Date of Award

Summer 8-23-2025

Document Type

Dissertation in Practice

Degree Name

Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

Organizational Unit

Morgridge College of Education, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

First Advisor

Erin Anderson

Second Advisor

Doris Candelarie

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved.

Keywords

Denver, Latine, Latino, Recruitment, Retention, Teacher, Equity

Abstract

Latine students make up 52% of the Denver Public Schools (DPS) population, yet only 23% of its teaching force is Latine. This imbalance has real implications for student experience and opportunity. In 2024, DPS commissioned the La Raza Report, which detailed challenges faced by Latine students and educators and called for systemic improvements. The findings highlighted a clear need to strengthen recruitment, retention, and culturally sustaining support for Latine educators.

This improvement science project investigated how DPS might improve the experiences of Latine teachers—engaging educators across career stages, with a particular focus on supporting early-career Latine teachers —through identity-affirming mentorship and community building. Through empathy interviews with Latine educators across roles and career stages, a central theme emerged: a deep need for connection and belonging. Guided by this insight, the study engaged educators in collaborative inquiry and a PDSA cycle centered on an affinity-based virtual networking event. The event created space for Latine teachers to share problems of practice, connect with one another, and generate ideas for retention strategies from those whose lived realities exist beyond the data.

Findings suggest that even short-cycle interventions grounded in culturally responsive design can improve Latine teachers’ sense of connection and provide valuable insights into underutilized strategies already present within the district. This study demonstrates the potential of equity-centered improvement science to address structural barriers to retention and lays the groundwork for deeper, system-wide efforts to support and sustain Latine educators in DPS.

Copyright Date

8-2025

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Lisa Garcia Simms

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

133 pgs

File Size

1.3 MB

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