Superintendent warns proposed change to pupil‑count averaging could cost Adams 12 about $13 million; district seeks land for Fortin High redevelopment

The superintendent of Adams 12 Five Star Schools opened the Jan. 15 board meeting with a warning about a state funding proposal and an update on the district’s Fortin High School planning.

In a superintendent update presented early in the meeting, the district’s superintendent told the board that Governor Polis’s proposal to eliminate pupil‑count averaging for school funding could reduce Adams 12’s state revenue by “over $13,000,000” for the next year. “If this were to go through, we would lose over $13,000,000 on funding for next year,” the superintendent said. He added a staffing context: “If you think about paying an average teacher a $100,000 a year between their salary and benefits, that would be a 130 plus teachers…don’t hear me saying that we’re gonna cut a 130 teachers if that happens. We’ll do everything in our power not to.”

Why it matters: the district’s funding model includes averaging of prior years’ pupil counts; removing averaging moves districts to current counts and can sharply reduce state aid for districts with declining enrollment. The superintendent said Adams 12 already ranks near the bottom of local districts in per‑pupil resources and that a sudden $13 million loss would hinder the district’s ability to staff and operate schools.

Facilities update: Fortin/Thornton High School The superintendent also described the district’s planning for a newly envisioned Fortin High School to be constructed on the Bowman campus in the district’s southeast area (the current Thornton High School footprint has steep slopes and multiple levels). The superintendent said the district is negotiating to acquire adjacent parcels needed to achieve the grading and site work required for the planned single‑level, brighter facility. He described the land assembly as “a little bit trickier than I want it to be,” but said he was optimistic the district would complete the acquisitions soon.

Budget timetable and staffing notes The superintendent framed the budget year ahead as especially uncertain because of the potential funding change and the district’s need to prepare a spring budget. He also noted an anticipated wave of retirements and open principal and leadership positions the district planned to recruit for in the coming months.

Ending The superintendent said he was actively working with parents, staff and other districts to “lobby effectively on behalf of Adams 12” and to explore ways to protect district funding if averaging changes. Board discussion and later finance presentations returned to the same themes — enrollment averaging, state forecasts and scenario planning for the district’s 2025–26 budget.