Let’s stay in touch

I am so happy to be able to serve on the Boulder City Council. I’ll be sending out updates about my work on council no more than once a month. Let’s stay in touch!

My priorities

  • Housing prices to own and to rent continue to increase. In addition to increasing supply of housing through infill, I will focus specifically on affordable housing, including ownership options. People working in Boulder are leaving the city for more affordable housing as far as Weld County that further increases traffic and air pollution. I’m also interested in discussing the utilization of existing housing stock, including the impact of second home ownership that results in homes that are vacant more than half the year.

  • Like many communities in Colorado and beyond, our unhoused community has grown and we have yet to provide enough options to both house our neighbors and provide the support services so many people need and deserve.

    Our current city council and county commissioners have already started work to address this urgent issue. My focus would be to explore how to accelerate the funding and development of mental health services, and transitional and permanent housing. I also believe Boulder will be more successful working collaboratively with our County and even the broader metro area. Homelessness is a statewide and national problem that we, as compassionate human beings, need to solve together.

    Finally, I believe we can enjoy a healthy, equitable and just relationship with our police department while simultaneously addressing public safety issues in our community. This is particularly important to me; several years ago, I voted on the school board to remove school resource officers (SROs) employed by the police from our schools. However, I asked the district to provide a plan to ensure student and staff safety prior to making this significant change. Part of the shift to full-time, unarmed safety advocates employed by the district depended on a strong relationship and reliable response time from the police. I still believe removing SROs was a good decision, but it hinges on our continued positive and trusted relationship with our local police departments. I believe our improved police oversight panel can increase trust with our communities of color, and look forward to its recommendations as the panel evolves.

  • I support the work of previous councils to expand public transportation, significantly increase the safety of biking routes, promote electrification and address heat islands that disproportionately impact our lower income residents. I am thrilled RTD bus service will now be free for people 19 years of age and younger.

    I also value the work being done to mitigate for flood and fire in Boulder. It is of course critical to recognize the effects of climate change and not only be prepared but also reduce our impact quickly.

  • Continue work to provide expanded and safe options for walkers and bikers. Support RTD’s efforts to increase usage of public transportation, including free fares for 19 and under, simplifying fares for all and increasing frequency when able.

  • I had the privilege to serve for eight years on the BVSD School Board, and as president for the last four years. I developed policy alongside diverse stakeholders, and continue to believe that different voices and perspectives result in better policy. I also participated in and led meetings with city councils across the BVSD as well as with CU, the Boulder Chamber, the County, the Boulder City Council and countless parent groups. I believe strongly in cross-governmental collaboration to address and solve our most urgent concerns.

  • During my experience on school board, I closely tracked state-level legislation to understand potential impacts to the BVSD and learned how to work with legislators and lobbyists to shape legislation to reflect our interests. As the state legislature continues to explore legislation that impacts our communities, I would continue to track the work of our legislators and encourage the Council to take meaningful positions. We are so fortunate to have an excellent legislative liaison for the Council as well as an effective and inclusive delegation from Boulder to help develop the best legislation for our community.

My Story

I have volunteered throughout the Boulder community, gaining a better understanding of my neighbors and their experiences living here. I started out volunteering for the School Accountability Committee at Foothill Elementary, and then the District Accountability Committee. While my kids were in elementary school, I helped low-income families participate in sports programs through the Sports for All program. I personally met with families to help them understand the registration process at recreation centers and access scholarships.

In 2013, I ran for school board, serving eight years including four years as President during the pandemic. During that time I improved my governing skills, learning how to run effective meetings while giving clear guidance to our Superintendent. I am most proud of increasing investments for our low-income and English-language learners, which efforts are finally paying off, developing policy and measures to address disproportionate discipline, upholding our anti-discrimination policy that includes gender identity and expression, and finally addressing significant systemic gaps implementing Title IX, including improving our policy, hiring a dedicated person for Title IX and creating a Title IX advisory panel.

I also served on the Board for the Conference of World Affairs, including the inaugural board in 2013. As a new governing body made up of faculty and community members, we actively made changes to our structures and by-laws as we understood what was working and what needed to be improved.

Along the way, I helped serve meals and make birthday cards for our homeless population with my family, pitched in to help mil levies and bonds pass to fund our schools, and advocated for legislation to increase funding for our students, especially those needing extra support. As part of broad coalitions, I advocated for regulations around vaping in the City of Boulder, restrictions around young adult access to marijuana and a sugar tax to create the health equity fund. During the pandemic, I even signed up to weed North Boulder Park with the City’s Count Me In program.

Most recently, I have been helping out with programming with the Democratic Women of Boulder County. For the last year, we welcomed speakers addressing local and state ballot initiatives, candidates, and issues such as housing and homelessness. I believe that all of these experiences in our community will help me be a thoughtful and effective member of the Boulder City Council.