Colorado group that started controversial ‘public Christian school’ faces member defections

“Sign up for Chalkbeat Colorado’s free daily newsletter to get the latest reporting from us, plus curated news from other Colorado outlets, delivered to your inbox. A public education co-op that launched a controversial ‘public Christian school’ in southern Colorado last year is losing support among its members. One of the group’s two member school districts, Elizabeth School District, withdrew from the co-op Tuesday. The second one, District 49, is expected to decide whether to withdraw later in June. If it does, Pikes Peak State College would be the only member. State law requires such co-ops to have at least one school district member. If District 49’s school board decides to exit, the co-op could recruit one or more districts to replace it. But failing that, it’s not clear how the group would survive with only the college as a member. The membership churn for Education reEnvisioned Board of Cooperative Educational Services, or ERBOCES, signals an uncertain future for the co-op as well as its eight schools and dozens of publicly funded homeschool enrichment programs . The upheaval also suggests ERBOCES has lost the faith of key education officials whose districts enable it to exist. The defection of member school districts isn’t the only problem facing the Monument-based ERBOCES. In May, Colorado lawmakers sharply curtailed the power of such co-ops to operate schools or programs outside their member districts. The changes prompted the permanent closure of Riverstone Academy , the public Christian school, and could lead to the closure of other schools and some homeschool enrichment programs authorized by ERBOCES. Ken Witt, executive director of ERBOCES, said by email that districts choose to join and leave the co-op occasionally, often in conjunction with district leadership or school board changes. “We understand when political and administrative changes lead to affiliation changes,” he said. ERBOCES is one of 21 such co-ops in Colorado. The groups were formed to make it easier for school districts to band together and offer services like special education they couldn’t afford to provide on their own. But ERBOCES has drawn scrutiny and irritation from some state and local education officials because it acts more like a statewide school authorizer. The Elizabeth district’s decision to leave ERBOCES — formalized by a 4-0 school board vote Tuesday — is surprising given the district joined the group just four months ago. But the 2,700-student district southeast of Denver is going through big changes. Superintendent Dan Snowberger, who’d previously worked for ERBOCES, retired from the district this month, a year earlier than he’d planned. Ted Knight, Elizabeth’s new superintendent, said in an emailed statement that he recommended the board drop out of ERBOCES. He said the co-op provides offerings that “may be a good fit for some districts,” including homeschool enrichment programs and contract school models, but that “Elizabeth is well-positioned with its existing portfolio of schools.” At Tuesday’s school board meeting, Board President Rhonda Olsen said the withdrawal was because membership in the co-op was not providing sufficient benefit, and it’s ”time for a fresh start and a new approach.” She said the move was not because of social media commentary, political pressure, or outside influence. Both Knight and the school board acknowledged Tuesday the district is facing financial problems. It’s also embroiled in at least two lawsuits — one over 19 books removed from school libraries and one alleging a middle school dean was wrongfully fired for objecting to the book removals. The board also voted unanimously Tuesday to cut ties with its law firm, Miller Farmer Carlson Law. The firm is led by Brad Miller, who also represents ERBOCES and helped start Riverstone Academy at the request of a conservative law firm that sought a Supreme Court test case on the question of public funding for religious education. Another former ERBOCES member, the Montezuma-Cortez district in southwestern Colorado, also recently dropped Miller’s firm . District 49’s school board will discuss its membership in ERBOCES Thursday and vote on staying or withdrawing later in June. If the district drops out, it would represent a big — possibly catastrophic — hit for ERBOCES. The 26,000-student district is a founding member of the co-op and its fiscal agent. Some District 49 board members have become increasingly skeptical of ERBOCES. In a presentation he drafted for Thursday’s board meeting, school board member Mike Heil highlighted a series of recent controversies entangling ERBOCES and questioned the “reputational impact” of District 49 being associated with the co-op. He suggested ERBOCES is an “irresponsible authorizer,” in part because it approved Riverstone Academy even though school officials skipped routine steps when they opened the school and within months were ordered to vacate their building over health and safety problems. The presentation also notes a problem that state lawyers recently cited: Some of ERBOCES’ board members are ineligible to serve on the board. A court document filed by the state in a lawsuit brought by Riverstone and ERBOCES argued that decisions made by the co-op’s improperly constituted board are void. Ann Schimke is a senior reporter at Chalkbeat. Contact Ann at aschimke@chalkbeat.org .

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