Board

Current Board Members

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Angela Cobián

Chair

Angela Cobián (she/ella) is a Mexican American teacher-turned-community organizer. She has dedicated her career to building power among students, families, and women. Angela currently leads the strategic partnerships team as the Senior Director of Organizing and Partnerships at Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Action Fund. Cobián leverages national cross movement partnerships for advocacy and nationwide campaigns in democracy rights, immigration, and criminalization. She convened national partners to mobilize after the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe v. Wade. Previously, Cobián spent a decade working as an advocate for students in public education. She was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to co-teach English at the Universidad Pedagogica Nacional, and consult with Enseña por Mexico on program development for student-led social change initiatives. In Colorado, Cobián was previously elected to represent the southwest region on the Denver Board of Education and organized parents of her former students with Together Colorado. She enjoys art, writing, and volunteers as the chair of the Bell Policy Center and Re:Vision board of directors respectively. In 2020, Angela received the Lena L. Archuleta Community Service Award in recognition of her “dedication and commitment to the Latino community.” Cobián holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Colorado College and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Colorado-Denver.

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James Iacino

Treasurer

James Iacino is the former owner, chairman, and CEO of Seattle Fish Company, established in 1918, a business that was born and raised in Colorado. James brings deep experience in business and community leadership, as well as peer learning organizations. He was a member of Vistage, an executive coaching organization, for seven years. He also was a member of YPO, a global leadership community of chief executives, for eight years, serving as past-president of the YPO Colorado chapter. James was named EY Entrepreneur of the Year, and Colorado State University’s Graduate of the Last Decade in 2016. He served as chairman of the No Kid Hungry Colorado Leadership Council and is past president of the Colorado Children’s Chorale Board of Trustees. James is the co-founder and past chairman of the Green and Gold Foundation, benefiting Colorado State University, his Alma Mater. He is a passionate aviator, fly fisherman, and world traveler. James and his wife, Meghan, live in Ridgway with their two sons, Edwin and August.

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Lauren Arnold

Lauren Arnold has been an active leader in the Colorado and National non-profit community for many years.  Throughout her career, Lauren has focused on leading strategic planning efforts and ensuring that strategy, planning and execution align throughout an organization.  Most recently, Lauren was CEO of Raise the Future, a medium sized multi-state non-profit organization focused on the wellbeing of older youth in foster care.  Prior to Raise the Future, Lauren served as Chief Financial Officer, Chief of Staff and then Interim CEO for the Gill Foundation, the nation’s largest funder of LGBTQ rights at the time. Before entering the non-profit sector as a professional, Lauren was the CFO/COO for a venture backed energy company in Colorado – restructuring and recapitalizing the company for sale.  She was also an investment banker with Credit Suisse First Boston in New York for many years, where she led Finance and Mergers and Acquisitions transactions in the Energy and Infrastructure industries and served as Chief Operating Officer of the Energy and Project Finance group.  At the start of her career, Lauren served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Philippines. Lauren holds a bachelor’s degree in government from Dartmouth College, a master’s degree in finance from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in international affairs and economics from Johns Hopkins University. 

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Cody Belzley

Cody Belzley is a results-based leader who has dedicated her career to making public policy change in Colorado. In 2015, Cody founded Common Good Consulting, LLC, offering policy and organizational strategy advisory services primarily to non-profit organizations and campaign committees working on health, education and human services issues. Her previous experience has included serving as Vice President for Health & Strategic Initiatives at the Colorado Children’s Campaign, the state’s leading child advocacy organization, and as Senior Policy Analyst for Health for Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr. Cody has played leadership roles in many state and local ballot measures and legislative initiatives to increase public investment in health and early education programs, specifically including the 2004 statewide tobacco tax measure, the 2006 Denver preschool tax measure, the 2009 hospital provider fee legislation and the 2020 statewide nicotine tax measure. Cody also served as Policy Director for the successful campaigns to defeat Amendment 69, the 2016 statewide ballot proposal to create a single-payer health care system in Colorado, and Initiative 300, the 2019 Denver ballot proposal to allow people to inhabit any public property in Denver. Cody is a graduate of The Colorado College and completed the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Leadership Institute for State-based Advocates. She has volunteered with several community organizations, including Colorado School of Public Health, Mile High Early Learning and Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church. Cody and her family live in central Denver.

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Sade Cooper

Sade, a Denver, Colorado native, was raised in Moreno Valley, California, yet her roots run deep in the Mile-High City. She returned to Colorado in 2000 to complete her high school education and embark on a journey toward a degree in healthcare management. From a young age, Sade harbored a relentless curiosity, with aspirations of becoming either a doctor or a financial advisor. Her unwavering passion ultimately guided her to join U.S. Bank in 2004, where she discovered her true calling as a servant leader. Sade’s unwavering commitment to her community has propelled her into various volunteer opportunities and prominent community leadership roles. Currently, Sade serves as a board member for the Parkhill Pirates and the Bell Policy Center. She previously held positions on the boards of Project Voyce and Second Chance Home Ministries, as well as Nonprofit Board Bound, where she dedicated her time to preparing women for service on nonprofit boards. Additionally, Sade took on a mentoring role in Goodwill’s Summer Bridge Mentor Program and served as an American Heart Ambassador. Sade is an alumni of the Urban Leadership Foundation, The Rose Foundation Endowment cohort, and the Denver Foundation Landscape cohort, and currently is participating in the Highland Project Leadership program. Continuing her commitment to serve, Sade co-founded and now leads as CEO of the Collaborative Healing Initiative within Communities, or CHIC. She is also the visionary force behind Justice for Black Coloradans and Educational Justice for Black Coloradans. Through these initiatives, she empowers women, families and communities to develop economic, social, and cultural capital, recognizing that empowered women play a pivotal role in building healthy families and thriving communities. Sade remains a steadfast steward for her community, dedicated to changing lives one day at a time.

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Steve Federico

Steve is the Chief Government and Community Affairs Officer at Denver Health. His passion for improved and equitable healthcare is fueled by his ongoing experiences as a pediatrician and primary care physician at Denver Health where has worked since 2002. In his past role as medical director, he oversaw three community health centers, and 19 school-based clinics that provide comprehensive physical and mental health to 70,000 children across Denver. He has presented and published in the areas of school-based health, child poverty, improving child health coverage, physician advocacy, and health policy. His advocacy work has focused on eliminating the barriers to adequate health coverage and healthcare faced by children and families in Colorado. He is a past President of the Colorado Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. He has been appointed to various child health task force groups by governors and lt. governors of Colorado and previously served on the Mayor’s Children’s Cabinet for the city and county of Denver. He received his undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Arizona. He completed his training in Pediatrics and a Primary Care Research Fellowship at the University of Colorado and a Physician Advocacy Fellowship through the Institute for Medicine as a Profession.

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Ray Rivera

Ray is a social entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in political campaigns, nonprofits, policy advocacy and leading mission-driven organizations. He served in President Obama’s Administration at the Department of the Interior and at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Ray serves on numerous nonprofit boards that connect with his passion for civic engagement and getting diverse communities active in the outdoors. Ray earned his master’s degree in public administration at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Currently he is a strategic consultant and adviser to companies and causes, part-time, while performing his full-time job of caring for his two boys, Mateo and Greg.

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Michael Touff

Michael Touff was the Senior Vice President and General Counsel of M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. a Denver-based New York Stock Exchange-listed homebuilder for over 25 years until he retired in 2020.  Prior to joining M.D.C., Michael practiced law in Denver with Ireland, Stapleton, Pryor & Pascoe and with Holmes & Starr. Michaelcurrently serves as a trustee of the Rose Community Foundation; the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver; the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network and the Bell Policy Center.He is a graduate of Harvard College, served in the Peace Corps in Thailand, attended the London School of Economics and Political Science, served in the U.S. Army in Korea and earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Founding Board Members

  • Merle Chambers, 2001-2010
  • Jean Dubofsky, 2001-2008
  • Linda Shoemaker, 2001-2011

Former Board Members

  • Steve Berman
  • Noel Ginsburg
  • Jace Woodrum
  • Vatsala Pathy
  • Marcy Morrison, 2002-2006
  • Rosemary Rodriguez, 2002-2007
  • Gil Romero, 2002-2007
  • Linda Morton, 2003-2014
  • Penfield Tate III, 2003-2015
  • Scott Martinez, 2007-2015
  • Tim Sweeney, 2009-2013
  • Howard B. Gelt, 2015-2016
  • Jandel Allen-Davis
  • P. Barclay Jones
  • Olivia Mendoza
  • Jason Crow, 2017
  • Michael Brewer
  • Kathleen Beatty
  • Ledy Garcia-Eckstein
  • Lucille Wenegieme
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