JeffCo Moms Bring Leadership Ideas To State Capitol

DENVER, CO – "Hello," they introduced themselves, offering their hands. "I am a family leader." More than 100 adults and teens participating in a civic leadership program showed up at the Colorado State Capitol April 15 to walk through the halls of power and learn.

Participants in the free Family Leadership Training Institute came representing regions from all over the state as part of a free 20-week program that helps ordinary people devise a civic project that will help their community. The program is sponsored by the Colorado Attorney General's office, the CSU Extension and local county extension agencies. Some family leaders came from as far as the Four-Corners area in Cortez County, spending the night on the way.

Group members sat in on sessions of the Colorado Assembly in the House and Senate chambers and observed committee meetings. Some members even buttonholed their local lawmaker, reciting a well-rehearsed 30 second "elevator pitch" they have honed through the program.

In Jefferson County, 25 people are participating, including four teens and a half-dozen in a special Spanish language class, said coordinator Kim Massey. Classes meeting in north Lakewood on Wednesdays and include dinner, childcare, and Spanish interpretation during every class.

After a breakfast and encouraging remarks from Attorney General Phil Weiser and State Reps Jenny Arndt (D-Fort Collins) and Rochelle Galindo (D-Greeley), the group headed to the statehouse to watch lawmakers in action.

Amanda De Rezende, of Lakewood, said her project was an evaluation of the "school aftercare gap" in Jefferson County for preschool-age children. Only two JeffCo schools offer "full extended day" care for preschoolers, she found out, unpleasantly, when the program at her local school decided her child was "too young" for their program, 12 weeks in. As a single mother, she had to scramble for a backup plan in order to not miss work, she said.

"There are 100,000 single parents in Jefferson County," she said. "This is a real problem and single parents need help." She was hoping to speak to a lawmaker about the issue and try to find out if there were resources available. She said the program put her in touch with others, helped her define a project and gave her communication skills. Learning with a cohort gave her confidence to "feed on everyone's passion," she said.

Amy Mitchell, of Lakewood, was also concerned about her children's school. A member of the school PTA and chair of the health and wellness committee, Mitchell said her project was to survey parents at South Lakewood Elementary and find their concerns. The survey said that many parents were worried about the school's decision to cut recess for students in grades 2-6 from 30 to 15 minutes per day. "The survey pointed to a lack of physical activity at the school," she said. Through the program, she was inspired to request a meeting with the assistant principal to show the survey results and ask if the school could come up with a way to bring more physical activity into the school day.

Lucia Mears, of Lakewood, was trying to figure out a way to encourage young people (and their parents) to wean themselves from addiction to electronic devices. While she didn't have a complete plan mapped out, she said the program had shown her how to look for resources and she was hoping to find affordable "real life" activities at local parks and activities such as community gardens that could counteract the lure of the ever-present cell phone.

Participants will create a report about their project in June.

Learn more about FLTI Colorado