New Year : Connecting with City Leadership
Welcome to a new year in our beautiful Mile High City! 2026 started with great opportunities for Prosperity Denver Fund to connect with city leadership.
On January 14, I met with the Health and Safety Committee of Denver City Council, along with our Board Chair Theresa Peña and Chair Elect Polica Houston. After a warm welcome from Committee Chair Darrell Watson, we shared highlights from our impact in 2025 and discussed with councilmembers about how we’ll work with them to reach out directly to the neighbors of their districts through newsletters and community events.
Later in the month, on January 26, I was invited to join leaders from the City of Denver to hear Mayor Mike Johnston share Denver's 2026 goals. It was inspiring to be there to hear both how far the City has come in the last two years and where we're heading in the years to come.
When I shared the City’s six key goals with my team here at Prosperity Denver, we realized that our work supports all of them:
Vibrant: To attract businesses to Denver, a skilled and ready workforce is essential. Prosperity Denver delivers on that by supporting thousands of Denver's young adults to earn credentials and complete college degrees each year.
Affordable: Increasing the supply of housing requires workers skilled in the trades. Just last fall, Prosperity Denver funded organizations for providing 97 certifications to learners in seven construction-related pathways.
Safe: Research shows clearly that higher levels of education and career attainment result in lower crime levels. Prosperity Denver increases the number of young people able to attain those goals every year.
All in Mile High: Young adults with less than a high school diploma or GED were 4.5x more likely to report experiencing homelessness than peers who finished high school. Prosperity Denver funds 20+ organizations working in Denver's high schools to help students make a plan for after graduation and stay in school to get there.
Climate Resilience: One of our newest partner organizations is GRID Alternatives, which trains Denver youth to become solar installers. The green economy needs skilled workers and we're helping boost those opportunities city-wide.
Child Friendly: Prosperity Denver not only funds programs that work with thousands of Denver high school students every year, we also fund programs that train the teachers, early childhood educators, and healthcare employees who provide care to our children.
Reflecting on this work, Prosperity Denver is an essential multiplier in helping Denver’s leaders bring these goals to life. We’re incredibly fortunate to live in a community where the voters choose to invest in opportunity and support to achieve the Prosperity Denver mission.
Rebecca Arno
Chief Executive Officer
You can read more about Prosperity Denver Fund in our latest Community Newsletter.