Denver Journal of Education & Community

🎓 Meet Katie Ruiz Gonzalez, a recent CU Denver graduate with a deep passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion. She was honored as the Outstanding Undergraduate Student in CU Denver’s education programs.

🌎When students enter a new environment, it’s crucial to recognize that they carry valuable experiences and perspectives. This understanding is key to supporting their growth.

💬 Katie reflects on the challenges her Newcomer Students face in adapting to Denver’s liberal environment and the importance of guiding them through this transition: “A shock for my newcomer students was the liberalism of Denver. We must remember that many of our students are coming from countries with traditionalist beliefs, and we must be gentle in introducing students to the radical ways in which they can change their communities,” (DJEC, Katie Ruiz Gonzalez, 2024).

👏 We’re grateful to have Katie’s leadership in Denver classrooms and proud to share her story with our community.

We hope to make education topics more accessible and easy to understand for the wider Denver community. 💙🏙️

Videos on Newcomer Students are now live on our Youtube!

Check us out and let us know what you think 🧐 💬

Today, we’re wishing Dr. Spencer Childress a happy belated birthday! 🎉

Dr. Childress is our Editorial Director, who ensures that day-to-day journal operations remain true to community voices. With over ten years of experience in public education, he passionately believes in an education that centers on community, dignity, and love.

Thanks for all that you do for DJEC! We hope your birthday was as wonderful as you are! 🎂✨

Meet Katie Ruiz Gonzalez, a recent CU Denver graduate with a deep passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion. 🎓💛

For over two years, Katie has been a dedicated educator in a Denver school. She was honored as the Outstanding Undergraduate Student in CU Denver’s education programs.🏆📚

As the daughter of Mexican immigrant parents, Katie draws on her upbringing to connect with students who face unique and ever-changing challenges in today’s educational landscape. 👩‍🏫

We’re incredibly grateful to have Katie’s leadership and passion in the Denver community! 🙌❤️

Link in bio or comment “DJEC” and we’ll DM you a link to Katie’s journal. 💬🔗

Schools in our Denver community exist to help kids achieve their dreams. 🌟🎒 Many of us believe that sending our children to school will equip them with the skills to become well-rounded adults. 🎓

This is exactly the mindset that Newcomer students bring to their classrooms. They’re here to learn and build the life they’ve always dreamed of. 💭🏫

Marlene, an 11th grader in Denver, shares her powerful perspective: “We are more than immigrants, we are people who leave our country to fight for our dreams. Don’t let fear be bigger than your dreams!!” 💪✨

Kids like Marlene deserve the opportunity to learn and live fulfilling lives. Our schools should be equipped to support them in their development and leadership. 🏆📚

Comment “DJEC” if you want to read more from our journal. 💬🔗

In our Denver journal, we include artwork and artist statements from the 2024 Youth Art Mentoring Exhibition at RedLine Contemporary Art Center. 🎨🖌️

This piece is featured in our Student Perspective section from our Newcomer Students issue. 🗣️📚

It’s a powerful statement from a Denver 6th grader. Our youth carry so much wisdom, and as adults, it’s our responsibility to ensure they have the space to express their genius. 🌟

Young students from Latin America are entering the Denver school system.

But how will our education system serve these students if it’s already under-resourced? And why is Denver in its current political position to meet the needs of recent newcomers? 🤔🏫

Enter , a community leader with over a decade of experience advocating on behalf of working-class families. She’s collaborated on over a HUNDRED pieces of legislation. 🏛️💪

Kayla contributed to our community journal, and we invite you to take five minutes to learn her perspective on Newcomer Students and their education in Denver. 🗣️✨

Comment “DJEC” and we’ll DM you a link to Kayla’s journal. 💬

From Dr. Antwan Jefferson,

“I understand that my lane, generally, is education. But the lane of education has always been wide and winding, ranging from compulsory schooling nearly two centuries ago to desegregated schools several decades ago. In this issue, both phenomena – compulsory education (children are required to go to school) and education desegregation (all children should have access to public schools without discrimination) – are core in this issue, though neither term is specifically named. Also core is the need for a combination of care and knowledge, as these are vital to student and community success.” 📚❤️

It’s clear that all kids in the United States are expected to go to school. But on the topic of recent migration increases, there seems to be a divide as to how we can best serve Newcomer Students. 🌍🏫

Our hope as a journal is for our audience to read through our content with an open mind and open heart. We’d like to encourage you to listen more than you speak. 🧠💬

Listening might be the very practice that helps us to create more understanding as to how we can learn from the experiences of Newcomer Students. The state of our public education system is on the line. 🎓🌟

Historical Context of Migration to Denver..

“Fast forward 174 years later and here we are – facing an influx of migrants due to forced migration, because of an ineffective executive branch of government and dozens of sanctions that the US has put on Venezuela since the early 2000s. This has completely disrupted their economic infrastructure and contributed to the world’s largest migrant displacement in the world (1/3rd of the population has left Venezuela).”

The above quote is from , a single mom of a DPS student and experienced Policy Director. 📝✨

She gives historical context as to why Denver has seen an increase of migrants. Recent newcomers are escaping hardships that were caused by U.S. foreign policy. 🌎✈️

Now that they’re here, we have a responsibility to care for them and their kids. Kids in the U.S. are required to attend school as a way to ensure all kids receive some form of education. 📚👧👦

Children in the Denver metro area possess gifts that need to be protected. 🎒🌟

From Dr. Antwan Jefferson, our Editorial Director asks, “Is the fundamental purpose of educating children in Colorado to occupy them over time, or is it to participate in their development while ensuring that their dignity and humanity remain central to all of their experiences in our public education system?” 🤔🏫

For anyone who has spent ample time with kids in a classroom, you’ve seen how school can either hinder or support the development of a child. 📚👧👦

From controlling a child’s ability to choose when to use the bathroom to an unclear understanding of the purpose of education, these are issues we explore in our community journal. 🚸🔍

Comment “DJEC” to read more from Dr. Antwan Jefferson. 📝📖

🎥: .live

Here are three ways schools can connect more deeply with their alumni:

1️⃣ Invite alumni to follow their high school’s social media page.
2️⃣ Invite alumni to sign up for their high school’s email newsletter.
3️⃣ Organize alumni group chats where they can share old photos/ memories together.

This post is inspired by our learnings from a Community Report we hosted in partnership with Ednium: the Alumni Collective.

New issue on 'Amending Colorado's Constitution'!

Amending Colorado’s Constitution: Envisioning Change – DJEC After studying education for over twenty years, the Right2Learn Dignity Lab (R2L) has concluded that the primary impediment to significantly improving public education in Colorado is the educational clause in the state’s constitution. As it stands, the state’s educational clause guarantees that ...

Shant’a and Ali both believe in the power of community in schools and both serve as Editorial Board Members for DJEC.

Attached are quotes from their editorial contribution in 2020 reflecting on the impacts of remote learning.

You can read more from Shant’a and Ali here: https://djec.org/2020/11/09/vol-1-issue-3-editorial-contribution/

On February 20th, Dr. Jefferson and Dr. Childress gave a keynote to student health professionals in the Cherry Creek School District.

We discussed the purpose of public education, the history of public education, and how we should treat our students with the same level of care as we would our own family.

What do you believe is the purpose of education?

Comment below and we’ll respond 💙

Ali is an editorial board member with DJEC.

These quotes are highlights from Ali’s journal contribution.

She shares her perspective on how the school community adapted to virtual learning during COVID. It was an opportunity to reflect on how we can use community voice as leverage for positive change.

You can read more from Ali here: https://djec.org/2021/10/05/vol-2-issue-3-editorial-contribution/

Ali Monroe Larson is an Editorial Board Member. She’s a believer in the power of community activism.

You can often find her championing equity and justice in education.

People like Ali are what make the DJEC Community 💙

Meet Elijah Huff, an Editorial Board Member. He was raised in the Five Points neighborhood and is a proud graduate of Manual High School.

Elijah is passionate about using education as a means for young people to discover their inner brilliance and life purpose.

He’s on a mission to inspire change, one student at a time!

🌟 Elijah is your DJEC community role model. 🌟

Miguel, a teacher in the Cherry Creek School District is the author of the captioned quote.

School data should be helping the community accomplish values aligned goals. We have to make meaning of the numbers we use or else we risk objectivity.

What’s an example of using data to support your core values?

Comment Below!

Happy Thursday, we hope this is the best Thursday yet!

Lameese serves as an Editorial Board Member for DJEC, she believes each and every person should never be robbed of the right to be their authentic selves.

Our students will be entering a rapidly changing world, we must do our best to ensure they’re ready to adapt.

Lameese does an excellent job of pushing us to reflect on how curriculum can be changed to give students the skills needed to adapt to this rapidly changing world.

You can read more from Lameese here: https://djec.org/2021/05/27/vol-2-issue-2-student-perspective/

Lameese is a community leader and activist from Aurora, Colorado. She asks us to reflect on the ‘American identity’ and the concept of “being enough”.

Do our schools have an environment where we feel like we can belong in the community and feel safe?

You can read more from Lameese here: https://djec.org/2021/05/27/vol-2-issue-2-student-perspective/

Yuzo has been teaching for 10+ years, adapting to the COVID environment gave an opportunity to reimagine how his class approached learning.

Does the current system allow us to innovate like we did during COVID?

You can read more from Yuzo here: https://djec.org/2020/11/09/vol-1-issue-3-educator-perspective/

Yuzo is a educator who’s soon to be co-founding his own school. He contributed to our journal in 2020 reflecting on how his class adapted to the pandemic.

He gives meaning to his education experiences.

https://djec.org/2020/11/09/vol-1-issue-3-educator-perspective/

Our journal has been running for 5+ years and we were born out of a need. The need to hear more community voices on how they relate to public education.

We have a deep belief that public education should serve everybody, and not just those who are privileged to benefit from it. We’ve covered topics such as..

1️⃣ Community Vision for Education of Children (Volume 1, Issue 1).
2️⃣ Setting new priorities for public education (Volume 2, Issue 1).
3️⃣ Student Success (Volume 3, Issue 1).
4️⃣ Teacher Retention (Volume 4, Issue 1).

What topic would you like to see us cover next?

Comment below :)

There are a few ways you can support us..

1️⃣ You can become a contributing writer!
2️⃣ You can become a host for a community dialogue session!
3️⃣ You can become a sponsor for a unique event/ donate directly to our non-profit!

Message us or leave a comment for any questions 😁🎉🎉

Torrence, an educator in the Denver metro area shares his wisdom on the Teacher Retention conversation.

The work environment asks a lot from our teachers, but we know that most stay in the classroom because they feel a big responsibility for the students they’re educating.

For change makers, how can teachers keep the fulfilling feeling of directly supporting students while ensuring that they have an environment where they’re not constantly being asked to be ‘Unsung Heroes’.

You can read Miguel’s full DJEC perspective here: https://djec.org/2023/12/09/vol-4-issue-1-educator-perspective/

Miguel is a product of Aurora, CO and is currently an educator in the Cherry Creek School District. He shares his perspective on school data and asks you (the reader) to be critical about the criteria behind the data. This matters because data is what gets measured in conversations about success and progress.

Ultimately, how we select and measure data is how we choose to show what we value.

You can read Miguel’s full DJEC perspective here: https://djec.org/2023/05/09/vol-3-issue-3-educator-perspective/

On school data, "what criteria must also be researched in order to make data less opaque and more faithful to a school’s values?"

What do you want our next issue to be about? Comment below!