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Douglas County School District cancels classes Thursday due to protest in support of superintendent

Douglas County School District
Posted at 4:46 PM, Feb 03, 2022
and last updated 2022-02-03 18:46:19-05

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. – Kids across the Douglas County School District will get another day off from school after district officials announced all classes are canceled Thursday as hundreds of teachers protest an alleged conspiracy to oust superintendent Corey Wise.

In a letter to parents, teachers and staff, district officials said that due to a “large number of staff who have submitted absences for tomorrow,” the district is implementing what they’re calling a “no-student contact day.”

That means pre-school, elementary, middle school, and high school classes are cancelled district wide, along with classes at Bridge Program, D.C. Oakes, Eagle Academy, Cloverleaf Enrichment School, eDCSD, and Plum Creek Academy. All BASE programs are also closed.

All activities, events, sports, and facility rentals, however, will take place as scheduled. If any of these activities are cancelled, district officials said, parents will be notified by the respective coach or director.

District buildings will remain open for a staff and teacher workday for those who did not submit an absence, officials said.

Parents whose children attend a DCSD charter school are encouraged to check with their school on their status.

The district-wide protest comes after the head of the Douglas County School District was allegedly asked to resign by school board president Mike Peterson and vice president Christy Williams.

The allegations were made public Monday by three school board members who said they were concerned about the way in which the superintendent was asked to resign.

Elizabeth Hanson, a director on the board, said she will file an official ethical complaint against the school board president and vice president for what she and her colleagues, David Ray and Susan Meek, agree are a violation of public record and procedure rules.

Board president Mike Peterson told Denver7 in a statement Tuesday that he did not intend to remove the superintendent or force his resignation behind closed doors.

The school board has been politically split since the most recent election. Four new school board members have taken the district in a decidedly different direction. The first policies of the new board have been to rescind the district's mask policy and make major changes to its equity policy.