Community Identifies Need

Our Turn is asking the Denver Board of Education to pass and fund a resolution mandating that all schools hire at least one full-time mental health counselor; train all district staff on trauma-informed practices each year; and hire counselors who are predominately people of color to be reflective of the students they work with.

Partner Response

Our Turn is developing a new generation of civic leaders who are passionate about educational equity. Using the media, they spread the word about their organizing work and campaigns, including the fight for more mental health supports.  

Impact

Our Turn students petitioned the Board of Education last fall to pass their mental health resolution and continue to advocate for reforms. The Class of 2020’s Amelia Federico, of DSST Byers, published this piece in Chalkbeat:  The pandemic has been hard on students like me. It’s time to boost mental health support in schools.

2025-2026 DPS Academic Results

While Equity Gaps Widen, Autonomy and Choice Show Stronger Outcomes for Historically Underserved Students Every student in Denver deserves access to a quality public school of their choice. Over the last few weeks, the release of 2025-2026 state testing data gives us the latest glimpse into the question that should be at the forefront of every conversation: How are students doing? Students have unlimited potential. State test data provides valuable insight into how well schools and support systems are helping

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