About Us: Staff

Elise Keaton, Esq., Policy and Research Analyst: At CPE, Elise focuses on education, economic opportunity and health care policy, among other issues.  Prior to moving to Colorado, she earned a law degree from the University of Houston, where she was a contributing editor to the Texas Journal of Consumer Law and founding member and secretary of the Evening Law Student Association.  Upon graduation, she pursued disaster relief work in post-Katrina New Orleans. Elise is from Hinton, West Virginia and she holds a bachelor of arts in political science and legal studies from Virginia Tech University.
Contact Elise at 303.551.8114 or elise@c-pe.org

Travis Leiker, Operations & Outreach Manager: Prior to joining CPE, Travis worked for Lightbridge, the Janus Capital Group and the University of Colorado at Boulder. Most recently, he was the public outreach coordinator for Jovian P4 LLC and the Jared Polis Foundation. Travis is a Kansas native and holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he served as president of the College Democrats and vice president of the College of Arts and Sciences Student Government. He is the former chair of the university’s GLBT Advisory Committee and currently serves on its Blue Ribbon Commission on Diversity.
Contact Travis at 303.551.8116 or travis@c-pe.org

Spiros Protopsaltis, Ph.D., President: Spiros has a wealth of public policy experience.  Prior to joining CPE, he worked as a policy analyst at the Bell Policy Center, director of policy for Denver State Senator Penfield Tate's mayoral campaign, and consultant to the Denver Mayor's Office of Workforce Development. Most recently, he was the director of policy and research for the Office of Jared Polis.  Spiros holds a Ph.D. in public affairs from the School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado Denver, and has taught courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels.  He received a masters of science from the New School University in New York City and a bachelor of arts summa cum laude from Northeastern University in Boston.  Spiros was born in Athens, Greece.
Contact Spiros at 303.551.8111 or spiros@c-pe.org

Matthew Sundeen, Esq., Director of Policy & Research:  Matt is an attorney with 13 years government affairs experience.  Before he joined CPE, Matt worked as a senior analyst for the National Conference of State Legislatures in Denver.  At NCSL, Matt worked closely with legislatures in all 50 states and tracked a wide variety of topics of national significance.  He has authored numerous reports and policy briefs, has frequently appeared on radio and television programs and has been widely quoted in news publications.  Prior to his work at NCSL, Matt practiced law in Boulder, Colorado.  Matt received his law degree from the University of Denver and a BA in international studies from Michigan State University. 

Contact Matt at 303.551.8117 or matt@c-pe.org

Marija Weeden, Policy Research Fellow:  Prior to working at CPE, Marija was a fellow at The Bell Policy Center where she worked on education, labor and state fiscal issues.  Marija is a Colorado native and has her Masters of Social Work from the University of Denver. While at DU, Marija served as the President of the Graduate Student Association for the School of Social Work and as an officer in the Multicultural Social Justice Organization.  Recently Marija has worked with 9 to 5, the National Association of Working Women, in registering voters and the campaign for No on 46.  Marija holds a Bachelors of Arts in Theology from the University of Steubenville, Ohio.

Contact Marija at 303.551.8115 or marija@c-pe.org

About Us: Board of Directors

Elise Jones, Executive Director, Colorado Environmental Coalition, Denver: Since 1999, Elise Jones has been the Executive Director of the Colorado Environmental Coalition, a 43-year old statewide conservation alliance dedicated to the protection of Colorado’s natural heritage and quality of life.  Previously, she worked as the Regional Director of the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund’s Rocky Mountain Office in Boulder.  Her work experience also includes serving as the senior environmental legislative aide for U.S. Representative Elizabeth Furse (D-OR), and a legislative representative for the National Wildlife Federation in Washington, DC.  Elise has a masters degree in natural resources policy from the University of Michigan, and a B.S. in natural resources from Cornell University. 

Mike Kromrey, Executive Director, Metro Organizations for People, Denver: Mike has a BA from the University of Michigan and an MSW from the University of Denver. Mike’s history with community organizing spans 25 years. He was hired as an organizer by Catholic Community Services in 1980 to work in collaboration with Metro Organizations for People (MOP). In 1985 Mike became Director of MOP, a job he held for 10 years. In 1990 Mike left Denver to direct Congregations Building Community (CBC), a congregation-based community organization in Northern Colorado. Mike directed CBC for five years, returning full time to the job of MOP director in July of 2000. In addition to directing MOP, Mike serves on the PICO national staff, consulting with PICO projects in Louisiana, Camden, and Los Angeles.

Lorez Meinhold, Senior Program Officer, The Colorado Health Foundation, Denver: As Senior Program Officer at The Colorado Health Foundation, Lorez Meinhold works to support efforts to improve access to health care and to identify current and emerging health care policy and leadership issues and solutions. Prior to joining the Foundation, Lorez was the Executive Director of the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative for 6 years. Before this, she was with the Colorado Public Interest Research Group (CoPIRG) for 10 years and served in many roles.

Andy Schultheiss, President, Jovian P4 LLC, Boulder: Andy is currently the President of Jovian P4, LLC, and the philanthropic advisor to Boulder entrepreneur Jared Polis. Prior to his current position, he was National Campaigns Director at the League of Conservation Voters, creating and running political and environmental issue campaigns for that national non-profit. From 2003 to 2007, he served as a member of the Boulder City Council. His background includes stints in East Africa, Chicago, and Washington, DC, most for environmental organizations. He was also a legislative assistant on Capitol Hill in the early 1990’s, working for several members of the House of Representatives.  He has a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, and a master’s in Natural Resource Policy, and lives with his wife and two young children in Boulder.

Carlos Valverde, Jr., Co-Executive Director, Colorado Progressive Coalition, Denver: Carlos Valverde Jr. is the Co-Executive Director of the Colorado Progressive Coalition where he works to engage communities in issues that affect them. Until May 2008, Carlos was a Senior Policy Specialist in the Education Program at the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) where he focused on policy issues regarding college readiness, access, and success for minority populations, and also managed the Engaging Latino Communities for Education project, which is designed to raise awareness among state legislators about best practices for Latino student achievement. Carlos has authored policy publications and has presented at several conferences. Prior to NCSL, Carlos served as a Regional Program Manager in the College Prep and Scholarship Program for the Daniels Fund, a Denver based nonprofit foundation, and worked with hundreds of students and families in a four-state region to help them plan and apply for college. He also helped to design and implement the Daniels Fund Scholarship, which provides unmet need scholarships to hundreds of low-income students every year. Carlos received a Bachelor of Arts in Literature from Colorado College and a Masters in Nonprofit Management from Regis University.

If you have any questions or for additional information contact Travis Leiker.