In Brief: Lotta bicyclists Saturday; Christian curriculum proposed for Garfield schools; Basalt bucks offered

News News | Jul 8, 2023

The Aspen Cycling Club will hold a Fondo on Saturday. Expect bicyclists taking part in the event on the Brush Creek, Owl Creek, and AspenMass trails, as well as Maroon and Castle Creek roads, McLain Flats Road, Lower River Road, and Snowmass Creek Road.

A proposal to consider switching Garfield Re-2’s current social studies curriculum to a conservative, Christian-based curriculum was scrutinized via public comment during the district’s June 28 school board meeting.

What’s become a hot topic for some school boards around the nation, the district has been in talks to consider adopting what’s called the American Birthright Standards since the proposal was first made by school board president Tony May in June.

The Woodland Park School District, a small, rural district just west of Colorado Springs, currently stands as the only district in the state to adopt the American Birthright Standards. After doing so earlier this January, district educators argued the curriculum, crafted by national conservative coalition Civics Alliance, were considered “Christian, pro-life American,” Colorado Public Radio reported.

Supporters of the program argue that it presents an opportunity to address perceived shortcomings in the existing social studies curriculum, promoting a deeper understanding of America’s heritage and its importance in shaping the nation’s future.

“Here I am doing my civic duty, as I learned to do in school without the American Birthright curriculum,” New Castle resident and Garfield Re-2 parent James Marquardt said. “I think this curriculum is nothing more than an extreme viewpoint pushed by people who are trying to take advantage of our small mountain community.”

A curriculum that has been criticized for its potentially biased view of history, focusing primarily on positive aspects and downplaying other historical topics such as slavery. Critics also question whether the curriculum pushes the Christian faith onto students of different faiths. The proposed curriculum focuses on teaching from a perspective of Christian liberty and synthesis.

“Teachers in a public school area are not there to minister to our children,” Silt resident Shiri Hunter said. “Public schools exist for all of us, not one exclusive group.”

“Before considering a new social studies curriculum, please follow school board policy and involve your curriculum directors, teachers, students, and community,” Riverside Middle School social studies teacher David Way said in a letter to the school district. “It appears to be in conflict with Colorado State Academic Standards and with the provisions of the First Amendment of the Constitution.”

Midland Money is a town of Basalt sponsored voucher program intended to support Midland Avenue’s summer economy during construction of the Midland Streetscape Project. Each voucher has a $20 value and can be used to purchase goods, services, and food at your business if you choose to participate.

The town will reimburse businesses for each voucher received from a customer from July 1 through Sept. 30. The program is an evolution of the Basalt Bucks program which supported Basalt businesses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.

More information: basalt.net/midlandmoney

The Basalt Public Arts Commission is accepting applications from artists to participate in a Basalt Downtown Mural Competition through Sunday, July 16.

Selected artists will be asked to create a mural in an assigned location throughout downtown Basalt over the course of 10 days. The artists will work outside during this time, and the murals will remain outside during the duration of the competition. Artists will be provided a stipend to offset the costs of materials, and the mural boards will be provided.

The public will have an opportunity to vote on their favorite mural in the categories of Student or General. There will be a People’s Choice recognition, while the overall winners will be chosen by the Arts Commission. The winning entry in the Student category will have their mural placed at or near the Basalt Pool.

The artist of the winning entry in the General category will be asked to re-create their mural, or a similar likeness, on a building in downtown Basalt.

The application and additional information is available through the Arts Commission website: basalt.net/550/Basalt-Public-Arts-Commission-BPAC

The Adam Frisch campaign for Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District has raised more than $2.6 million in the second quarter, shattering the record for the largest quarterly fundraising for a U.S. House challenger in the year before an election, excluding special elections and self-funded campaigns, according to his campaign.

“I want to extend my deepest gratitude to every single person who has donated to this campaign to give the people of Southern and Western Colorado a representative who will take the job seriously and work across the aisle to find solutions to the problems facing this district,” he said. “Boebert continues to vote against the interests of her constituents while devoting her time to ‘angertainment’ antics that do nothing to help CO-3. We can do better than Boebert, and thanks to our generous supporters, we will defeat her in 2024.”

The average donation this quarter was just over $32 coming from over 81,000 individual donations. Frisch had $2.5 million cash on hand as of the Q2 filing deadline on June 30. He is not accepting donations from corporate PACs. These numbers far exceed expectations for a congressional candidate this early in the 2024 election cycle. Since launching his campaign in February, he has raised a total of $4.4 million from nearly 85,000 individuals, his campaign said.

Aspen and Fort Lauderdale full-service public relations and marketing firm Durée & Company has been selected as a bronze level winner for “Best Crisis Management,” 2023 Bulldog Reporter Awards. Bulldog Reporter is a trade organization that accepts nominations for its annual awards across a number of competitive categories.

Durée & Company received the designation for its crisis communication work with Sea Tow, a premier leader of on-water assistance, and that company’s response to September 2022’s Hurricane Ian. While the campaign was originally directed to secure national press, elevate awareness, and drive memberships to this franchise-modeled company, not long into the campaign, Hurricane Ian pummeled Florida’s southwest coast. Durée & Company inserted Sea Tow into national stories to showcase its strengths in recovery and salvage.

Aug 6, 2023

Around 20,000 rubber ducks took to the Roaring Fork River for the Rotary Club of Aspen’s 31st annual Ducky Derby, its primary fundraiser, on Saturday in Aspen.

Aug 6, 2023

Aug 6, 2023

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