Denver Public SchoolsThe Board of Education will reduce the amount of time individual community members have to address the elected body during the monthly public comment session beginning in January.
The school board voted unanimously Thursday to approve the public comment changes, a decision that comes as principals also plan to launch new listening sessions in their individual districts.
The board did not hold a debate before approving the policy.
“We don’t want to restrict voting,” board chair Carrie Olson previously told JS. “We just want to build a better relationship with the school board.”
The board’s new policy reduces the time each speaker is given to address the seven-member board from three minutes to two minutes. Board members also changed when the public comment session will be held and will now allow people to speak to the board virtually. Additionally, the new policy limits participation to people who are Denver residents or have a direct connection to the district.
The changes will take effect Jan. 1, with the exception of the virtual public comment option, which will begin at the start of the 2025-2026 academic year. Board members also plan to host separate listening sessions in their individual districts starting in February.
The school board previously met at least three times a month at the district’s headquarters in downtown Denver. Directors hold a work session, usually earlier in the month, and then have a separate meeting to provide public comment on the Monday before their monthly voting meetings. The board’s monthly voting meetings are often held on the third Thursday of the month.
With the new policythe board will cancel the separate Monday meeting and move public comment to the directors’ work session.
The board is also eliminating the two-hour limit on public comment, but maintaining a rule that allows comments on individual topics to last only 30 minutes. The new policy also adds a separate 30-minute limit for public comment on topics unrelated to an upcoming vote that month.
Olson previously said that if there is a topic that is expected to bring in enough speakers to significantly exceed the 30-minute limit, directors can hold an additional special public comment session without any restrictions.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our Mile High Roundup email newsletter.
Originally published: