CU women win a heart-stopper in PAC 12
Jan 7th
PULLMAN, Wash. — The Colorado women’s basketball team looked beaten for much of Saturday’s game at Beasley Coliseum.Yet down the stretch, the Buffaloes made enough plays to pull out a 57-56 win against host Washington State at Friel Court.
Meagan Malcolm-Peck hit a free throw with 12.5 seconds left to provide the winning point and the CU defense stepped up to hold off Washington State in the final possession.
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Jen Reese garned a double-double in a win against Washington State Saturday, helping the Buffs to a 2-1 PAC record.
CU (13-1, 2-1 Pac-12) avoided a second straight loss and handed Washington State (9-7, 3-1) its first defeat in conference play.
Freshman Jen Reese had her first career double-double (12 points, 12 rebounds). Chucky Jeffery and Julie Seabrook just missed double-doubles. Jeffery had 12 points and nine rebounds, while Seabrook had 11 points and nine rebounds.
The Buffs trailed by 11 when coach Linda Lappe called a timeout. A 12-3 run coming out of that timeout got the Buffs back into the game.
Washington State again threatened to pull away, however, taking a 56-50 lead with 2:35 to play.
Jeffery and Lexy Kresl hit back-to-back shots to pull the Buffs within two. Then, with 37 seconds left, Kresl hit a spinning jumper to beat the shot clock and tie the game.
After the defense got a stop on the Cougars, Malcolm-Peck went 1-for-2 from the line to give the Buffs their first lead since early in the second half.
A jumper from Washington State’s Jazmine Perkins was off the mark at the buzzer.
Colorado out-scored the Cougars 22-10 after Lappe’s timeout, including 7-0 in the final 2:30
Occupy Boulder hour of doom rapidly approaching
Jan 6th
Boulder police chief visits Occupy Boulder encampment, discusses city park hours
Boulder Police Chief Mark Beckner, along with Boulder Police Cmdr. Carey Weinheimer, visited participants at the Occupy Boulder encampment outside the Municipal Building this afternoon to discuss the new rule that goes into effect tonight, which closes city parks between the hours of 11 p.m and 5 a.m.
The rule prohibits anyone from remaining in city parks, parkways or recreation areas, with the exception of bicyclists and pedestrians who are passing through the areas. Individuals remaining between the hours of 11 p.m and 5 a.m. will be in violation of the city’s trespassing rule and subject to receiving a summons or being arrested. The chief and commander handed out copies of the new regulation as they spoke to individuals at the encampment this afternoon.
Boulder chief of police warms Occupy protestors of deadline
Because Occupy Boulder protestors have been camping overnight on the Sister Cities’ Plaza outside of the Municipal Building for several weeks, Chief Beckner wanted to make sure individuals were aware of the change, which goes into effect tonight.
“Boulder police officers have been engaging in dialogues with Occupy Boulder participants all along. I thought it was important to continue those dialogues so that they understood the new rule, when it goes into effect and what the potential consequences are if they decide to stay,” Beckner said. “The police department intends to enforce the trespassing regulation, but what we are really hoping for is voluntary compliance. We support all people’s First Amendment rights to express their opinions, and hope they will do so during the daytime hours.”
Discussions between the chief and the participants at the encampment were low-key and positive, as most of the interactions have been to date. Many of the protestors are planning to comply with the new rule and some shared with Chief Beckner their plans for packing up their tents and making arrangements to protest during hours that the city parks are open.
Police intend to enforce the park closure rule, although the department has not set a timeline to do so.
Keeping families together earns Boulder County and award
Jan 6th
Boulder County Housing & Human Services director to receive prestigious child welfare award
Frank Alexander honored for his relentless work to improve the child welfare system
Boulder County, Colo. – Frank Alexander, Director of Boulder County’s Department of Housing and Human Services, is being honored with an Excellence for Children Award by Casey Family Programs, one of the nation’s leading advocates for improving the child welfare system.
Alexander will receive a Jurisdiction Award on Jan. 19 in Seattle, recognizing his record of significantly improving outcomes for Boulder County’s children and families, his leadership with the Colorado Human Services Directors Association, and his successful collaboration with other county, state and judicial partners.
“As much as anything else, this is a recognition of how our community and our state have come together to make sure those who need help are getting it,” Alexander said. “I am honored to work with so many incredible partners as we focus on building an innovative foundation of support for our neighbors.”
Under Alexander’s leadership, the Department of Housing and Human Services (BCDHHS) is moving toward a model of “permanency” for children that includes family preservation and kin support by helping young people locate loved ones or family friends who will care for them. As a result, Boulder County has seen a 40 percent reduction in out-of-home child placements since 2009, and now has the lowest foster care rate in Colorado.
He has worked with Casey Family Programs on a number of successful initiatives. These include No Time to Lose, the statewide expansion of permanency roundtables, strengthening the partnership with the Annie E. Casey assessment, and focusing on child welfare financing reform.
Susan Kelly, senior director of strategic consulting for Casey Family Programs, nominated Alexander for the Excellence for Children Award. “Frank has shown himself to be an outstanding leader in Boulder County and amongst his peers in the state and across the country,” Kelly said. “He is creative and innovative, and he excels in promoting the well-being of families.”
Background: Alexander’s vision has led to positive, rapid change
In three years as director, Frank Alexander has led a comprehensive redesign of the housing and human services system. Among other things, this has helped expand the numbers of people served by benefits by up to 140 percent, with much of this growth focused on front-end prevention that has reduced the need for more intensive and expensive down-the-line services and helped stabilize families. This prevention focus has led to reductions in evictions, foreclosures, homelessness, hospitalizations, detentions, and out-of-home placements of children.
Alexander has also helped drive partnerships across county and state divisions, including with community services, mental health, and public health agencies. Through these collaborations, he has developed an array of award-winning creative programs for Boulder County, including:
• the Housing Stabilization Program,
• the Foreclosure Prevention Program,
• the Boulder County Healthy Kids initiative,
• the Medical Home Initiative,
• An Early Intervention Program focused on connecting people earlier with needed services,
• the Colorado PEAK Statewide Training and Toolkit Initiative,
• comprehensive work internships and green-collar jobs development programs, and
• housing development programs and partnerships in the county’s Human Services/Housing Master Planning processes.
In 2010, Alexander was a key advocate for the passage of Boulder County Initiative 1A, also known as the Temporary Human Services Safety Net (TSN). This 0.9 mill levy increase on property taxes is designed to backfill state budget cuts and address increased caseloads. In 2011, the TSN provided over $5 million in funding for emergency services for Boulder County, which along with boosting access to food assistance and medical care, also helped address a child care assistance waiting list that had grown to 650 children. Details on the TSN and its impacts are available at www.bouldercountyTSN.org.
Alexander was elected president of the Colorado Human Services Directors Association (CHSDA) in 2010, and has been instrumental in both its reorganization and in the redesign of the state’s human services system.
