Castle Rock
News-Press
Douglas County, Colorado • Volume 10, Issue 34
November 15, 2012
Free
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourcastlerocknews.com
Former preschool director arrested Alleged embezzler caught after being spotted at eatery By Rhonda Moore
rmoore@ourcoloradonews.com Authorities have arrested a woman suspected of embezzling nearly $26,000 from the Faith Lutheran Church preschool, in a case that allegedly began about a month after she was hired as the preschool director. Melissa Miles, 39, was arrested around noon Nov. 8 during a traffic stop, after a resident reported her whereabouts at a Castle Rock fast food outlet, said Clinton McKinzie of the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Of-
fice. The DA’s office filed charges against Miles following an investigation by the Castle Rock Police Department that was released in an 18-page arrest affidavit. The affidavit alleges Miles, who was hired by Miles Faith Lutheran as the preschool director in November 2011, made her first personal purchase with the preschool’s debit card on Dec. 22, 2011, at Kohl’s in Castle Rock. By the time the financial discrepancies were discovered by church officials, Miles had made 109 personal purchases totaling $18,418.22, according to Castle Rock investigators. Castle Rock police provided a spread-
sheet detailing Miles’ personal purchases, which ranged from $7.77 at Chick-fil-A in Castle Rock, to $1,327.17 at the Great Indoors in Lone Tree. Among her reported expenditures were seven airline tickets, hosting family members and friends in July on a round-trip flight from Denver to Los Angeles; a June purchase for $801.50 at Bluebird Estate Liquidation, where she allegedly bought a wine refrigerator and bicycle; and a May expenditure at Castle Rock municipal court to pay court fees for a traffic accident. Castle Rock officials obtained documentation from traffic court indicating Miles was issued a ticket under the last name of Malone, which is the name on her driver’s license, according to Castle Rock Detective Jason Maes. The amount of her embezzlement charges escalated when she reportedly ar-
School district sees no cuts for 2013-14 Announcement breaks five-year string By Jane Reuter
jreuter@ourcoloradonews.com
equivalent to the state’s Firefighter I requirements, and receive first responder and CPR certificates. The course isn’t limited to those seeking a career in fire service. “This can give them a springboard into a lot of different careers,” instructor George Piccone said. Students could pursue jobs in risk management, fire investigation, city government, or public administration among others. Hannah Patton, another student enrolled in the class, wants to be a flight nurse. “So I’m taking it more for the medical (training),” she said. “This has made me more enthusiastic about it. It’s so much more than I expected.”
Bolstered by a cheerful state revenue forecast, the Douglas County School District announced it foresees no budget cuts for the 2013-14 academic year. It will mark the first time in five years the district — and most schools statewide — has not had to make do with less. Superintendent Elizabeth Fagen also credited sound fiscal management at the local level for the good news. Instead of pondering cuts, she wrote in a Nov. 5 email to DCSD staff, “I hope your spring budget season is filled with conversations about what to do with the money we hope to add to your schools. What a refreshing change after so many years of incessant budget reductions!” Gov. John Hickenlooper proposed a budget for 2013-14 that would boost K-12 education by $201.6 million. In Douglas County, per-pupil funding likely would grow by almost $176 from this year’s $6,218 to $6,394. That proposal is many months away from approval. But when DCSD officials weighed the proposal against its own budget and possible increased costs, they found cause for celebration. The district last year faced an $18 million shortfall, and met it in part by finding money in over-budgeted line items, as well as making cuts to central administration and the high schools. High schools shifted to a block, or 6-of8 schedule, requiring teachers to teach six out of eight periods instead of five out of seven. The schedule shifted many classes from 45 to 90 minutes, and left many students with long open periods. It’s too soon to say whether the improved funding forecast could allow high schools to switch direction and return to a schedule that some teachers and parents preferred. High schools are free to do so, Fagen wrote, as long as they limit class sizes to no more than 30 students. “We heard this priority loud and clear from our students and parents, and we are committed to meeting their expectations,” she wrote.
Class continues on Page 11
District continues on Page 11
Instructor George Piccone goes over a drill with his Fire Science First Responder students on Nov. 1. Photos by Courtney Kuhlen | ckuhlen@ourcoloradonews.com
Class fires up county students
First-responder program second of its kind in state
By Jane Reuter
jreuter@ourcoloradonews. com
Rock Canyon High School senior Hunter Tyson always has dreamed of working in the fire service. So when he learned about Rock Canyon’s new Fire Science First Responder program, he immediately registered. “There was no question I was going to join this program,” he said. “I love it. What’s surprised me is how much this program offers for a future career.” RCHS is one of two high schools in Colorado with a Fire
ranged a $7,500 payment to herself, over and above her annual salary, for a summer preschool camp that never happened, according to the arrest affidavit. While church officials originally brought a case to investigators for an alleged $60,000 embezzlement case, investigators estimated the total loss to the preschool was $25,918.22. That number does not include $1,700 in King Soopers gift cards that Miles reportedly took for personal use before being confronted and providing reimbursement. While Miles reportedly offered church officials $8,000 to “make the case go away,” according to the arrest affidavit, she refused to talk to investigators and referred all questions to her attorney. Miles was charged with one count of Class 3 felony theft, for a theft of more than $20,000.
Students in Rock Canyon’s Fire Science First Responder program practice on Nov. 1. Science program; Jefferson County’s Warren Tech career and technical high school also offers one. It cost the Douglas County School District about $65,000 to
launch the program, including buying a fire engine, ambulance and gear for students. Students who graduate from the three-part, two-semester program will have training