Colorado’s five largest school districts spent more than $121,000 in taxpayer money over the past two years to send their superintendents to conferences across the U.S. and as far away as Finland and China, according to expenditures reviewed by The Denver Post.
The expenses show former Cherry Creek Schools Superintendent Christopher Smith — whose travel drew scrutiny in recent months — isn’t the only frequent-flying K-12 leader in metro Denver.
His peers at the Denver, Jefferson County, Aurora and Douglas County school districts have also had the chance to accrue miles in the past two years as they traveled to places such as Breckenridge, New Orleans and Helsinki, Finland, the expenditures showed.
It’s not unusual for K-12 district leaders to travel to conferences across the U.S. to receive professional development, but it’s becoming “increasingly more common” for superintendents to undertake international travel, said Melissa Gibson, executive director for the Colorado Association of School Executives.
“Professional learning has always been a priority and, frankly, should be a priority,” she said. “…A lot of the highest quality conferences really occur at the national level.”
The expenditures reviewed by The Post covered a range of costs, including the superintendents’ airfare, mileage, meals, hotels and other travel expenses for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 fiscal years.
The travel costs for each superintendent reflect a small portion of each district’s budget, but come as K-12 systems are tightening spending and closing schools amid declining enrollment and other financial pressures.
“It just sounds like a lot of money when schools are laying off teachers,” said Jane Feldman, an ethics consultant who previously was executive director of the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission, of the superintendents’ travel expenses. She is also chair of the Denver Board of Ethics. “…It’s a lot given the current economic pinch that all governments are under.”
Among the state’s five largest districts, Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero spent the most money — $37,433 — on travel to conferences, including to Helsinki and Shanghai, China, documents show.
Marrero’s travel appears to exceed similar trips taken by his predecessors.
Former DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg spent at least $8,927 traveling to conferences during his final two years leading Colorado’s largest K-12 district — although records for him were incomplete. Susana Córdova, who preceded Marrero, spent less than $5,000 on travel as her tenure overlapped with the pandemic.
“It is important for the superintendent to also collaborate with, and learn from, other similar districts nationwide for the benefit of our students,” spokesman Bill Good said in a statement. “As such, travel is an expected and endorsed part of the superintendent’s role and has been included in each of his contracts.”
Marrero traveled abroad to attend conferences held by the Global Cities Education Network, an organization that Good said has a long history with DPS. Boasberg also attended conferences hosted by the organization, he said.
Jeffco Public Schools’ outgoing Superintendent Tracy Dorland spent the least amount of money — $6,408.53 — of the five metro Denver leaders, The Post found.
DPS and Jeffco Public Schools are the state’s largest and second-largest K-12 districts, respectively. They each operate a roughly $1 billion budget.
Aurora Public Schools Superintendent Michael Giles and Douglas County Superintendent Erin Kane spent $29,039 and $25,212, respectively, on travel during the same time period.
Smith, who previously ran Cherry Creek Schools, spent $23,499 on travel to conferences before he resigned in January.
An outside investigation found that Smith and his wife, Brenda Smith, the district’s former human resources director, likely violated district policy by charging Cherry Creek Schools for costs of events they did not attend or only partially attended.
The district fired Brenda Smith earlier this month, citing multiple policy violations related to travel and contracts. The outside investigation did not find the Smiths violated district policy by accepting paid trips to Brazil and Guatemala, but ethics experts told The Post likely violated a state law that prohibits government officials from accepting gifts that can influence their decision-making.
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