School News: Leanne Emm Named Assistant Commissioner of Public School Finance

Students at Landmark academy at reunion celebrate first annual latin culture week

Landmark Academy at Reunion , a tuition-free public charter school, recently hosted their First Annual Latin Culture Week, a week focused on educating students on the various aspects of Latin culture, from music and art to sports and celebrities, through unique activities. During the week-long celebration, students were able to step into the lives of the Aztecs, Incas and Mayans with Latin culture lessons through piñata making, cultural crafts, songs, traditional foods and more. Students made maracas and learned a traditional Mexican Hat Dance; created Aztec suns working with metal tooling; and studied different countries in Mexico , Central America and South America . Aztec dancers from the Colorado Folk Arts Council also visited with students and educated them on the spiritual and traditional aspects of Aztec culture through dance. “We reside in a community with strong Latin and Hispanic roots,” said Matt Carlton, principal of Landmark Academy at Reunion . “Our community culture is important to us at Landmark. By providing unique ways for our students to learn the various backgrounds of our diverse community they are able to understand and appreciate different cultures.” For more information about Landmark Academy at Reunion , please visit www.landmarkacademy.org.

April 05, 2011

Leanne Emm Named Assistant Commissioner of Public School Finance

Commissioner Robert Hammond today announced the appointment of Leanne Emm as the assistant commissioner of public of school finance. Emm has been serving as interim director since mid-January, when longtime former assistant commissioner Vody Herrmann announced her retirement.

“We are fortunate to have someone of Leanne’s caliber who is experienced with the intricacies of Colorado’s school finance system, particularly during these challenging budget times,” said Commissioner Hammond. “We posted the job and interviewed strong candidates, but Leanne emerged as the best fit for this position at this time.”

Prior to joining the Colorado Department of Education, Emm worked for Jeffco Public Schools in the areas of budget and finance for almost 14 years. While at Jeffco, she was involved with federal programs, pupil counts, debt issuance and system improvements. Previous to her work with Jeffco schools, Emm worked for Jefferson County Public Libraries, and also ran the business office and served as the city accountant for the city of Sheridan. Emm completed her master’s degree in public administration at the University of Colorado - Denver, with an emphasis in school finance, in 2010.

“I look forward to the work ahead,” said Emm, “and doing everything we can at the department to support school districts as they make important and often difficult decisions on behalf of Colorado students.”