2020 CPAC
The 2020 Community Planning and Advisory Committee (CPAC) were a group of community members, parents, educators and other DPS stakeholders, that helped serve a critical role in creating the 2020 bond and mill levy package that was presented to the Board of Education for approval in the summer of 2020. Members were chosen by a selection committee with the intention of creating a group of stakeholders that was demographically and regionally representative of the Denver community. Members participated in five full CPAC meetings and five subcommittee meetings from January to June of 2020, at which time the committee presented their funding recommendations in the areas of maintenance, technology/safety, capacity/quality learning environments and mill levy programs.
Of the 76 DPS community members who made up 2020 CPAC:
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More than 50% were parents of DPS students
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Approximately 60% were people of color, representing our district’s ethnic and racial diversity
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Members proportionally represented each of the five board districts, with six members serving at-large
Guidelines for Public Comment at a CPAC Subcommittee Meeting:
*Until further notice, in-person CPAC meetings are cancelled and will be held as online meetings instead. If you would like to provide public comment, please submit a written statement of 500 words or less or a video (limit three minutes per individual or six minutes per group).
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To sign up for public comment or to submit letters/videos, please email CPAC@dpsk12.org.
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There will be 20 available minutes at the beginning of each subcommittee meeting for public comment
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Individuals will have two minutes to speak; groups will have six minutes
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Letters and videos will also be accepted for the subcommittee to review
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Sign-up for public comment will close 24 hours prior to the start of each meeting
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Any sign-ups beyond the 20 available minutes will be moved to the next subcommittee meeting
CPAC Meetings
Committee Co-Chairs
Tiffany Choi
Originally from Centennial, Colorado, Choi is the president of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association. She is a French teacher, most recently at East High School in Denver Public Schools. After receiving a B.A. in French from Luther College, she spent a year as a Fulbright Teaching Assistant in a suburb of Paris. She returned to the Denver area in 2010 to pursue a teaching license from the Urban Community Teacher Education program at CU Denver, and an also earned an M.A. in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education from CU Denver.
Mike Ferrufino
Mike currently serves as the President and CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Colorado, the oldest and largest minority business organization in the state. He brings a strong understanding of the Hispanic community and the business issues of many Hispanic organizations to his work. He has often used this understanding to help shape regulatory and legislative strategy. Mike has significant experience developing complex business strategies and leading strategic partnerships while serving as the Vice President and General Manager of Latino Communications, a local, minority-owned Denver-based media company that owns and operates Spanish language radio stations in Colorado that reaches over 200,000 Hispanic listeners weekly. Mike has worked in numerous nonprofit organizations, including the Colorado Children’s Campaign, Robby’s Friends, Mi Casa, the Hispanic Chamber Education Foundation, Denver Health Foundation, Denver Public Schools Foundation, Visit Denver and Susan G. Komen Colorado. He is most passionate about empowering traditionally underserved populations to close educational achievement gaps, pediatric oncology, mental health awareness and the opportunities and challenges of the Hispanic business community as a whole.
Ismael Guerrero
Ismael Guerrero has served as Executive Director of the Housing Authority of the City and County of Denver (DHA) since June 2007. Under Ismael’s leadership, DHA has undertaken an ambitious plan to transform public housing in Denver, creating vibrant, sustainable, mixed-income communities of choice. In the decade since Ismael assumed leadership of DHA, the organization has been transformed from a local leader in affordable housing into a national leader in neighborhood transformation initiatives. DHA has launched many innovative efforts that have taken DHA beyond housing to make meaningful impacts in the health and quality of life of Denver’s lowest income and most vulnerable residents. Ismael has over 20 years of experience in community development and affordable housing. Ismael was born and raised in Chicago where he earned an engineering degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from the University of Chicago. Ismael contributes his time and experience to serve on boards for local and national organizations like Mayor’s Housing Advisory Committee, Downtown Denver Partnership, Colorado Health Foundation, Neighborhood Development Collaborative, Youth on Record, The National Housing Trust, Council of Large Public Housing Authorities and Eco-Districts.
Brittany Morris Saunders
Brittany Morris Saunders serves as the head of the local affairs division at Sewald Hanfling Public Affairs. She specializes in the representation of businesses, developers, corporations and non-profits before local governments, including cities, counties and special districts. She was previously the Senior Vice President of Public Affairs and Economic Development for the Downtown Denver Partnership, Director of Economic Development for the City of Commerce City, and Senior Vice President of CRL Associates, Inc. With a passion for local government politics, Brittany enjoys working on projects and initiatives that have a direct impact on people’s lives, positively changing the course of Denver. Brittany is currently a Denver Public Library Friends Foundation Trustee and has previously served as a Denver Planning Board Member and on the Downtown Denver Expeditionary School Board. In her personal time, she loves spending time with her husband and two sons. Brittany is a proud DPS graduate. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from CU Boulder in 2002 and a Master of Arts in Political Science from CU Denver in 2007.
Morris Price, Jr.
Morris Price, Jr.  serves as the executive director of City Year Denver. In this role, Morris maintains strategic relationships with Denver Public Schools, City Year Denver’s Board, corporate and philanthropic partners and the wider Denver community. Prior to assuming the position, Morris was the district director for Colorado’s 1st congressional district and served as the national program officer for the Gill Foundation, Prior to the Gill Foundation, Morris was one of the founding employees of the Daniels Fund and the Daniels Scholarship Program. Morris spent 15 years in higher education administration serving as the director of undergraduate admission at the University of Denver. Morris is a proud alumnux of Denver Public Schools and graduate of Colorado State University (B.A.) and Regis University (M.N.M). Morris’s community leadership includes serving as past board chair of many local commissions and organizations, and he currently serves as a member of Rose Community Foundation’s Committee Board of Trustees, Colorado State University Foundation and a board member of the Colorado Nonprofit Association.
CPAC Committee List
Albert Habercorn
Alise Kermisch
Allison Hastings-Wottowa
Amanda Allshouse
Amelia Federico
Amy DeFusco
Ana Muñoz
Andrea Macias
Anthony Vigil
Ariel Smith
Athena Bateman
Brian Weber
Carson Shields
Christina Medina
Collinus Newsome
Dah Ku
Danny Showers
Dave Suss
Denton Wilkinson
Donna Garnett
Elizabeth Ramos
Elsa Oliva Rocha
Eric Roldan
Fulton Breen
Gabriel Guerrero
Helem Aranguti
Isela Galvan
Ivonne Porras
Jaquita Hurst
Jasmine Crane
Jessica Amedeo-Johnson
Joanna Rosa-Saenz
Joe Sinisi
Josh Downey
Judith Garcia
Kaiba Linthicum
Kate Barton
Kim Desmond
Kimberlee Sia
Krista Spurgin
Kristin Sullivan
Laurence Bleicher
Leanna Clark
Lee Gash-Maxey
Lydia M. Prado
Malachi Ramirez
Manyesha Batist
Marisol Vasquez
Mark S. Marshall
Matthew Annan
Meghan Brennan
Michael Acuna
Michael Mangham
Molly Jaques
Nate Faflick
Nick Stromberg
Ousman Ba
Paulette Tate
Pieter Gagnon
Priya Burkett
Rafael Orona
Richard Pulling
Russell Welch
Ryan Nichols
Sean David Gonzalez Comacho
Sophia Martinez
Stacie Loucks
Tammi Mobley
Temi Osifodunrin
Timothy R. Aragon
Tony Curcio
Towanna Henderson
Troy Hubbell
Valerie L. Archuletta
Veronica Booz
Vicky Singleton
Victoria Aguilar
Vernon Jones, Jr.
CPAC Members by the Numbers
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76 Members
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26 Latinx/Chicano/Hispanic (34%)
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15 Black/African-American (20%)
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31 White (41%)
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3 Asian (3%)
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1 American Indian (1.3%)
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15 Charter-Affiliated
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40 Parents
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6 Teachers
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7 Students
Board District Members
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District 1: 11 Members
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District 2: 13 Members
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District 3: 13 Members
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District 4: 19 Members
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District 5: 12 Members
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District At-large: 8 Members
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