Castle Pines News-Press 0428

Page 1

April 28, 2016

TREASURE HUNTING

VOLUME 3 | ISSUE 38 | FREE

Learn from the experts on how to set up a successful garage sale. PAGE 14

CastlePinesNewsPress.net D O U G L A S C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O

A publication of

DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOLS

Voucher program faces new challenge Families sue for right to use program for religious schools Staff report

Delaney Hull watches as classmate Makayla Larson pats down soil in their herb plantable. Photos by Shanna Fortier

Preschoolers go green By Shanna Fortier sfortier@coloradocommunitymedia.com

P

lanting herbs in recycled plastic bottles was one of many Earth-friendly activities that preschool students at The Goddard School in Castle Rock participated in during the week of Earth Day, April 22. The activities were part of the Root for Earth initiative, celebrated by more than 430 Goddard School locations nationwide. Class activities aimed at fostering creativity and imagination while giving children the opportunity to learn about recycling, going green and preserving the world around them. Earth Day continues on Page 8

Voucher continues on Page 6

SUSTAINABILITY

Evan Mancini, 5, waters seeds he planted in class for Earth Day.

Castle Pines Library opens 15,000-square-foot facility stemmed from residents’ actions By Shanna Fortier sfortier@coloradocommunitymedia.com

Vivian Houston picks out books on the opening day of the Castle Pines Library. She attends the library weekly to check out new books. Photo by Shanna Fortier

Local families represented by the Institute for Justice, a Virginia-based nonprofit law group, have filed a legal challenge to the Douglas County School District’s voucher program. On March 15, the school board voted 4-3 to approve a revision to the Choice Scholarship Program that removes religiously affiliated schools as an option. The revision came nine months after the Colorado Supreme Court ruled the original version of the program was illegal. No public funds can be used to aid or support any “sectarian” institution, the court ruled. The families say the exclusion of religious options from the program violates the Free Exercise, Establishment, Equal Protection and Free Speech clauses of the U.S. Constitution, as well as the Due Process Clause, which guarantees the fundamental right of parents to control and direct the education and upbringing of their children. The three families, one each from Castle Rock, Parker and Highlands Ranch, would like to use the program to send their students to Valor Christian High School in Highlands Ranch.

Shortly after moving to Castle Pines in 2006, Warren Lynge adopted the library as a cause and never gave up. Throughout his tenure as library committee chair, he was quoted saying, “It’s not a city until there’s a library.”

Backyard Homesteading Fair offers tips for greener living on everything from bees to alpacas. PAGE 5

That quote has been a driving force in the Castle Pines community and is now printed on a wall inside the new 15,000-square-foot Castle Pines branch of Douglas County Libraries. “This library means a lot to so many of us,” said Castle Pines Mayor Jeff Huff at the April 21 grand opening. “It’s really going to mean the most to the next generation of Castle Pines residents. They’re going to be utilizing this over their lifetime as they grow up here.”

Find all of this week’s advertisers online

ShopLocalColorado.com Please support our local advertisers for their contribution to keeping our community connected, and tell them you found them in the News-Press!

Library continues on Page 4

CASTLE PINES NEWS-PRESS OFFICE: 9137 S. Ridgeline Blvd., Suite 210 Highlands Ranch, CO 80129 PHONE: 303-566-4100 DEADLINES: Display: Thurs. 5 p.m. Classifieds: Tue. 8 a.m. Obituaries: Mon. 4 p.m. Legals: Thurs. 11 a.m.


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
Castle Pines News-Press 0428 by Colorado Community Media - Issuu