The Portfolio Managament Team (PMT) supports school empowerment and shared accountability across the family of schools and serves as the authorizing office for DPS.

“In portfolio cities, families have the freedom to attend their neighborhood schools or choose one that is the best fit for their child. The portfolio strategy supports principals and teachers—those who work most closely with students—and frees them to use their best ideas to ignite student learning. And it presses city and district leaders to support and expand successful schools until every child in the city attends a great school.” -Center for Reinventing Public Education

District-run schools are public schools that are directly run and overseen by the district. They follow all state requirements and DPS policies, without the ability to have waivers.

An innovation school is a district-managed public schools with a strategic plan that requires waivers to specific district policies, state statutes and collective bargaining agreements with the goal of improving student outcomes and executing with excellence a specific model. Innovation schools are governed by the Innovation Schools Act (§ 22-32.5-107, C.R.S).

An IMO is a group of district-managed public schools that share a model and are overseen by an executive principal, with the ability to leverage their resources across school sites. Schools in an IMO may or may not possess innovation status.

An innovation zone is a group of innovation schools that share common interests and seek additional flexibility. There are two types of iZones:

• iZones with Governance Innovations: These zones operate separately from the district instructional network structure and are overseen by an external nonprofit and its board. This board is responsible for support and oversight of the member schools, although the district maintains ultimate legal responsibility of the schools.
• iZones within District Network Structure: These zones allow schools the opportunity to organize around common interests, while remaining within district network and reporting structures. Some additional autonomies are available to these schools. (Note: There are currently no approved iZones of this type in DPS.)

DPS charter schools are public schools, independently operated by nonprofit organizations. Charter school boards have contracts with the school district that outline their operating terms, including performance goals, program elements and required compliance with State and Federal Requirements. In Colorado, charter schools are operated pursuant to the Colorado Charter Schools Act.