November 18, 2025
The Poudre School District Board of Education met for its work session on November 18, 2025 at the Johannsen Support Services Center. The agenda for this meeting included:
Action items
The Board began the meeting with two resolutions, one approving the recognition of National American Indian Heritage Month and the other approving the recognition of the 50-year anniversary of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
During these recognitions, the board members heard from a student and a PSD parent who spoke to the resolutions and shared their experiences in PSD.
The board also unanimously approved its consent agenda.
Informal Reports / Discussion items
The board meeting saw the first reading of the 2026-2027 school year calendar, presented by Calendar Committee co-chairs Cheryl Day, Principal at Lopez Elementary School and Bryan Kiel, Assistant Principal at Poudre High School. The proposed 2026-27 school year calendar has a start date of Aug. 19, 2026, with a transition day on Aug. 18, and an end date of May 28, 2027. This proposed start date is approximately a week later than the current school year’s start date. This change recognizes the feedback received from the community about shifting the start date of the school year later in an effort to mitigate the impacts of heat in school buildings.
The calendar is expected to come back for a second reading and approval at the Board of Education meeting on December 9 and will be posted to the PSD website in January. The development of staff-specific calendars aligned to the adopted school year calendar is expected to take place in the spring of 2026.
Board members spoke with various local and state representatives who were invited to the meeting to discuss legislative priorities for the upcoming legislative sessions. The representatives in attendance included:
- Andy Boesenecker, State Representative
- Cathy Kipp, State Senator
- James Thompson, Regional Director for U.S. Senator Michael Bennet
- Kathy Gebhardt, State Board of Education
- Lori Garcia Sander, State Representative
- Yara Zokaie, State Representative
Key discussion points from the conversation included:
- A request for a statewide Individualized Education Plan (IEP) platform to ensure all districts are using the same system
- The need for streamlined out-of-state licensure processes for educators and special services providers
- Concerns regarding the impact of TABOR on the state budget
Full meeting
Sections of the board meeting can be watched below.
December 2, 2025
The Poudre School District Board of Education met for a special session on December 2, 2025 at the Johannsen Support Services Center. The agenda for this meeting included:
Action items
With the introduction of new board directors following the November 2025 election, several members were selected for board officer positions. This included: Jessica Zamora to Board President and Kevin Havelda to Board Vice President.
Dave Montoya, PSD’s chief financial officer, was appointed as the school board’s treasurer. Mr. Montoya has served in this role throughout his tenure leading the Finance division in PSD. Jill Brunner and Allison Brinkhoff were re-appointed to their positions as the board secretary and assistant secretary respectively.
Members also held a reception for outgoing members, Jim Brokish and Kristen Draper.
December 9, 2025
The Poudre School District Board of Education held its business meeting on December 9, 2025 at the Johannsen Support Services Center. The agenda for the meeting included:
Board recognitions
The board recognized PSD students and staff after winning state competitions and receiving awards this year:
- The Fossil Ridge High School Marching band, which won its fourth straight state championship
- Fossil Ridge High School Athletic Director and Assistant Principal, Dave Walck, who was awarded a prestigious merit by the Colorado Athletic Directors Association
- Polaris Elementary Teacher Alicia Ernest, who was given the 2025 Charles Redd Center Teaching Western History award
- Polaris Secondary Teacher Sarah Bayer, who was named a semifinalist for the Colorado Teacher of the Year award
Superintendent report
Superintendent Brian Kingsley presented a PSD video about a day in the life of kindergarten. This video shares insight into what parents and students can expect in kindergarten classrooms in PSD. Those interested in learning more about kindergarten and other school options in the district are encouraged to check out the Choose PSD website.
Kingsley also briefly discussed his time visiting several schools in Wellington recently.
Action items
The board began its action items with a review of monitoring and policy review for both financial conditions and activities, as well as compensation and benefits. Both action items passed unanimously.
The board then heard a presentation from Chief Financial Officer Dave Montoya regarding the certification of the local property tax mill levy. This also passed unanimously.
Board members moved one item from the consent agenda to the action agenda, specifically the discussion on the 2026-2027 calendar, which was previously introduced to the board in a first reading on November 18, 2025. The proposed 2026-27 calendar was approved by six of the board members, with Coronda Ziegler the sole vote against.
Informal Reports / Discussion items
The board then heard a detailed presentation from Colorado state demographer Dr. Kate Watkins, who broke down demographic data for the areas that PSD encompasses and the population trends that are being observed. Watkins broke down a series of key statistics for the area, including fertility rates, net migration, and more. Key takeaways from this presentation include projected continued decline in fertility rates in Larimer County and the state of Colorado. The demographer indicated that any population growth in the next decades is likely to be a result of net migration into the area (i.e. individuals and families moving from elsewhere into the region) as fertility rate trends do not indicate a likely increase in the number of children being born. It is important to note that net migration is also impacted by the cost of living in the region. The high cost of housing in Larimer County, according to the demographer, is a factor that may dissuade individuals and families from moving into this region over time. The information shared by the demographer is important to PSD’s ongoing work to evaluate enrollment trends and adjust to the continued declines in enrollment that the district is experiencing.
Representatives from the Fort Collins Chamber of Commerce, Larimer County Economic and Workforce Development, and City of Fort Collins presented another demographic breakdown on the region, including topics like households with children, education attainment, and more. They also discussed workforce trends in the region and the collaboration between the City, County, and school district to recruit businesses and jobs to the region.
The board closed out the night with a discussion on the district’s annual budget process as well as priorities going forward. This discussion outlined budget challenges, enrollment numbers, and statewide program funding.
Full meeting
Sections of the full board meeting can be watched below. The entire agenda, including a breakdown of each item, can be found online at the link below