douglas-county-schoolsYesterday, the Colorado Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of Keim v. The Douglas County School District in yet another example of education malcontents focusing on just about everything other than creating great classroom environments for DCSD students.

This case, brought by Julie Keim, who ran unsuccessfully against Judi Reynolds in 2013, is centered on a white paper that the DCSD wrote in conjunction with the American Enterprise Institute.  The piece was titled “The Most Interesting School District in America,” which it very well may be, and was published and sent to parents seven weeks before the 2013 school district election.

And therein lies the rub.  Keim and her disgruntled education agitators decided to call the white paper campaign material in violation of the Fair Campaign Practices Act. Their grievance is that it discussed reforms that had been enacted by school board members who were up for election, and because it was sent out in proximity to an election where reformers were on the ballot, constituted an illegal campaign contribution from the district to the board members up for election.

It’s quite a stretch, considering any research published on the DCSD would obviously focus on reforms, because those innovations were what made the district unique. Additionally, it is normal and expected for school districts to disseminate informative materials to district parents.  The Court of Appeals agreed.

It’s no surprise that the angry minority on the DCSD board, along with their supporters in the union and democrat party, would want to push this as far as possible, regardless of district resources that are burned and distractions that are caused. Any progress made on behalf of Douglas County families needs to be opposed at any expense by these people, because in the end, it is never about the kids, but rather about the ability to dominate a precious public good for the benefit of a narrow special interest.

The Colorado Supreme Court will rule on the matter in 2017.