Thank you for showing up every single day for our students, our families, and each other. Thank you for your creativity, your patience, your persistence, and the countless ways you go above and beyond what any job description could ever capture. The growth and transformation of our district is not the result of a policy or a program. It is the direct result of your commitment to every child in our care across these 1,100 square miles. You are the reason our students thrive.
About our budget
I want to be transparent with you about the financial landscape we are navigating together. Over the coming weeks, Kira Horenn and Laura Galido will be sharing a school-level budget presentation that will walk through the specifics of our funding picture. Like many districts across the country, DSD has experienced a decline in student enrollment.
Every student who leaves our district represents not only a young person we care about — it also means a direct reduction in the funding we receive. This trend is driven by regional demographic shifts, housing costs, and broader population patterns in southwestern Colorado, and it is something we are actively working to address through community engagement and innovative programming.
Please come with your questions — we want you to have a clear and complete picture. If you have ideas or concerns after reviewing the information, please share them. Your insight matters.
Your ideas make us better: The Kaizen Form
Kaizen is the philosophy of continuous improvement — the belief that meaningful change comes from small, consistent steps forward, championed by the people closest to the work. That is you. No one understands what our students need more than the educators and staff who work alongside them every day.
I encourage every one of you to use the Kaizen form (link below) to share your ideas — whether it’s a process improvement, a resource need, a program idea, or a simple observation about something that isn’t working as well as it could. No idea is too small. Every submission is reviewed, and your feedback directly informs how we operate and improve.
Listening sessions at every school
Over the next few weeks, we will hold dedicated listening sessions at every school in the district. These sessions are designed specifically for teachers and staff — a protected space for you to share your voice, raise questions, and offer ideas on any topic important to you.
There are a few areas where your input will be especially valuable:
- Portrait of a Graduate Implementation: How is the Portrait coming to life in your classroom and school? What is working? What support do you need?
- Technology: Are our tools and systems serving you and your students well? What gaps exist? What’s working beautifully?
- Budget: Questions, concerns, or ideas following your school’s budget presentation
- Any Other Topic on Your Mind: There are no off-limits conversations!
Listening sessions will be held at each school during lunch (11 a.m.-1 p.m.) on the dates below. Desserts will be provided. Please bring your ideas, questions, and district opportunities for growth to the session.
- Friday, March 6: Durango High School
- Tuesday, March 10: Sunnyside Elementary School
- Tuesday, March 24: Miller Middle School
- Friday, March 27: Animas Valley Elementary School
- Monday, March 30: Park Elementary School
- Tuesday, March 31: Escalante Middle School
- Wednesday, April 1: Riverview Elementary School
- Friday, April 3: Needham Elementary School
- Monday, April 6: Durango Big Picture High School
- Tuesday, April 14: Fort Lewis Mesa Elementary School
- Wednesday, April 22: Florida Mesa Elementary School
Watch for additional scheduling information from your principal. Please make every effort to attend the session at your school. Your participation makes a real difference.
Launching our 2026-30 Strategic Plan: We need you to lead this work
This March, our district will launch our new Strategic Plan for 2026-2030. This plan represents the collective voice of hundreds of stakeholders — students, families, community members, and you — and it will chart our course for the next four years. It is an ambitious, forward-looking roadmap grounded in our shared commitment to every student who walks through our doors.
But a strategic plan only lives if the people doing the work bring it to life. That is where you come in.
We are asking teachers and staff at every level to help lead the implementation of this plan in your classrooms, your buildings, and your teams. This is not something that happens to you — it is something you help create and drive forward. The listening sessions this spring will be one of the first opportunities to connect the strategic plan’s priorities with what you are experiencing on the ground.
More details about the strategic plan launch, including how you can engage, will be shared with you soon. We are genuinely excited about what this plan will mean for our students and our district — and we are grateful you will help lead the way. (If you have read this far, please send Karen an email and you will be entered into a drawing for a gift card.)
Thank you again
The work we do together is not ordinary work. Every day, in every classroom and hallway and cafeteria and bus, you are shaping who our students become. You are the reason families trust us with their most precious people. That is not something I take lightly, and neither do you.
Thank you for your dedication, your creativity, and your heart. I look forward to listening to and learning from you this spring.
With gratitude and respect,
Karen