Adams 14 resists reorganization; other districts pledge support

Adams 14 leaders plan to resist state efforts to reorganize the long-struggling school district, and they’re getting support from their neighboring districts, a united front that suggests the state will face an uphill battle in its efforts to force change on the community.

“I think we’re going to have far more allies on this than the State Board,” said Joe Salazar, an attorney for Adams 14.

The Adams 14 school district north of Denver has tested the power of the state’s accountability law as it has faced many firsts. Unlike other states, Colorado does not have the authority to take over the operations of school districts directly.

In 2018, when the state ordered the district to submit to an external manager after years of low academic performance, the local school board remained in place. And in 2021, when that board hired its own superintendent, Karla Loria, she soon pushed out the management company, MGT Consulting.

Now, concerned that district leaders don’t have what it takes to lead new plans to improve student performance, and that they’re unwilling to share enough responsibility with outside help to do so, the State Board of Education has stripped the district’s accreditation and ordered that it be reorganized, a move that could mean the dissolution of the district, school closures, and students being absorbed by neighboring districts.

But Colorado has never done this before, leaving many unanswered questions about how the process would work. Meanwhile, the law gives local communities significant leverage over the state.

While Adams 14 has had a tenuous relationship with some of its neighbors in the past, Loria this year rallied colleagues and has received their support. District leaders hope others will join them, even if it’s just to defend local control.

The state has named Mapleton, 27J and Adams 12 Five Star school districts as participants in the reorganization process along with Adams 14. According to the law, a committee made up of members appointed by the school boards and district accountability committees of each district would draft a plan for new district boundaries. Once a plan has been approved by the committee and the education commissioner, it must go to the voters of the affected districts.

While the process doesn’t require the approval of school boards, they can shape the outcome by appointing committee members.

And if they don’t want to create a plan, there’s little the state can do to force compliance. Removing accreditation is mostly symbolic — although it has been the threat behind state orders in the past. It’s meant to show parents that the district has been consistently low performing. But parents already know the district has challenges, and many have been outspoken in support of local leadership. Many believe the state accountability system judges them unfairly.

Education Commissioner Katy Anthes said the reorganization of Adams 14 is not a foregone conclusion, and the outcome really depends on the community.

“I hope they make a goodfaith effort, and I have no doubt they will do that,”

Anthes said. “If they make this decision that they don’t want to reorganize or a plan doesn’t make sense or they can’t come up with a plan, we’ll have to reevaluate the plan at that stage. The decision is in the hands of the community.”

District 27J Superintendent Chris Fiedler said he supports Adams 14. His Brighton-based district covers parts of Commerce City and will be in the reorganization committee.

“I believe we’re compelled to participate under the law. I can’t opt out, but I’d like to,” Fiedler said. “I still believe the answers to providing success to the students in Adams 14, they exist in Adams 14. I believe Karla to be an exceptional superintendent, certainly one of the best ones I’ve seen in my tenure.”

Besides believing in the district’s current leadership, Fiedler said for him, this is about local control and trusting that district leaders know their needs better than the state does.

Mapleton’s Superintendent Charlotte Ciancio also said she supports Adams 14 and criticized the state accountability system that has given Adams 14 low ratings.

“What’s happening to Adams 14 is a direct result of a system that fails to assure fairness and equity across all communities,” Ciancio said in a statement. “The accountability and accreditation system in Colorado is significantly flawed. Using the results of a test administered only in English in a community that is primarily Spanish speaking to rank their schools is but one example of the injustice. ”