8/7/2019 DWN RKC Charter School Holds Lottery Take One 02-09-11_Layout 1 (Page 04)

1/1

Denver Weekly News Thursday, February 10, 2011 Page 4

State | Local News

By Roger K. Clendening

Special to the Denver Weekly News

DENVER There were winners andlosers last Saturday morning in Curtis

Park when a public lottery, was held to

determine which children would be

permitted to enroll in University Prep,

a new, taxpayer-financed charter ele-

mentary school with high potential.

Black and Brown parents, grandpar-

ents and guardians, and a handful of

Anglos, their toddlers and siblings in

tow, began filtering into the former

Crofton Elementary, 2409 Arapahoe

St., around 9:45 a.m. to witness what

was to be an exciting Saturday, Feb. 5th

for some and a bummer for others.

Dr. Nate Easley, president of the Den-

ver Public Schools (DPS) board of di-rectors, pulled winning names in the

lottery held to admit 68 children in

kindergarten. Federal Judge Christine

Arguello pulled names for the 68 first

grade slots.

Easley, who was warmly embraced

by Head of School David Singer, was

introduced as a volunteer.

I wont stop until every school in

DPS is like this school, Easley de-

clared, then adding that he was not

there in any official capacity.

Shortly after Easley began pulling

names from the lottery bowl, protesters

began demonstrating outside, against

the lottery, Easleys presence as anelected official facing recall, and to call

attention to petitions voters were being

asked to sign to place a recall election

on the ballot.

Yolanda Honeycutt-Brown, a late-ar-

riving mother seated a few chairs away

from this reporter, exhibited someedginess as names continued to be

called and her childs was not among

them. When asked her childs name,

she replied, Ezekiel Brown, hes

four.

DWN, which had been recording the

names of those called up to that point,

told Ms. Honeycutt-Brown that

Ezekiel Browns name already had

been called at No. 10 for admission to

Kindergarten in August. Her face lit up

in a big smile and she said, Thank

You, Jesus!

In an interview, Ms. Honeycutt-

Brown, who says she now considers

herself a winner in the education lot-

tery sweepstakes, said shes in a de-gree-granting program at Ashford

University studying to become a

teacher. The Park Hill resident, who

home schools two other sons, 11 and

9, said she was excited because Ezekiel

would be in a good school and now

she could spend more time pursuing

her degree.

She said she chose University Prep

after reviewing the curriculum pro-

vided by Singer (one he acknowledges

is still being developed) and because

she was impressed with his concerns

about neighborhood schools that are

failing.

But Jendaya Robinson, whosedaughter Asharia Robinson, 5, was se-

lected deep down on the 68-member

kindergarten waitlist, was irate over

what she called her daughters non-

selection.

As she stormed out of the schools

gym, where the lottery was conducted,she was overheard angrily swearing in

a cell phone conversation, complain-

ing that it appeared that mostly His-

panics were selected for admission,

and she saw no Blacks on Singers

staff.

There are at least 10 other choice

elementary school options in Near

Northeast Denver for the 2011-2012

school year from which parents might

select, according to a list handed out at

the lottery prepared by the Near North-

east Network of Schools, Metro Or-

ganizations for People, and DPS to

support parents in choosing the best ed-

ucational option for their children.

In an interview, Singer, who callshimself Lead Founder and Head of

School rather than Principal, says he

has been selling neighborhood resi-

dents on enrolling their children into

University Prep for the past 18 months.

By the January 31st deadline, Singer

reports receiving 141 enrollment forms

for Kindergarten and 83 for the first

grade. Education activists who met

with Singer four days before the lottery

heard him say he was required to

hold

the lottery if the number of applicants

exceeded his schools capacity.

University Prep received $215,000 in

startup grant money from the ColoradoDepartment of Education through the

U.S. De-partment of Educations

Charter School Program. The federal

programs non-regulatory guidance

requires the use of a lottery while the

charter school is receiving these grant

funds, Megan McDermott, a CDE

spokesperson, told DWN.

CDEs award letter to Singer says the

grant is a one-time award to be bud-geted through June 30, 2011.

There will not be a supplemental

award distributed later this school year

or in any subsequent years of this grant

award, CDE advised.

The school will open to te

classes on August 8. Singer

hired four of the dozen or

he hopes to employ. His stu

lation will largely be comBlack and Brown kids. Yet

200 applicants, he says

hired a Black teacher and ha

Hispanic teacher of Colom

itage.

Singer met last week with

ucation activists represe

Northeast Community Co

Education (NCCE), Dem

Excellent Neighborhood Sc

cation (DeFENSE), and the

ucation Advisory Council (

They contended that hold

rollment lottery has been

have damaging psycholog

tional and social impacts onBrown families now bein

gamble in hopes of getting

financed public education t

fore had been available

citizen-constituents who d

tered their children.

Lisa Calderon, an organize

FENSE and a member of N

she and others who attended

evaluated the fact that it wa

Continued on next p

New Easley-Backed Charter School in CurtiPark Holds Lottery to Admit Students

DPS Board President Dr. Nate Easley, the target of a voterpicks Kindergarten and First Grade enrollment winners at versity Prep Charter School lottery held in Five Points last day. "I won't stop until every school in DPS is like this schosaid Easley, adding that he was there as a "volunteer" and an "official" capacity.

Photos: Pat Duncan

Photo courtesy of Z. Robinson

Zendaya Robinson and her three children, one of whom was wait-listed

deep down on the list.

U.S. District Court Judge Christine Arguello picked first graders names to beadmitted to University Prep's opening classes in August. "I will get my sister,a Master Teacher, to volunteer" she offered.