Colorado & Communities

Dec 14, 2020

Colorado’s nine Democratic presidential electors cast their votes for Joe Biden at the state Capitol on Monday. First-time elector Alan Kennedy, an attorney and doctoral student at the CU Denver School of Public Affairs, said he hoped Monday’s nationwide vote brings acceptance of Biden’s presidential victory.

Dec 11, 2020 by Emma Martz

On December 4, the CU Denver School of Public Affairs hosted its First Friday event centered around how governments are changing to meet the needs of our time, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Comprised of experts from state, city, and county governments in Colorado, the panel took a deep dive into the pivots that organizations have made during the tumultuous year of 2020, what processes would continue, and their hopes for the future.

Dec 2, 2020

Over the past fall semester, the CU Boulder Community Safety Task Force has continued its work to forge new paths and bring forth recommendations to increase accountability, transparency, engagement and trust between the University of Colorado Boulder Police Department and the broader university community. Paul Taylor, an assistant professor in the CU Denver School of Public Affairs and the task force’s external facilitator, said members are on track to deliver actionable recommendations to campus leaders.

Nov 23, 2020 by Guest Contributor

The School of Public Affairs Economic Development class has been credited by communities for providing an important service at this time of need. Read about how students and partners Downtown Colorado Inc. helped two Southern Colorado communities -- Cañon City and Rocky Ford -- adapt and help their small businesses, youth, and residents stay hopeful.

Nov 20, 2020 by Emma Martz

On November 6, the CU Denver School of Public Affairs hosted What happened in our elections?, its third installment of the First Fridays virtual event series, to unpack a range of topics from the presidential election (which had not yet been called at the time of the event) to the state and local ballot results. Moderator Paul Teske, Dean of the School of Public Affairs, was joined by Saja Hindi, reporter for The Denver Post; Mike Littwin, columnist for The Colorado Sun; and Sean Walsh, election consultant for Sean Walsh Consulting.

Jan 19, 2021 by Toula Wellbrook

For her capstone project, Danielle Rachlin created an hour-long video series for young people featuring environmental enforcement experts. Her capstone experience inspired her to begin a van-life journey across all 50 states to create videos that explore public lands and environmental issues across the country.

Sep 11, 2020 by Joan Fishburn

At both the local and state level, School of Public Affairs alumni have been instrumental in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Scott Bookman (MPA '15), Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment incident commander for COVID-19, and Geoff Butler (MPA '19), Battalion Chief, Poudre Valley Fire Authority, recently took some time to answer questions about their current roles addressing COVID-19 and how they have grown as leaders dealing with the challenges posed by the pandemic.

Sep 10, 2020 by Joan Fishburn

When MPA alumna Monica Caballeros (MPA ’20) went looking for a capstone project, her focus was on public health and reproductive rights. Caballeros, who is the PR and Communications Director for Connect for Health Colorado, is passionate about equitable access to healthcare. However, when she could not find a good fit in her field, she turned to the school’s list of sourced capstone projects. She found a powerful partnership with the Center for Community Wealth Building that allowed her to look at issues of equity through a lens of economic development.

Sep 8, 2020 by Joan Fishburn

School of Public Affairs alumni Annie Davies (MPA ’03), Engagement Director Western U.S., at the United Way (formerly Executive Director of United Way Larimer County), and Rachel Fuchs (MPA ’16), Director of Partner Services at Intercambio, recently answered questions on how they, as nonprofit leaders, continue to lead their organizations through challenging times and into the future.

Aug 4, 2020 by Guest Contributor

Terry Curtis, Associate Investment Director, Family Economic Security, Gary Community Investments, shares her experiences of participating in the School of Public Affairs Denver Community Leadership Forum.