27J board sets timeline for Fiedler’s replacement

BY STEVE SMITH SSMITH@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

e 27J Schools board of education approved a timeline to replace outgoing Superintendent Chris Fiedler during a Jan. 25 meeting.

Fiedler announced his plans to retire when his contract with the district runs out June 30, 2024. By the time he leaves, Fiedler will have been the superintendent for 13 years.

It’s fast. e board would like to appoint someone during its March 8 meeting. e deadline for candidates to submit application materials to the board is Friday, Feb. 3. e board plans to meet in executive session Feb. 8, to consider the applicants and then to name nalists.

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HAMMERLUND e community gets its chance to meet with the nalists during a special meeting Wednesday, March 1. at’s followed by contract negotiations and then an appointment on March 8, according to the district’s timeline. e debate among the board was whether to stay in-house for Fiedler’s replacement or go outside. Board member President Greg Piotraschke seemed to lean local.

“I look at the program, the graduation rates. at’s a long process,” he said. “Hiring someone from California may not re ect that.”

Before the board approved the search process, district resident and former TV journalist Stacey Baca told the board it should conduct a state- wide search for Fiedler’s replacement. Piotraschke said the cost for a nationwide search could run as high as $100,000.

“ e quali cations you are seeking must be in a senior 27J leader,” she told the board. “If there are certain strong internal candidates, put them up against the best candidate in the state. e cream will rise to the top.”

Fiedler pressed for a quick timeline because the recruiting season starts within the next 2½ months for toplevel administrators.

“We have an opportunity to attract quali ed candidates because of our mill-levy override,” Fiedler said. “I’m sure you will be asked about this, I have no doubt. Whatever you decide, we will do. I’m proud of the work we’ve done, and I know there are some quali ed candidates who can step in so we won’t pause. You have to decide if this is right.”

Fiedler also pointed out a fasttrack e ort allows the district to plan for a transition. Former Superintendent Rod Blunck put the district’s transition plan in place before he stepped down in 2012. Blunck is a clinical associate professor in the school of education and human development at the University of Colorado-Denver.

“I credit Dr. Blunck with setting the foundation,” Fiedler said. “It’s been the highest professional honor to serve as your superintendent. I’m committed to nishing strong and to enjoying these last semesters.”

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Obituaries, Arrangements and Resources Online at taborfuneralhome.com

George Hammerlund

April 8, 1924 - December 4, 2022

George H. Hammerlund of Brighton Colo. He was laid to rest along with Harriet Hammerlund Dec.27th 2022 at Fort Logan National Cemetery.

George and Harriet are survived by their 5 children , 9 grand children , 17 great grand children and 3 great great grand children. ey will be greatly missed.

July 17, 1946 - January 11, 2023

On January 11, 2023, Andrea P. orpe was called up to heaven while peacefully surrounded by loved ones and family.

Andi orpe (76) was born on July 17, 1946, in Duluth, Minnesota. She grew up in various areas until her family settled in Des Moines, Iowa, with a father who was a major in the Air Force and a mother who owned a stationery shop that she would help in after school. She went on to graduate with her teaching degree and an emphasis in both Spanish and English. While in college, she became a foreign exchange student in Argentina, where she fell in love with the culture and learned to speak Spanish uently.

Andi took her rst position as a teacher in Gresham, Nebraska, in 1968 as a Spanish teacher, where she met her best friend, soul mate, and love of her life, Jack orpe, who was an English teacher as well as a basketball coach. ey were married at Saint Andrew’s Church in Nebraska in December of 1969.

Both Jack and Andi moved to Stromsburg, Nebraska, where they taught for two years and then moved on to Wymore, Nebraska, to teach for three more years. is is where Andi rst fell in love with exposing students to culture and the outside world when she and Jack took twenty students from a small farm town in Nebraska throughout Mexico and ended the trip in Acapulco. She found her passion and her life’s calling while exposing these students to a culture and the world that they may not have been able to see otherwise.

In 1974, Andi was o ered a position as the rst Anglo Spanish teacher in Fort Lupton, Colorado, and took the position without hesitation, so she and Jack moved to Denver, Colorado, to start their own lives there. She started teaching during a time when Fort Lupton was going through hardship and gang riots, but she found a way to make a di erence in her students’ lives. Her husband Jack went on to become an 8th grade English teacher a year later. Mr. and Mrs. orpe were able to nd a special home within the Fort Lupton community. It was well known that Mrs. orpe’s door was always open for anyone in need, whether it was during school hours or not.

Andi was much more than a teacher; she was the yearbook advisor for most of her time at allieventcenter.com

Fort Lupton High School, as well as the student council advisor, Spanish teacher, and English teacher. From chili and study nights in their home for students, trips to the mountains for student retreats and shing trips, homecoming dance decorating and planning, and trips to England, Italy, and Greece with students, there were few that went to Fort Lupton High School that didn’t know the orpe name. Andi created friendships and connections that lasted for years and generations. She taught multiple generations of families, watching students grow from teenagers to parents and, in some cases, grandparents. After 31 years working at Fort Lupton High School, Andi retired to spend more time shing, sewing, knitting, and being with her family, with her true passion being playing with her grandchildren. She will be remembered by many as a wife, mother, grandmother, teacher, mentor, and great friend. Her hugs were there to always comfort you in a time of need; she would always have an ear to listen to anything you needed and advice that would touch your soul. She will be remembered by many as a calming light in the storm to help guide those who needed her. She will be profoundly missed by all.

Andi is survived by her husband, Jack orpe, of Fort Lupton, CO, her son, Dan (Laura) orpe, her daughter, NaSeana (John) Flores, and her son-in-law Greg Flores. along with her grandchildren: Landon, Kinsley, Odi, Devina, Spencer, Hayden, and Tanner. Andi is also survived by her brotherin-law Bobb (Anne) orpe, their sons Brook and James orpe, as well as her sister-inlaw Dee (Larry) Frost and their son David (Ti any) orpe.

Andi was preceded in death by her mother, Norma June Anderson, her father, Herbert Anderson, and her brother, Kirk Anderson. ere will be a Celebration of Life Memorial Service held at Fort Lupton High School on Saturday, February 4th, starting with a gathering at 11:30, Memorial Service at 12:00, and a reception with food to follow.

In lieu of owers, donations can be made to the scholarship fund in both Jack and Andi orpe’s names at the Bank of Colorado in Fort Lupton.