Board of RegentsCU Board of Regents vote to name Kerry Tipper Next Vice President, University Counsel of the CU System
December 23, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information contact: Danielle Radovich Piper
720-980-4418, Danielle.radovichpiper@cu.edu
CU Board of Regents vote to name Kerry Tipper Next Vice President, University Counsel of the CU System
DENVER – The University of Colorado Board of Regents voted today to name Kerry Tipper the next vice president, university counsel for the University of Colorado System.
Tipper currently serves as the Denver city attorney, a post she has held since her appointment in November 2022 by then Mayor Michael Hancock. She was reappointed to the position by Mayor Mike Johnston in September 2023. Prior to her role as the city attorney, Tipper served in the Colorado House of Representatives where she sat on the Judiciary, Finance, Appropriations and Health Insurance committees, and was a member of the Latino Caucus. Before her election to the Colorado House, she practiced law at Wilmer Hale and as an assistant attorney general in Massachusetts and Colorado. Tipper graduated from the University of Denver and received her law degree from Northeastern School of Law. She will start at CU on March 1, 2025.
“We had an exceptionally talented and diverse pool of candidates for this position and we are grateful they applied. Kerry is a highly skilled attorney and I am excited for her to join the CU team. As chair of the Board of Regents I look forward to working closely with her,” said CU Regent Callie Rennison. “Additionally, I want to congratulate Effie Ameen who the board voted to promote to secretary of the board.”
“Kerry is a talented and skilled Colorado attorney, who has been managing a large complex public office and who brings a broad network of constituencies to the job. I am confident she will hit the ground running on day one. I am pleased she will be joining CU as our VP, university counsel,” said CU President Todd Saliman.
“Education has played a transformative and empowering role in my life. I’m grateful and thrilled for the opportunity the Board of Regents and President Saliman are entrusting in me. I’m thankful to Mayor Johnston, to former Mayor Hancock who first appointed me, and to all who I work with at the city. Though I will miss them, I am excited for this opportunity, which will allow me to put my legal, management, and legislative skills to work for the University of Colorado System,” said Tipper.
Mayor Mike Johnston said, “Kerry is a true public servant who has always gone above and beyond to deliver for the people of Denver. Though we’ll miss Kerry and her thoughtful leadership, I’m proud to be one of her biggest supporters as she moves to this critical role at the University of Colorado. Denver is a better place because of Kerry’s tireless efforts and I can’t wait to see what she accomplishes next.”
Former Mayor Michael Hancock added, “Kerry is an exceptional leader committed to public service. She led both at the statehouse and as my city attorney, and I’m thrilled to see she will continue to do so as CU’s next university counsel.”
As university counsel, Tipper will provide legal advice to the CU Board of Regents, President Todd Saliman, system administrators and CU’s four campuses. She also will oversee a systemwide legal team that provides comprehensive legal services to CU’s campuses and system administration. The Office of the Vice President, University Counsel is designated by the Colorado attorney general's office to represent the university in all lawsuits.
Vice President Jeremy Hueth will continue in his role as general counsel during this period of transition and will be a resource for the university to ensure a successful handoff. The board and President Saliman are deeply grateful to Hueth for his years of service, leadership and outstanding legal skills.
The Board of Regents also voted to promote Effie Ameen to secretary of the board effective March 1, 2025.
The University of Colorado is a premier public research university with four campuses: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. With more than 67,000 students and 7,300 full-time instructional faculty members, CU is the largest institution of higher education in the state of Colorado. With an annual budget of $6.3 billion, CU generates an economic impact of $19.4 billion annually for the state. CU researchers attracted $1.7 billion in sponsored research funding and gifts in fiscal year 2023-24. CU has launched nearly 300 startups, and its academic prestige is marked by its five Nobel laureates, 10 MacArthur “genius” Fellows, 21 astronauts and 21 Rhodes Scholars. For more information about the CU system, and to access campus resources, go to www.cu.edu.