A petition calling for the resignation of Montrose County School District superintendent has opened up a window into a collection of events that have caused some community members to lose faith in the district’s leadership, according to the Montrose Daily Press. The petition also illustrated a general disconnect between Montrose and Olathe communities. While the petition is being circulated around the community, the online version has garnered a little over 700 signatures as of Tuesday, since being uploaded by an Olathe parent on March 22. The petition alleges that superintendent Carrie Stephenson created a toxic environment for both children and the staff, with overall morale in the district low. Stephenson countered this claim, stating that its district duty to investigate and act when staff, students and community members reach out for help.
The Town of Paonia is retracting its decision to purchase the old high school building with congressional funds, according to the Delta County Independent. The proposed land purchase was said to be used for affordable housing and a community center. In recent meetings, Mayor Mary Bachran hoped to negotiate the building at $2.5 million. However other trustees expressed reservations about the purchase after discovering a slew of other issues accompanying the building. Trustee Dave Knutson said the building is encased in asbestos and estimated it would cost upwards of $80,000 per unit to make the building habitable, and that’s not including asbestos removal.
Colorado’s third congressional district representative, Lauren Boebert, argued last week that the Department of Education should be abolished, reports the Daily Sentinel. Boebert’s argument came during a debate about a bill dubbed ‘the Parents Bill of Rights,’ that would codify federal education law to give parents access to school curricula, library books and other teaching materials. During her arguments, Boebert passionately supported an amendment that would terminate the federal education department by end of year. While the amendment failed by a landslide vote, Boebert took to Twitter to elaborate her misgivings. There she said that public schools should have local control, away from the federal government.
Delta County canceled its land use code work session for today due to a pending state bill that attempts to address Colorado’s housing shortage. Senate Bill 23-213 became a topic of discussion during Tuesday’s Delta County Board of County Commissioners meeting. KVNF’s Lisa Young has this story.
Gun regulation is moving closer to Governor Jared Polis’ desk. KOTO’s Julia Caulfield spoke with statehouse reporter Lucas Brady Woods about the latest on that, along with emergency notifications and housing.
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