A divided Douglas County school board on Tuesday revised the district’s much-debated equity policy, which has been under review after a conservative majority took control of the board last year.
The board split 4-2 on its vote to approve the revisions to the policy, which has been in place in Douglas County School District since 2021. A seventh member, Elizabeth Hanson, resigned during the meeting, ahead of the vote, citing the changes as one of the reasons she was stepping down.
“I don’t feel I can look our students in the eyes and assure them that this board is doing everything in our power to meet our moral and or legal obligations to make sure that our students have an inclusive and safe learning environment,” Hanson told The Denver Post.
During the meeting, board directors made further changes to their proposed revisions. For example, one change that would have removed words such as “unbiased” and “culturally responsive” from a phrase about learning environments was nixed and the words were added back into the policy.
Board member David Ray asked for a change regarding added language about student agency.
The proposed change would have added a line to the policy that said, “This acknowledges student agency – while circumstances do impact and shape a person, they are not the sole determining factor in their life.”
“We have students that are in different journeys and they may not be able to pull themselves up with their bootstraps,” Ray said, adding, “It’s a nice desired state, but not all of our students have that ability or come from homes where they have that kind of support.”
Directors changed the line to: “This acknowledges student agency – an individual’s circumstances should not predetermine their outcomes”
The equity policy has been a heated topic in the district, with some erroneously claiming it would lead schools to teach critical race theory. The district did not change its curriculum as a result of the policy, which states how the district handles equity and diversity issues when it was passed two years ago.
Former superintendent Corey Wise has claimed his support of the policy contributed to his termination last year. The district has paid him more than $830,000 to settle discrimination claims over his firing.
After the four conservative members gained a majority on the seven-member board, they tasked the superintendent to review the policy and recommend possible changes.
Superintendent Erin Kane did not recommend any changes to the equity policy after her review, according to a presentation given last month.
“I wanted to repeal and replace this policy as I felt it does more harm than good and I question its original motives,” said board member Kaylee Winegar.
However, Winegar said, she has heard from community members who want to keep the policy.
“I think that the revisions in place keep the good and bring clarity and certainty to the concept that we as a district do not intend to elevate certain ideals and beliefs over others,” Winegar said.
Board member Susan Meek pushed back on the statement later in the meeting, saying, “I don’t see that we are trying to help some kids over other kids.”
“I don’t see that at all,” Meek said. “The policy talks about each and every student. It’s about ensuring everyone has the resources.”
Meek and Ray questioned the process in which the policy was reviewed, saying that it was rushed and lacked enough feedback from the community. They also said that many of the changes were made by board President Mike Peterson without input from other members, which Meek said prompted her to file a formal complaint with the board.
“You are one director,” Ray told Peterson. “You are not the sole decision-maker.”
“And I’ll take that criticism,” Peterson replied, adding, “And I am trying to own my position on what was done and just explain why it was done.”
He said he believes diversity, equity, and inclusion policies have good intentions, but they can be “misimplemented.” Peterson argued that the revisions he made to the equity policy add clarity to what the district means when it comes to things such as access and resources for students.
“We frankly have seen some things go wrong and we don’t want to get it wrong in Douglas County,” Peterson said.
