In March 2025, the Trump administration issued an executive order directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin dismantling the Department of Education – a move that could severely limit the federal government’s ability to uphold educational standards and civil rights protections mandated by Congress.

Since its modern inception as a cabinet-level agency in 1979 under President Jimmy Carter, the DOE has played a critical role in promoting equity, safeguarding civil rights, and expanding access to education for all students. It has been especially important for marginalized groups, including students with disabilities, students of color, and LGBTQ+ students. The department enforces federal laws that guarantee these students the right to learn in safe, inclusive, and supportive environments.

Though the federal agency traces its roots back to 1867 – originally formed to help states collect educational data -its existence has long been a point of contention. Some Republicans have opposed the department since its creation, arguing that education policy should be controlled entirely by states and local communities rather than the federal government.

In recent years, especially following the COVID-19 pandemic, public trust in U.S. public schools has eroded among some segments of the population, particularly conservatives. For these critics, the DOE has become a symbol of what they see as federal overreach and ideological bias in school systems. The decision to dismantle the department reflects this growing distrust and aligns with a long-standing conservative goal of decentralizing educational governance. 

What exactly does the Department of Education do?

Beyond civil rights enforcement, the DOE plays a major role in financing education across the country — particularly for students from low-income families, students with disabilities, and those pursuing higher education. 

One of the department’s main responsibilities is managing the federal student loan system. Of the department’s $229 billion budget, nearly half – over $114 billion – is allocated to the Federal Direct Student Loan Program. In addition to issuing loans, the department oversees loan forgiveness programs and income-driven repayment plans that millions of borrowers rely on.

It also administers major grant programs that support students from marginalized communities. Title I, for example, provides federal aid to K-12 schools with high numbers or percentages of low-income students. Pell Grants, which do not need to be repaid, are awarded to undergraduate students based on financial need and serve as a critical resource for those who might otherwise be unable to afford college.

These programs are designed to expand educational access, particularly for students living in concentrated poverty. Without the DOE, it remains unclear how – or whether – these programs would continue at scale.

Another vital area of federal support is special education. The department oversees the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a federal law that guarantees students with disabilities access to a free and appropriate public education. In 2024, Congress allocated around $15 billion to support IDEA programs across states. That funding helps pay for additional staff, individualized instruction, and specialized services that many public schools wouldn’t otherwise be able to provide.

Taken together, these programs form a core part of the department’s mission: to ensure that all students, regardless of background, ability, or income, have a fair shot at receiving a quality education.

As the Trump administration moves to dismantle the agency, education experts warn that disrupting or decentralizing these programs could jeopardize critical support for millions of students across the country.

What would the end of the federal department mean for Colorado schools?

According to Kevin Welner, the director of the National Educational Policy Center and a professor in the University of Colorado Boulder School of Education, the chaos that would ensue in Colorado public schools would be felt by people in state departments of education and the people in local schools. The majority of funding that flows to Colorado school districts comes from a combination of state and local resources. Districts receive a dollar amount from the state for every student they educate, otherwise known as per-pupil funding. According to a 2024 article by the Colorado Sun the districts net just under $8500 for each of its students. Districts get additional funding for specific groups of students who need extra support, such as students from low income families. 

Dismantling the DOE would be an additional blow to these schools, because many of them are already suffering due to declining student enrollments and reduced state funding. Schools in Colorado anticipated receiving around $70 million for the 2025-2026 academic year; this money was designated for essential programs like teacher training, English language learning, etc. Without this $70 million, these schools will face severe financial pressures that could result in many budget cuts. 

Last year, more than $870 million in federal funds flowed to Colorado, according to data provided by the state education department. This money, according to what the Colorado Education Commissioner Susana Córdova told Colorado Sun, provides a “safety net” for all the kids; it meets the needs of some of their most vulnerable students, including kids with special needs and those living in low-income households. 

The Trump administration is intent on changing how the federal government distributes funding through IDEA, which ensures that students with disabilities can access public education and receive additional needed services. The policy dictates the states to convert that funding into block grants for states. 

According to what Welner told Colorado Sun, when similar changes for block grants have been made in the past, the money allocated for students with disabilities do not go to those who need it. Some of the funds will likely be diverted to a federal voucher program, which will primarily benefit students from more affluent families or private schools. 

Emily Harvey is the co-director of Disability Law Colorado. She explained that when we minimize federal oversight, the states would have to hold themselves accountable. “I think we are going to see dramatic differences across states,” she said, in an interview with Yellow Scene Magazine. “Without federal oversight, there is going to be less incentive to comply with the standards set by schools, which is hard enough to follow with less funding.” 

“The new policies would make it harder for disabled students and poorer students to have access to basic services. The federal government was who we looked to in order to enforce civil rights laws that people with disabilities fought very hard for. Now, the states do not need to enforce these laws; you would have to go to federal court to enforce it, which is very time consuming and costly,” Harvey mentioned.

“I am deeply concerned about the potential impact of the delay and ongoing uncertainty surrounding these critical funds on our students, educators, and schools,” Dr Susana Córdova told the Colorado Sun. She urged school districts to engage in “contingency planning” in case Colorado does not receive the required funding by the end of the federal fiscal year, which is September 30. Denver Public Schools, Colorado’s largest district, stands to lose around $10 million if the federal funds continue to be withheld, according to an article by Colorado Public Radio.  

Alex Marrero, superintendent of Denver Public Schools, issued a statement demanding the release of these funds. According to the statement, the decision to delay the distribution of congressionally appropriated funds is a “dangerous overreach of executive authority and a direct affront to public education, especially for communities that rely most heavily on these supports.” 

Without the DOE providing grants, individual districts must decide whether to continue or end programs powered by federal dollars. They can use the money they would have used on other programs to direct it towards the federal programs and hope that they can be reimbursed when their funding comes in.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser assured the public that Colorado authorities are taking action because their educational leaders need every tool possible to support kids who are struggling with disconnectedness, loneliness, or isolation. 

The administration’s broader plans as part of Project 2025

The Trump administration’s attack on the DOE represents one of the most visible threats to the U.S. public education system. It’s a key part of Project 2025 — a sweeping policy agenda developed by the Heritage Foundation and over 100 other conservative organizations to guide a future Republican administration. Among its proposals are efforts to phase out federal education funding entirely and convert programs like Title I into block grants. This would allow states to redistribute funds from historically marginalized students toward wealthier districts — deepening disparities tied to race, income, and disability. One of the most radical ideas in the plan is dismantling the DOE altogether, justified under the claim that public schools are “underperforming.” In reality, this shift would strip essential federal oversight and protections from the country’s most vulnerable students.

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Should the federal government be involved in regulating education?

The White House has defended its push to eliminate the DOE by claiming it would “return power to the states.” However, this reflects a common Republican misconception; the federal agency doesn’t dictate educational standards or curriculum — it primarily distributes funding and supports research. In reality, states and local school districts already control curriculum, teacher selection, and education policy. The federal government’s role is to help close opportunity gaps, not to set local education agendas. In fact, only about 10% of public education funding comes from the federal level, with the rest provided by state and local taxpayers.

Importantly, federal funding is targeted to support students who are most in need, including low-income students, children with disabilities, and English language learners. Eliminating the department wouldn’t increase state control — it would strip essential resources from marginalized communities. Critics also warn that dismantling the agency would allow the administration to cut positions held by civil servants who challenge its ideological agenda, further politicizing public education. 

According to an article by ACLU without the DOE, the federal government’s capacity to collect data is eviscerated, and this becomes a problem because it is an important resource for identifying and addressing disparities in education. Without this oversight, schools would not be held accountable for unjustified racial and disability disparity in academic performance or access to resources. Policies based on data, which have helped to reduce discriminatory practices, are now at risk. 

In addition, the DOE recently terminated all staff in seven of the Office for Civil Rights’ 12 regional offices, significantly weakening federal enforcement of student civil rights. The OCR, which received $140 million in congressional funding in 2024, is responsible for investigating discrimination complaints and ensuring schools comply with civil rights laws. Terminating its staff not only undermines protections for millions of students — particularly those facing discrimination based on race, national origin, sex, or LGBTQ+ status — but also limits their ability to seek justice when their rights are violated. With fewer investigators, discriminatory practices are more likely to go unchecked across the country. 

Harvey acknowledged the system’s flaws but emphasized its importance. “It wasn’t perfect,” she told YS, “but it was what we had — and what families depended on.” She noted that complaints could sometimes take over two years to receive a response from the OCR or the US Department of Justice, leaving students vulnerable in the meantime. Still, she believes that if the system is to be rebuilt, there’s an opportunity to make it stronger and more responsive than before, as opposed to simply laying off employees. 

All these policies, part of Project 2025, encourage taxpayer funds to flow to private K-12 schools with no guarantee that the money would not be used to discriminate or prioritize some students over others. These vouchers incentivize education to become more privatized, which would undermine the value of public education. 

A bigger plan to exert influence across the country

Supporters of Project 2025 policies argue that the functions performed by the DOE can be performed by other departments as well. But if efficiency were the goal, there are various ways to achieve it, as opposed to such dramatic layoffs. There are many scholars and officials who feel as though the administration aims to undermine public education and get more right-wing organizations to be in charge of the education system. This is a systematic move to instill its agenda in schools across the country and discriminate against those who disagree with its ideologies. 

The Trump administration appears to want to exert significant influence over education policy – not through direct legislation – but by controlling what students are taught in schools. A central part of this strategy may involve the appointment of Linda McMahon as secretary of education. McMahon, a former executive at World Wrestling Entertainment, and the wife of former WWE CEO Vince McMahon, has become a controversial figure due to serious allegations tied to her tenure at the company.

Although she is not charged with any abuse, a recent lawsuit has accused both Linda and Vince McMahon of enabling the sexual exploitation of minors — referred to as “ring boys” — by a WWE ring announcer decades ago. The suit alleges that Linda McMahon turned a blind eye to the abuse while in a leadership role at WWE. Her attorney has denied the claims. These accusations have raised widespread concerns about her ability to oversee the DOE, which is responsible for the well-being and education of more than 50 million students across approximately 98,000 public and 32,000 private schools nationwide. 

This is particularly significant to note because, as the leader of the DOE, McMahon would oversee its Office for Civil Rights, which enforces critical child protection policies such as Title IX, a federal law that prevents schools from practicing sex-based discrimination. 

The administration’s approach to education has also aligned closely with a network of right-wing groups, including Moms for Liberty, a conservative activist organization with growing national influence. According to an article by Mother Jones, it acknowledged working closely with members of the Trump team to “ensure that students’ needs are prioritized” in the public education system, though the group declined to confirm details. 

Founded in 2021 by former Florida school board members Tiffany Justice and Tina Descovich, Moms for Liberty has led efforts to purge public school libraries of books dealing with race, gender, and LGBTQ+ issues. The group often frames its work as a defense against “woke indoctrination,” pushing unproven claims that schools are sexualizing children or promoting Marxist ideologies. 

“The policies highlighted in Project 2025 would give Trump unprecedented powers to undo many of the protections the LGBTQ+ community have spent decades fighting to gain,” Cathryn Oakley, Senior Director of Legal Policy at the Human Rights Campaign, told the National Education Association (NEA). It plans to scrap the policies implemented during the Biden administration and other Title IX regulations; the implications of this could have a devastating impact on these communities.  

According to a Truthout interview with Jon Valant, the director of the Brown Center on Education Policy at the Brookings Institution, where his research specializes in K-12 education policy, the administration seems to be twisting and redefining the department’s priorities with respect to civil rights. Until now, its focus was to protect vulnerable groups of students; now, the focus seems to be on weaponizing civil rights enforcement to threaten school districts and universities that do not align with its positions on culture-war issues like LGBTQ+ rights or disability rights. 

Harvey, during the YS interview, made it clear that she has not given up; she has been talking with other advocates to continue fighting for people with disabilities. “The Americans with Disabilities Act wasn’t handed down from above – it was fought for. It came only after activists left their wheelchairs and crawled up the steps of the U.S. Capitol, forcing the country to see just how inaccessible its government truly was.” Laws like the ADA and Title IX exist because people demanded better –  not just for themselves but for the generations that would follow. 

“We have to stay focused on what’s best for the kids,” Harvey said. “Here in Colorado, there are people who care — people deeply committed to ensuring every child has the chance to learn and grow. We’re going to keep moving in that direction. I truly believe we can come together to strengthen civil rights protections for our students, so we don’t lose the progress that so many people have fought for.”

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The post Dismantled Childhood: How the Department of Education is falling under Trump appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

The process of going through all of our stories from the past 25 years of Yellow Scene Magazine (YS) to find the 25 stories best suited for a sort of “Where are they now?” segment proved to be a little more overwhelming than I expected. That’s even when you consider the fact that our first several years aren’t well documented on our website, with the earliest being 2007, which is itself incomplete, and all the rest of YS’ early years only exist in physical form, collecting dust somewhere in the home of our publisher and founder, Shavonne Blades. Even if you take away those years, that’s still a mountain of articles to go through.

While some were absolutely fascinating, did all of them reflect the time that had passed and demonstrate something significant that changed over time? In the past 25 years, our coverage area of East Boulder County and the surrounding metro area has gone through significant changes. So has Colorado as a whole. So has the country, with Colorado often along for the ride while the country has bounced from one right-wing extremist presidency, to eight years of Obama, to another right-wing extremist presidency. In fact, what I found was that seemingly insignificant stories look very different through the lens of history.

Take, for example, “Bare Necessities” — which we’ll count as the first of our 25 stories — a strange 2012 story about North Boulder nudist couple Bob and Cathy Pierce who attempted to sue the city for harassing them but found it difficult when Cathy tried to enter the county courthouse topless. The unusual story raised some interesting issues at the time about personal freedom and the ability of police to enforce laws they don’t understand, considering that baring breasts is actually legal in Boulder. We didn’t follow up on the Pierces afterwards — it’s hard to imagine that story having an interesting follow-up, but boy would you be wrong. The following year, the couple was arrested in Marblehead, Ohio after a waitress overheard what she thought was Bob threatening then-President Barack Obama. Bob insisted he was talking about killing Obama in a debate and that he wanted to go to Washington to set the politician straight. The Pierces once again made headlines in the Daily Camera in 2016 after Cathy was convicted of felony theft and criminal exploitation of an at-risk elder for allegedly tricking a 73-year-old, half-blind man into signing away his trailer home for $1.

While the Pierces’ sordid exploits weren’t something we wanted to make front page news, it demonstrates that almost every story, no matter how inconsequential it may seem at the time, could have an interesting follow-up if you take the time to look into it. So how could I narrow it down to just 25 stories that demonstrate the inevitable passage of time? In some ways, the articles I chose were somewhat arbitrary, as almost any article could have fit this piece. But I think I found a series of articles that truly do reflect the important changes in local history.

Fighting Words (2008)

Riding the blue wave that the 2008 election brought, Colorado’s first all-Democratic leadership in the legislature looked to use their newfound majority status to get affordable healthcare passed in the state, with one phrase on everyone’s lips: “single payer.” As the article pointed out, “single payer” is the other term for one of the most terrifying concepts in American politics: universal healthcare. Why it remains such a divisive issue when most other countries in the First World have long since instituted a single-payer healthcare system is somewhat of a mystery, but for whatever reason, there’s always a completely unjustified pushback on the topic in American legislatures. But at this unique moment in 2008, Democrats finally thought they could get it pushed through. Spoiler alert: They didn’t.

Single-payer healthcare in Colorado is much like the proverbial football that Lucy always holds out for Charlie Brown, promising she won’t pull it away at the last moment, only for poor Chuck to land flat on his back when Lucy inevitably does so anyway. In 2017, Colorado attempted to pass a single-payer healthcare system by ballot initiative, but there was a problem: Colorado’s constitution bans public funding for abortion, so the ballot initiative, the way it was worded, would have meant that everyone who currently has abortions covered by private insurance would be forced to pay out of pocket, a situation that drew opposition from major abortion advocates. As recently as February of this year, a new bill was proposed to study the potential impact of single-payer healthcare, a bill that’s similar to one that failed in the last few years, but this version of the bill wouldn’t be funded by taxpayers, giving it a fighting chance of getting passed. Still, a lot has changed since 2008 when Democrats thought they could get single payer passed. Now they’re fighting just to explore the possibility.

An Education in Luring Top Minds (2008)

In 2008, Colorado State Sen. Brandon Shaffer was trying to get more people to go into teaching, particularly in districts and subject areas that are significantly understaffed, by instituting a $500,000 scholarship fund to get kids to go to Colorado public colleges and take teacher prep courses. Well, it seems he succeeded and created what became known as the Teach Colorado Grant, and in 2009 he introduced the “Troops to Teachers” bill which sought to bring more military veterans into the program.

Well, Schaffer went on to become President of the Colorado State Senate from 2009-2013, and, even though he’s no longer involved in politics, his dream of scholarships for teaching lives on. Today, the Educator Recruitment and Retention Program (ERR) offers up to $10,000 in one-time assistance to towards teacher prep courses, as long as the recipient signs on to work for three years in a “shortage area” for Colorado Public Schools. Still, education has a long way to go in Colorado, a state that was recently ranked 45th in the nation for education by USA Today, with teachers making less than the state median salary. It seems like we need more than just scholarships, we need to pay teachers more to incentivize better performance.

The Most Expensive Seat in the Country (2008)

In 2008, YS stopped in to a fundraiser for a “non-descript” man self-financing his campaign for the second U.S. Congressional District seat in what was being called the most expensive seat in the country (or at least one of the most expensive), predicting at the time that it would take $10 million or more to settle the seat. That non-descript man was none other than Jared Polis who, in 2019, was sworn in as Colorado’s first openly gay governor as well as our first Jewish governor.

Polis not only made CD2 one of the most expensive in the country, ten years later, he helped make that election the most expensive in Colorado history up to that point, with more than $200 million spent on Colorado campaigns and with Polis pumping more than $23 million into his own campaign. In 2022, he won re-election with a bit less of his own money financing campaign but still pumped $12.6 million into his own campaign that year. And, while we had a hard time picking Polis as our endorsement for the CD2 election in 2008, we had a little bit of an easier time in 2022 picking him for governor against the too-extreme Trump supporter Heidi Ganahl.

Far From the Party: A Republican Fights for Her Political Life (2008)

In 2008, we checked in on Betsy Markey, the Democratic challenger for Colorado’s 4th Congressional District against incumbent Marilyn Musgrave. The seat had traditionally been held by Republicans in this district, but Musgrave saw her lead in each election dwindling more and more, making it seem possible that, in 2008, Markey might overtake the Republican and win the seat.

Well, she did. In the 2008 election, Markey’s 11-point win was more than even her own staff had hoped for. The victory was short-lived, though, as Republican Cory Gardner won the seat back for his party in 2010, which he kept until 2015 when he moved from the House to the Senate. Markey’s political career didn’t end there, though, as she was then appointed to be secretary for intergovernmental affairs in the Department of Homeland Security under the Obama administration, a post she held until 2013.

Who Killed The Rocky (2009)

The closure of Rocky Mountain News, one of Colorado’s major newspapers, in February 2009 was a seismic shift in the local news industry that we look at in more depth in this issue titled, “The History of Independent Media in Boulder County,” which discusses how the 300 reporters at Rocky Mountain News (nicknamed “The Rocky”) competed with the same number of reporters from The Denver Post, resulting in too much competition for the same leads. In our 2009 piece, former Rocky writer Dave Flomberg explained the flaws of The Rocky’s parent corporation, E.W. Scripps Company, and how they failed to let The Rocky find a niche by focusing on local news while also failing to grow their digital content to reduce print costs.

Nearly 10 years later, in 2018, The Rocky’s biggest competitor, The Denver Post, nearly met the same demise. Learning lessons from the past, the staff of The Post launched what became known as The Denver Post Rebellion where its writers printed a series of articles protesting against the leadership of its hedge fund owners, Alden Global Capital, with the headline “News Matters” and the subheading “Colo. should demand the newspaper it deserves.” While Alden Global kept to their gameplan rather than following The Post’s call for them sell to better owners, Coloradans demonstrated that local news mattered to them, and The Denver Post Rebellion is often cited as part of the reason the newspaper didn’t fall the way The Rocky did.

Graduation: Now What? (2015)

In 2015, we examined how difficult it was for college students to find jobs in the wake of the then-recent recession. At the time, 44% of college graduates were underemployed, meaning they took jobs that didn’t require their college degree. According to an article in Forbes last year, the situation hasn’t improved in the past decade. 52% of college graduates — more than half — are now working in jobs that don’t require higher education and 75% of them remain in this situation for a full decade after college.

Down the Road: Ten Transportation Issues Impacting You in the Next 10 Years (2011) and Derailed (2016)

In this 2011 article, writer James Burrus talked about the transportation issues that would define the next decade. Now that it’s 14 years later, how much of what Burrus talked about has been realized? The Boulder BCycle bike-sharing program that he mentioned continues to this day, but now it competes with e-scooters from Lime, Lyft, and other major companies. Still, other transportation options that Burrus talked about in 2011, like FasTracks, have not fared as well over the years. In our 2016 article “Derailed” talked about a modified FasTracks proposal that was being put to voters.

The 2004 FasTracks program ran into funding difficulties in the 2010s that pushed their projection to build a commuter rail between Denver and Boulder/Longmont to the 2040s. As recently as February 2025, RTD has been talking about a revised plan to have a train from Denver to Fort. Collins with stops in between, such as Boulder and Longmont, by January 1, 2029. At this point, we’ll believe it when we see it.

Frack Attack (2012)

The concept of “fracking” or hydraulic fracturing is a familiar one in 2025, especially for those living in the oil-rich areas of Colorado such as Erie. But, in 2012, the concept was still somewhat of a new one to our readers, enough so that we had to explain what it was. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, fracking dates back to an idea from 1862, although the modern concept of hydraulic fracturing started in the 1940s. Still, the boom in fracking is largely a 21st century phenomenon and, of the approximately 1 million wells that have been fracked from 1940 to 2014, about one-third of them were fracked after the year 2000.

In 2025, fracking and horizontal drilling have become more commonplace, and the results are becoming more and more catastrophic. EnvironmentAmerica estimates that 57,000 acres of land in Colorado have already been damaged by fracking, a number it says is equivalent to one-third of the acres of land in the state’s park system. Our latest fracking controversy happened just last year when the Draco Oil and Gas Development Plan proposed by Extraction Oil & Gas Inc./Civitas Resources was set to start drilling underneath residential areas and schools in Erie but was halted by a unanimous vote of the Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Commission. The Draco Pad has sparked significant controversy due to its plan to drill 26 horizontal wells extending five miles beneath residential areas and schools in Erie. This would mark the longest lateral drilling ever attempted in Colorado, surpassing the previous maximum of four miles. Initially, the Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Commission (ECMC) unanimously halted the project. However, on March 26, 2025, the ECMC reversed its decision, approving the plan with a 4–1 vote.

Notables: The New Guy (2012)

In 2012, we sat down with Longmont’s “New Guy,” the new city manager Harold Dominguez who had just uprooted himself from San Angelo, Texas to manage the Boulder County city. “Considering we had over 100 days of over 100-degree weather in San Angelo, I think we will enjoy it,” he said at the time about making the move from the sweltering Texas heat to the more temperate climate in Colorado. Well, he seems to enjoy it pretty well, because Dominguez isn’t the new guy anymore. He continues to serve as Longmont’s city manager to this day. In 2023, his base salary was raised to $305,620 by a unanimous vote  from Longmont City Council due to his exceptional competency at the job and the council’s desire to hold onto him in that position.

Breaking out of the cubicle (2012) and The Rise of Flexible Jobs (2012)

In 2012’s “Breaking out of the cubicle,” we checked in with Avery Brewing Company and explained how they’re considered one of the most fun places to work in Colorado, largely because of the fact that they let employees grab a free beer from the taproom at any time, even during work hours. We also dipped into some other fun workplaces such as Louisville’s Natural Habitat Adventures, which was sending employees on annual trips and holding ping-pong tournaments, and Training Peaks in Lafayette which gave employees a $600 per year stipend to spend on fitness. In “The Rise of Flexible Jobs,” we talked to Sara Sutton, who started FlexJobs to help people in the then-difficult task of finding flexible jobs that allowed work from home.

Of course, we all know how the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the standard workplace, forcing companies to allow more employees to work from home. At the height of the pandemic, 61.5% of all work in the U.S. was remote. Today, hybrid and remote work is still popular, with the average American worker spending 1.4 days of the week working from home. So getting a free beer during work hours doesn’t quite hold a candle to being able to work out of your own home.

Kiss the Ring (2012) and Lucky Stars (2012)

We did two articles on Brad Feld in 2012, the man who was one of the pioneers of Boulder becoming a hub for tech start up companies. As managing director of venture capital firm Foundry Group and founder of Techstars, Feld was quickly becoming one of the rockstars of the venture capital field.

13 years later, and Feld still lives in Boulder with his wife, Amy Batchelor, who he started the Anchor Point Foundation. Foundry Group and Techstars are still up and running. Meanwhile, Feld spends his time writing books about venture capital and startups, running marathons, and sponsoring documentaries about topics he’s passionate about. Meanwhile, Boulder is still listed amongst the top cities in the U.S. for tech startups, recently making the lists from Crowdspring and Yahoo! Finance.

Smoke Signals: Q&A with Mason Tvert (2012)

Anyone who enjoys cannabis legally in Colorado has Mason Tvert to thank for it. He led successful campaigns to decriminalize cannabis possession on CU and CSU campuses, passed an initiative to legalize the possession of small amounts of cannabis for adults in Denver and, in 2012, we interviewed him about his efforts to pass Amendment 64: The Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act, which, at the time, looked likely to pass.

It’s little secret what happened after that. About a month after our article ran, Colorado voters approved Amendment 64 and Colorado and Washington became the first two states to legalize recreational cannabis use. Other states caught on, and recreational cannabis use is now fully legal in 25 states as well as the District of Columbia. Taking it a step further, Colorado has just started issuing licenses for “healing centers” where people can ingest psychedelic mushrooms under supervision.

Small Space, Big Idea (2013) and Resurrecting a Village: Tiny Homes for the Homeless (2016)

In 2013, we profiled Jay Shafer, founder of Tumbleweed Tiny House Co. and the movement to live more simply in homes built to be under 150 square feet. In 2016, we looked into how tiny homes could be a better solution for solving homelessness than jail-like temporary shelters which are undignified for the people living in them as well as more expensive in a comparative analysis of costs compared to Dignity Village, (a Tiny Home community in Portland, OR). Flash forward to 2025, and the tiny home market is expanding very rapidly. Yahoo Finance! Predicts that the size of the tiny homes market is estimated to grow by $3.71 billion from 2025-2029.

The Privatization of Colorado’s Public Education (2014)

If we thought that education was overly privatized in 2014, we had no idea what we were in for in the years to come. In our 2014 article, we looked at the increasing use of private corporations to dictate standardized tests in an attempt to cut costs and, by adopting a consistent, objective measure of student knowledge and skills, qualify for No Child Left Behind funding. Over reliance on companies such as Pearson went hand in hand with the introduction of Common Core State Standards.

In the years since this story ran, public education has become even more privatized nationwide with the sudden boom in charter schools, independently managed schools that somehow still qualify as a public school option for kids. According to pro-charter school advocacy group National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, the five years from 2019 to 2024 saw an increase in enrollment in charter schools of 400,000 students nationwide in the 46 states that allow charter schools. Colorado is, of course, one of those 46 states. So, while the use of private companies to handle day-to-day operations in a public school was problematic, the move to make public education more privatized has become a sort of horrifying mutation of the existing problem.

Net Neutrality (2015)

In 2015, we looked at the decision by the FCC to classify the Internet under Title II of the 1996 Telecommunications act to ensure that service providers would treat every website equally and not charge fees to certain sites, like Netflix, to ensure the fastest possible speeds. The issue has gone back and forth over the years, being repealed during the Trump administration, then reinstated last year under the Biden administration. But then, in January of this year, a federal appeals court struck down the FCC’s net neutrality rules, arguing that the FCC did not have the legal authority to enact such rules. Interestingly enough, our article predicted that the net neutrality rules would make the Time Warner/Comcast merger more likely, but that merger never happened.

Hard-partying brothers Mike (Adam Devine) and Dave (Zac Efron) plan to turn their sister’s wedding into a wild getaway. Photo Credit: Gemma LaMana.

Spotlight on Adam Devine (2016)

In 2016, we got a chance to sit down with actor Adam Devine to talk about his new comedy Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, a movie you might not have heard of before despite its all-star cast featuring Zac Efron, Anna Kendrick, and Aubrey Plaza. That might have something to do with the abysmal reviews of the movie, which currently holds a score of 38% on Rotten Tomatoes with the critic’s consensus reading “Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates benefits from the screwball premise and the efforts of a game cast, even if the sporadically hilarious results don’t quite live up to either.”

Meanwhile, Devine’s family has had a new addition, as last year he and his wife Chloe Bridges welcomed their son Beau into the world. Devine said of the experience of being a new dad that “Every day is like a new adventure.” Fatherhood seems to suit him pretty well.

Graphic image by De La Vaca

The ORR v. Abortion | Duly Noted (2019)

In this 2019 piece, we looked at Scott Lloyd, the Trump appointee who was then running the Office of Refugee Resettlement and denied a refugee the right to an abortion, even going so far as to say that he has never granted permission for a detainee to receive an abortion for any reason. Thankfully, the refugee sued through the ACLU and won her right to an abortion, but the incident demonstrated the Trump administration’s real agenda on abortion: They wanted to end it at all costs.

Sadly, we all know where this story goes: In 2022, the Supreme Court, in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson, overturned the landmark case of Roe v. Wade which declared a legal right to abortion. The decision reversing Roe v. Wade, spearheaded by all three of Trump’s Supreme Court appointees — Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett — found that “The Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision,” setting the battle for reproductive freedom back decades. The result has been that the decision on abortion rights was thrown back to the states, with many now finding their access to abortion to be severely restricted. Make no mistake, the Trump administration always wanted its appointees to stand in the way of any and all rights to abortion.

Time After Time… (2019)

Sadly, our 2019 article entitled “Time After Time…” was not a tribute to longtime pop star and LGBTQ+ advocate Cyndi Lauper. Instead, it talked about how time after time Donald Trump chose the dishonorable, disreputable, and immoral path and asked if the Republican Party had the fortitude to break ranks and vote to impeach one of their own amidst the strict party-line votes that are so common for Congress in the 21st century.

As we now know, Trump’s first impeachment trial in 2019 brought forth charges against him  for improperly seeking help from a foreign power to boost his chances of re-election. In fact, in 2021, Trump became the first president to be impeached twice, having faced another impeachment over his role in the January 6 insurrection. But he was acquitted of all charges in both cases by the Senate, keeping him from being removed from office and being barred from running again. Thus, he ran again in 2024 and became the second president to serve two non-consecutive terms as well as the first convicted felon to be elected to the Presidency.

“…Unmarried, straight white dudes who couldn’t get laid.” (2019)

In 2019, we discussed the Newsweek interview by Tareq Haddad with Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Christopher Wylie that explained that Steve Bannon, former White House Chief Strategist, targeted incels and other insecure white men with a message of xenophobia and racism because of how easy they are to manipulate. In essence, we learned that Bannon knew exactly what he was doing the entire time, using hatred and frustration as fuel for the fire that skyrocketed Trump into an unlikely presidency in 2016.

When Trump was re-elected in 2024, Bannon was no longer a member of the inner circle, and yet he still communicates with Trump and his team from time to time. However, Bannon recently told Chris Cuomo on NewsNation that he is part of an effort to win Trump a third term in 2028, despite the fact that presidents are term limited by the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution. Short of a violent overthrow of the government, a third Trump term seems unlikely.

Fatal police shooting in Boulder over the weekend (2023)

Despite being one of the most recent stories on our list, this might be the story with the most significant developments in the time since the original article was posted. In 2023, we reported on the erratic behavior of a then-unidentified woman, who was later identified as 51-year-old Jeannette Alatorre. After officers responded to reports of a woman at the North Boulder Recreation Center refusing to leave the bathroom, less than an hour later they received another call about the same woman pointing a gun at the people trying to exit the recreation center. The gun was later determined to be an airsoft gun with the orange tip removed, but officers say they were unaware of that at the time. The police claim to have taken the proper steps necessary to de-escalate the situation non-violently before ultimately using lethal force, resulting in Alatorre’s death.

It’s possible that the police used every means available to them to avoid the death of Alatorre, but in the wake of officer-related shootings that could have been easily prevented, it was important to make absolutely certain that the right actions were taken in Alatorre’s case. This is where YS entered the story. When YS requested the officer’s body-worn camera (BWC) footage, Boulder Police Department demanded an exorbitant fee of $2,857.50 for locating and redacting the footage. YS, attorney Dan Williams, and Alatorre’s daughter entered into a lawsuit alleging that the fee violated Colorado’s Law Enforcement Integrity and Transparency Act of 2020, which restricts such fees. The city of Boulder argued that the broader Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act allowed them to charge reasonable fees of requesters. A district court ruled in YS’ favor in April 2024, but the City of Boulder filed an appeal in January of this year that has yet to be heard by a court. So, while the tragic story of Jeannette Alatorre is heartbreaking, it may change the way police are held accountable for such incidents in the future.

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[ Local ]

• CO Springs settles $2 milloin lawsuit from three officers beating Black man during a traffic stop
• Boulder plans to install “bi-directional” car chargers that will be able to both charge vehicles and power buildings
•  Ranchers bemoan the loss of half a dozen cattle, call for halts, after wildlife experts reintroduce native Grey wolves to Colorado in a move that will help restore natural balance and strengthen the ecosystem
• Colorado prisoners injured while performing hard labor at below minimum wage for corporations have little recourse to sue, cannot protest, and can be sent to solitary confinement as punishment for not working
  The Northern Lights make an extremely rare appearance over Colorado skies putting on a natural light show for anyone with clear skies

[ National ]

• Trump makes several statements over the month, indicating he will revoke any LGBTQ+ protections he can, tells donors he supports Israel “crushing” Palestinians, and will deport students for protesting
• Supreme Court rules that a gerrymandered South Carolina district can stay rigged, which in effect excludes thousands of Black voters
• Biden and Trump agree to a debate in June, likely to change absolutely no one’s opinion of either candidate
• Judge Cannon indefinitely postpones trial on the former President’s mishandling of classified information, in a sign that our courts are totally healthy and functioning as they should to protect democracy and hold power accountable…

[ International ]

• U.S. State Department states it is logical to conclude that Israel has committed war crimes and violated international law, yet weapons are still being sent to the belligerent party
• Iranian president dies in a fiery mountain helicopter crash during foggy conditions on a mountain range near Armenia
• Horrifyingly, but not surprisingly, Human Rights Watch states that Israeli attacks on aid being sent to Palestinians are “not unusual”
• Assassination attempt against Slovakia’s far-right Prime Minister leaves him gravely wounded but luckily still alive, attacker was arrested immediately

Quotes

“These efforts target and single out an already vulnerable group of kids and, if successful, will place an additional administrative burden on our already-overworked teachers, coaches, and school administrators” – Bruce Parker of Out Boulder on anti_LGBTQ+ ballot initiative

“…under new anti-terrorism legislation just passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, that kind of hard-hitting investigative journalism could cost The Intercept our nonprofit status” – The Intercept about  losing funding over their criticism of the Israeli war in Gaza

“I used to believe I was born biologically… upon reflecting on my experiences I was convinced God had sent me” – Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, the world’s largest democracy

“All Colorado parents should be aiming to remove their children from public education” – email directive from director of special initiatives for the Colorado GOP

By the Numbers

$2 Million / 17 Children

City of Uvalde settles with the families of 17 children killed in the mass shooting that continued because of incompetent law enforcement

34 of 34

Guilty counts for the first ever felony conviction of a former president

2025

Project 2025 openly calls for an authoritarian take-over of the federal government following the next Republican presidential victory, remaking the presidency using executions and the military to quell opposition

50th / 1.1%

Colorado saw the second smallest increase in teachers’ salaries nationwide, at just over 1%, ranking 50 out of 51 (including Washington D.C.)

-18%

Property crime rates in Boulder dropped by almost 1/5 since 2020, but report notes violent crime rates have risen slightly over the same period

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