Roaring Fork superintendent purchases $840,000 Denver home amid housing assistance proposal

News News | Aug 2, 2023

As discussions surrounding superintendent housing assistance continue within the Roaring Fork School District, Superintendent Jesús Rodríguez’s recent purchase of an $840,000 home in Denver has raised concerns and drawn criticism from community members.

The purchase, which was made aware to the housing task force via email Sunday evening, has added fuel to a topic that has already been a focus of community debate in recent months.

Angela Fullerton, who served on the superintendent housing task force, shared her opinions regarding the news of Rodríguez’s purchase.

“I would love to know the total number of hours we have spent discussing this housing assistance proposal,” Fullerton said. “The whole point was to help the superintendent afford to live in the valley. He obviously could and yet he chooses not to.”

The superintendent housing assistance proposal has been a heated subject in the Roaring Fork Valley, with community members and board members exploring ways to support the superintendent’s housing within the district. Rodríguez’s choice to buy outside the valley has added fuel to the fire as housing throughout the region continues to be a struggle for teachers in the district.

“I think we certainly should not be providing our current superintendent with housing,” Fullerton said. “He accepted the job without it. Any future superintendent housing provided by the Roaring Fork School District should not be for this superintendent. It reflects his lack of leadership.”

As discussions regarding the superintendent housing assistance proposal have been in the works since March, the Roaring Fork Board of Education said they were unaware of Rodríguez’s purchase on the Front Range.

“The board was not made aware of the purchase and was informed on Sunday evening via an email sent to the housing task force,” a statement on behalf of the board said.

Rodríguez declined to comment to the Post Independent. The school board will meet for an executive session to discuss “personnel matters involving the superintendent” at 3 p.m. Friday at the Carbondale District Office.

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