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Students plan a sit-in for teachers

As teachers at Denver Public Schools wait on the government's decision on whether or not to intervene in their possible strike, some students are planning a demonstration of their own: A sit-in on Monday in solidarity with their teachers.

DENVER — As teachers at Denver Public Schools wait on the government's decision on whether or not to intervene in their possible strike, some students are planning a demonstration of their own: A sit-in on Monday in solidarity with their teachers.

Alexandra Bermudez Burciaga, Student Body President at Denver Center for International Studies in Montbello, said there are at least four schools participating.

The plan is for students to go to their first class like normal, at 8:30 a.m., walk out of their classes and into the auditorium. There, students will speak, there will be a skit and other activities.

The students plan to sit in from 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. 

"We've seen our teachers leave because they're underpaid," explained Bermudez Burciaga. "We build bonds with those teachers and they just leave."

"It's like those people believe in us, they believe that we can do it," she said, "they don't go to Cherry Creek and believe that they came to Montbello for a reason and have them leave because of personal reasons because they can't afford to live in Denver. It breaks my heart."

She said the letter from an HR staffer about immigrant workers being reported to immigration if they strike, was a big reason why she's sitting in, too. 

We reached out to the Denver Public Schools district office and they said they were not only aware of the sit-ins but were helping coordinate them for students' safety. 

Here's the full statement from DPS:

"The sit-ins are student-led and will be coordinated in conjunction with school administrators to keep students safe while respecting their choice to share their voice. Denver Public Schools respects the interest of students to express their thoughts about issues that concern them and encourages them to make their voices heard. Our district and school leaders will work with students to provide activities that allow their voices to be heard on campus."

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