Our promise as we begin this difficult journey

Dear BVSD Families and Staff,

We are entering a challenging but important period of planning for the future of the Boulder Valley School District, which includes consolidation, closure, or programmatic changes at the elementary level. We want to begin by sharing our commitment to you and to our community.

Despite our best efforts, the latest projections show that enrollment in the Boulder Valley School District will continue to decline into the foreseeable future. In five years, we project having 1,700 fewer students than we have today, for a total decline of over 5,000 students since 2017. Because school funding is directly tied to enrollment, this shift is already having a significant impact on our budget and our ability to sustain the learning, support and programs our families expect and rely on.

We are proud that BVSD students continue to thrive. Thanks to the extraordinary work of our educators and staff, our schools are performing at high levels across many measures, including increasing graduation rates, state growth scores and the number of students earning college credit, while in high school. Yet we are increasingly stretching our limited resources across a growing number of shrinking schools. The inequities that have begun to emerge today, will only grow moving forward, creating more and more inequities in programming, staffing, and opportunities for students in the future.

To preserve the high-quality educational experience our students deserve—and to ensure equity across all schools—we must begin planning for thoughtful, systemwide adjustments. 

This will be difficult work. Every school in BVSD is deeply valued by its staff, students, and families, and we do not take the potential impact of future decisions lightly.

At this stage, no decisions have been made. Our focus now is on listening, learning, and engaging our community before a plan is developed. 

Because our educators are central to the student experience, we have begun by meeting with elementary principals and teachers to better understand the challenges they are seeing and the conditions students need to thrive. 

Following Spring Break, we will begin broader, regional engagement with families and community members.

In the coming weeks and months, we will also share clear information about enrollment trends, funding realities, and the choices ahead.

Our commitments to you during this process

You can count on us to:

• Be transparent and honest about the challenges we face
• Communicate regularly and clearly
• Seek input on values, priorities, and tradeoffs
• Use the feedback gathered through our community engagement sessions to inform options and Board decision-making

All together for all students… to create resilient schools

We believe deeply in this community and in our shared commitment to students. 

We will work collaboratively to find solutions that strengthen our system, support our staff, and provide the best possible experience for every student.

You will see regular updates in this new monthly BVSD Enrollment Impacts newsletter, and we will share details soon about regional engagement sessions and additional opportunities for input.

Thank you for your partnership, your care for our schools, and your commitment to all BVSD students.

Rob Anderson
Superintendent
Boulder Valley School District

     Nicole Rajpal
     President
     Board of Education
     Boulder Valley School District