Proximity Accelerator: RISE Colorado
The Proximity Accelerator, which is led by New Profit Managing Partner Tulaine Montgomery and Partner Marco Davis, is part of a larger effort by New Profit to support visionary social entrepreneurs and other leaders from underrepresented communities, in this case communities of color. Participants in the one-year Proximity Accelerator receive a one-time unrestricted grant of $50,000, intensive group learning and collaboration on leadership and organizational development, regular consultations with New Profit partners with expertise in nonprofit capacity building, and access to New Profit’s larger learning community of social entrepreneurs and other changemakers through events like the annual Gathering of Leaders.
The first cohort of this year-long initiative features eight selected organizations. Today we celebrate one of the eight selected organizations: RISE Colorado.
RISE Colorado is founded on the belief that families are crucial to student and school success. Through knowledge building, organizing, and leadership development, our families will end educational inequity. RISE Colorado works to Educate, Engage, and Empower low-income families and families of color to RISE as change agents for educational equity in our public school system. RISE runs one holistic program with three unique phases to educate, engage, and empower families. We work with low-income families, families of color, and refugee and immigrant communities to put those most impacted by the opportunity gap at the forefront of the movement for educational equity.
About Veronica Palmer
Veronica Palmer is the Co-Founder & CEO of RISE Colorado. Veronica is a 7th generation Colorado native that was born and raised in Denver. She was educated in Denver Public Schools and went on to become the first Latina Student Body President at the University of Colorado at Boulder, graduating with honors and a degree in Political Science in 2005. Veronica was a 2006 Teach For America Los Angeles corps member and taught 3rd grade in Lynwood Unified School District, serving as grade level chair her second year. In 2008, she graduated with honors from Loyola Marymount University with a Master’s in Education. That same year Veronica became a founding teacher at KIPP Raíces Academy in East Los Angeles where she taught Kindergarten and founded the Parent Advisory Council. In 2010, Veronica joined Teach For America’s (TFA) staff in Los Angeles as a Manager of Teacher Leadership Development, supporting elementary and middle school corps members. While on staff, Veronica was appointed to the national TFA Latino Advisory Council, participated in Leadership for Educational Equity’s (LEE) Political Leaders Fellowship, completed the Urban Leaders Fellowship with former CO State Senator Mike Johnston’s office serving on the education policy team, and recently completed the Aspen-Pahara NextGen Fellowship and LEE New Venture Fellowship. Veronica and her husband, Leotis, have two children, Trey and Avianna. In addition to her family Veronica loves dancing and traveling.
Follow @RISEColorado & @Veronicarpalmer to keep up with RISE!