Frequently Asked Questions

We can help! At DSST, we know the bachelor's requirement can be a barrier for potentially great teachers entering the classroom. DSST has a partnership with REACH University where we will pay the tuition for you to earn your Bachelors Degree in Liberal Arts with a focus in Classroom Teaching while you work as a full time DSST employee. Learn more and apply here.

We are committed to providing an equitable, timely application process for each of our candidates. See our application process timeline below.

Application Process Timeline Updated

DSST was founded as Denver School of Science and Technology, a single high school in Denver's Central Park neighborhood. Now, there are 16 DSST middle and high schools across Denver and Aurora. Learn more about our history here.

DSST’s starting salary for teachers is $58,000. Starting salary increases are associated with each year of relevant experience. You can find the salary bands listed for each role on our job site here.

DSST Public Schools follows the guidelines provided by Colorado Department of Education (CDE) and Denver Public Schools. All teachers that provide lead instruction within a special education class must be certified through the CDE. All other core content area teachers must have completed a bachelor's degree in the subject they will be teaching or take the appropriate PLACE/PRAXIS exams through the CDE. To learn more, review this document explaining the requirements of staff within DSST.

DSST Public Schools offers a variety of professional development (PD) opportunities for our staff. Teachers have specific days during the school year that allow for cross network collaboration along with specific development opportunities for teachers to grow their teaching and leadership skills.

DSST staff have access to comprehensive medical benefits, including fertility benefits and a mental health counselor that is dedicated solely to DSST staff. View a full list of team member benefits here.

Our network does not operate year-round for our students. Our schools open in August and close for summer in May or June. View our calendar here.

Our staff start times vary by campus. You can view start/end times for students on our individual school pages under the SCHOOLS tab here on our website. Again, it depends on the campus, but our staff are typically expected to arrive 30-40 minutes before school starts and stay 30-40 minutes after school ends based on assigned duties for that day.

Yes, DSST Public Schools is a free, open-enrollment, not-for-profit public charter school. The charter-public relationship is unique in Denver. We contract with Denver Public Schools and Aurora Public Schools, and we are held accountable to the same performance standards as any other public school in our districts.

There are many! We create our own curriculum, we can pivot quickly when changes need to be made, and we can ensure instruction is culturally meaningful and rigorous.

DSST Public Schools is not part of the Colorado Teacher’s Pension plan. All our staff do have access to a 401K account that receives a 5% gift after each year of service. Starting in 2019-2020 teachers working in our Aurora campus will be part of PERA.

Candidates apply to the network wide positions for all non-seasonal positions - this includes but not limited to full-time teachers, non-instructional staff, school leadership. If you have a location preference, please indicate that in the application. For any coach or elective teacher that is seasonal, each campus does have a separate application where you can indicate your desired role. Please reach out to our Talent team if you have any questions about the differences.

For those who are relocating 75+ miles from Denver, we offer a one-time bonus of $300 or $1 per mile (whichever is greater). For those who are relocating from outside of the United States, Alaska, & Hawaii, we offer a one-time bonus of $2,000. This policy applies to all full-time DSST positions and is calculated using employees’ former address with DSST’s Home Office address.

Yes! We are able to hire candidates on J-1 Exchange Visitor VISAs through our partnering sponsorship agencies such as Colorado Learning and Amity International. If you are currently on an F-1 Student VISA, we are able to hire you on with the possibility (but not guarantee) of sponsorship for an H-1B VISA after at least one year of satisfactory employment. We do currently offer H-1B VISA sponsorship to candidates who are not current employees of DSST on a limited case-by-case basis.

Yes, yes it is. Living in Colorado is like living in a perpetual adventure! Denver and Aurora provide great neighborhoods, shopping, dining, entertainment, nightlife, and an abundance of green spaces.

Now, let's talk about the majestic Rocky Mountains! They're like our backyard playground, offering everything from epic hikes to skiing and mountain biking. We know you'll just love it here!

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