DENVER SCHOOL BOARD AT-LARGE

Denver Community, Families, and Students;

For the past two weeks, I have faced unexpected physical and emotional challenges after sustaining an injury. To fully recover, I must keep movement to a minimum, which prevents me from campaigning with the full energy and presence this vital race demands. It is with a heavy heart, and with my health as my priority, that I am formally withdrawing my candidacy from this race.

While I will miss the opportunity to serve, my commitment to the core principles that must guide our district remains absolute:

• Education is a right, not a privilege.

• Safety must be a prerequisite for learning in every classroom.

• Equity means affording every student the genuine opportunity for learning success.

This success is rooted in Culturally Responsive Teaching, which acknowledges and respects the unique gifts that each learner brings. As a dedicated community, we must always prioritize supporting and guiding those among us who are most vulnerable.

Finally, I urge our voting community to seize this opportunity to rethink the current Board selection process—one that prioritizes the learning outcomes of our youth, and not the interests of special interest groups. 

I look forward to continuing the fight for these principles alongside you.

I wish all remaining candidates the best of luck.

Thank you

Deborah Sims Fard

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Deborah Sims Fard is a Horticulturist of Brilliant Minds and a licensed teacher with three decades of experience serving Denver Public Schools. Known for her dedication to improving literacy, she has worked with Partners in Literacy and was featured as a Denver7 Everyday Hero for helping students fall in love with reading. Her passion for reading success has led her to pursue a master's degree in reading.

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I have never encountered any children in any group who are not geniuses. There is no mystery on how to teach them. The first thing you do is treat them like human beings and the second thing you do is love them.
–Asa Hilliard