BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Thoughtful governance. The West Denver Prep Board of Trustees is made up of community leaders and organizers, business leaders and members of the local foundation community. Recruited based on clarity of vision, relevant expertise and a strong commitment to educational equity and excellence, the board holds public meetings every month to review school progress. All formal inquiries to the board should be directed to Chris Watney, Chair, at chris@coloradokids.org.

Parent Councils. Each campus also benefits from a Parent Council that meets monthly to hear parent feedback, organize volunteer efforts, coordinate special events and advise the Board of Trustees. Each Council is made up of three elected parents, one teacher appointed by the faculty and two community members selected by the Principal.

Members:

John Aragon, Retired Cable Industry Executive

John retired in 2011 as vice president of Government Affairs for Comcast Cable. During his career spanning more than four decades, John served in senior leadership roles for U S West, MediaOne and Comcast, with responsibilities for legislative, regulatory, public relations, community affairs and philanthropic initiatives. A Vietnam veteran and former newspaper reporter, John has also served on numerous industry and community boards throughout his career, with special emphasis on organizations dedicated to promoting educational opportunities for at-risk youth and diversity in the workplace.

Michael Barkin, KRG Capital, Treasurer

Michael joined KRG Capital in 2006 as an Associate and was promoted to Vice President in 2007. Prior to joining the firm, Michael worked at Bain Capital, a Boston-based private equity firm where he worked on new investment opportunities, acquisitions, strategic initiatives, and strategy consulting. Michael received his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and graduated from Williams College with a BA in economics.

Moira Cullen, The Capstone Group, Vice-Chair

As a partner at The Capstone Group, a public affairs firm, Moira advocates for education reform, higher education issues, non-profit advocacy, mental health and human services, and children’s policy issues at the Colorado State Capitol. She also spent 4 years at the Colorado Children’s Campaign as the Director of Public Affairs, where she lobbied on child health, early childhood education, and education reform legislation. Moira moved to Colorado after graduating from the University of Virginia. She earned her Master of Social Work at Colorado State University and worked with at-risk youth, leading to a decision to enter the government relations field in order to impact change at a statewide level.

Judith Garcia, Southwest Parent Council Representative

Judith Garcia has lived in Colorado for twelve years and is an active member of the southwest Denver community. She spends much of her time raising three wonderful young boys ages five, eight and eleven. Ensuring a quality education for her young boys is critically important to Judith. She serves on the Collaborative School Committee and the Parent Advisory Committee for Castro Elementary. Judith is also part of the Superintendent’s parent forum and she recently joined the board of West Denver Prep where her eldest son attends school. Judith works at the Einstein Bagel store on the Auraria Campus where she enjoys interacting with students and staff. In her free time, Judith loves to walk at neighborhood parks and watch her kids play soccer.

Chris Gibbons, West Denver Prep, ex officio

Chris is the lead founder and Chief Executive Officer at West Denver Prep. Chris is the former director of Denver Summerbridge, a non-profit education program providing college-preparatory academic support for middle school scholars from low-income public schools, and training for high school and college scholars to become educators. Beginning his teaching career at the Educator's Institute at City on a Hill Charter School in Boston, Chris initially served Summerbridge as a educator and dean for five years before becoming a director. Fluent in Spanish, Chris holds a B.S. in Biology from Yale University and a M.Ed. from Regis University. He has completed the Building Excellent Schools Fellowship, a nationally-recognized training program for charter school founders designing uncompromising schools of excellence.

Shelley Gomez, University of Colorado at Boulder

Shelley has worked in Colorado higher education and educational access for more than a decade. As a first generation college student, Shelley sees the impact educational access and success have made on her life; she hopes to “pass it on” to current scholars by working with West Denver Prep. Shelley received a Bachelor’s Degree from Colorado State University and is currently enrolled in a Master’s Program at the University of Colorado at Denver.

Chris Henderson, U.S. Department of the Interior

Chris is a Denver native who attended both Denver and Cherry Creek Public Schools. Formerly a managing director at Vestar Capital Partners, Chris was appointed the Chief Operating Officer for the City of Denver. He is currently serving an appointment in Washington D.C. as the Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Economic Recovery under Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar. As the “Recovery Czar” for the Department of the Interior, Henderson will oversee the more than $3 billion in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that Interior will be investing in projects in communities, parks, and public lands across the country. Chris holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado and an MBA from Columbia University. He believes passionately in the success and importance of public education and brings this passion and his business knowledge to West Denver Prep.

Kim Knous-Dolan, Donnell-Kay Foundation, Secretary

Kim is the Associate Director for the Donnell-Kay Foundation in Denver. In 2006 she helped lead the Manual High School renewal and support initiative as a loaned executive to the Denver Public Schools (DPS) District. Prior to joining the Foundation, Kim worked on state policy issues for Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) as well as the Colorado Association of School Boards. She also served as legislative aide to U.S. Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD), and was Associate Director of the Democratic Steering Committee. Kim actively fundraises for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, serves on the Board of West Denver Prep, and was selected as one of Colorado's "fifty for the future" by the Colorado Statesman in 2007. Kim holds a master's degree in public affairs from the University of Colorado at Denver.

Jerry Lassos, Denver Public Schools

A lifelong educator, Jerry was raised in a low-income section of West Los Angeles and committed his life to improving the quality of education in such urban schools. He earned a Bachelor’s degree from Cal State Northridge, a Master’s degree from the University of Colorado at Denver, and served in the United States Air Force. Jerry currently works for Denver Public Schools as a professional developer after recently retiring from the Jefferson County School District.

Myles Mendoza, Education Reform Now

Myles is the National Strategy Director of Education Reform Now, a national education policy and advocacy non-profit organization fighting to dramatically improve the quality of public education for America's most disadvantaged children. He was most recently the Development Director at the Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF) and came to his non-profit executive career after years of front-line work in inner-city school environments including East St. Louis and Chicago neighborhoods.

Alexander Ooms, ClearCreek Partners

Alex has been involved in education reform and charter schools since 1997, when he visited the Academy of the Pacific Rim, a high-performing urban charter school in Boston, to visit a close friend who was then the principal. Since then, he has been a strong proponent of educational reform, and has both advised and served as a board member of several charter schools. He is managing partner at ClearCreek Partners, and also serves as a member of the board of directors for the Colorado Charter Schools Institute, the Charter Schools Development Corporation, and the Colorado chapter of Stand for Children. Alex holds a B.A from Vassar College, an M.A. from Georgetown University and a MBA from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University.

Maria Sierra, North Parent Council Representative

I grew up in northwest Denver and attended Catholic schools my whole life. After high school graduation, I became a mother. I worked hard as a single mother. I learned about what it takes to succeed with the help of my community. I lived in a transitional housing program for single parents and soon began working for the program. I have been working in low-income housing for about 17 years. I think now that through the struggles I witnessed both in my family and my community, I have been given me a unique perspective on others with the same struggle.

Keith Trammell, Hogan Lovells

A partner at Hogan Lovells, Keith concentrates in the areas of securities and corporate law, as well as international transactions. Keith's practice involves a full range of corporate transactions. He represents buyers and sellers, both private and public, in acquisitions, mergers, reorganizations, and sales of stock and assets. Keith also represents clients in connection with public and private securities offerings, as well as entrepreneurs in the formation of various businesses. He has experience assisting public companies with respect to corporate governance and compliance matters, as well as experience representing companies with respect to business process outsourcing and managed service agreements.

Chris Watney, Colorado Children's Campaign, Chair

Chris Watney was named President of the Colorado Children’s Campaign, a statewide public policy and advocacy organization, in 2009. Prior to that, she served as Executive Vice President of the organization, working to increase access to health care for uninsured children, expand quality early childhood education for our youngest children and as a passionate advocate for education reform. Prior to joining the Children's Campaign, Chris served as a spokesperson for U.S. Attorneys General Janet Reno and John Ashcroft while at the U.S. Department of Justice. She is the Chair of the Board of West Denver Prep and was named one of Colorado's 50 Movers and Shakers by the Colorado Statesman.

2011-2012 Meeting Schedule:

For more information about attending a meeting or participating in a conference call, contact Camille Howells, Director of Development & Communications at chowells@westdenverprep.org or (303) 551-7200 x 206. Agendas and minutes can be found on our Accountability page in the About Us section of this site.

In-Person Meetings

5:30-7:30 PM at Highland - 2960 N. Speer Blvd. Bldg. 1913, Denver, CO 80211

Wednesday, August 10

WEdnesday, October 12

Wednesday, December 7 (Note: 1st Wednesday)

Wednesday, February 8

Wednesday, April 11

Conference Calls

4:30 to 6:00 PM

Wednesday, September 14

Wednesday, November 9

Wednesday, January 11