The Garfield Re-2 School Board received a financial update and reviewed several policy readings — including one on relations with federal immigration officers — during its Oct. 8 meeting.

Finance update

Finance Director Jason Lynch presented an overview of the district’s financial outlook, which indicates the 2025-26 fiscal year will remain flat at $17.2 million, increasing to $18.4 million for the 2026-27 fiscal year due to tax recovery. 

“Statewide, school funding is expected to increase by $334 million on the state share,” Lynch said. “Overall, the student population, statewide, has dipped about 8,000 students…it’s a substantial decline.”

Garfield Re-2 is increasing salaries by 2.6% for the 2025-26 budget, and Lynch encouraged  the board to continue advocating for stable funding. 

He also discussed the mill levy certification, reporting the mill will be 10.7 this year — up by one from the previous year.

“Those mills are based on the assessed value of our valley. When I moved here, the assessed values were 900 million, the next year they went to 1.3 billion,” Lynch said. “The next year, they went back to 950 million, and this year, they’re probably going to be around 850 million, so we’re losing 10% in assessed value.”

Lynch also shared statewide demographic trends, including high housing costs, lower birth rates among millennials and Gen Z, and smaller family sizes contributing to enrollment declines. Garfield Re-2, he said, has slightly larger family units and more affordable housing than the state average, though many families commute long distances for work.

Unified Improvement Plan

Superintendent Kirk Banghart presented on the Unified Improvement Plan (UIP) for the 2025-26 school year which outlines key goals for each school. 

Each school identified two to four major challenges, determined the root causes, and proposed corresponding improvement strategies.

For example, Coal Ridge High School found that gaps in academic vocabulary were negatively affecting math and English language arts performance. The school identified causes such as students not connecting academic tasks to their goals, limited comprehension of instructions and word problems, and a lack of data on student reading and writing.

To address those issues, Coal Ridge will implement student-centered literacy activities and academic language instruction across all subjects.

Banghart said the goal is to focus on shorter, achievable lists of objectives, noting that long lists of goals tend to go unfinished.

Policy readings

Two policies — one regarding the release of student records and another on relations with state and federal agencies — were approved on their final readings. The district reaffirmed that student records will not be released without written consent from a parent or guardian and that it will maintain cooperative relationships with relevant agencies.

Several policies were also introduced on first reading. One addresses instructional materials and library resources, delegating the selection of materials to professional staff, with input from administrators, teachers and students. The superintendent will make final decisions.

Another policy outlines board responsibility for curriculum and library materials, emphasizing balance in materials dealing with ideology, religion, and profanity or obscenity. Religious materials must be factual and unbiased toward other faiths, and ideological content should present multiple perspectives. Materials containing profanity or mature themes will be reviewed for literary merit and student maturity.

The policy also specifies that books and materials will not be judged based on an author’s race, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, nationality, or political or religious views. The Colorado Association of School Boards recommended these updates, Banghart said.

A third first-reading policy focuses on public conduct on school property, reaffirming bans on deadly weapons and tobacco products.

Finally, the board reviewed a new policy regarding interactions with federal immigration officials. Under the proposed policy, no school records or confidential information may be released without written consent from a student’s parent or guardian.

The district will designate a staff member to serve as the point of contact for immigration-related matters. Superintendent Banghart will serve in that role, with Human Resources Director Devon Spaulding designated as the alternate. The designated employee will follow specific procedures if a federal immigration officer arrives on district property.