For 24 Colorado Academy alumni, their connection to CA continues after they leave campus. They serve on the Alumni Board administering the activities of the Colorado Academy Alumni Association. The Board helps plan alumni events, raises donations for the CA Fund, and represents CA and the Alumni Association in the community.
Chris Bailey ’02 attended CA for 14 years. His sister Amber Bailey graduated in the class of 1988. Chris attended CU Boulder for undergrad and DU for law school. He met Bree, his wife of 10 years, at CU. They have two dogs, Milo and Logan, and currently live in Englewood.
Alex Barton ’97 attended CA for high school and is the super proud parent of a new CA First Grader, Chloë Barton. With excellent guidance from Cathy Nabbefeld, Alex attended Colgate University for his undergraduate studies, and then went on to Brooklyn Law. Alex practiced real estate law in New York City until 2010, when he returned to Colorado. He is a shareholder in the real estate group at Polsinelli PC, a national law firm, with its Colorado office in downtown Denver. Alex was the President of the CA Alumni Board 2016-18, and along with being a current Board member, he is part of this year’s CA Concert Committee with his wife Caity. Alex, Caity, and Chloë love their 8-year-old greyhound, Buddy.
VJ Brown ’11 spent seven years at CA and received his bachelor’s degree in Africana Studies from Davidson College in North Carolina. Currently, he runs a series of leadership programs designed to help business professionals increase their capacity for civic engagement in the Denver Metro Area. He serves as the Vice Chair of the board for Civic Canopy, is an avid volunteer with the Chinook Fund, and is working towards his certification to be a leadership coach. In his free time, you can find VJ exploring the outdoors or cheering on local sports teams. Go Nuggets!
Kelly Young Campbell ’98 was a lifer at CA before attending the University of Notre Dame. Kelly went on to earn a JD at the University of San Diego and an MBA at CU Boulder. Kelly transitioned from the legal world into corporate real estate after receiving her MBA. With the help of her husband Dan, Kelly’s most recent focus has been on being a stay-at-home mom to three-year-old Lachlan, eight-month-old Madeline, and their dog, Gunner.
Austin Carpenter ’05 attended CA for all but his Freshman and Sophomore years of high school. He graduated from Western State University in Gunnison, Colo. After time in the corporate world, he spent time with U.S. Army. Austin returned to Colorado to pursue a graduate degree in International business and is currently working with Arrow Electronics in Cyber Security. He is an avid outdoorsman and enjoys climbing, skiing, biking, mountaineering, and much more.
Katie Cordes ’03 attended CA from 1st-12th grade, and then attended Washington University in St. Louis. After some time in New York City, she moved home to Denver in 2014 and now works in corporate strategy and development. She loves spending time with her dog, Bleecker, and thinks that a good time outdoors involves a patio, a book, and a glass of wine.
Lisa Harrison Ellsworth ’79 was a part of the early movement to add girls to CA. She had the privilege to work with all of CA’s headmasters as either a student or a parent. Her three children graduated from CA in 2010, 2013, and 2017. Lisa has enjoyed working with the younger alumni who are currently on the Board and being a part of CA’s continued growth as an innovative school. She is currently working at a Denver Public school in Grade Two as a paraprofessional and is a retired women’s sports official in Field Hockey, Basketball, and Lacrosse.
Courtney Engle ’08 earned her ABET, accredited Mechanical Engineering degree, from Yale University in 2012 and has since returned to Colorado, working as a forensic engineer in automotive accident reconstruction, before spending two years teaching Upper School math at CA. She has recently started her own private tutoring company focused on math, science, and ACT/SAT prep in the Denver-metro area, Lux Tutoring, LLC. Courtney can most regularly be found spending her free time at a golf course, working on lowering her handicap, and smothering her two rescue mutts with an apparently annoying level of affection.
Brian Fisher ’02 began at CA as a Sophomore. While his time at CA was relatively short, it did not diminish his appreciation for the school. Brian played Baseball and Golf at CA. Both sports teams have been much more successful since Brian graduated, but he is pretty sure that is a coincidence. Brian graduated from CU Boulder with a degree in History and received his JD from DU. Brian worked as an attorney for four years before happily exiting the legal world. Brian now works in commercial real estate finance for Northmarq Capital. Brian and his wife Jamie live in Englewood with their daughter Riley. In his free time, Brian enjoys golfing and brooding over the downfall of the Husker football program.
Isabel Gary ’09 graduated from Colorado College in 2013 with a major in Environmental Science and minor in Education. She then earned an MS in Geology and Geological Engineering at Colorado School of Mines in 2016. Isabel began her career in the oil and gas industry as an Exploration Geologist for EOG Resources in Midland, Texas, and is now back in Denver doing the same work for Centennial Resource Development. Isabel is an avid outdoor person and spends her free time fishing, skiing, and traveling with her husband, John, or bird hunting with their two English Setters.
Georgia Grey ’08 recently left her seven-year teaching career to pursue her own holistic nutrition business, WBH Nutrition Co. Georgia also loves tutoring children K-5 in all subjects. She enjoys being outside, doing yoga, and spending time with her fiancé Reed and black lab Huck!
Jared Harding ’97 attended CA from Grades 1-10, and looks back fondly on the incredible learning experiences, friendships, Giant Relay Days, field trips, sports, Interim, and so much more. Currently, Jared works in digital marketing for Kroenke Sports & Entertainment and lives in Denver with his beautiful wife, Rachael, and their three daughters, Emma (9), Lucy (6), and Josie (4).
Ben Hock ’07 is the Director of Creative Services at CenterTable, a digital marketing agency located right by Coors Field. He earned his BFA in Animation at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, where he also met his wife Andrea. In his spare time, he serves as the Marketing Director for PawsCo, a local animal rescue. He’s also a Certified Cicerone® (a beer sommelier) and home brewer. Ben and Andrea live in Virginia Village with their rescue dog, Lenny.
Karl Koch ’05 studied Business Management at Goucher College, where he also played Varsity Lacrosse. He lives in Denver and works for a money management company that finances commercial real estate development projects. When not working, Karl likes to ski, fly fish, mountain bike, camp, hunt, cook, and travel.
Myles McGinnis ’08 attended CA from K-12 as a lifer. At CA he played Golf, Soccer, and Lacrosse. Myles graduated from The College of Wooster in 2012, where he played lacrosse for the Fighting Scots. Myles has since spent time in various roles in the Colorado real estate world, from commercial and residential sales to land development. Currently Myles enjoys spending time with his wife, Mo, and managing Max Shaw’s expectations as Fantasy Football League Commissioner.
Aimée Nieuwenhuizen ’06 obtained a BA in Spanish from Davidson College, a BA in Psychology from Queens University of Charlotte, and an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from CU Denver. She is a mental health therapist at a behavioral health hospital, and, in addition to sitting on the CA Alumni Board, Aimée serves on the Board of Directors for the Eating Disorder Foundation.
Brian Parks ’96 attended CA from Grade 7 through Senior year. While at CA, Brian was the inaugural Mustang mascot and paved the way for future generations of mascots. He and two classmates also founded Students H.O.P. E., which still takes place at CA in December. Brian attended Hobart & William Smith Colleges in Geneva, N.Y. where he earned his BA in Communications and then followed that up with his MBA at the University of Denver. Brian is currently the Vice President and Director of Business Development for CCIG, a locally owned and operated commercial insurance agency in Greenwood Village. Brian serves on the Board of Directors at National Jewish Health. He is married to Dana Pluss Parks and has two boys, Carter (9) and Reid (7), and a labradoodle puppy, Baylee. He spends most of his free time coaching his boys in soccer, flag football, and lacrosse, or in the mountains skiing.
Ashley Peterson ’06 attended CA in Pre-K then came back for Grades 6-12 (a semi-lifer). She played Lacrosse and Field Hockey at CA, and attended Bowdoin College, where she also played both sports and won two NCAA National Championships. Ashley has been living in Denver since college and works in digital marketing and data analytics. In her free time, she can be found outdoors doing pretty much anything adventurous and takes her dog Dyson along whenever she can.
Maxwell Shaw ’08 attended CA from Pre-K-Grade 12 and is a proud super-lifer. During his time at CA, he enjoyed golf, photography, and working as a camp counselor during the summer. Max graduated from Davidson College in 2012 with a BS in Psychology. He spent 4 years as a behavior therapist before earning an MBA in Health Administration at CU Denver. Recently, Max completed an Administrative Fellowship at the University of Colorado Hospital and now works as an internal process improvement consultant for the hospital and greater UC Health system. These days, Max enjoys wedding planning with his fiancée Chelsea and competing for the title in his CA ’08 friends Fantasy Football League.
Zach Tucker ’01 lives in LoHi with his wife and daughter, having moved back to Colorado in 2017, after being away since graduation in 2001. He works for Smith Capital Investors in the bond market. When not spending time with family, he likes to ski, hike, bike, and travel.
Terrie Dickinson Warren ’73, a “pioneer” when CA went coed in 1971, loved the academic, athletic, and theatrical opportunities CA offered. Even though she lived outside of Colorado from graduation until 10 years ago, she has maintained friendships with many of her classmates from ’73 and also friends from ’72, ’74, ’75, and ’76. After working in college admissions and coaching middle and high school field hockey, soccer, and lacrosse in Texas for over 20 years, Terrie has opened her calendar to spend more time with her family and to “give back”—and is eager to serve on the CA Alumni Board and also to offer pro bono advice/assistance to aspiring college applicants, especially for first-generation applicants. Most often found on various mountain golf courses, hiking trails, and ski runs, or trying to succeed at mountain gardening, Terrie is also well known in Breckenridge for her intricate knowledge of Summit County happy hours.
Nicole Sisk Wiechecki ’01 joined the Alumni Board in 2014. She attended DU, studying real estate and finance. After working as an asset manager for a real estate investment trust in Denver for 10 years, Nicole now manages the chaos at home with her two sons, four-year-old Sam and one-year-old Max. When possible, she also enjoys running, skiing, and traveling.
Elsa Woolley ’11 studied Art History and Business at the University of Puget Sound. Elsa works in commercial real estate development, focusing on historic preservation and affordable housing. She also serves as her university’s class president and as a Board member for the Four Mile Historic Park. She has loved reconnecting with CA through the Alumni Board and is eager to help other alums reconnect also!
Honorary Board Member
Gordon Smith ’79 serves as an emeritus member of the Alumni Board. He graduated from Colgate University, majoring in Economics and Psychology. He then obtained his MBA from the CU Denver in ’89. Gordon began in the family horse business and then moved into Financial Services. He finally found his passion when entering the fundraising business in ’95 with National Jewish Health, specializing in Planned Giving. Still with National Jewish today, he is now the Associate Vice President of Development, Planned Giving. He travels the country meeting with dedicated donors to discuss creative, non-cash opportunities to support the hospital. He also speaks nationally on Gift Planning. Gordon spends his spare time skiing, biking, playing tennis, and competing in triathlons and such.
