The Gilpin County School Board met on Tuesday, September 6, 2022. In attendance were Joe Marr, Cherokee Blake, Sarah Swanson, Joe Stranaley and Kirsten Goodlett. Also attending was Superintendent Dr. David MacKenzie.

The school board heard a report on the school’s adherence to the American Disability Act (ADA), conducted by Randall Look of Look Architecture. The ADA prioritizes approachability of entrance to structures, access to goods and services, restroom services, and any necessary measures. The report found that the entirety of the school adheres to 1991 and there are only four structures that do not adhere to standards set in 2010. Many of them were easily remedied, like replacing guards on sinks to keep students in wheelchairs from burning themselves on hot pipes or adjusting defibrillator boxes so they protrude less into the hallway. Others will take more time and money, such as remodeling accessibility to one of the school’s playgrounds by adding a switchback in to mitigate the gradient of the ramp. Look also suggested removing the requirement to be buzzed in by security to use elevators so that disabeled students can more easily travel between floors. The school board is appraising the cost of the adjustments as they move forward.

The school board met with District Accountability Committee chairwoman Victoria Edwards to discuss the upcoming school years and precautions the school will take in the next years to ensure the safety of its students. This portion of the meeting was in response to an incident in which a Gilpin County student posted a shooting threat on Instagram in August (the student was identified and suspended).

Edwards suggested that the school consider allocating further funds to safety programs at the schools. MacKenzie said that further meetings with the sheriff and the school accountability officer are in the works. The board will continue to review individual policies. In the meantime, the district is trying to tackle mental health awareness by partnering with Resilience 1120 to show anti-bullying films on October 4, 2022, at 6 p.m.

The district is now taking advantage of policy change which will allow the school to carry both epipens and narcan to administer when necessary. This is a change from their previous policy when students had to be in charge of bringing their own epipens to school.

The school board meets on the second and third Tuesday of every month at Gilpin County School. The meetings are open to the public.