As lunch wrapped up Friday at Robert F. Smith STEAM Academy, students didn't go back inside for class. Instead they gathered outside the school and began chanting "Bring back Pryor! Bring back Pryor! Bring back Pryor!"
Some missed their next class period to stand in support of Brandon Pryor, co-founder of Smith Academy, who Denver Public Schools (DPS) banned from attending events and entering most school buildings and terminated as a school volunteer and football coach earlier this week.
A letter sent to Pryor from DPS Tuesday cited "repeated abusive, bullying, threatening, and intimidating conduct directed at staff of the Denver Public Schools" as the reason for the ban.
Smith Academy was founded in 2021 in the style of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). For many in the school community, Pryor's ban is not just about an isolated incident, but how they feel treated by DPS more broadly.
At the protest, students came to Pryor's defense.
"We are here to project our voice and our culture into this community, we are not here to be stepped on by the high man in power," said freshman Aiden Pearson at the protest. He got a resounding cheer. "We are an HBCU, we are young Black, Hispanic, white people. We are all here to come together. None of us should be silenced, none of us should be stepped on. This is for Mr. Pryor, who has done nothing but stand up for our rights."
Camille Harley, a first year and one of the protest organizers, directed her words toward the district. "Let me ask you this," she said. "Am I a threat to you? Do I make you feel threatened? Because I know if you see our school founder as a threat then you can see all of us as a threat."
No district officials other than Smith Academy staff were present at the protest.
When asked for comment, DPS Director of External Communications Scott Pribble wrote, "Denver Public Schools respect the rights of our students to protest peacefully. We encourage our students to stay on our campus so that we can provide them with a safe space for their voices to be heard."
Pryor joined the demonstration from across the street, off school grounds, and declined then to comment when approached by Denverite.
But later on Friday, he joined Brother Jeff's podcast to speak about his next steps.
Pryor said on the podcast his wife and fellow school co-founder, Samantha Pryor, is preparing a demand letter calling for the district to lift the ban.
On the podcast, Pryor said this week's letter was the first time he was informed of two previous DPS investigations into his behavior and comments, one from 2021 and one from earlier this year, both of which found "unprofessional behavior," according to the district. Denverite obtained the letter sent to Pryor this week and related documents from the district, including a letter dated January 2022 and addressed to Pryor about one of the past investigations.
Pryor has been a loud voice at DPS meetings, advocating for what many see as much needed improvements to Smith Academy.
DPS had promised the school its own building, but it opened temporarily in a shared former office building with Montbello Career and Technical High School. Now, the district wants Smith Academy to stay put, but advocates for the school say it's not a proper building, lacking a kitchen for hot meals, a library and a competition-size gymnasium.
"I feel as if DPS took away one of our main voices that was fighting for a very much needed change because DPS refuses to meet our needs," said sophomore Neveonna Watkines, one of the protest's organizers. "Pryor has done nothing wrong except for voice concerns and needs every student has been saying ever since our school's opening."
The letter DPS sent Pryor banned him from the district's board meetings, in addition to most school buildings. The letter included quotes from texts, comments and social media posts allegedly from Pryor that included strong language, many calling for resignations and firings of school officials. It also included information about the two past investigations.
Jeff Jazz Davis, Pryor's cousin and fellow community advocate, said the district doesn't have the full picture. "They don't see the stuff that he does to help these young men, to feed these young men, to guide them and to be their voice," he said.
From across the street, Pryor had one clear message for the students: keep your grades up.
"I want y'all to have an intentional focus on proving these folks wrong," Pryor said. "We need to be the best school in the district academically, and we got all that we need to be able to do it, if I'm present or not. I'm with y'all, I love y'all, and I got y'alls back, and I appreciate y'all having my back."
