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Giving & Cheer Day 5 Core Value: Courage

Hello DSST! My name is Becca Bloch, and I was the recipient of the 2020 Core Value Award for Courage. I have been at DSST since 2014. A large part of my heart will always live at DSST: Cole (go Dragons!), but I am currently the school director at AST (home of the amazing Owls!). While I won the courage award last year, this award really is for all of us who are in the teaching profession. We all had the courage to face the unknown with COVID-19, the courage to teach and lead online, the courage to come back this year to so many unknowns, and the list goes on. I truly share this award with all the DSST educators in our network, and especially with my AST team.

I cannot imagine the courage it takes to be an immigrant or refugee to the United States. After receiving the courage award last year, I led a morning meeting on service with our community and presented students with three local organizations in Aurora that serve some of the most courageous people in our community. Our students voted to have my CV donation go to the Village Exchange Center in Aurora. The Village Exchange Center is a “community center and multi-faith worship space that celebrates religious and cultural diversity by creating an inclusive environment where residents from all backgrounds can practice, interact, share, and develop together.” The center seeks to assist the immigrant and refugee population to feel empowered to use their existing strengths and unique perspectives to enrich the city’s diverse and inclusive community. There are so many services the Village Exchange does. From the Village food pantry, to low wage relief support, vaccine equity, and community theatre, the Village Exchange Center is critical for many in Aurora. I am proud that DSST will donate to this organization on my behalf and it will go toward so many families in Aurora who rely on them for services.

What you need to know about the staffing compensation updates

As a people first organization, we are deeply committed to valuing you as much as we possibly can. Compensation is one way we value you, and an important one as many of you have shared this fall. As a result, we are going to make our largest investment EVER in DSST history in teacher and staff compensation for the 2022-23 school year.    

Giving & Cheer Day 4 Core Value: Respect

Hello DSST Family, my name is Eric Hill, I am the recipient of the 2020 Core Value Award for respect. This is my fifth year at DSST, and my role is Dean of Students/Culture. I have been serving at the Cole High School Campus my entire time in the network. Respect is one of the network's core values but respect is also at the core of my work. Respect is not only something you say, teach, or expect but it is something that has to be consistently practiced. In my role, I have the opportunity to impact staff, students and families every day. Having these opportunities to practice and model respect through interactions contributes to the development and growth of a person as a whole.

The DSST values are important to me because they help us live in a way where accountability and expectations matter professionally and personally. We have to lead by example through our actions and the core values serve as guiding principles that support us in governing ourselves first so that we are able to help support others.

Denver mourns death of education staple Sharon Bailey

The Denver community is mourning after Sharon Bailey, a former Denver school board member and advocate for equity in education, died Friday night.

Bailey, 68, died suddenly in her Denver home, according to Denver Public Schools. She was a Denver native, having graduated from East High School. She received her bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and a Ph.D. in public administration from the University of Colorado Denver.

It takes a village: How the Cole Fire-Ball came together to showcase musicians in all 7 grades

Music is more than just knowing how to sing or play an instrument. Music is knowing how to book a tour, how to unload equipment and set up for a show or how to prepare for a recording session in a studio.

Giving & Cheer Day 3 Core Value: DYB

Giving & Cheer Day 2 Core Value: Integrity

Giving & Cheer Day 1 Core Value: Responsibility

Hello DSST! My name is Meriwether Joyner, recipient of the 2020 Core Value Award for Responsibility. This is my fourth year at CGHS and my eighth in education. I currently teach AP English and serve as the English Department Head as well as the 12th Grade House Leader. I was touched and honored to receive this award last year, and this year in particular has given me ample opportunity to reflect on my commitment to responsibility as well as the ways true responsibility impacts my work in education.

When I was given this award, I remember thinking it was likely because I had agreed to take on so much last year, wearing more hats than I ever had. And while this may be part of the reason, winning the award prompted me to question what true responsibility was. Was it just doing the work you are asked to do and taking on as much as you can handle?

More than Christmas: Learn about some of the other holidays celebrated this time of year

A note from Dr. Aaron J. Griffen, VP of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, Ash Gelb, Manager of Diversity Equity and Inclusion, and Mercedes Blea-Davis, Manager of Diversity and Belonging

It's that time of year again! Consider supporting DSST on Colorado Gives Day.

This upcoming Tuesday, Dec. 7 is Colorado Gives Day - a statewide movement created to sponsor mission driven non-profits. You work so hard throughout the year to support your students and Colorado Gives Day provides us with another way to strengthen our mission.

Donate to DSST’s mission
Donating to DSST allows us to go above and beyond for our students with supportive services like the COVID Relief Fund. You can schedule your donation prior to Colorado Gives Day to support DSST’s mission in many ways by contributing to the DSST network at large, a specific campus or program at a school or help fund the Ariel Berryman Scholarship, a scholarship specific for DSST female seniors to attend CU Denver.