Gov. Jared Polis and state lawmakers are weighing in on the Sheridan teachers strike as it is about to enter its third week.Dozens of Sheridan Educators Association members marched to the state Capitol with signs in hand Friday morning, taking the weeks-long strike to the state level."We're here today to speak to our representatives and senators to ask them to communicate with our district to try to get us working back towards an agreement," Rebecca Renz said. WATCH: Sheridan educators take to state Capitol Gov. Jared Polis and state lawmakers weigh in as the Sheridan teachers strike enters its third weekRenz is a special education teacher at Sheridan Early Childhood Headstart.I'm a member of the bargaining team, so I've been in lots of meetings, some that felt like they went really well, where we felt like we were getting some movements, Renz said. Our most recent one felt like the answer is no for moving forward. The educators wrote letters and spoke with lawmakers while at the Capitol on Friday, including State Sen. Jessie Danielson, a Jefferson County Democrat, who listened to their demands."When it comes to that level that they're willing to walk off the job and protest and to stand together to meet their demands, I believe it is our obligation as lawmakers to stand alongside with them and draw attention to their cause," Danielson said.The march happened just a day after Polis spoke with the Sheridan Educators Association and the superintendent. Their last bargaining meeting on Wednesday ended in an impasse."I really encourage them to work together," Polis told Denver7. "Of course, the teachers have the right to organize. They have the ability to make sure they can agree on things, but let's get everybody back to the classroom and then maybe hash out any disagreements they have over summer, hoping they can make some real progress on that in the next couple days."Sheridan educators say the district will not budge on their demand for union representation to include not just teachers, but all school employees like bus drivers, janitors, and paraprofessionals like Sandy Shelafo, a severe needs paraprofessional at Alice Terry Elementary School."We want to be represented and be able to have a say in our work calendar and things that are important to us, like, for example, like our medical benefits," Shelafo said. Denver7 spoke with Sheridan Superintendent Gionni Thompson Friday afternoon about where things stand."I was actually going to reach out today [to SEA] to see if we can kind of come to another agreement," Thompson said.While Thompson would not comment on the ongoing negotiations, he did respond to the growing pressure from state lawmakers as the strike continues."That just shows you how things like this affect the entire state, and everybody's looking at that, and we do want to make sure that we're addressing those issues and getting teachers back in the classroom," Thompson said.Educators say they cannot wait to come to an agreement and get back to the classroom."I miss my students, and I'm just, we're ready to go back. But we need to move forward on this," Shelafo said.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. ...read more read less