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An independent investigation found that Denver school board member John Youngquist more likely than not engaged in “belittling, dismissive, and condescending behavior” toward some Denver Public Schools staff members and exhibited bias in interactions with some district leaders of color, according to a summary released Monday.
However, the investigation was inconclusive on whether Youngquist’s behavior toward the district leaders was deliberate, the summary says.
The Denver school board is set to meet Wednesday to discuss the full report, which was produced by the Denver law firm Garnett Powell Maximon Barlow & Farbes. In a statement Monday, board President Carrie Olson said she will carefully review the findings. She described this moment as a “difficult and consequential” one for the board.
Youngquist said in a statement Monday that he may take legal action. He said his attorney sent a letter to the investigator and the school board’s attorney “articulating our concerns about the investigation and the context on why it was being conducted.” He said that context suggests “a retaliatory motive for which I intend to take legal action at the appropriate time.”
Youngquist’s statement said his attorney advised him not to comment further.
The announcement of the findings comes a week before voters decide the fate of four school board seats. Youngquist’s seat is not among those on the ballot. The longtime educator and former principal of Denver’s East High School was elected in 2023 to a four-year term.
In an April letter to Olson, Superintendent Alex Marrero accused Youngquist of “belittling, dismissive, and condescending behavior toward district staff, especially employees of color,” among other allegations. Marrero asked that the board censure Youngquist.
In May, the board ordered an investigation into the allegations against Youngquist.
In his letter, Marrero accused Youngquist of behaving inappropriately toward DPS staff. He wrote that Youngquist’s behavior was “destructive” and “aligns with someone who is threatened by diverse leadership and equity-centered progress.”
Marrero also accused Youngquist of wanting to harm the school district “in pursuit of personal ambition.” Marrero wrote that Youngquist has “an obsession” with removing him as superintendent.
Youngquist has said that he does not want to be superintendent. He applied once, in 2021, and did not get the position. Marrero was hired instead.
The 29-page report describes a board member who says it’s his responsibility to ask tough questions and staff members of color who say the way he asks those questions is hostile and condescending.
Investigators conducted 28 interviews, including with Youngquist and Marrero, 18 current and two former district employees, and the other six school board members. Other than Marrero and Youngquist, the witnesses are not identified by name in the report.
Several witnesses said Youngquist treats staff of color differently than white staff, addressing staff of color in a “‘nice nasty’ tone” and implying that they don’t know how to do their jobs.
Witnesses also said Youngquist also ignores staff of color, cancels meetings with them, or raises his voice when speaking with them. One board member said Youngquist “immediately goes to a place of distrust instead of professional courtesy,” the report says.
Youngquist told investigators that the questions he asks are appropriate.
“Mr. Youngquist described himself as interested in ensuring transparency and engaging critically at a level that allows him as a board member to understand what is going on, question what results mean, and not just be ‘responsive to and led by the superintendent,’” the report says.
In a letter to the board Monday, Marrero said he was “deeply disappointed” by the findings of the investigation but not surprised, according to a copy of the letter provided to Chalkbeat.
“The details outlined in the report confirm what many have experienced firsthand: a sustained pattern of behavior that is both damaging and unacceptable in any professional environment. No one should be expected to work under such conditions,” Marrero wrote to the board.
Youngquist was one of two board members who voted in May against extending Marrero’s contract and making it more difficult to fire him. Youngquist said he voted against extending the contract because he disagreed with the timeline. Under the contract, the board had until Jan. 1 to decide whether to extend it. Youngquist said he supported waiting.
Fellow board members had raised concerns about Youngquist’s behavior before Marrero wrote his letter. In December, three board members accused Youngquist of “behavior unbecoming of a board member towards DPS staff” but did not discuss any details.
Youngquist previously said that he knows of three instances in which DPS staff of color said they took offense at something he said or did. But he said his conduct wasn’t deliberate.
“I’ve worked in diverse communities of color over the course of 30-plus years in Denver and beyond,” Youngquist told Chalkbeat in May. “I know and understand the importance of listening to people.”
The board discussed Youngquist’s behavior in vague terms during a January public meeting. Board members told Youngquist his behavior was disappointing and questioned whether he was taking accountability. Youngquist said he appreciated their feedback and committed to following district policy on board member conduct.
That meeting occurred after Youngquist accused the board of violating open meetings laws. Youngquist said he was improperly excluded from a closed-door executive session where the board discussed state pension rules that limit how much former district employees like him can be paid by the district for official school board duties.
The investigation found that Youngquist’s behavior “has not changed despite it being noted in public and private settings by staff and board members,” according to the summary.
The board last investigated one of its own members in 2021. The board censured then-member Auon’tai Anderson after the investigation found he flirted with a student on social media and made posts that could be perceived as intimidating to witnesses in the investigation.
Melanie Asmar is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Colorado. Contact Melanie at masmar@chalkbeat.org.
