The Beacon Zone Board reached a consensus Monday to pursue appealing the Denver Public Schools Board of Education’s decision to revoke its innovation zone status.

No vote was taken.

Instead, Zone Board President Eliot Lewis said he would put members to a vote once they’ve established the grounds for the appeal and received guidance from their attorney.

“We have a general consensus that we all believe we should move forward on,” Lewis said. “We’re going to avail ourselves of the appeal process.”

In a split vote on March 10, the DPS board revoked the innovation zone status of Beacon Network Schools, citing low test scores coming out of the pandemic, concerns over the zone’s organizational health and finances.

But supporters have contended that the move was personal for supporting the very law that the zone board will use to appeal to the state.

Policymakers passed the Innovation Schools Act in 2008, in part, to respond to public school and district leaders who sought autonomy structures similar to charter schools, which enjoy advantages not available to traditional schools.

Under the law, any public school can request its local school board to become an innovation school to implement more flexible programs to meet student needs. Groups of public innovation schools may apply to operate as an “Innovation School Zone” that offer schools greater independence and managerial flexibility to pursue diverse learning approaches.

A new provision in the law approved by the legislature last year allows the Beacon Zone to appeal to the state Board of Education to review and comment on the DPS board’s decision.

Parents fear eliminating the innovation zone will be the first step to revoking the innovation status of the two Beacon middle schools — Grant and Kepner — that comprise the zone.

With the zone revoked, Grant Beacon and Kepner Beacon middle schools have until Friday to resubmit their innovation plans.

Kepner Middle School Principal Dan Walsh worried about the timeline implications of appealing to the state board.

Alex Magaña, who serves as executive principal and executive director of the Beacon Network Schools, said he would request an extension from DPS Superintendent Alex Marrero after the state weighs in on the zone’s appeal.

A decision by the state board will not override the DPS board. But the DPS board will have to ratify or reject the state’s decision.

Karolina Villagrana, zone board co-chair, said she favored having the state’s decision — which will follow a presentation of facts from DPS and the zone in a public hearing — be part of the “public record.”

Others agreed.

“I don’t know why we wouldn’t (appeal),” said Jeff Kurtz, a Grant Beacon teacher and non-voting member of the zone board. “It’s a no brainer to me.”

Given this would be the first appeal under the new law and would be precedent setting, many of the details are as yet unclear.

For example, the state board must hold a public hearing within 60 days of a written request to review and comment on the local board’s determination. But the law is silent on how long a requester has to submit a request for appeal to the state board or when the state board will issue its opinion.