120 Signatures – A New Records Finding and What Comes Next

Thank you. Our petition has now reached 120 signatures.

We continue to support SVVSD’s goal of distraction-free schools. Our request remains narrow: allow a properly restricted smartwatch to remain worn, but not used, during the PK-8 school day when parent-managed school restrictions are active.

What we are learning from the records

We are continuing our review of the records produced by St. Vrain Valley Schools concerning how the August 12 policy change was developed. The District has told us that its search is complete and that it has produced the responsive records it located. Please ask if you would like access to the Google Drive folder with the full SVVSD CORA production (over 1,000 pages).

So far, we have identified administrator feedback and general references to community input. We have not yet identified a parent survey, public listening session, or other District-initiated parent/community process specifically addressing whether PK-8 smartwatches should remain worn in a restricted school mode, be removed, or be stored before the August 12 decision.

One particularly interesting comparison appears in SVVSD’s own records. In a June 4 internal email discussing Aurora Public Schools, an SVVSD administrator told Superintendent Jackie Kapushion that Aurora had “gathered student, teacher, and parent feedback” before implementing its PK-8 bell-to-bell approach. We are continuing to review what that comparison tells us about the process used here.

Next Board meeting

The next regular SVVSD Board of Education meeting is Wednesday, September 23 at 6:00 p.m. at the Educational Services Center, 395 S. Pratt Parkway in Longmont. The District provides an advance public-comment signup process, and speakers are generally limited to three minutes.

Media outreach

We are also conducting media outreach concerning the smartwatch policy and the records surrounding its development. If you are an SVVSD parent or caregiver with firsthand experience and would independently be willing to speak with a reporter about your own experience or perspective, please email me at Braun@BraunMincher.com. If a journalist is looking for parent perspectives, I can help make the connection.

We will publish a more complete summary when our review of the District’s records is finished. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to follow this issue and learn more about the narrow clarification we are requesting.