The DPS Commitment vs. DPS Reality Series

This series focuses on commitments the Denver Public Schools (DPS) has made to the community, to parents and guardians, and to our children over the years. The reports typically leverage publicly available data to examine how well DPS has been keeping those commitments.

Issue #1: DPS’s “10% by 26” Commitment to Black Students in Grades 3-8 (May 2025)

In its 2022-2026 Strategic Roadmap, the Denver Public Schools (DPS) committed to “improve Grade-Level Achievement average by 10 percentage points,” further noting “we are accountable for … accelerating the growth of some student groups by more than 10 percentage points” by the 2025-2026 school year. The data-based reality shows DPS is unlikely to fulfill this commitment.