Board Members

In July 2019, Colleen Walker was named the Chief Executive Officer of the Auraria Higher Education Center.  In this unique role, Walker oversees the strategy and operations for Colorado’s largest higher education campus.  Collectively, the Auraria Campus serves 45,000 students, faculty, and staff of the Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and the University of Colorado Denver in downtown Denver.  Previously, she served as Vice President for University Partnerships at Academic Partnerships, a major global online services provider in higher education. In Dallas, Walker served as the Eugene McDermott Chief Executive Officer for the Perot Museum of Nature and Science (read more)

The ninth president of MSU Denver, Dr. Janine Davidson, is a compelling leader with extensive experience guiding large and complex organizations. Prior to joining MSU Denver in July 2017, Dr. Davidson served as the 32nd undersecretary of the United States Navy, where she managed all Department of the Navy affairs, including Navy and Marine Corps integration, acquisition, finance, personnel, legislative affairs, research, and development. In that role, she was responsible for the health and well-being of nearly 900,000 sailors, marines, civilians, and their families. (read more)

Dr. Marielena (Marie) DeSanctis officially began her term as president of CCD on January 15, 2021. Dr. DeSanctis is a distinguished scholar who has led academic, equity, and innovation programs in various roles. Previously, she served as the Provost & Senior Vice-President, Academic Affairs and Student Services of Broward College. Dr. DeSanctis has more than 22 years of experience in education, including classroom teaching, curriculum development, instructional design, learning assessment, and progressive leadership roles in both K-12 and higher education. She has also served as High School Assistant Principal and Principal, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, and Central Campus President and Vice-President of Student Affairs.  (read more)

A longtime leader in higher education, Dr. Marks has the business acumen of an experienced senior administrator as well as the spirit of an academic. She is known for developing innovative programs that help students succeed, attract new student populations, facilitate research opportunities, and drive new revenue growth. Prior to being named CU Denver’s next chancellor, Dr. Marks served as vice president for academic innovation and new ventures at George Mason University. She led strategic partnerships designed to deliver online programming at scale, create pathway programming for international students, and support adult degree completion. (read more)

Kate oversees the management of the Executive Office including marketing and communications and public policy for the Partnership. In addition, Kate manages the Partnership’s work to foster a culture of entrepreneurship in Downtown Denver. She serves as the Executive Office liaison to board members and key stakeholders, manages the administrative functions of the President’s Office, and oversees an array of organizational special projects and programs. (read more)

Jerry is the Managing Partner of Columbia Group LLLP, which is a Denver based real estate development company. Development activities range from adaptive re-use projects in Lower Downtown Denver, to affordable housing, and some of Denver’s first loft apartments. Examples include the Studebaker Building, comprised of thirty-three low to moderate income apartments and commercial spaces, 1500 Market Street, an award-winning building coupled with two adjoining historic  building renovations,  and the Campus Village Apartments on the Auraria Higher Education campus (read more)

Former Colorado State Senator Rollie Heath graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a juris doctor degree from the University of Wisconsin. He then served in the U.S. Army for 23 years, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve in 1983. His extensive private sector career included 17 years in senior management with Johns Manville Corporation. In 1988, he co-founded Ponderosa Industries, Inc., and served as President/CEO until 2001. He founded the Rocky Mountain World Trade Center in 1988, and was its first chair. He ran as the Democratic Party’s nominee for Governor of Colorado in 2002. He was elected to his first term in the Senate in 2008, and was re-elected for another four-year term in 2012. Senator Heath was elected Senate Majority Leader in 2013, and was elected the Assistant Senate Minority Leader in 2014. He currently serves on the State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education and the state’s Venture Capital Authority Board. 

Tracy M. Huggins joined the Denver Urban Renewal Authority in October 1992 as controller, and oversaw the agency’s financial involvement in a number of significant redevelopment efforts. In 2000, she was named Executive Director. A certified public accountant, she came to DURA from Strait-Kushinsky, a Denver public accounting firm. Huggins serves on the boards of directors of Mountain States Employers Council, Gold Crown Foundation, Downtown Colorado, Inc, and the Colorado I Have a Dream Foundation. She's a 2001 graduate of the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.

As executive vice president of IMA Financial Group, Paul Washington is a highly respected business and civic leader with over 30 years of experience in senior operating roles for both commercial and public sector entities. Paul brings deep expertise in business strategy & execution; managing a P&L; finance; M&A; law; economic development; and corporate governance. Paul previously served as the Market Director for JLL, an international Fortune 500 commercial real estate services firm with over 90,000 employees worldwide (read more)

Smith graduated from the University of California Santa Barbara, then earned a Ph.D. at the University of Maryland. While writing her dissertation, she became the first woman aquanaut in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s underwater research habitat, Aquarius. Only a few women worked at the University of Maryland’s marine labs, and Smith was the only one selected to join the aquanaut team, where she lived underwater and conducted research on coral reefs for a week (read more)

Mark holds a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and a Master of Architecture, both from University of Virginia. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects and licensed and an architect in Colorado.

Mark has 35 years’ experience as a practicing architect and urban designer while living in Virginia, Washington D.C., Seattle, London, and Colorado. He also has experience in residential design, university buildings, and a number of sustainably designed K-12 DPS schools across the Front Range. He was on the Denver Union Station Master Plan team and developed master plans and landscape designs for the Centre for Mathematical Sciences at University of Cambridge and the Sutton Hoo National Trust Historic Site in the UK.

In 2001, he was awarded the DC AIA Honor Award with Richard Chenoweth for Historic Preservation.

Mark has two daughters, two cats, and speaks some French (and a little Italian). He enjoys hiking, recreational cycling, gardening, playing the trumpet, sketching, and traveling. And like all good Coloradans, Mark is a diehard Broncos fan.