Dr. Lisa Calderón
Dr. Lisa Calderón is the Chief of Staff for Denver City Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca. As a former university professor she has taught in academia for over 15 years in the areas of Women’s Studies, Ethnic Studies, Sociology, and Criminal Justice. Her 30-years of public service also includes being a justice reform advocate, nonprofit executive, and social justice organizer.
In 2019, she was the first woman of color to make the ballot for mayor of Denver on the principles of equity, fairness, and justice. Although she was outspent 20:1 by the incumbent, she made an impressive showing for a first-time grassroots candidate garnering 33,000 votes.
As Chief of Staff serving Council District 9 which has the highest concentration of both wealth and poverty in the city, Dr. Calderón works to advance policy priorities for resolving the affordable housing crisis, stemming the tide of gentrification and displacement through a civil rights framework, reducing mass incarceration and increasing gender equity.
Born and raised in Denver, Dr. Calderón holds a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, law degree, and a doctorate in education. She has obtained several awards for inspirational leadership for her work serving the community.
Veronica Barela, Treasurer
Veronica Barela has served as the Director of NEWSED Community Development Corporation since 1978. NEWSED C.D.C. is a non-profit, community-based organization that provides a holistic approach to rebuilding the community and whose main focus is the revitalization of Denver’s near Westside community and its commercial strip Santa Fe Drive. Ms. Barela is recognized for her skills in community based economic development, community organizing, retail and housing development, events, arts and culture and civil rights work. Ms. Barela has a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) from the University of Colorado at Denver. Mayor Wellington Webb declared June 26, 1992, Veronica Barela day because of her long time civil rights, economic development, and community organizing work for the City of Denver. Ms. Barela has served and now serves on several boards, commissions and committees and she has received numerous awards.
Ean Thomas Tafoya, CLF Co-chair
Ean Thomas Tafoya is a Denver native with a passion for music, sustainability, and community involvement. He brings an extensive background in event planning, community outreach, government affairs, youth education, and volunteer activation to everything he does. He has served on several municipal advisory boards and committees, in addition to volunteering with several service organizations. He has received recognition for his work from the Regional Air Quality Council and the Denver Regional Council of Governments. Ean was the youngest Denverite to run for City Council in the 2015 election. Since the election Ean, took a pilgrimage to visit 22 National Parks in the Western United States and Mexico. He returned refreshed and inspired to continue working to better the community.
Miguel Ceballos Ruiz
Xochitl Gaytan, CLF Co-chair
Arturo R. Jimenez
The Honorable Arturo R. Jimenez is in his 20th year as an immigration attorney after graduating from the University of Colorado School of Law in 1998. Prior to law school, Arturo graduated from CU Boulder in with degrees in Ethnic Studies and Sociology. He is the former Chairman of the United Mexican American Students (UMAS) y Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA), former President of the Board of Directors of the Colorado Statewide Parent Coalition, and a former elected official on the Denver Public Schools Board of Education. Arturo has been active in the Colorado Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild. In addition, he is one of the founders of the immigrant legal services program at Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Pueblo.