A redirection in grantmaking that began two years ago for The Colorado Trust, a 40-year-old Denver-headquartered funder, has led some employees to now voice concerns, which has reportedly put their jobs in jeopardy.
The vice president of communications for the private health equity foundation says the course has been set for years, with this being the third year of a strategic plan to primarily focus on three “social determinants of health:” food, housing, and mental and behavioral health.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines social determinants of health as nonmedical factors that influence health outcomes, such as environmental, educational, economic and employment-related conditions arising out of where a person is born, grows up, works and lives.
But those familiar with the changes say they’re concerned that equity — the heart of the organization — will get lost.
That hasn’t happened and won’t happen, said Julian Kesner, vice president of communications.
“The bottom line is we’ve been doing the same work now with the same focus areas for three years; we have not changed anything,” he said.
But several employees, who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, claim racial equity is taking a back burner in funding decisions.
During a recent meeting with some staff, which some people recorded and shared, President and CEO Don Mares told employees the organization’s attention now “intersects with race and social justice, but we are not doing that work directly. We generally will not take public stands on racial or social justice efforts.”
Because of that, Mares said the foundation will no longer fund staff professional development or conferences that “strictly focus on power building, community organizing or racial justice activities because we want alignment between those kinds of activities and the work we are doing.”
When asked about the statements, Kesner said he could not comment on “an internal, confidential staff meeting.”
Those close to the matter say Mares’ directives constitute a major shift for the trust, which in the past has promoted that there could be no health equity in Colorado without racial equity.
An anonymous poster on Reddit said the grantmaking foundation is in effect “dismissing the impact of racism and the need to incorporate racial justice to achieve health equity for the people of Colorado.”
Kesner said race is “one of many variables and considerations that are part of addressing health equity,” and that The Colorado Trust has had the same vision statement since 2012: “All Coloradans have fair and equal opportunities to lead healthy, productive lives regardless of race, ethnicity, income or where we live.”
“Our commitment to health equity means focusing our resources, energy and efforts specifically on working with entities serving historically excluded, systemically underserved or underrepresented groups and populations rather than spreading resources equally across every demographic,” Kesner said.
However, the grants team reportedly received an ultimatum from Mares, to either get on board with what some employees say appears to be no special consideration for minorities in determining grant selection or resign and receive a six-month severance package.
Employees also say they’ve been questioned by a third-party contractor about speaking publicly about the foundation’s work and warned against doing so.
Kesner said he could not comment on human resources issues.
A former Colorado state senator and representative, Mares has worked in the fields of human services and mental health, having led Mental Health Colorado and Denver’s Department of Human Services. He was also deputy mayor of the city and county of Denver in 2016 and 2020. He became president and CEO at The Colorado Trust in 2022.
The Colorado Trust’s current strategic plan was developed in 2023 and launched in 2024. It “prioritizes funding organizations working on food, housing, or mental and behavioral health issues,” Kesner said.
From 2014 to 2020, the foundation developed a Health Equity Advocacy strategy, under which it worked to promote policy changes favoring social, economic and environmental determinants of health.
The trust’s $17 million effort to affect public policy on issues such as strengthening protections for civil rights and disability rights in health care and subsidizing health insurance ended in 2024.
The board selected housing, food and mental and behavioral health to concentrate on after multiple meetings with communities and data research showed those sectors were most in need in Colorado, Kesner said.
There have been no changes to the roster of grant recipients for the past two years, Kesner added. In fact, he said, grantees in the foundation’s Community Resilience Initiatives, which funds projects related to housing stability, expanding access to mental and behavioral health services and improving food access, recently were notified of funding extensions.
“That hardly represents a change in direction,” he said.
The Colorado Trust announced on Feb. 5 that the three-year grants that were awarded for July 2024 through December 2026 would continue through next year.
The initiatives are designed to “support communities experiencing ongoing or new disruptions, including economic downturns, social turbulence, public health crises and ineffective public policy,” according to the organization’s annual report. Of 600 applications, 84 grantees were funded with $35 million over three years.
Fountain-Fort Carson School District 8 in Colorado Springs received $345,340 for 2024-26, and next year’s continuation will bring the total closer to $480,000, said Lisa Zimprich, director of mental health.
It’s the first time the district has gotten funding from The Colorado Trust, she said, and the money is paying for food bags for self-identified families in need at 14 of its 15 schools.
“Overall, the funding from The Colorado Trust has allowed us to significantly expand our impact on families and community and meet the most basic needs that so many of our families are struggling with,” she said.
Prior to the onset of the grant, the district distributed 200 bags a week; now it’s 400 weekly, Zimprich said. Also, produce and meat have been added, and students have created educational cooking videos using items found in the bags.
“It’s been invaluable for many of our families,” Zimprich said.
A new strategic plan for The Colorado Trust is in an early development phase, according to Kesner.
The Colorado Trust paid out grants totaling $28.75 million in 2024, the most recent year available. Since its inception in 1985, the trust has provided more than $690 million in charitable support statewide.
That’s not at the top of private-foundation giving in Colorado. The Colorado Health Foundation awarded more than $102 million in grants and contributions toward health and well-being in 2024. The Anschutz Foundation recorded charitable distributions of $73 million in the 2024 fiscal year. The Daniels Fund gave $70 million in grants and scholarships, including $48 million in Colorado, that year.