Padres y Jovenes Unidos, along with parents and students of the Denver Arts and Technology Academy (DATA) demanded that the school, which will be closed due to financial mismanagement, be replaced with the high performing charter school Cesar Chavez Academy at a press conference in front of DATA Thursday afternoon.

The conference was attended by several members of the press as well as about 35 current DATA students and parents carrying signs that read, "Cesar Chavez Academy in NW Denver Now!" and "Honk for Good Schools."

Parents and students asked the Denver PUblic School District to help ensure the placement of Cesar Chavez in their neighborhood by allowing the charter school to use the DPS buildings that will be vacated when DATA is shut down at the end of the school year, by offering their support during negotiations between Cesar Chavez and the owner of the building and by investing in making the building more affordable. 

In the past the district has been very uncooperative with the community's efforts to bring the charter school to northwest Denver, refusing to open up dormant DPS facilities to house the school. 

"We've run into road block after road block dealing with Denver Public Schools and the school board. We received a lot of lip service from them saying they agree with us, they nod when we speak, they tell us that they'd like to help us. But when the time comes for action, they vanish," DATA parent Sam Barnes told supporters and the press. 

 Cesar Chavez must come to an agreement on the building by Monday night at midnight if the charter school is to open its doors for the 2009-2010 school year. 

"Right now I need to go to a school that will prepare me [for] when I get [to college]. Adults, please stop the politics and lies and do what is right for us students," Phillip Quintana, a 5th grader at DATA, said during the press conference. 

The Cesar Chavez Academy model charter school has a proven track record of academic success among low-income students of color. Students at Cesar Chavez Academy schools score on average two or three times higher than students at other schools with similar populations.

Padres y Jovenes Unidos and the community of northwest Denver are asking the school district for a decision immediately. High performance charter schools have been opened in most other regions of the city.

"We're asking for what our kids deserve, and that is an excellent education," said DATA parent Adam Quintana.