Headlines — October 20, 2022

October 20, 2022

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DPS Closing Low-Enrollment Schools 

The Denver Public School Board has approved criteria to close schools with low enrollment numbers. 

The measures could affect several elementary and middle schools in the Denver area. District administrators have not identified the schools by name, but first up for closures are schools with fewer than 215 enrolled students. Schools with fewer than 275 students where enrollment is expected to decline may also have to close their doors.

DPS receives per capita funding, and with the significant decline in enrollment, administrators say these schools cannot provide the same resources for students like social services or specialized programming. 

Some identify the rapidly rising cost of living in Denver as a factor in dropping enrollment, as families move out of city limits in search of more affordable housing.

Immigration Detainees in Aurora Get Win Against Private Prison Company, GEO

Former immigration detainees scored a victory in a long-running federal court battle against the GEO Group this week. A federal district court judge in Colorado ruled their class action suit against the for-profit prison company can go to a jury trial. 

The plaintiffs argue the GEO group, in charge of the Aurora ICE detention facility, violated federal prohibitions against forced labor by making detainees work at the facility for pay as low as one dollar per day.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs say Senior District Judge John Kane of the federal District Court for the District of Colorado held that the GEO Group’s government contracting position does not shield the company from liability or from the public scrutiny of a jury trial.

Applications For Longmont Housing  Board

The Longmont City Clerk’s office is accepting applications for the Longmont Housing Advisory Board. There are currently five vacancies. 

Longmont’s Housing Authority Advisory Board advises the Longmont Housing Authority Board of Commissioners to provide safe and affordable housing to income-qualified households in Longmont. According to a press release, board members would serve as community connectors, helping to engage residents. Visit Longmont housing’s website for more information about applying.

Denver Mint Is Distributing A New Quarter Featuring Chinese-American Actress 

The Mint will begin to ship the first U.S. currency coins featuring an Asian American today. The new coin features Anna May Wong, a Chinese American actress who was prominent in the 1920s and ‘30s. 

The new coin comes as part of the American Woman Quarter Program and is a collaboration between the US Mint and The National Women’s History Museum. Congress directed the Mint to identify prominent women in American history to honor on a series of quarters over the next couple of years. 

The Artistic Infusion Program Designer for the U.S. Mint said to Newsbreak that many “prominent actors from the 1920s and ‘30s saw their names framed by lightbulbs on movie theater marquees, so I thought it made sense to feature Anna May Wong in this way.” 

The Mint will feature other women on the coins, including Nina Otero-Warren, Sally Ride, Wilma Mankiller, and Maya Angelou.

Algonquian Conference Begins At CU Law School

The 54th Algonquian Conference focusing on decades of Indigenous languages begins tonight at the University Of Colorado, Boulder’s Law School. The conference aims to battle language loss in Indigenous cultures.

Speakers will address both the causes of language loss and the best ways to preserve them  through reforms to law and policy.

The United Nations declared the International Decade of Indigenous Languages to address the dire situation of Indigenous languages around the world.

The conference is being held in the Wittemyer Courtroom at the CU Law School. Speakers from the United Nations, U.S., and Canada will present in all areas of linguistics, relating to Algonquian languages. The conference runs through Sunday.

The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Livestreamed The Birth Of Its New Baby Giraffe

The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs live-streamed the birth of a new baby giraffe this week. Bailey the giraffe gave birth to her baby girl Tuesday. The calf was on its feet moments after being born, which, according to zookeepers, indicates a healthy young giraffe.  

The baby is Bailey’s second child but her dad, Khalid, has seven other children. The calf is the 17th giraffe in the zoo’s herd. You can check out a link to a baby cam and birth livestream at KGNU’s Facebook page. 

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