Impact Report

If you were a student in the Denver Public Schools between 2008 and 2019, you may not have realized it at the time, but you were likely benefiting from the most comprehensive and effective education reform initiative in the history of the United States. You were learning more than students in other comparable Colorado school districts, and you were more likely to graduate within four years than students from previous years. This held true regardless of your ethnicity and if you were part of a historically underserved population. Moreover, the improved learning outcomes you experienced during that period are destined to have a lasting impact on your life and almost certainly on your children’s lives as well. 

This spring, three CU campuses rallied their communities to raise money for scholarships, programs, emergency funds and more. Matching and challenge gifts played a crucial role in amplifying contributions, encouraging participation and maximizing impact. Here’s what that collective effort made possible: 

Campus summaries 

CU Boulder 

Salwa Bamba provides a first-person account of how the generosity of others propelled her success.

In 2023, your gifts funded $52 million in scholarships and fellowships, including the prestigious Chancellor's Award at CU Boulder.

Hear three award recipients share their aspirations, academic pursuits and long-term goals.