Gilpin County school district’s District Advisory Council (DAC) held its first meeting of the 2022-23 school year on Tuesday, September 20. The first meeting focused on ensuring more parental involvement and the future of student safety.

Chairperson Victoria Edwards used the first few minutes of the meeting to explain the purpose of the Council. Some of the responsibilities of the District Advisory Council include advising the Gilpin County School Board on the best course of action on education policies, community concerns as they arise, and recommendations on school district spending. The members of the DAC include Chairperson Edwards, Vice Chairperson Angela Manely, Superintendent Dr. David MacKenzie, school administrators Alexis Donaldson and Heather Hutoon, and teacher Beth Worely.

This year the Council is specifically interested in encouraging more parental involvement. The board agreed to form a subcommittee on encouraging more parental involvement, even beginning to float ideas in the meeting. There was also discussion of creating a subcommittee focused on encouraging student enrollment (Gilpin County has lost close to 80 students over the past three years, according to MacKenzie) but the idea was tabled unless deemed absolutely necessary since the school already has so many initiatives to address the issue.

School administrators Donaldson and Hutoon presented on current “climate and culture” initiatives they have set for students. These initiatives focus on giving kids the opportunity to take care of their mental health by giving them easy access to a therapist, setting up time for studying or extracurriculars during an advisory period, and several other important resources. Donaldson also began reaching out to parents via her newsletter and encouraged them to sign up and join her for donuts and a chat on Thursday at 7:30 a.m. in her office after drop off.

Hutton told the Council that after holding an essay competition for elementary school student council, she’s chosen to include all ten applicants because she found their essays too exceptional to cut anyone. Administrators also presented recent test results and growth data, which The Mountain-Ear covered in reporting the Gilpin County School Board meeting.

Last, the Council discussed a shooting threat that happened in early August when a student threatened the school in a social media post. Officer Melissa Sternlich could not comment on the particulars of the case because of the charges brought forward, but assured the Council that Gilpin County Schools are very safe.

Officer Sternlicht reported that she is in the process of reviewing the Federal Emergency Management’s recommendations for school safety and found that Gilpin County is following almost every recommendation. “Almost everything I saw I could answer yes to,” Sternlicht said. “Yes, we have surveillance; yes, we have locked doors; yes, we have staff out on recess with the kids – everything.” She said she will finish the survey to see if there is anything to improve on. She also told the board that officers and school officials will actively continue training and attending school safety meetings across the state.

MacKenzie said the school is not planning on announcing any new protocols, rather “reiterated and reinforced” current practices. According to MacKenzie, the threat served as an urgent reminder of why these protocols are so vital to the safety of the school.

Chairperson Edwards floated the idea of investigating and implementing metal detectors on school grounds. MacKenzie said that they could research the possibility of using such methods for school safety, but reminded those attending the meeting that the school would have to fund and man any such stations. According to a study handed out at the meeting, most safety issues are caught not by metal detectors or procedures, but community members using the Safe2Tell hotline to report suspicious behavior.

To that end, MacKenzie also had a message for the school community, particularly his students. “If you see something or hear something say something,” said MacKenzie, “We’re not going to sweep anything under the rug, we’re going to address it. Now, we may not tell everybody but we’ll address it,” he said.

DAC meetings are held on the third Tuesday of every month at 5:30 p.m. in the Gilpin County School Board Room. There is also a live stream accessible through their YouTube channel: Gilpin County School District Re-1. Chairperson Edwards can be reached at toripaladino@gmail.com if parents ever have any concerns or questions. The Council encouraged parents to attend meetings in person.