West High School

Gather's liquor license is a lesson in smart city planning

Subway may have run into trouble by shorting the measurements of its footlong sandwiches, but the Denver Department of Excise and Licenses has gotten nothing but kudos for the rule change it made late last summer, allowing "bona fide restaurants" within 500 feet of a school to apply for a hotel and ... More >>

Metropolitan State University of Denver lives up to its name

On July 1, Metropolitan State College officially became Metropolitan State University of Denver, ending a process that had dragged on for four years, through research, debate and, finally, the approval of the Colorado Legislature. But the school in the heart of the city really made its name last mon ... More >>

Metro State College's tuition plan for illegals could teach the country a lesson

Congress won't pass the DREAM act and the Colorado Legislature killed ASSET. But Metropolitan State College (soon to be Metropolitan State University of Denver) is ready to do the right thing for would-be students who are living here illegally, kids who were brought to this country by their parents ... More >>

Dispensary owner whose shop closed at feds' order: "Screw this f*cking city"

Yesterday, U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman Jeff Dorschner implied that the 23 dispensaries issued shut-down letters had stopped doing business at their previous locations, within 1,000 feet from schools. While some centers have relocated, others have shut their doors permanently.

Remedial college courses: More Colorado students need them, report shows

More Colorado college students are taking remedial courses once they arrive on campus, according to a report released today. In the 2010-11 school year, 31.8 percent of recent high school graduates were placed into a remedial course, as opposed to 28.6 percent in 2009-10. The remediation rate for st ... More >>

Denver Public Schools's graduation rate climbs while dropout rate stays the same

Denver's graduation rate is on the rise. Statistics released today show that 56.1 percent of seniors graduated "on time" in the spring of 2011, as opposed to 51.8 percent in 2010. "On time" means they graduated four years after entering high school as freshmen. Meanwhile, the dropout rate stayed th ... More >>

Charter School Institute adds ninth board member: Liz Aybar, former principal at P.S. 1

The Charter School Institute board is once again complete. Last week, Governor John Hickenlooper appointed a ninth member: Liz Aybar, who once served as principal of the now-shuttered P.S. 1 Charter School in Denver. Aybar and the other eight board members have their work cut out for them, as explai ... More >>

Gill Action's Joanne Kron takes over role as ProgressNow Colorado's executive director

In a way, Joanne Kron's political problem-solving began in high school. It was there, at the Denver Center For International Studies, that the future executive director of ProgressNow Colorado got her subtle start in activism and advocacy through the combination of Model United Nations and something ... More >>

West High: Meet the two new academies moving into the low-performing school next year

​West High School is not closing. At least not yet. That point was hammered home repeatedly today at a gathering of West High leaders, media and community members to talk about the future of the low-performing school, which will welcome two new academies to its building next year. "This is how ... More >>

At Mayor Michael Hancock's first public forum, education and communication issues popular

Michael Hancock​ Concerns about public education and the need to improve communication between city officials and citizens about everything from parking to park usage were hot topics this morning at Mayor Michael Hancock's first community forum. Comments such as "City personnel need to be more ... More >>

West High parents say they never received letter about principal resignation, meeting to discuss it

As explained in the Westword story "Tough Subject," the recent resignation of brand-new West High School principal Santiago Grado was sudden. To help parents make sense of the change, West High held a meeting on September 29 at 4 p.m. However, only one person showed up. Now, a West grandmother says ... More >>

Santiago Grado, former West High principal, says leadership differences caused resignation

Santiago Grado resigned last month as principal of Denver's West High School after only a month and a half on the job. School officials say he chose to do so after issues with his academic leadership were raised. But Grado tells Westword that it was a difference in leadership philosophies, not a l ... More >>

A recently disciplined DPS administrator takes over at West High School

West High principal turnover: New leader Domonic Martinez on his past, school's future

Recently, West High School's brand-new principal, Santiago Grado, abruptly resigned. The reason, according to Denver Public Schools officials? He wasn't a strong academic leader. But the man who replaced him, assistant principal Domonic Martinez, has had some leadership problems, too, as explained i ... More >>

Air Force Academy donates jet engine to West High School's aircraft maintenance program

Bigger pic below.​ West High School has a new addition to its airplane hangar. (How many of you knew West even had an airplane hangar?) Yesterday, the U.S. Air Force Academy donated a jet engine to DPS's Aircraft Maintenance Program, which is offered through the Emily Griffith Technical Colleg ... More >>

Lincoln Park asparagus is the crown jewel of Denver vegetables: Kenny Be's Hip Tip

​ Lincoln Park asparagus can be grown from seeds or crowns, but the latter method respects the prestige of Lincoln Park. Home to the Santa Fe Arts District, Denver Health Hospital, West High School, Xcel Energy Zuni Generation Station and the 105-year-old Buckhorn Exchange, Lincoln Park is the ... More >>

Mayoral debate: Chris Romer ruffles feathers, Michael Hancock plucks a few

Update, 8:52 a.m. Friday: Laura Chapin, Romer's campaign spokeswoman, sent over a very short video clip from the debate regarding Hancock and creationism. See it at the bottom of this post. ____________________________________ ​"You're the fun cousins," radio host Dan Caplis told the Denver Re ... More >>

100 Colorado Creatives: Ratha Sok, 2Kool

The 2Kool crew: Bimmer Torres, Alexandra Soto, Ratha Sok and Katrina Nguyen.​ Ratha Sok just couldn't stop tagging. Growing up in the projects of Westwood, he found his young voice in a spray can. Graffiti was the only art he knew. And eventually, he got caught. Ratha spent two months in Juvie ... More >>

Graduation rates: 72.4 percent of Colorado high school students finished "on time" in 2010

Flickr​Update below: New stats show that 72.4 percent of Colorado high school students graduated "on time" in 2010. In other words, 72.4 percent of freshman who started high school in the fall of 2006 donned caps and gowns in the spring of 2010. But is this better or worse than years past? Tha ... More >>

Taggers and artists: Either way, graffiti doesn't deserve a felony

Banksy: The John Dillinger of street artists.​Far more often than is at all warranted, a bill proposing to "crack down" on graffiti -- like the one shot down in committee by the state legislator yesterday -- comes up in some form of government, promising to eradicate the scourge of people scri ... More >>

Illegal immigration debate at the Capitol could be a real education for John Hickenlooper

​Illegal immigrants took over the State Capitol yesterday -- figuratively speaking, at least -- when Senate Bill 54 was introduced by Senator Kent Lambert. It's essentially a copycat of Arizona's controversial (and constitutionally challenged) law, and a major waste of time. Until Arizona pass ... More >>

First Friday: Denver Arts Week kicks out the art-walk jams all over town

Drew Englander, Illiterate Gallery​Why is this First Friday different from all other First Fridays? In most ways, it isn't, and that's the real beauty of it. But it is Denver Arts Week's Know Your Arts First Friday Arts Walk, meaning the monthly evening art walk event in arts districts all ove ... More >>

Ken Padilla: City Council District 1 showdown, part 7

Ken Padilla​Over the past several years, northwest Denver has been the site of heated clashes over new development, struggling schools and other hot-button issues -- and the political pot got stirred into a frenzy when Denver City Council District representative Rick Garcia split for a gig wit ... More >>

Now Showing

Capsule reviews of current exhibits

Now Showing

Capsule reviews of current exhibits

Now Showing

Capsule reviews of current exhibits

Now Showing

Capsule reviews of current exhibits

Capsule reviews of current exhibits

Wake-Up Call: Back-to-school special

Pablo would be a senior in college now. A senior in a private college, rather than a public university. Because while Pablo was a star student at West High School, he was also an illegal immigrant. His parents had come to the United States when he was just a boy, and although they'd worked hard to ... More >>

Come Together

Journalist Sonia Nazario talks immigration.

The Organizer

Can councilman Paul Lopez reconcile his anti-city government past with his establishment future?

North High’s Model Student

This senior won't give DPS a gold star.

Teachers Fret

Are educators about to go postal?

Names and Faces

There are thousands of illegal-immigrant stories in the city. This is one of them.

Sis Boom Bah

In one afternoon, this Montbello student went from cheerleading to lockup.

Taken for a Ride

The bus stops here for Denver Public Schools.

This Week's Day-by-Day Picks

Scratching the Bitch

Joseph Paiva was born defective, but prosecutors stamped him a habitual criminal.

Off Limits

No parking zone

Model Students

Troubled West High takes a bold step to improve learning and lower the dropout rate.

O Father, Where Art Thou?

Freddy Rodriguez Sr. has spent decades in Denver's jazz scene. These days his favorite partner is his son.

Civics Disobedience

A teacher at Thornton High School gets a lesson in social studies.

Welcome to the Real World

The further these students get from the classroom, the more they learn.

Off Limits

A snitch in time...

Lunch-Lady Land

Conditions have gotten stale for food-service workers in Denver Public Schools.

Letters

Nita Gonzales

All in the Familia

Strange but True

Sowing Discontent

The anti-crime Weed and Seed program is leaving behind a lot of scorn and thorns in Denver neighborhoods.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT