School:  WILLIAM ROBERTS ELEMENTARY – “BILL ROBERTS”

Website: http://billroberts.dpsk12.org/

Type: Public-DPS

Tours: Begin in the fall (check back for updates and more specific information)

Main Phone: (720) 424-2640

Principal: Patricia Lea

Location: 2100 Akron Way, Denver, CO 80238 – Stapleton Neighborhood

Hours: 8:15 AM – 3:15 PM (Fridays are “early release” at 1:00 PM)

Grades: ECE-8^th Grade, Full Day Kindergarten

Average Class Size: Approximately 530 students attend Bill Roberts.  This year the Kindergarten classes averaged about 23 students but given the Stapleton classroom shortage, those classes will likely be at full capacity next fall.  There are five Kindergarten classrooms with two of them being Advanced K.  There are three 1^st grade classrooms.

Before/After Care: Enrichment programs are available to students after school.

Facilities and Playground: The school was built in 2006 so everything is very new and state-of-the-art. There are several playground structures and playing fields.

Special & Core Programs: Beyond Spanish (5^th grade and above), PE, Art and Music, Bill Roberts emphasizes a “Growth and Challenge for All” philosophy that is comprised of four key elements: academic excellence and rigor, differentiated instruction, professional learning communities, and service learning.  Instruction is focused on DPS’s  Literacy Program and Everyday Mathematics (K-5^th grade) and Connected Mathematics (6^th – 8^th grades). There are after school sports and enrichment programs for children to join that include drama, Spanish, art and technology instruction.  These programs change throughout the year.

Impressions: Stapleton is often described by those that have yet to drink the Koolaid as a soulless moonscape with cookie-cutter houses and equally homogeneous families occupying those houses.  You know the type, or maybe you are one, with two or three young kids, a dog and an SUV.  Well, from an outsider it may look like the reincarnation of “The Stepford Wives” but I dare say that, while it might not be ethnically diverse, many of the inhabitants happen to be dear friends and I know they have souls!  I find that I am often inviting myself to Stapleton not only to visit my very interesting and non-robotic friends, but also to enjoy its clean parks, massive pools, community events and quiet manicured streets that are a trick-or-treater’s dream.

When it comes to Bill Roberts Elementary, I find that I draw parallels to the neighborhood.  The vast, state-of-the art structure built only a few years ago is more reminiscent of a new alumni endowed college building than a place for small children to spend their days being creative and shaping their future. The facilities were ooooh so pretty; a “cafetorium” for both eating and performances, a gymnasium nicer than any elementary setting I’ve seen, an art room to die for, and pristine classrooms and hallways.  It was exciting, and at the same time daunting, to me for sure…but is it to the children?  I don’t know.

The upper grades don’t interact with the lower grades much – and we were told this was done on purpose.  I witnessed large packs of 6^th, 7^th and 8^th graders cruising down the hallway during our tour.  They were not supposed to interface with the lower grades, according to the parent who was giving the tour, for fear of intimidation.  In retrospect, I feel it could have been a great opportunity for some mentorship programs but who am I to suggest such things!  The parent also assured our group that soon, there will only be children from the Stapleton neighborhood occupying the school as they are not enrolling anyone from “the outside” as they once did in order to fill the classrooms.  I found this a bit disconcerting thinking about where all the students from nearby Aurora will now have to go.  The parent probably intended this news to be a selling point, but the thought of the elimination of a vast majority of the diversity within the school did not sit well with me.  On the other hand, it is no secret that Stapleton will be facing a classroom shortage as soon as 2010 so I suppose there is no choice.

*Update: Middle school students do interact with elementary students. Many middle school students work in the elementary classrooms for an hour or so in the afternoon, helping the teachers with various tasks in the classrooms.

Other than the glory of the facilities and equipment (the Music room is flush with instruments and a great teacher), I felt no love from this school.  It could have been the institutional vibe, it could have been that the Assistant Principal was using a “walkie talkie” as a means of communication, and it also could have been the unclear information about where fundraising monies were allocated that turned me off entirely.

*Update: The money raised by the PTA (over $100,000 last year) goes directly to the school, and for the 2009-10 school year, will be used to pay for the equivalent of 2 full time teachers.

I have gotten feedback from several parents whose children will be attending next year, and their initial impressions were not like mine. One parent, whose child just completed a year in one of the Advanced K classes at the school said “I can tell you that overall our experience has been excellent. I love the community, the teachers really teach to the level of the child and not just by a boilerplate grade level curriculum. [Our daughter] is already reading at a first grade level and first grade hasn’t even started yet.” Other parents I’ve spoken to are also pleased with their experience with the teachers. There seems to be a strong community of parents shaping its future, so perhaps they can inject some warmth and inspiration into its halls.

To be clear, my impressions are based on a tour given by a parent (as well as my husband’s impressions of that tour), a brief Q&A interaction with the Assistant Principal and a handful of parents. When I called and emailed the school on several occasions to discuss this profile, I got no response.  I am hoping that someone will call me back to shed some light on the programs that make the school unique.

We welcome your comments and impressions on your experience with Bill Roberts Elementary.