About Great Education Colorado:
Great Education Colorado is a nonpartisan, statewide, grassroots organization of parents and other public school supporters that advocates for adequate funding for public education in Colorado. Through its web site, newsletters and network, Great Education Colorado informs public school supporters about critical school funding issues and empowers them to be vocal and effective advocates for our schools.
Board of Directors
Denver City Councilwoman Carol Boigon, Chair
Rachel Chaparro, Vice-Chair
Patty Bortz, Secretary
Tish Maes, Treasurer
Kathy Callum
Tyler Chafee
Herb Fenster
Fred Franko
Elizabeth Groginsky
Scott Reisch
Senator Chris Romer
Frank Tijerina, Jr
Staff
Liane Morrison, Executive Director
Liane is a graduate of Colorado College and has a Master's Degree in economics from George Washington University. Her involvement in the public sector most recently developed new markets for environmental technology in developing economies. As an international economist at the Department of Treasury, Liane served as the country officer for Latin American and Eastern European countries. A mother of two children in the public schools (ages 9 and 12), Liane's concerns about Colorado public education resulted in her co-founding the Great Education Colorado Fund.
Lisa Weil, Director of Policy and Communications
A graduate of Greeley Public Schools, the University of Colorado, and the Yale Law School, Lisa has been a public interest attorney and political consultant. She served as Policy Director and Chief Legal Counsel for former Governor Roy Romer, and as a Legislative Aide to former Senators Timothy Wirth and Bob Kerrey. She managed the first Congressional campaign of Representative Diana DeGette, and has served as a consultant on a wide variety of research and campaign projects. The public school mother of two children (7 and 9), Weil was closely involved in the creation and passage of Amendment 23, and co-founded Great Education Colorado.
Allen Byrne, Outreach/Administrative Coordinator
A graduate of Michigan State University with a Bachelor's Degree in History, Allen has served as an AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer with a West Denver non-profit called Butterfly Hope. While there he managed volunteers, wrote grants, and collaborated with other non-profits in the Denver community. Allen has also served on the Food Bank of the Rockies Grant Review Team and he was a community representative to the Denver Useful Public Service Advisory Council.
Patty Bortz, Metro Outreach/Volunteer Coordinator
A graduate of Littleton Public Schools, the University of Colorado, and the University of Denver Law School, Patty has been an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice. She served as a staff attorney for the Alabama Supreme Court and then became an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama. She also served as Assistant General Counsel for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and was the director of that agency’s legal training program. She has two children who have been in the public school system for a combined twelve years.
Kady Everard, Fundraising Coordinator
A Colorado native, graduate of Adams 12 Five Star School District, and the University of Colorado-Boulder, Kady is currently working on her Master’s Degree in Public Administration at CU Denver. Her interests in public administration include education policy and non-profit management. She is also involved with the creation of an America Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Bill of Rights high school curriculum as part of her Master’s thesis. Kady was introduced to the non-profit sector while interning at Global Education Fund where she managed the donor database and assisted in coordinating fundraising events.
Eric Mills, Technical Director
Eric has designed ESL curricula for the University of Wuhan in China, was an adjunct professor of American Culture and Literature in New York, and he has edited manuscripts for MIT press. Eric has a Master's Degree in American Culture and Literary Theory from the Univeristy of Buffalo, and a BA in Continental Philosophy. At Great Education Colorado, Eric builds web sites, codes newsletters, and maintains supporter databases. Contact Eric about this web site
Great Education Colorado Major Contributors ($1,000 and up)
Bruce Benson
Barton Family Foundation
Carol Boigon
Libby Bortz
Brett Family Foundation
Wes and Linda Brown
Diane and Doug Carlson Robinson
Carson Foundation
Coloradans for Excellent Schools
Colorado Association of School Executives
Colorado Education Association
Dean Family Foundation
Denver Foundation
Donnell-Kay Foundation
Gwen Fornia
Denver Foundation
Meg and Fred Franko
Tom and Melinda Gladitsch
Lederer Family Foundation
Terry McCullough
Neustadt-Hankin Family Foundation
Jared Polis
American National Bank
Reinisch Family Foundation
Chris Romer
Roy and Bea Romer
Rose Community Foundation
Pat Stryker
Jerry and Nancy Weil
Winograd Foundation
Les and Marianne Woodward
