Supporters framed the bill as a money-saver for families. “I’m raising two daughters right now, and I think every $5 you can keep in your pocket is important,” one state lawmaker said.
The flap between DJ Torres and Xóchitl Gaytán brought to mind a contentious era of the Denver school board a few years ago.
A school board policy would be more prominent and harder to change than the superintendent policies that already exist. But a board member worried about giving families false comfort.
Smith will stay in Denver through the end of the school year. The district will start a search for his replacement soon.
Ideas submitted so far include an indoor-outdoor sports complex, new locations for charter schools, and apartments for teachers.
Meanwhile, the Denver school board is debating its own policy that would similarly bar ICE agents from school property without a warrant.
The bill would have required more localized elections. But opponents said it could lead to costly campaigns, more heated politics, and gerrymandering.
Cost concerns and competing priorities hindered a planned expansion that would have opened the school to more students without auditions.
The proposal would bar school police officers from ticketing or arresting students if doing so would put them at risk of deportation.
More than 1,000 Denver teachers called out of work Friday, with some joining students to march around the Colorado Capitol on a day of nationwide protests.