BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Heather Carroll, Co-Chair
President and Executive Director, Joseph Henry Edmondson Foundation
Ms. Carroll has played a central role in the philanthropic efforts around education throughout the state. She worked directly with the Colorado Department of Education serving as a consultant for a comprehensive school reform initiative developed to support and enhance local school improvement efforts throughout Colorado to ensure that all students acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to reach high academic standards. As the Executive Director of a major private foundation, she continues to work closely with many of the region's best nonprofit organizations, focused particularly on improving educational opportunities for students. She is a graduate of The Colorado College and the Institute of Educational Leadership's Colorado Education Policy Fellowship.
Christopher Cipoletti, Co-Chair
President, Christopher Cipoletti, P.C.
Mr. Cipoletti is a lifelong entrepreneur with experience as a leadership trainer and business consultant. He has spent years as an attorney working in the areas of governance, ethics, employment law and policy. Mr. Cipoletti is very active in the Colorado Springs community, and has a BA and JD from Notre Dame.
Dr. Evelyn Cortez-Ford
Founder and Leadership Coach, School Leadership Coaching
Mrs. Cortez-Ford is a Nationally Board Certified Teacher with more than 12 years of teaching experience at the elementary and college levels. She has extensive experience with standards-based education, instruction, curriculum development and assessments. She has run her own coaching firm to provide leadership development to area teachers and administrators, and has a BA and MA from the University of New Mexico and a PhD in Educational Leadership & Innovation from the University of Colorado at Denver.
Dr. Sandra Elliott
Founder & Managing Partner, Gnowhow-Educational Strategy & Implementation
Ms. Elliott is a lifelong educator who has taught and been a principal for traditional and charter schools. She has started and led schools for two of the largest for profit school management organizations in the US and has been a program officer in charge of the charter portfolio for the Texas High School Project. She currently works with the Colorado Department of Education and other national organizations to improve education for all students. She has her B.A. and M.Ed. from the University of Florida and her Ph.D. from the University of Colorado-Denver.
C. Onye Ikwuakor
Associate, Holme Roberts & Owen
Mr. Ikwuakor is an associate with the law firm of Holme Roberts & Owen and a member of the firm's litigation and transactional practice areas. Prior to moving to Colorado Springs, Onye mentored high school students from underserved communities, as they navigated the college application process, and volunteered for a program that empowered incarcerated youth by educating them about their rights and responsibilities under the law. He has a B.A. in Journalism from Iowa State University and a J.D. from Stanford Law School.
Carlos Jimenez, Secretary and Treasurer
Assistant Director of Admission, The Colorado College
Mr. Jimenez received his BA at Colorado College (CC), and recently completed his MA in Student Affairs and Higher Education from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. He has worked in the CC office of admission for nearly five years. Carlos has coordinated American Ethnic Minority outreach efforts for CC, serves as the Cynthia Gayles Human Relations Chair for the Rocky Mountain Association of College Admission Counseling and will be the future of chair of the National Membership Committee for the National Association for College Admission Counseling. Carlos has a vested interest in promoting quality schools and choices, especially for minority students in the area.
Richard Mueller
President and CEO, Peak Investment Advisors, Inc.
Mr. Mueller has extensive experience in business financial management, having served as CFO of the largest charter school in Colorado, The Classical Academy, and is currently the CFO of a dynamic, high growth software firm, Cherwell Software. He also founded and manages Peak Investment Advisors, a financial services company that provides investment management and tax advisory services based in Colorado Springs. Mr. Mueller earned a B.S. in Accountancy from the University of Illinois and an MBA from the University of Chicago, and is a licensed CPA and CFA.
Stephen Starks
Director of Legal Affairs, United States Anti-Doping Agency
Mr. Starks received his juris doctorate from Valparaiso University School of Law where he was a Midwest Regional Board member of the National Black Law Students Association, which engaged in several community activities directed at encouraging underprivileged youth to consider a career in the law. During law school, Stephen also served as a member of the VUSL Sports Law Clinic through which he provided pro bono legal services to Olympic level athletes who otherwise could not afford legal representation. His background in education includes experience as a substitute teacher, English as a Second Language instructor, and middle school teacher. Before joining USADA, Stephen clerked for the Honorable Theodore R. Boehm in the Supreme Court of Indiana and then practiced in the Litigation and Appellate groups of the Indianapolis, Indiana law firm Bose McKinney & Evans.
