Tuesday, November 14, 2006

RITTER NAMES CROWE, KONCILJA AS INAUGURAL CO-CHAIRS


 
RITTER NAMES JAMES CROWE AND FRANCES KONCILJA
AS INAUGURAL COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRS
 
Gov.-elect Bill Ritter today named Level 3 Communications CEO James Crowe and his wife, Pamela, and prominent attorney Frances A. Koncilja as the co-chairs of the Colorado Promise Inaugural Committee.
 
"I'm honored to have such accomplished leaders guiding the inaugural planning process," Ritter said. "The inaugural festivities will be all-inclusive and will mark the beginning of a new era in how we govern this state. I couldn't be more excited."
 
Plans for the Jan.9 inauguration are still underway. Details will be available through a special website, www.coloradopromise.org. The public will be able to purchase tickets and obtain additional information from the website when it is activated in the coming days.
 
While Ms. Koncilja and Mr. and Mrs. Crowe lead the inaugural planning phase, a separate group is guiding Ritter's transition team. The team is co-chaired by Daniel Yohannes and Norma Anderson, with Jim Lyons serving as executive director. Information about the transition can be found at www.rittertransition.org.
 
Biographical information about James Crowe and Frances Koncilja:
 
James Crow: Mr. Crowe, 57, is the chief executive officer of Level 3 Communications Inc., an international communications and information services company. Founded in 1997, Level 3 constructed a 20,000-mile fiber-optic network designed to fully leverage Internet technology. Today, the network serves as one of the largest Internet backbones in the world.
 
Prior to founding Level 3, Mr. Crowe was chief executive officer of MFS Communications, which he built into the largest competitive local exchange carrier operating in the United States andEurope. In 1996, MFS was acquired by WorldCom for $14.3 billion.
 
Mr. Crowe serves on the boards of directors of Level 3 and Commonwealth Telephone. He holds a BS degree in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MBA fromPepperdine University.
 
Frances A. Koncilja: Ms. Koncilja, a Colorado native who grew up in Pueblo, has been an attorney since 1972. She specializes in commercial litigation after beginning her career as a public defender and a federal prosecutor. She entered private practice in 1978. Ms. Koncilja, 57, established her own law firm, Koncilja & Associates, in 1993; served as president of the Colorado Bar Association in 1994-95; and is a founding member of the Colorado Women's Bar.
 
She serves on Mayor Hickenlooper's Infrastructure Task Force, was co-chair of Denver's Criminal Justice Center Task Force and co-chaired Citizens for Safe Denver. She is president of the City Club of Denver and serves on the boards of Colorado Public Radio and the Gold Crown Foundation.
 
Ms. Koncilja earned her BA degree from the University of Southern Colorado in 1969 at the age of 20 and her law degree from the University of Colorado in 1972.
 
###