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More than 1,000 Latino high school students from 38 Colorado schools gathered Oct.

23 at CU Denver's student center for the La Raza Youth Leadership Conference, where Servicios de la Raza hosted workshops, performances, and a community fair to teach cultural history and leadership skills.

Denver hosted the High Cost Cities Housing Forum this week where city leaders discussed affordable housing strategies, highlighting Denver's 10-year Affordable Housing Fund and the 2018 D3 Agreement (DHA Delivers for Denver), and explored Home Production Funds used in Montgomery County and Atlanta.

Barbara Shannon-Banister turned 90 on Oct.

9, 2026, and was honored by Aurora residents for decades of work to advance inclusion and city programs. She helped found the Aurora NAACP, led the city's community relations efforts, runs Grand Designs (a local nonprofit), and warned DEI rollbacks threaten progress.

The Poudre School District board approved closing six schools with moves set for July 1, 2027 and July 1, 2028, will consolidate Centennial and Poudre Community Academy into a new school, and will keep Livermore, Red Feather, and Stove Prairie elementary schools open; Timnath Elementary is slated to close July 1, 2028 (unless the town secures funding by Nov. 2027).

Eats on the Platte will open in Sun Valley, offering six subsidized vendor spaces owned by the Denver Housing Authority to help local businesses like Jama Miami Cuban + La Brujola Cafe launch and share their food traditions as the neighborhood's redevelopment and riverfront park move forward.

Colorado State University President Amy Parsons announced she will resign and step down at the end of the year after serving since 2023, and Chief Academic Officer Rick Miranda will serve as interim president while a search begins next spring.

A portion of South Havana Street was closed this week for up to two weeks while Aurora crews replace a failed stormwater pipe, with detours routed through nearby commercial and residential streets; motorists should avoid the area and follow posted detour signs (closure spans the north side of Parker Road through East Iliff Avenue).

State health officials say an early flu season is underway in Colorado, with the first pediatric influenza-associated death reported earlier this month and cases rising sooner than last year.

More than a million Coloradans have gotten the vaccine, and officials urge anyone six months and older to get vaccinated now before holiday gatherings.