Academy District 20 operates under a Carver governance model. That structure defines where authority resides, how power is exercised, and how operational integrity is preserved.
Under BSR 3.1 – Unity of Control, only the Board acting collectively can direct the Superintendent. Individual board members have no authority over staff. Under BSR 3.3 – Delegation to the Superintendent, instructional and library material decisions are delegated to administration within Executive Limitations.
That delegation exists for a reason: to insulate educational decisions from political fluctuation.
Recently, sitting Academy District 20 Board member Dr. Eddie Waldrep initiated a formal reconsideration of Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher, a Stonewall Award–winning young adult novel available at Rampart High School.
Dr. Waldrep has a student at Rampart. That gives him standing as a parent.
But governance is not only about standing. It is about structure.
The Colorado Legal Framework Governing Book Reconsideration
Book reconsideration in Colorado is not ad hoc. It operates within statutory guardrails.
1. C.R.S. 22-32-109 – Board Powers and Duties
This statute grants school boards authority to prescribe courses of study and adopt instructional materials. However, it does not authorize individual board members to direct staff or override delegated administrative processes. Authority rests with the Board as a body.
Under Carver governance, D20 has delegated instructional material administration to the Superintendent.
2. SB25-063 – Library Resource Decision Standards
Colorado’s recent legislation reinforces that:
- Library material decisions must not unlawfully discriminate against protected classes.
- Removal decisions cannot be based solely on disagreement with viewpoint.
- Districts must apply consistent standards.
- Processes must be transparent and documented.
The legislative findings specifically note that recent challenges have disproportionately targeted materials involving race, sexual orientation, and other protected characteristics.
Almost Perfect addresses transgender identity, a category directly implicated in current statutory scrutiny.
Whether one personally agrees with its themes is not legally determinative. Removal must satisfy constitutional and statutory standards.
The Dual-Role Governance Problem
When an elected board member uses a complaint pathway designed for parents, two roles collide:
- Parent exercising statutory rights
- Elected official with supervisory authority over district leadership
Even if no overt pressure is applied, staff are not interacting with an ordinary complainant. They are responding to someone who:
- Votes on the Superintendent’s contract
- Shapes district policy
- Oversees executive performance
- Influences legal strategy
The power asymmetry is structural.
A responsible board member should proactively recognize that initiating a challenge creates:
- Perceived coercion risk
- Chilling effects on librarians and teachers
- Institutional discomfort for administrators
- Increased litigation exposure if the matter escalates
Governance maturity requires voluntary restraint.
Appeal to Authority and Institutional Standards
In communications related to the challenge, Dr. Waldrep invoked his credentials as a clinical psychologist to dispute themes in the book, including claims related to gender affirmation and suicide risk.
This is an appeal to authority fallacy.
A doctoral credential in clinical psychology does not automatically confer:
- Specialized expertise in adolescent gender identity research
- Authority to override professional library review standards
- Qualification to determine districtwide instructional appropriateness
Library selection processes rely on:
- Recognized professional review journals
- Literary merit
- Age and developmental appropriateness
- Educational relevance
- Constitutional compliance
Policy exists precisely to prevent individual authority claims, however credentialed, from substituting for structured evaluation.
Public governance must rely on institutional standards, not personal expertise assertions.
The Board Appeal Risk
District reconsideration policy allows for appeal to the Board.
If appealed, the Board would review the administrative record and issue a final decision.
At that point, the Board shifts from policymaker to quasi-judicial body.
If Dr. Waldrep were to participate in deliberation or vote on a matter he initiated, the district would confront:
- Predetermination concerns
- Apparent bias
- Conflict-of-interest optics
- Enhanced litigation vulnerability
First Amendment jurisprudence, including Supreme Court precedent addressing school library removals, evaluates intent and record evidence. When an elected official initiates and then participates in adjudication, that sequence carries evidentiary weight.
A responsible governance approach would require recusal.
Staff Protections Under Executive Limitations
Executive Limitation 2.3 prohibits unfair treatment of staff. Librarians and teachers should not be placed in positions where their professional judgment appears subject to political scrutiny from those who govern their employer.
Even absent explicit retaliation, structural effects matter:
- Future acquisitions may narrow.
- Controversial but educationally relevant materials may be avoided.
- Professional autonomy may erode incrementally.
Institutional culture shifts through signals, not directives.
What Responsible Governance Would Look Like
To align with Colorado law and Carver governance principles, a board member in this position would:
- Explicitly declare acting solely in a parental capacity.
- Avoid rhetoric that prejudges outcome.
- Refrain from escalating to Board appeal.
- Recuse from any Board-level review of the matter.
- Publicly affirm administrative independence and statutory compliance.
These steps protect:
- Constitutional posture
- Statutory compliance under SB25-063
- Staff morale
- Student rights
- Institutional credibility
Why This Matters Beyond One Title
This is not about a single novel.
It is about whether Academy District 20:
- Maintains clear governance boundaries
- Respects delegated authority
- Applies Colorado law consistently
- Avoids viewpoint discrimination
- Minimizes litigation exposure
Strong districts demonstrate discipline when authority intersects with personal conviction.
If this matter reaches the Board, the community deserves clarity:
What recusal standards apply when a sitting board member initiates a complaint that may come before the Board for appeal?
Transparency on that question would demonstrate seriousness about governance integrity.
District 20’s long-term stability depends not on ideological enforcement, but on institutional discipline grounded in Colorado law and constitutional principles.