Concerned People of the Greenhorn Valley

• The BOE and District (with the "guidance" of the State and Local Health Departments) have completely mishandled the pandemic since its onset in March 2020. They have intentionally chosen to ONLY look at the physical ramifications of the virus, which for K-12 students and age 24-60 year old staff has been virtually net zero impact.  This neglect of the other 2/3 of the whole child has caused extreme detriment to our children. It is also a blatant violation of parent’s constitutional and civil rights.

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• Moreover, the BOE and District have continually used incompetent and irrelevant data sets to make decisions.  The data sets for the entire county (which includes high numbers of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, high age, and high pre-existing condition populations) have been used to make decisions for a young, healthy population of K-12 students and an equally healthy population of district staff.  

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• The BOE and District have COMPLETELY and INTENTIONALLY ignored the psychological ramifications of the pandemic on their constituency, their students, and their staff.  They have BLATANTLY ignored the other 2/3 of the WHOLE CHILD and they have done so despite the fact that there was a negligible amount of physical damage occurring to the entire school population of students and staff. 

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• They have done so, apparently, for monetary gain both from State and Federal funding received and from the closing of schools which creates copious amounts of "unused funds" to re-allocate to "new existing line items." 

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• Financial transparency will be one demand, moving forward.  This will include a records request for two months where schools was in "normal session," and two months where the district placed all students on "remote learning."  

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• It is clear to us that the BOE and District currently have no fear of lost funds due to parents removing their students from the district; indeed, these funds pale in comparison to the money they are banking from State and Federal funds and from the continued and consistent closure of schools.  

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• We challenge this board and district to think about the psychological damage that these ill-advised policies and "protocols" have caused K-12 students, especially in light of the fact that the physical damage is, and always has been, net zero.  

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• Mental "un-wellness" caused directly by failed educational institutions (including Pueblo School District 70) and emotional neglect, leading to complete and utter helplessness and disenfranchisement has directly caused a far more dangerous pandemic. One of hopelessness, despair, clinical depression, anxiety, suicide, and violent out-lashing.  The real pandemic is now mental illness.  

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• The incompetent mismanagement of this pandemic and the juvenile need for power and control have multiplied the effects of long term failure as an educational institution an untold number of times, and in essence, the fate of the victims of suicide, murder, clinical depression, and hopelessness is on the hands of those who have so miserably failed our children and communities. 

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• We will no longer tolerate the discrimination D70 shows in its inconsistent implementation of rules and regulations applying to COVID.  In a number of cases, (including but not limited to instances involving D70 charter schools Connect and VBE, Runyon Field, and CSU-P), COVID regulations for D70 Public schools were far more strict than anywhere else in Pueblo County, despite BOE members claiming that their "hands were tied by the Pueblo County Health Department." 

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• For the upcoming 2021-2022 school year, we demand that masking of students, especially those under age 10, be the choice and informed consent of the parents of any student.  Neighboring Districts 20 and 49 have both made this happen already.

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