Friday, September 25, 2026, 12:15 p.m. (Denver time), Parr-Widener Community Room, Room 389
This Budget Hearings meeting, day 5, featured a presentation by the Office of Children's Affairs (OCA) on its proposed 2027 budget, beginning on page 238 of the budget book. Executive Director (referred to in the transcript as) Ridgeway outlined the office's cradle-to-career priorities: universally affordable childcare, out-of-school-time programming, youth workforce development, child-friendly city work with UNICEF USA, and a new community-led safety grant program ($3 million from the Youth Activity/Broncos Fund). Council members asked about the child-friendly city designation status, Head Start slots (including a provider's potential relocation to Lakewood), out-of-school-time contracts with the YMCA, the pending legislation allowing OCA to retain up to 1% of Denver Preschool Program and Prosperity Denver Fund tax revenues, future replacement of the expiring Broncos Fund, the revenue source for universal childcare, and federal Head Start rule changes. The director noted the universal childcare task force aims to have pilot recommendations by late spring or early summer of next year, and committed to follow up with more contract detail for Council Member Flynn.
0:32 Welcome to day 5 of a we are
0:36 at last 2 hearings sending the
0:38 best for I'm still lots money
0:40 to serve as the chair of the
0:40 Public Safety Committee had
0:43 the honor to serve all of
0:44 residents, the fine District
0:46 We have the Office of Student
0:47 Affairs providing a
0:49 presentation to about parents
0:51 today. But before we jump into
0:52 those presentations, let's go
0:57 around room and have a brief
0:58 introduction starting on my
0:59 Thank you. Good to Nuggets.
1:11 Put at large play southwest
1:13 districts desperate way
1:14 executive director of the
1:15 Office of Children's
1:16 Secretary's Office Children's
1:18 First Teachers until district
1:20 Jaime Torres was Denver
1:21 District What I believe is
1:23 what the district 7 Diana
1:24 Romero, Campbell, Southeast
1:27 Denver, District Joe Negron, a
1:32 layers because a chief
1:34 financial officer so do we
1:36 have city councilmembers
1:38 online. Yeah. Good afternoon.
1:40 Paul Kashmann shot Denver
1:41 District 6, the new MR.
1:44 Cashman and we have. We are in
1:47 a chief operating excited to
1:50 hear from him. The Ridgeway
1:51 and her team. And so turn it
1:52 over to you for the
1:53 presentation. Thank you very
1:59 much. Thank you so much.
2:01 COUNCILMAN Watson, good
2:02 afternoon Council members. My
2:04 name is just Ridgeway and
2:05 executive director of the
2:07 Office of Children's Affairs.
2:08 And I'm pleased to cea's
2:13 proposed budget for 2027. And
2:13 also looking forward to
2:14 sharing some of the work
2:16 that's happening across our
2:18 office. But before it began
2:20 would love to share a few
2:22 appreciation. Ys, first and
2:23 foremost, want to thank my
2:24 team here. Do see a I have
2:25 some folks here in the room
2:27 with me and others who are
2:29 not. But appreciate you for
2:31 your help in creating this
2:32 budget. But more than not for
2:33 the work that the team does
2:37 every single day supporting
2:38 kids and communities across
2:41 and certainly with
2:42 professionalism and dedication
2:42 and commitment. The eu also
2:44 with the everyday. So thank
2:46 you. I'd also like to thank
2:46 the Department of Finance to
2:48 the mayor's Office for your
2:49 guidance and support
2:51 throughout this process. And
2:54 for your alignment around our
2:54 vision to support and serve
2:58 Denver's children and families
2:59 and finally want thank you.
3:03 Council members. Your
3:04 continued partnership and your
3:06 advocacy for the work that we
3:10 is really meaningful and
3:11 impacts our And we are
3:13 just honored to be able to do
3:13 this alongside you. So look
3:14 forward to the conversation
3:18 today. I'll now turn cea's
3:21 proposed 27 budget for those
3:22 following along will begin on
3:28 Page 238 of budget As the
3:29 Central Hub for Denver's
3:32 children. We ensure that every
3:34 person from birth to age 24
3:35 has the support and
3:35 opportunities they need to
3:39 thrive. This mission is both
3:40 are charge and our commitment
3:41 to Denver's children, youth
3:44 and families. Ca serves as the
3:46 coordinating body that brings
3:50 together city partners,
3:52 community partners and most
3:52 importantly use and families
3:54 to build an ecosystem where
3:57 every child can flourish
3:58 through all of our work. We
4:00 stay very grounded and guided
4:01 by the voices of our use and
4:06 the families that we serve. To
4:08 fulfill this Ca is committed
4:09 to fostering a continuum of
4:11 cradle to career services. The
4:14 follow our children. You'll
4:15 see that commitment reflected
4:19 in our priorities. First,
4:21 Denver is committed to
4:21 delivering a universally
4:23 affordable childcare system
4:25 for all Denver families. Since
4:28 the mayor shared his vision
4:30 this summer, ca has been
4:34 engaging with providers,
4:35 families, community leaders,
4:36 community partners and other
4:38 stakeholders across the
4:40 community to understand what
4:42 they would like to see and of
4:44 full realization of this child
4:46 care system. And that work
4:46 will continue with urgency and
4:51 to 2027. Second together in
4:54 partnership with Community
4:55 Partners. The Denver
4:56 Afterschool Alliance, Denver
4:58 Parks and Recreation. The
4:59 Denver Public Library and
5:02 Denver Public Schools. She's
5:06 dedicated to expanding out of
5:07 school opportunities for youth
5:07 to learn and grow outside of
5:12 the classroom. Research shows
5:13 that young people spend at
5:14 least 80% of their time
5:17 outside of the classroom. And
5:19 so we know that these programs
5:20 are critical opportunity for
5:23 learning for enrichment and
5:24 for connection with trusted
5:26 adults. Are out of school time
5:28 partners provide programming
5:29 during these critical hours
5:34 and do so to support stronger
5:35 academic outcomes and stronger
5:40 social emotional development.
5:41 Ca continues to support
5:43 opportunities for used to gain
5:44 work. Experience and explore
5:48 career pathways. Unemployment
5:49 programming is not just about
5:50 getting young people to work.
5:53 It's a strategy to provoke,
5:55 promote positive youth
5:57 development to be able to
6:01 allow kids to be gaining
6:02 additional skills and to
6:04 really create a pathway so
6:05 that children see themselves
6:09 living and working in Denver.
6:10 Ca is deepening our commitment
6:12 to child center governments
6:14 through our partnership with
6:16 unicef, usa. We continue to
6:18 identify ways to place youth
6:22 and families at the heart of
6:22 decision-making, ensuring that
6:23 young people not only have a
6:24 seat at the table, but also
6:27 have. The chance to have an
6:29 active voice in the decisions
6:30 that are being made to shape
6:31 the policies and programs that
6:35 impact them. And finally, ca
6:39 will continue to advance
6:41 community safety in 2027. We
6:41 look forward to launching the
6:42 community. Let's safety
6:46 program. Which has been
6:47 developed are a collaborative
6:51 process sci Council members
6:51 here together with us today
6:54 and community partners. We
6:57 believe this program will
6:57 further strengthen the
6:59 ecosystem of support for the
6:59 youth, most impacted by
7:05 violence. To support each of
7:07 these priorities. Oc is budget
7:08 philosophy is guided by 3 core
7:12 principles. First we
7:14 prioritize funding community
7:15 partners who work directly
7:17 directly with youth and
7:17 families, as you'll see
7:21 throughout presentation, ca
7:23 aims to maximize the amount of
7:24 dollars that our community
7:25 partners receive to support
7:29 their work. Second it we work
7:31 with partners across the city
7:33 to established you have 5 city
7:34 infrastructure for youth
7:38 programming. As the central
7:40 hub for Denver's you serving
7:42 Ca believes that aligning
7:44 practices priorities and
7:45 sharing data and information
7:46 with our partners allows us to
7:49 be more strategic and are
7:50 budgeting process and ensuring
7:51 that every dollar is
7:54 maximized. And finally, we
7:55 deploy our funds where they
7:58 can make the biggest impact.
7:58 I'll discuss this in greater
8:00 detail in coming slides but
8:04 knows it. But we know that our
8:06 investments have greater
8:07 impact depending on where and
8:10 how we invest. We take a
8:11 data-driven approach to ensure
8:12 that these decisions are as
8:18 impactful as possible. As part
8:18 of that data driven approach.
8:19 I want to highlight one of the
8:22 key tools that guides our
8:24 funding decisions, the child
8:25 well-being index. This is a
8:29 tool ca created. To be able to
8:30 support the work that we do
8:35 across the office. This index
8:37 combines 11 indicators into a
8:38 single measure that provides a
8:39 snapshot of child well-being
8:42 across the city. These
8:43 indicators include
8:46 kindergarten readiness, child
8:48 poverty, percentage of 3rd
8:50 graders reading on grade level
8:51 among others. We use this data
8:54 to help direct our funding to
8:55 spaces in the city that need
8:58 it the most one example of how
9:00 this tool drives some of our
9:05 decisions is in 2026. Council
9:05 district 3, 8, 9, hosted the
9:08 greatest number of grant
9:10 funded youth programs in their
9:11 districts. This aligns with
9:12 the greatest need identified
9:14 by the index shown by the
9:19 darkest regions on the map. To
9:21 carry out this work across the
9:23 seeing is organized into 3
9:24 divisions, early childhood
9:26 care and education. Denver,
9:28 great kids Head start and use
9:31 development and engagement.
9:33 The early childhood care and
9:35 education division is leading
9:37 our work on our child Care for
9:39 all initiative. This division
9:40 also manages our partnership
9:42 with the Denver preschool
9:43 program supports our family
9:44 friend and neighbor care
9:46 providers and partners and
9:49 supports other issues that
9:49 come up in the first 5 years
9:58 of life. As the city Denver's.
9:58 Local, green tea for
10:01 headstart. Denver, Great Kids
10:03 Head Start currently serves
10:07 1112 students and our city.
10:08 Head start is widely regarded
10:10 as the gold standard for
10:11 comprehensive services for
10:14 children and families and our
10:16 Denver. Great Kids Head Start
10:17 staff provide coaching to
10:20 families to educators. They
10:20 ensure that children have
10:22 access to their health
10:23 screenings and they support
10:26 their academic achievement.
10:27 It's important to note that
10:29 head start is not just a
10:31 comprehensive whole child
10:31 preschool program. It is a
10:34 whole family approach designed
10:35 to support families who need
10:40 it. The most. And lastly, our
10:42 division encompasses the
10:42 use development and engagement
10:44 Denver Afterschool Alliance.
10:47 St Community Grant program.
10:49 The mayor's use Commission and
10:50 other use engagement
10:53 opportunities and initiatives
10:56 together. This ensures that
10:58 you have access to the
10:58 opportunities they need to
11:00 thrive, supported by an
11:01 infrastructure that allows us
11:03 to evaluate the effectiveness
11:04 of those opportunities and
11:08 expand their impact. I'd now
11:10 like to share some of the
11:12 outcomes behind the impact
11:13 that I've referenced beginning
11:15 with Denver. Great Kids start.
11:18 Launched in 1965. As part of
11:19 the war on poverty Head Start
11:22 is one of the nation's
11:24 longest-running antipoverty
11:24 programs providing
11:26 comprehensive earlier learning
11:28 health and family support
11:29 services to childrens and
11:32 families who qualify. Denver's
11:35 own history is also extensive
11:38 head start. Programming has
11:40 been in the city for over 60
11:41 years and actually run by the
11:41 city of Denver for over 30
11:46 years. Today. Denver, Great
11:47 Kids Head Start uses the
11:49 teaching strategies gold
11:51 Assessment, which is a common
11:51 assessment used across early
11:56 learning. And across the
11:57 United States and this
11:59 measures development in 6 key
12:01 areas by the end of the most
12:02 recent program here you can
12:03 see some of the great outcomes
12:07 that are children achieve 90%
12:08 of children demonstrated
12:10 proficiency and social
12:13 emotional development. 89%
12:15 demonstrated proficiency and
12:16 cognitive development and 85%
12:19 and language development. You
12:20 can see the other great
12:20 achievements. The children
12:23 made here. These results
12:24 reflect the dedication of our
12:27 head. Start team and our
12:29 community providers and the
12:30 strength of the comprehensive
12:30 whole child whole family
12:36 approach. With that commitment
12:37 to children and families
12:40 continues well beyond the
12:41 early years out of school time
12:42 programming is not a nice to
12:44 have. It's a proven lover for
12:46 improving academic
12:49 performance, building
12:49 protective factors against
12:51 violence and risky behaviors,
12:53 strengthening social,
12:54 emotional development and
12:55 preparing young people for the
12:58 workforce. As reflected on
13:00 this ca remains committed to
13:01 ensuring that has many young
13:03 people as possible can
13:05 participate in these programs.
13:08 These programs also serve as
13:08 an essential support for
13:12 working families. In our most
13:14 recent or 2026. Impact report
13:15 through the Denver Afterschool
13:19 Alliance. 3rd of our parents
13:21 said that they would have to
13:23 reduce their hours or leave
13:24 their job entirely if they
13:24 were unable to participate in
13:27 after-school programs. In
13:30 2027, we hear that and we are
13:33 anticipating that 15,000
13:34 people, young people will
13:35 participate in our programs
13:40 next year. And finally, to
13:42 complete our cradle to career
13:43 I'd like to highlight the work
13:44 of some of our partners at
13:48 Prosperity. Denver Fund. As
13:49 shown on this chart
13:50 prosperity. Denver Fund has
13:50 increased the number of
13:51 college scholarships. It
13:53 supports young people by
13:57 reaching more than 2700 young
13:57 folks and the 24 25 school
14:03 year. The bars and red. Show
14:04 and represents the credential
14:06 programs that prosperity
14:09 Denver find is supporting as
14:10 an addition to its offerings
14:12 made possible by the package
14:13 of ordinance changes the
14:17 council approved in 2023. Last
14:19 year. Prosperity Denver Fund
14:21 supported over 700 credential
14:23 programs for Denver. Students
14:25 and these investments and
14:27 diverse talent pipeline are
14:28 already delivering meaningful
14:31 benefits to the local economy.
14:32 A recent economic impact
14:33 report conducted by the Metro
14:36 Denver Economic Development
14:38 Corporation. Jon, that
14:39 participating students have
14:41 increased their potential
14:43 future earnings by 1.0, 2,
14:46 5 billion dollars and that
14:47 every dollar prosperity,
14:48 Denver and vests and Denver's
14:50 young people. Returns
14:54 approximately 7. Denver is
14:56 home to exceptional young
14:56 talent. And these investments
14:57 demonstrate the value of
15:02 supporting it. Without
15:03 overview of the programs that
15:04 we provide all now turned to
15:07 how they're funded. This slide
15:08 provides a snapshot of oh,
15:10 sees budget by funding stream.
15:11 And as you'll see a
15:13 significant portion of our
15:15 budget consists of special
15:16 revenue funds that are
15:16 administered by third-party
15:20 partners. As you can see in
15:21 green up here, the Denver
15:22 Preschool program administers
15:24 the Denver preschool tax
15:26 revenue. But to which accounts