About

Formed in late 2022 as a response to the unethical, inadequate, and politically-motivated WPSD Board of Education and their newly hired Interim Superintendent, the Woodland Park Student Alliance aims to band the student body of our district together in unity, through both positive projects and those of advocacy for the preservation of wholistic education, teachers, mental health resources, and other pressing issues. We aim for greatness in our district, and we are deeply dissatisfied with the actions of this school board. As students, we are the main constituents of our district, and we demand to be heard. Below is a list of demands that we hold for the preservation of the well-being and integrity of our district. These demands are the core of what we fight for as the Woodland Park Student Alliance.

The Woodland Park Student Alliance is fully committed to seeing student voices become valued input in district decisions and outreach, whilst advocating for the conservation of mental health funding and resources, the implementation of holistic standards and curricula, the protection of underserved or represented youth, the appropriate use of policy and laws, and the freedom from political and religious agendas in our public school district.

Demand #1: 

We demand that funding for mental health programs and preventative/restorative staff members is maintained and adequately distributed in all schools. Social-Emotional Learning, which encompasses over 1 million dollars in federal and state grants to our school district (which have now been refused), is one of the most important pillars of education. Educating a child means educating the whole child. It is blatantly false to claim that educational institutions should solely focus on core academics. Often times, adequate academics cannot be achieved in their most successful form without having proper mental health resources, counselors, and solutions. These programs fund contracted therapists, counselors, social workers, and other important community liaisons. With the removal of these grants, we risk the possibility of SERIOUS consequences to our student body's mental health. America already has a mental health crisis. We cannot stand to make this escalate further within our own district, affecting our own peers. We do not stand for the removal of these grants. Mental health resources and SEL programs are essential to children, enriching them with coping strategies, self-care systems, and a trusted, confidential team of adults for emergencies and bad situations.

Demand #2:

We demand to see curriculum that covers the entire picture of the subject, without bias to one party or another. We refuse to acknowledge standards such as American Birthright to be adequate for any classroom in any situation. Fields of study such as History and English, which encompass social studies, must be taught in full, while delivering opportunities to develop critical thinking and academic tenacity.

Demand #3: 

We demand equal representation and the interest of the board to fall upon all groups of students. We are disgusted to see policy changes that take away the board's responsibility to listen and be in the best interest of students. This board has a civil duty, at its most basic form, to listen to students, their primary constituents. This must include people from all religions, socio-economic backgrounds, sexuality & gender orientation, races, and political stances. Time and time again, we see a bias of service towards far-right, hateful individuals, in which prompt, rushed action has taken place to reform books, staff, and resources. This cannot be condoned. 

Demand #4:

We demand the ability to exist in our district without religion being imposed and forced upon us. Many in this district are religious, including hundreds of students, but the separation of Church and State applies to the Woodland Park School District and the Board of Education. We are tired of the implications, public statements, and actions that intend to force religion into school board meetings, decisions, and our district as a whole. We do not condone the public prayer given by certain board members, and we do not condone alliances of religion imposing into a public school district. It is a violation of our civil rights. 

Demand #5: 

We demand the removal of political agendas within our school board. It is, in our minds, unacceptable to show personal political affiliations in school board meetings and decisions. Our school, students, and teachers have been violated through the implementation of groups such as the Civics Alliance. Schooling is about learning and developing academic strength, not being influenced by biased, state rejected standards. 

Demand #6:

We demand that the violations of our teachers and faculty's 1st Amendment be ceased. It is unconstitutional to punish, remove, or fire employees based off of their statements towards the district and/or board when they are off the clock. It is absolutely unacceptable for teachers to be villianized, demoralized, and punished with such unethical and unjust rulings. It goes directly against the Supreme Court Case, Pickering v. Board of Education.