DENVER — The words "hard," "depressing" and "scary" are not typically top of mind when describing an elementary school. But that is how several anonymous staff members recall the 2023-2024 school year when they worked at Columbian Elementary School in northwest Denver.
“It has been the most difficult year at Columbian in history for myself," said one staff member.
Several months ago, multiple sources contacted Denver7 Investigates, raising concerns that a second-grade teacher at Columbian was allegedly drunk during work hours for months before being removed.
Staff agreed to speak with Denver7 Investigates if we kept their identities private out of fear of retaliation.
Several staff members said concerns were raised to administrators, including the principal, as early as November 2023.
“It's very scary to know that Denver Public Schools did nothing to remove an intoxicated teacher," said one staff member.
Another staff member claimed they called Safe2tell, a system used to anonymously report concerns in Colorado, on March 22. They claim the teacher was finally removed for the first time after the report was made.
“I was so frustrated and couldn't understand why nothing was being done, and I was frustrated with myself for not thinking about it earlier, like as an avenue to go through," said the staff member when asked why they chose to report their concerns.
When Denver7 reached out to Denver Public Schools (DPS) for an interview, the district provided a statement reading:
Denver Public Schools is dedicated to providing a safe and welcoming environment for all students. When a report of a potential unsafe environment is received by a school leadership team, they follow established policies and procedures to fully investigate the allegations.
Denver Public Schools cannot comment on any specific allegations due to the District’s longstanding policy against speaking about personnel matters publicly. The District can confirm the teacher was placed on paid administrative leave on April 3, 2024, and will not be returning to Denver Public Schools.
Records requested from Denver Public Schools
Denver7 Investigates filed multiple requests with DPS under the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA), including, "Any and all reports and/or documents, as well as any other publicly available information regarding a DPS security visit, call, and/or response to Columbian Elementary on March 22, 2024."
The request was denied. In response, DPS stated, "The Denver Public Schools (DPS) is in possession of document(s) responsive to your request which are exempt from disclosure," citing multiple statutes.
However, not all of Denver7's record requests were denied. In another request for records, Denver7 Investigates asked for "Any complaints filed with the school district or with Columbian Elementary School administration against any staff member at the school."
DPS provided a string of emails, including one from someone who identified themselves to Denver7 as a student's grandparent. The email reads in-part, "8 teachers have reported him drunk," referring to concerns about a teacher allegedly intoxicated at work. The grandparent said the email was sent at 1:38 p.m. on Jan. 3, 2024, but the copy provided by the district was not time-stamped.
Finally, Denver7 Investigates requested copies of all emails and other written communication to or from several school administrators, including the accused teacher's name, the words "alcohol,” "drinking,” "inappropriate behavior" or "intoxicated" throughout the school year. The district responded to the CORA request with multiple documents, including a letter reading in-part:
The document(s) not provided (sic), as these document(s) fall within the deliberative privilege and are not subject to disclosure.
The document(s) withheld pursuant to the deliberative privilege are emails discussing how to possibly address personnel issues.
Public disclosure of this document would stifle honest and frank discussion within the government and, therefore, this document is not being produced in response to the CORA request.
The district also provided a list of the emails being withheld: 10 emails dating back as early as Dec. 13, 2023, sent between several administrators, including Columbian Principal Drew Hall.
The staff members who spoke with Denver7 Investigates claim concerns were brought to Hall for several months and they believe no action was taken.
"Months went by and again, there were more reports of possibly smelling something, people reaching out to Drew Hall, and still nothing happened," one staff member said.
Denver7 Investigates made multiple attempts to contact Hall but did not receive a response.
When asked if the school district will take accountability, one staff member said, "I hope Denver Public Schools takes some accountability and removes Drew Hall and makes sure that the people at Columbian, their community and their culture, is healed.”
