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Community events, celebrations for Hispanic Heritage Month

We are excited to be celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month as a DSST community. Our CEO, Nella García Urban, sent an email where she shared what this month means for her as a Latina and how she celebrates.

DSST Schools shine in latest Colorado School Performance Framework Results

We are thrilled to share some exciting news from the DSST community! The preliminary results for Colorado's School Performance Framework (SPF) are in, and we’re proud to announce that DSST schools are continuing to lead the way in excellence.

DSST launches 2024-25 with focus on Big 5 Success Outcomes

DSST has gotten off to a great start for the 2024-25 school year. We are excited to keep this positive momentum by focusing on our Big 5 goals.

Learn how you can get your bachelor's degree for free

We know one of the main barriers to becoming a teacher or leader for many of our staff is the bachelor's degree requirement. 

DSST students get head start on Engineering career through Campos Scholars program

This summer, 22 DSST 10th graders got the opportunity of becoming Campos Scholars. They participated in a four-week summer program through the Campos Foundation, where they were able to take a deep dive into the realms of chemistry, physics and calculus.

Guided by DSST and CU Boulder faculty, these scholars didn't just attend classes—they tackled rigorous lab projects, engaged in stimulating discussions and solved complex problems. As part of the program, each student also received a free Chromebooks and a $500 stipend. Students who complete the program after three summers will be automatically admitted to CU Boulder and will be eligible for a full-ride, last-dollar scholarship.

Graduation recap: Congratulations to the Class of 2024!

We were so excited to celebrate our graduating classes from DSST: Cedar, DSST: Green Valley Ranch, DSST: Montview, DSST: Conservatory Green, DSST: College View, and DSST: Cole in the month of May.

At the DSST: Green Valley Ranch graduation, Caroline Gaudiani (School Director at DSST: Green Valley Ranch MS) addressed the 2024 graduates with these beautiful words: 

You will fight forward in science and medicine, revolutionizing how we cure illness while preserving patients’ rights.

You will fight forward through our legal and political systems - changing laws to make us better while inviting true discourse back into our world. 

You will fight forward in business - starting companies that celebrate innovation and offer new opportunities to your staffs and customers alike. 

You will fight forward in engineering and technology - ensuring the brilliant discoveries happening are coupled with an anchored moral compass.

You will fight forward in the fine arts - writing music and creating art that captures people’s hearts and shapes their minds.

You will fight forward for your families - partnering and parenting with influence that leaves more incredible people like you in our world for generations to come. 

May our DSST Class of 2024 fight forward as they embark on new journeys and become the leaders of our tomorrow.

Check out highlights and photos from all six of our graduating classes below. 

Empathy in Origami: AST students bring history to life through paper cranes

The Middle School Commons at Aurora Science & Tech (AST) is alive with a vibrant display of thousands of paper cranes, each carrying a story of empathy, resilience and hope. For the past four years, 7th-grade students in Allie Crites' Social Studies class have folded paper cranes as a kinesthetic project intertwined with their history lessons, creating a powerful tradition that resonates throughout the school.

The project began during the challenging 2020-21 school year when hybrid learning left both students and teachers weary of screens.

“I was SO tired of being online and in front of a computer screen. So were the students,” Crites recalls. Inspired by the story of Sadako Sasaki and the legend of the thousand paper cranes, Crites introduced this hands-on activity to her class. “History is just a bunch of stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things that the time calls for,” she said.

Crites’ personal connection to the story of Sadako, which she read in middle school and later revisited during a poignant trip to Hiroshima, helped her see the potential impact on her students.

“I cried and fell to the ground seeing all the paper cranes from all over the world sent in memory of all the innocent children who have perished in wars,” she shared. This emotional experience fueled her desire to make history relatable and meaningful to her students. 

Each year, the project has taken on new significance, reflecting contemporary global issues. The first year’s cranes were dedicated to the victims of COVID-19. The following years honored children in Ukraine, oppressed black and brown children in the community, and most recently, children who have died in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

Perspective: A blueprint for better schools

In the endless debates and rankings concerning great places to live, the Centennial State is often highly ranked and admired.

Known for its mountains and national parks, above average number of sunny days, strong economy, sports teams, and expansive brewery scene, Coloradans relish this positive attention.

However, one of the state’s most important assets is less known.

Many Coloradans are unfamiliar with the barrier-breaking success story of DSST Public Schools. DSST’s mission is to transform urban public education by eliminating educational inequity and preparing all students for success in college and the 21st century.

From starting high school on a basement couch to rising 'like a phoenix': The Class of 2024

Imagine starting high school. No tour. No assembly. No meeting new friends. That’s how it was for thousands in the class of 2024.

Three Cole seniors were featured in a CPR article as part of a larger NPR story of seniors graduating after starting their high school experience in the pandemic. 

DSST leadership team celebrates growth and joy at 2nd annual leadership pipeline symposium

The DSST Leadership Development Team hosted the 2nd Annual Leadership Pipeline Symposium on May 15th. The transformational evening celebrated the 2023-2024 participants from DSST’s three leadership pipelines  — School Directors in Training (SDiT), Advanced Leadership Cohort (ALC), and the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP).