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The Denver school board is considering a new approach to community engagement that would limit one way parents, teachers, and others can address the board while adding another.
The new limits would apply to the board’s monthly public comment session, where speakers can sign up to address the board for three minutes. Under a proposed policy, each speaker would get just two minutes instead of three.
But the biggest change would restrict speakers to talking about the topics on the board’s meeting agenda. No such topic limit exists now, and speakers often talk about a variety of issues ranging from the broad, such as school safety or mental health, to the specific, such as changes to their child’s bus route or a bullying incident at their school.
In proposing to limit the topics, board President Carrie Olson and Vice President Marlene De La Rosa said Thursday that they are trying to draw a line between policy issues that can be addressed by the board and operational issues that are the responsibility of the superintendent.