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Week of November 3, 2022
DENVER, COLORADO
A publication of
VOLUME 95 | ISSUE 50
‘A swing and a groove’ for listeners every month First Friday Five Points Jazz Hop keeps the music alive BY CHRISTY STEADMAN CSTEADMAN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Dzirae Gold remembers hearing about Denver’s Five Points and its bustling jazz scene when she was growing up in Chicagoland. “It was the Harlem of the West (and) all of the great jazz musicians came here — particularly Black musicians because they couldn’t stay elsewhere,” Gold said. “Five Points (became) a safe haven and hub for jazz music.” The 27-year-old vocalist finally got a chance to experience Five Points when she moved to Denver just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Even though she had been performing her entire life, it was a strange time to come to the city and dedicate herself to music full time, with many venues closing because of health lockdowns. Gold put on virtual concerts and built an online audience. “They say no musician blows up overnight, even though it looks like it,” Gold said. “I consider myself a forever student. For me, it’s happening at just the right pace.” Gold now performs across the city and is looking forward to headlining a First Friday Five Points Jazz Hop for the first time. “This once-a-month event honors the jazz tradition,” Gold said. Norman Harris, founder of Mile High Festivals, is one of the events’ organizers. “The energy you get from having a live band is non-replicable,” Harris said. “There’s a swing and a groove that naturally happens in a livemusic setting.” The monthly jazz hops are a collaborative effort of Harris’ SEE JAZZ, P5
‘The nation’s report card’ shows big declines in math in Colorado BY JASON GONZALES CHALKBEAT COLORADO
Dzirae Gold is performing at Spangalang Brewery on Nov. 4 for the First Friday Five COURTESY PHOTO Points Jazz Hop.
Colorado students posted the lowest scores in more than a decade on the test known as “the nation’s report card,” with the steepest declines in middle school math and with Hispanic students losing the most ground. And while Colorado students posted better reading scores than did students in 27 other states, that was largely because other states lost even more ground. The learning loss from 2019 to 2022 on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, known as NAEP, points to the devastating impact the pandemic has had on the education of children in almost every pocket of Colorado and the nation. While research has already shown that academic progress reversed, NAEP results released Monday provide the most detailed and authoritative accounting yet, with data coming from a representative set of students nationwide and allowing for comparisons across states and some cities. “The results are appalling and unacceptable,” U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said. “This is a moment of truth. How we respond will determine our standing in the world.” This year’s results reaffirm what Colorado education leaders and teachers already knew thanks to statewide assessments: Students fell behind. But parents, teachers, and students are working hard to rebound, said Joyce Zurkowski, Colorado SEE REPORT CARD, P8
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 11
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