Capital Construction Assistance Board (CCAB)

CCAB Meeting Information: ​

• June Monthly CCAB Meeting: Canceled 
• July Monthly CCAB Meeting: Thursday, July 20, 2023 1:00pm - 3:00pm - Virtual
• August Monthly CCAB Meeting and Retreat: Week of August 7, 2023 - Details TBA

Watch Live

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Board Chair

Jane Crisler

Architect, Appointed by the Governor

Jane Crisler is inspired by great educational buildings, both old and new, and is passionately committed to improving neighborhood quality of life through designing and preserving these great community buildings. Jane leads both the K-12 and Historic Preservation markets for EUA's Denver office. She has worked for more than 14 years in commercial architecture as well as 12 years at the Federal Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. She currently serves on Denver's Lower Downtown Design Review Board as well as on the Board of Directors for the Association for Learning Environments, Rocky Mountain Region.

Jane's experience includes design of large-scale K-12 rehabilitation and adaptive use projects as well as ground-up new construction and additions throughout Colorado. She is a licensed architect practiced in all phases of the K-12 architectural design process. Jane enjoys the creative problem solving associated with tough adaptive use projects and is a leader in the firm's K-12 and historic preservation planning and design practices.

Vice-Chair

Wendy Wyman

Facility Planner and Manager, Appointed by the G.A. Speaker of the House

Wendy Wyman is committed to promoting equity and ensuring that all students participate in high-quality educational experiences. She understands that all students deserve to learn in safe, healthy, and enriching environments. As the superintendent of a mountain district she led two large construction projects supported by BEST grants matched with local bonds; projects funded by BEST cash grants; and other facility improvements.

In her current role as the executive director of the Mountain BOCES, Wendy works with four rural school districts that have all benefitted from the BEST program. Time and again she has seen school facility improvements revitalize communities and enhance the lives of students and educators.

Dr. Wyman’s work as an education leader includes eight years as a superintendent and five years as a building principal. Wendy has also served as a teacher; an assistant professor in higher education; a Title I senior consultant at the Colorado Department of Education; and an education policy analyst.

Brian Amack

Technology Expert, Appointed by the G.A. Minority Leaders

Brian Amack is the Technology Director for Morgan County School District. He has worked in the Information Technology field in the Community College System and Morgan County School District for 30 years. He has been intimately involved in the building of two new schools and countless renovations to many schools, including extensive work on HVAC, Fire Alarm and Door Access control issues.

Allison Pearlman

Construction Manager, Appointed by the Governor

Allison Pearlman is currently Manager of Design and Construction for Aurora Public Schools, where she plans, assigns, and directs the work of a project management team. She additionally manages design and construction projects including smaller building renewal projects, mechanical repair and HVAC replacement projects, and addition and new school construction projects.

Before joining Aurora Public Schools, Allison was a Facility Planner at Denver Public Schools. And prior to this position, she worked in the Facilities Division of History Colorado as Building Manager/Project Manager. This work provided opportunities to visit communities across the state including ones in Costilla, Las Animas, Montrose, Pueblo, and Weld Counties.

Ms. Pearlman received a Master's of Architecture from the University of Kansas in 2000. Her interest in public policy issues and community engagement dates back to the early 1990s, where she completed internships at both the National Coalition for the Homeless and the White House's Office of Communications.

Brett Ridgway

Public School Superintendent, Appointed by the State Board of Education

Brett Ridgway has 25 years of experience in accounting and finance. Fifteen of those years came from experience in the private sector; in banking (with Bank One & J.P. Morgan Chase) and financial services (The Dun & Bradstreet Corporation). Brett received his certified public accountant license in 1994 and transitioned into banking where he designed and maintained several statistical modeling systems to predict the financial results for more than $100 billion in loan portfolio balances.

In 2007, Ridgway transitioned to education finance. He has served School District 49 as Chief Business Officer, for the last ten years. At District 49, he leads one of the most innovative yet financially healthy school districts in Colorado, despite D49's status as a floor/low-funded, high-growth school district. District 49 has built or acquired five new buildings for students in the last few years and recently completed the initial wave of a new decennial ‘refresh and refurbish' program for all D49 educational buildings – including charter schools. Ridgway has also served on the board of directors for Colotrust, the leading Liquid Government Investment Pool in Colorado, since 2010.

Matthew Samelson

Public School Finance Expertise, Appointed by the President of the Senate

Matt Samelson is the Program Manager at the Western Conservation Foundation, and is an attorney with Western Environmental Law Partners.  Matt’s education work focuses on public school infrastructure issues, such as facilities, transportation, school finance, bond and mill levies, and educator housing.  Recently, he helped improve transit equity in the Denver metro area by working with numerous youth and community organizations to create a more affordable RTD youth pass. As an attorney, Matt works on a variety of oil and gas policy issues for conservation groups and communities. Matt has a law degree from the University of Colorado and a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Colorado Denver. Prior to engaging in law and policy work, Matt was a journalist for eight years.

Michael Wailes

School Board Member, Appointed by the State Board of Education

Michael D. Wailes is a member of the Weld County RE-5J Board of Education. He is a Colorado native and lives on his family's farm near Johnstown. He owns and operates a small digital marketing agency and runs a small, fledgling charity: Johnstown-Milliken Coats for Kids.

In addition to serving on the school board, Michael serves as the Chairman of the Weld County Planning Commission and the Weld County Board of Adjustments.

Vaishali McCarthy

School Facilities Planner/Manager, Appointed by the State Board of Education

Vaishali is currently a Sr. Manager in the Office of Planning and Design for Denver Public Schools, and has been with the District for five years.  She assists in the development and maintenance of long range capital plans for District facilities and necessary capital expenditures for new construction and capital reinvestment.  Additionally, Vaishali acts as a liaison between the District, school site administrators, architects and contractors to assure that the authorized projects are accomplished in accordance with District policies and procedures, and oversees day-to-day activities for the Planning and Design team.

Prior to Denver Public Schools, Vaishali has had 15 years of experience in the private sector as an architect in Denver, with the majority of work with schools.  Her school projects have ranged from small renovations to new high school construction projects throughout the State of Colorado and North Dakota.

Kevin Haas

Engineer, Appointed by the Governor

Kevin Haas is currently a principal at Martin/Martin Consulting Engineers in Lakewood, Colorado. With 16 years of experience as a structural engineer, he leads a team that focuses on the structural design of K-12 facilities in Colorado. Through this work he has been involved in dozens of K-12 construction projects, including structural assessments of existing buildings; master planning efforts for grant and bond applications; mechanical/ventilation upgrades; and ground-up new construction, and renovations and additions for elementary, high school, and K-12 facilities throughout the state. In this role he works closely with design professionals, contractors, owner’s representatives, and school district staff to achieve sustainable, efficient, and positive outcomes with the resources and opportunities that are available for the maintenance and development of school facilities. He greatly values the opportunity to contribute as a professional to the betterment of education in Colorado. Kevin is a licensed engineer in Colorado, California, and Georgia; serves as a member of the Structural Engineers Association of Colorado; and a is Colorado native from Fort Collins.