Who We Are | Denver | Friends of Marie L. Greenwood

Our Vision

All children will be inspired by Mrs. Greenwood’s words to aim for the stars so they at least hit the treetops through both school and extracurricular pursuits.

Our Mission

To give children from all cultural, social and economic environments, the experiences that were life-shaping for Mrs. Greenwood so the children live joyful, passionate, literate and community-serving lives.

Our Values

Friends of Marie L. Greenwood will promote the passions that emerged and shaped her life: reading and writing achievement, outdoor education, sports, music, financial literacy, parent education, equity, community service and continuing education.

Our Activities

Each One Teach One intensive small-group literacy lessons during the school year and Summer Program.
Outdoor activities including gardening, biking, hiking, nature walks, and horseback riding.
Sports including soccer, softball, basketball, gymnastics, swimming and dance.
Music including vocal, instrumental and musical theatre.
Financial literacy including saving, household budgeting, and investing.
Parent education including English classes, Museum visits, supporting a child’s early language and reading development, and discipline.
Equity including bully prevention and U S. Constitutional studies.
Community service including ending hunger, and spreading the legacy of Marie L. Greenwood.

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Meet Our Board of Directors

Mary Ann Bash

Co-President

Mary Ann has been an instructional leader in public schools for 44 years. She co-authored four books on developing executive functioning skills of impulsive and aggressive students who struggle in classroom settings. She was recognized as the Colorado Administrator of the Year for Federal Programs that provide instruction for low-achieving students after creating a curriculum and program that was selected as a Center of Excellence by the National Council of Teachers of English. She is certified in the U.S. and by the University of Cambridge in England as a Teacher of Speakers of Languages Other than English. After reading the seminal work by Hart and Risley, Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experience of Young American Children, that reported a 30-million word gap between children who have rich early language environments at home and children who do not, she created the highly successful Each One Teach One: No More Gap program that includes literacy, gardening, biking, visual and performing arts for both students and their parents during school, after school, and during summer breaks. As a student, she was a competitive swimmer and runner, first chair alto saxophonist and President of two student service clubs.Teaching and learning remain her passions.

Jim Greenwood

Co-President

Jim is a third generation Coloradoan and the youngest son of Marie L. Greenwood. He has over 30 years of marketing and relationship management experience in film, TV, government, healthcare and education industries. Jim graduated from Northeastern Junior College in Theatre production and Music performance. He is a second-generation alum of the University of Northern Colorado (Marie’s alma mater) graduating in Communications with an emphasis in Speech Communications and Television /Radio production. Additionally, his graduate studies were at the University of Wisconsin Graduate School of Business in Arts Administration. He has worked in New York City as a film and video producer/director in corporate educational media and was a pioneer in interactive communication. Jim has had a dynamic career as a National Marketing Manager for Panasonic Broadcast and Television Company in NYC and Washington D.C. and served as a special communications consultant to a number of U.S. Federal Investigative Agencies. After returning to Denver to raise his family, Jim worked in marketing and organizational development in the chemical industry, multiple Hospice Organizations and for the University of Northern Colorado. He is proud to serve as a board member of Friends of Marie L. Greenwood. The mission and focus of the educational nonprofit exemplifies the values and principles that have been the foundation of the Greenwood family. To continue the legacy of his mother and the Greenwood family is a true honor. As a native Coloradoan, Jim and his family enjoy skiing, golf and biking throughout the Rocky Mountains. Also, for the past 20 years, he has served as soccer referee and has been a professional classical and jazz drummer for 50+ years.

Dee Smith

Vice President

Dee (her students call her Ms. Dee) has worked for Denver Public Schools for 29 years, where she's worn many hats. She started as a site coordinator for Kaleidoscope Corner at Smith Renaissance and Park Hill Elementary. She was the kindergarten teacher for the K+ program at Park Hill. She also worked as a lead teacher at Park Hill, Stedman, Phillips. Gove Community School, Dora Moore, Carson and Bromwell for their Before and Afterschool Program. She started the K+ program at Greenwood Academy in 2001 and transferred to the paraprofessional department in November of 2001. Being a paraprofessional at Greenwood has been her favorite position. She has had the privilege of watching Mrs. Greenwood cut the ribbon to her school, as well as celebrating her 100th birthday. Mrs. Greenwood has been an inspiration to her as an African American woman because she represented perseverance, determination, and dedication to this institution of education. Every day and everywhere Dee goes, she tries to represent what Mrs. Greenwood stood for.

Misti Aas

Secretary

Misti is a graduate of the University of Northern Colorado with a double degree in agency counseling and school counseling. After a private practice in counseling and then working in schools, including Manual High School and Challenges, Choices and Images, Misti pursued her passion of writing. She has written extensively for several community newspapers, and currently works as an independent contractor on a variety of book editing and writing projects. Misti was honored to be able to spend time with Dr. Greenwood as her administrative assistant for five years. In her limited free time, the Colorado native enjoys reading, traveling and spending time with family, friends and her Chesapeake Bay retriever mix named Themba.

Terri Baldwin

Treasurer

Terri has over 30 years of sales and marketing experience in the institutional investment business, first as a Partner at Denver Investments, and most recently at Watershed Investment Consultants, where she helped foundations/ endowments, public and corporate and pension plans, and healthcare entities with their investment programs. In 2016 she decided to retire from the investment world and pursue her passion of working with children at Each One Teach One, a non-profit she had volunteered with since 2008. Terri earned a MS in Marketing from the University of Colorado-Denver and a BSBA from Colorado State University. She is a native of Colorado and takes advantage of the outdoors through hiking, biking and skiing. One of her favorite quotes is by Benjamin Franklin: "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I may remember. Involve me and I learn."

Rachel Payne

Ad Hoc Member

Rachel is the former Principal of Marie L. Greenwood Academy in the Denver Public Schools. Born in Covington, Kentucky, Rachel spent most of her adolescence traveling as a military brat. She graduated from Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her teaching career began as a first grade teacher at Thurgood Marshall Elementary in Tulsa. She has served as an educator in various roles in both elementary and middle schools for the past 26 years. Rachel loves to cook, read, listen to music, and most of all to spend time with her husband, Howard, and her two children, Mia and Jalen. Her passion is helping others to achieve their goals and dreams. Rachel is committed to the mission of the DPS, that every child succeeds.