminology. I am also a member of the Colorado Department of Higher Education's General Education Council. |
A proud faculty member at D’Evelyn since 1996, I was hired to teach the only art course offered, simply called “Art"--we've come a long way! In 2001, I was involved with opening the new DHS building, overseeing the equipment of our art studios, and developing our expanding art program. Currently, I am so fortunate to teach both junior high art and all levels of high school ceramics, jewelry, and drawing classes. Over the years, I have served as department manager of the Electives department and on many hiring, curricular review, and textbook committees. Additionally, I've worked on district level art advisory and curriculum writing committees at different times in my Jeffco career.
After graduating from Arvada West High School, I attended Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, earning a B.F.A. in Fine Art (Fibers) with a minor in English. I then went on to graduate school in Michigan, attending Cranbrook Academy of Art, earning an M.F.A in Fibers. Following several years working as a textile instructor and visiting artist all over the country, I earned teaching credentials from Metropolitan State College in Denver. Professionally, I have taught at Arizona State University, Littleton High School, Green Gables Elementary, and D’Evelyn.
D'Evelyn has been a huge, vital part of my life for many years. I met my husband, Brian Haller, here at my first "back to school" faculty meeting--best meeting ever! I am a very proud parent of a 2018 DHS graduate. Additionally, we have a daughter who is a sophomore at Denver East High School, our neighborhood high school. Deeply committed to the D'Evelyn program for most of my teaching career, I am looking forward to continuing our good work and vision as a member of the Steering Committee.
Jodi Haller, Teacher Candidate Statement
I think that the most important objective for D'Evelyn to accomplish in the next year is a successful launch of our new 6th grade program. This is a broad, significant program change with many complex moving parts that is requiring a huge amount of planning both in terms of curriculum, staffing, and facility use. My hope is that we are highly successful in smoothly integrating the 6th graders into our world here by this time next year! In the next five years, I want to see the 6th Grade Program fully enrolled, the new facility completed and the ship ticking along smoothly.
In the course of the next school year, I also hope that the CU-06 policy will be resolved. It has cast a dark shadow of conflict over our school community that I sincerely hope can be resolved to uphold the spirit of the founding philosophy and restore a sense of unity in our educational community.
We have done great--no, excellent--work educating students and launching them into their post-secondary education over the last 25 years. My hope is to see this good work continue through our commitment to our strong, liberal arts curriculum and the rigorous expectations we ask of students. Except for a successful launching of 6th grade, I really don't want to see big program changes. Our strength lies in what we have worked so hard to implement.
That said, one school atmosphere element I would love to see in the next 5-10 years is a shift in student attitude. I have noticed over the years a problematic spirit of complaining. This seems to be so difficult to change. Perhaps it is the nature of being a student, I don't know, but students complain about so many things here. They have too much homework, the work is too much, they can't leave campus, the dress code is too stringent, some students cheat because it is too hard. Some students seem to have forgotten that D'Evelyn is a choice school! They also seem to not realize that high achieving students are working hard and experiencing stress at many other schools, all over the place. The grass is always greener .... I do not know what the solution to this is, but I would love for there to be a more positive culture and attitude about work here, a greater sense of pride in the rigor of the school's program.
David Goldstein, Parent Candidate Biography
I am a proud husband and the father of three great kids, a D’Evelyn sophomore, 8th grader, and a fifth grader who will be coming to D’Evelyn soon. We joined the D’Evelyn community two years ago. Since then, we have been nothing but impressed with the quality of education, the dedication of the teachers, and the well-constructed curriculum that has given our school some of the best test scores in Colorado.
Our family will be at D’Evelyn for nearly a decade, and we hope to do our small part to make this good school even better for all students. In the past two years, I have served on the Accountability Committee, on several subcommittees with the Steering Committee, and directly with Principal Griffin with a goal of building a united community and supporting our kids in their journey to lead and contribute in the ways the Founding Document envisioned.
I am an engineer by training and own a small technology company that provides satellite communications in support of infrastructure, government, and scientific customers. Through this experience I have learned that the people who share a vision are more important than anything, and that building relationships of trust that allow alignment towards a common goal can create amazing results. As the owner and founder, my job is to make things happen- I wear a lot of hats from sales to accounting to chief janitor to engineering to shipping clerk. It is rewarding to dig into the details and see good things happen on the other side.
I grew up in Virginia, outside DC, and attended a relatively intense public High School similar to D’Evelyn focused on Science and Technology. From there, I went to Brown University for Mechanical Engineering and joined a small aerospace firm in Boston. After a few years I went back to graduate school for International Development Policy at the Kennedy School. That adventure took me to the World Bank in DC for a few years, where I did work in Eastern Europe and India. It was a fascinating experience, but I missed being an engineer, so I returned to aerospace in Virginia and then in Colorado.
In 2007 our growing family moved to Evergreen, where we enjoyed the elk, the snow, and the great quality of life. We spent some time living overseas since then, but for the most part have enjoyed being a part of the Colorado community.
In this unusual time, I spend my time working from home along with my wife who works at Colorado Children’s Hospital and supporting our three kids in their remote schooling. We try to walk for an hour each day, cook together, and use the new pace of life to connect virtually where we can with family and friends. In more regular times, I enjoy snowboarding with my kids, biking around Denver, watching good movies, home improvement, and traveling.
I look forward to supporting the school and our kids to build on the great foundation we have already here at D’Evelyn.
David Goldstein, Parent Candidate Statement
I am looking forward to working openly with everyone in our community to make D’Evelyn an even better place for our kids than it is already. In the coming year (2020-2021), the D’Evelyn community has three major challenges to navigate.
- Building deeper trust, engagement, and open communication among the different stakeholders in our community, including parents, students, teachers, the Administration, and the Steering Committee, as a foundation for further growth and positive change at D’Evelyn.
- Integrating 6th grade into the D’Evelyn program, ensuring that it is done thoughtfully and shares the benefits of D’Evelyn and of being part of middle school with the new students as a stepping stone to further achievement and growth, and in a way that is faithful to the philosophy of the school and respects the new students.
- Resolving the outstanding issues with the honors designation and GPA change policy and subsequent decisions about implementation.
- Interdisciplinary richness of curriculum. The term “the Complex Thinker” is used in the D’Evelyn Founding Document; one of the keys identified in that document is using “…concepts and skills from distinct subject areas, recognizing their interdependence.” This interdisciplinary view- synthesizing lessons from one discipline with those from others to create more complex judgements and conclusions- will help create a student body “…capable of deliberating and passing intelligent judgements on national issues…”
- Increased elective options. The Founders of D’Evelyn envisioned a wide variety of challenging electives, explicitly allowing for the addition of new elective options. They also discussed effective communication skills which speak to options such as Debate and Persuasive Speaking. There may be ways to further enhance the elective options at D’Evelyn to achieve another goal of the philosophy of the school, which is to create independent thinkers and learners.
- D’Evelyn Values—who are we and what do we want our students to embody when they graduate? They are not just high achievers and hard workers, but the future leaders of our communities, our state, our country, and our world. What are the values that we hope to instill in them as second nature as they venture into the world? We have the power to talk about them, reflect them in what we do, and build our community around those values explicitly, such that our students venture into their future with a vision for who they are and what is possible.
- Further exposure to the University community so that students can further expand their horizons to a national and a global stage. D’Evelyn is the top HS in the State of Colorado, and as such deserves to be at the top of the list for every University admissions officer in the country. In five years I would like to see D’Evelyn High School firmly on the radar screens of every top institution nationwide so that our students are even more sought after.
Greg Holland, Parent Candidate Biography
My name is Greg Holland and I am a candidate for the D’Evelyn Steering Committee. I have two girls at D’Evelyn, Maggie, a sophomore, and Alex, an 8th grader. My wife, Deb Holland, has been teaching at D’Evelyn as a history teacher since 1997. We have a son, Nate, who is 4 years old and in preschool at Hutchinson.
I am a native of Colorado and grew up on a farm in Monte Vista in the San Luis Valley. I graduated from Sargent High School (in the very large graduating class of 27!) and then went on to graduate from Western State College with a degree in business, while also biking and skiing. I later earned a secondary teaching certificate for social studies education. I taught for five years in Gallup, New Mexico where I also coached cross country and track. I then moved back to Colorado to teach and coach in Walsenburg, and then moved to Golden to teach and coach at Golden High School. Deb and I got married in 2000, and after Maggie was born in 2003 and Alex in 2005, Deb took three years off to be at home with the girls. In 2006, I left Golden High School to stay at home with the girls. I went back to school to become a massage therapist so I could be self-employed and have more flexibility to be with the kids. Since 2006 I have been a part-time therapist, stay-at-home-dad, recreational cyclist and jack-of-all-trades.
Currently I find myself wanting to be even more involved with the girls’ education and serve at their school. I am running for the Steering Committee to give back to D’Evelyn and support the great community with which I have been involved, formally and informally, for over 20 years. Since Nate is only 4, I have 14 more years to go!
Greg Holland, Parent Candidate Statement
One of the more obvious goals in the next year will be to add a 6th grade. This will entail numerous logistics from student drop-off, lunch scheduling, and crowd control to the details of temporary classrooms, construction of a new wing, and developing a sound curriculum that smoothly transitions these students into D’Evelyn. This will take time, but a good five-year goal would be to have a fully integrated 6-12 grade school, functioning as one body of similar intent and philosophy. In ten years, I will have my last child beginning his journey at D’Evelyn. Hopefully D’Evelyn will still be following the timeless educational philosophy that has made it the successful school that it is today. The horizontally and vertically aligned curriculum that supports the school philosophy will hopefully still be implemented with the necessary technological advances, student support and administrative needs as well.
Jeff London, Parent Candidate Biography
I’m Dr. Jeff London, but everyone just calls me Jeff. I received my doctoral degree from the University of Colorado. Shortly after that, I began working at MSU Denver. I am a Professor of Criminology. I am also a member of the Colorado Department of Higher Education's General Education Council. In addition, I am the Interim Chair to the Colorado Faculty Advisory Council, and a member of the MSU-Denver Faculty Senate. As a rule, I am happiest when I am spending time with my wife and daughter. Our daughter was fortunate enough to win the D'Evelyn lottery. Since then, my wife and I have been committed to giving back to the school as much as we can.
During our daughter’s first year at D’Evelyn, I served as a member of the D’Evelyn Counseling Advisory Committee. During my daughter’s second and third year at D’Evelyn, I served the students and parents of D’Evelyn by establishing and implementing D’Evelyn’s CyberPatriot Program (CP-XI and CP-XII). Since then, I soon learned about opportunities to volunteer for the following Steering and Accountability subcommittees: SC 6th Grade PE Curriculum Subcommittee, SC 6th Grade SCIENCE Textbook Subcommittee, SC 6th Grade SCIENCE Curriculum Subcommittee, and AC 6th Grade Transition Subcommittee.
Through my involvement with the above subcommittees, I now understand the way by which parents collaboratively and cooperatively interact with the administration, faculty and staff of D’Evelyn (via SC and AC). I am fortunate to have witnessed the way parents, teachers, and administrators work together to put the best interest of D'Evelyn student body first. Overtime, I realized that the institutional strength of D’Evelyn is in this collaborative and cooperative spirit.
Currently our daughter is a ninth grade student at D’Evelyn who loves classes in art and foreign language, as well as swimming and tennis. My wife, Lizzie, is also a Jeffco teacher. She teaches first grade at Parmelee Elementary. She has been working for the Jeffco School District for more than 20 years.
As a family, we are happy and blessed to be part of the D’Evelyn community.
Jeff London, Parent Candidate Statement
For me, D'Evelyn embodies the goal of raising ALL students up to a higher standard. While some schools focus on accelerated or IB students, D'Eveyin's curriculum challenges all students to find and exceed educational expectations, Public education at D'Evelyn lives up to the promise of delivering a traditional liberal arts curriculum with enthusiasm and fidelity. D'Evelyn's challenging curriculum benefits all children, not just the gifted and talented.
Next year, I want to see D'Evelyn retain its number one publicly funded high school ranking. In five years, I want D'Evelyn to be viewed as the preeminent publicly funded high school in s, I want D'Evelyn to be viewed as the preeminent publicly funded high school in the Mountain West region. I do not think D'Evelyn should focus on recruiting children with incredibly high IQ scores. I think D'Evelyn should continue to bring in all different types of students from all different types of backgrounds, consistently raising ALL students up to a higher standard.
I do not think bigger is better or that larger student enrollment equals more successful outcomes for D'Evelyn students. I believe D'Evelyn's past record of success can be sustained into the future by continually attracting enthusiastic teachers that "buy into" D'Evelyn's liberal arts curriculum. If D'Evelyn does not value excellence in teaching, D'Evelyn's excellent teachers will leave and go elsewhere. Over the last quarter of a century D'Evelyn has established a traditional, tried-and-true, systematic approach for student success. A healthy working environment for students and teachers is extremely important to foster and sustain excellence. Building and maintaining a community of students, parents, teachers, staff, and administrators requires all stakeholders to work in concert with each other in an environment of mutual respect.
Public commentary: Since it will be difficult to have our normal public commentary, please email any comments to [email protected] no later than 3:00 pm on the day of the meeting. We will read up to the first 5 minutes of your comment out loud during the public commentary time. As always, public commentary may be limited to a total of 20 minutes, which could further limit the length of the reading of your comment, though SC members will read them on their own in their entirety. Shorter, more concise comments will have the advantage of a full read out loud during the meeting.
Contested Election of parent SC members: Please see the article about the election process as well as information about our candidates in Jaguar Tracks.
Thank you for your patience during this ever-changing time. We wish you good health!
The D'Evelyn Steering Committee
The Steering Committee invites families and staff members to become acquainted with our election process. There are three Steering Committee positions that will be open for three-year terms beginning July 1, 2020. Two of the positions are for parents and one for a teacher. There is one teacher candidate for the one teacher position; however, there currently are three parent candidates for only two parent positions. Therefore, the Steering Committee will hold an election this year.
Our procedure for the election described below ensures that voting guidelines from the Steering Committee Bylaws and D’Evelyn SC-06 policy and regulations are met. We will be using SurveyMonkey to electronically facilitate our election. One adult per family will receive one email with a link to vote. This ensures one vote per family as required. The adult in the family who receives the email with the link to vote will be the one who is listed as “Household Priority 1” in Jeffco Connect. If you would like to check and/or change the email you have on file please refer to this Quick Reference Guide for parents/guardians with an existing account. Teachers will receive their link to vote via our distribution list (minus staff members who also have students enrolled). Each family may cast one vote for up to two parents and one teacher candidate. Please see the important dates below.
If you have technical difficulties, please contact Donna Li. [email protected] Any updates for links or further information will be posted to this document.
To assist voters in making an informed decision, a biography and essay regarding goals for the Steering Committee are included in Jaguar Tracks. Additionally, the community is invited to the Candidate Forum via video conference during which the candidates will respond to questions from Steering Committee members and the community. Please use the link below to join. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration and subsequent vote for the people you would like to see serve in this important role crucial for the governance of our school!
Sincerely,
The D’Evelyn Steering Committee
Important Upcoming Dates
April 8
April 8 Email from Lisa Porter to verify “Household Priority 1” family email address as noted in Campus. Subject: Steering Committee Election Test Email
April 14 6:45 p.m.
Steering Committee Candidate Forum Streaming link: https://stream.meet.google.com/stream/33e2d716-d9a9-4730-b400-ce5bd055cbf2
April 17
Email with link for voting will be sent in the morning and voting will remain open until 11:59 p.m. on April 18
The survey is available now through Friday, March 13th 2020. We ask parents to complete only one survey per household. Please click on the survey link to start. Please be assured that your responses are anonymous. The survey will take about 5-10 minutes.
Thank you,
D’Evelyn Steering Committee
Almost three years ago, the Steering Committee began discussions about converting our policies back to their original policy/regulation format. That process is now almost complete. Our reformatted policies, along with other important documents and tools, are now accessible via the Steering Committee website. To navigate to this site, begin at the D’Evelyn school site: Our school → Our Organization → Steering Committee. We designed this website to ensure that our policies are readily accessible to all community members, thus making them easier to use and follow as well as increasing the transparency of the work of the Steering Committee.
The Steering Committee calendar, which can also be found on our website, allows community members to add Steering Committee events to their personal Gmail account calendar and to subscribe to electronic notifications. To view our calendar, agendas, and minutes, as well as to subscribe to notifications, please visit our calendar page. The previous system used for electronic notifications is no longer in service.
As the Steering Committee website is new, there may be a few technical issues to iron out. Please contact [email protected] if you experience any technical problems or have feedback about the website. We appreciate your input. Check it out!
All Steering Committee meetings continue to be open to the public, and we cordially invite all community members to attend. The meetings are scheduled to begin at 4:30 pm, either in the main office conference room or in the library.
The Steering Committee is the governing board of the school and establishes policies designed to maintain and enhance its liberal arts philosophy. The Steering Committee appoints Directors to the Board of the D'Evelyn Education Foundation.
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