GILPIN COUNTY — During the first meeting of the Gilpin County RE-1 Board of Education (BOE) meeting, with newly elected member Victoria Edwards attending, the initial business of the evening was to reorganize the board.

The meeting took place at the District Meeting Room, 10585 Highway 119, Black Hawk, on December 9, and commenced at 7 p.m.

Discussion sprouted from the agenda regarding the legality of members emailing each other.

Consensus was reached that members could send an email to the group asking for a matter to be put on the agenda. The board members cannot, however, have any discussion about the subject via email, but would need to wait until the following board meeting to confer about the subject matter. 

Reorganization

Board reorganization was on the agenda for the meeting. Member Kirsten Goodlett took the opportunity to nominate Joe Marr for president of the board, “to finish his career on the board.”

Both Joe Strandley and Joe Marr verbally supported the nomination.

Marr was elected by acclimation, declared Superintendent David MacKenzie, when no other nominations were heard. 

Goodlett accepted Marr’s nomination to be vice president. Once again, she was elected by acclimation. Goodlett explained to new members that, for the most part, if members want to serve on the board, they will be able to serve at some executive capacity during their tenure. 

For the position of secretary of the board and treasurer, Goodlett nominated Jill Peterson.

There was clarification that Catrina Amaya, who is employed by the district, is secretary to the board (emphasis added).

The next item was to choose who would be the representative to the Boards Of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES). The BOCES website explains that “BOCES services are those needed by children, their families, and school personnel, which can be more efficiently provided across school districts.”

BOCES focuses on special education and gifted students.

Marr said he was happy to continue as the Gilpin representative and Goodlett will continue as the alternate.

Joe Tinucci was appointed assistant treasurer to the board. Tinucci works with budgeting for the district.

Superintendent’s report

In his report, MacKenzie noted that the 19 lockdown buttons and monitors were tested and the district is waiting on parts for the system to go live. Due to tariffs, the parts are not kept in stock, resulting in longer waits for the system to be completed. 

MacKenzie was happy to report that the audits for 2023 and 2024 have been completed and submitted to the Colorado Department of Education (CDE). The 2025 audit is set to be completed and submitted to the CDE by the deadline of December 31, 2025. Future audits should be completed with less delay.

The board reviewed numerous changes for policies and procedures that are recommended by the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB). Those policies generally emerge because of new legislation at both the federal and state levels.

MacKenzie reviewed generalities in curriculum and advised that the teachers have a lot of autonomy in how they choose to teach.

Edwards asked about the Montessori teaching and if the school is following Montessori teaching methods. The superintendent responded that there have been a lot of personnel changes in that area. He further noted that he believes the Montessori classes are aligned with the recommended methods at this time. 

The 2026 mill levy was voted on and approved. The total mill levy is 9.437 mills, with a budget of $4,430,704 for the upcoming school year. MacKenzie noted that last year Gilpin had the eighth lowest mill levy of the 178 school districts in Colorado.

Celebrations!

Nine high school and four middle school students were inducted into the National Junior Honor Society. 

The  middle school ‘s production of Beauty and The Beast  was excellent! Goodlett mentioned that Misty Ebers, the music teacher at Gilpin, deserves many praises for how hard she worked with the students throughout the rehearsals and production.

The girls’ and boys’ basketball teams, both varsity and junior varsity, won their games against their rival, Nederland.

Miss Tinucci, head of food service, was able to provide a traditional Thanksgiving meal to students and staff, which was delicious and enjoyed by all.

There were many compliments on how well Tinucci is operating the program, and that she is listening to what the students want on their trays.

The Booster Club donated over $5200 to the school for moneys gained from fundraisers and booth sales at sporting and other events. 

The next Gilpin County School Board meeting will be held on January 6 at 7 p.m., in the District Meeting Room, 10585 Highway 119, Black Hawk. All meetings are recorded live on YouTube.