College of Business Boards

Bri Newland, Interim Dean, College of Business

Dr. Bri Newland is Interim Dean of the College of Business at UCCS. Bri joined the College in August 2024 as Associate Dean, where she led enrollment strategy, academic program operations, and AACSB accreditation efforts. Prior to arriving at UCCS, she was an Assistant Dean and Professor at New York University, where she held several leadership roles within the School of Professional Studies.

From 2018 to 2023, Bri served as Academic Director of Undergraduate Programs for the Preston Robert Tisch Institute for Global Sport at NYU. In that role, she managed a team of full-time faculty and 35 adjuncts, rebuilt the entire undergraduate curriculum by developing 30 new courses in collaboration with faculty, and managed the continuing education certificate program. As Assistant Dean of the Division of Applied Undergraduate Studies, she directed a 10-program division of 1,500+ students, managed multi-million-dollar budgets, and led the restructuring of 14 degree programs into three bachelor's degrees and two associate degrees. She chaired and served as a member of several school and university committees, including the Provost's Teaching Quality Committee. She also holds major external administrative posts: for the North American Society for Sport Management (NASSM), she has held several leadership roles, including Interim Executive Director, Chair of the Marketing and Communications Committee, Chair of the Conference Committee, Academic Chair of the annual conference, and President, where she led governance restructuring and strategic planning. She has also served on several boards, including NASSM, the Wasserman Collective Think Tank, Tharros, and iGiant, and has just joined the BBB of Colorado Springs.

Dr. Newland is also a highly active scholar and has held several leadership roles supporting scholarly activity. Bri served as Editor-in-Chief for Sport Marketing Quarterly (2022–2025), where she led the journal through a transition to a new publisher. She has also served as Associate Editor for Managing Sport & Leisure and Event Management and sits on editorial boards for the International Journal of Sport Communication, Sport, Business and Management: An International Journal, Case Studies in Sport Management, Frontiers, Sports & Active Living, Frontiers, Sport, Leisure, & Tourism, and the Journal of Applied Sport Management.

With 20 years of increasing leadership opportunities building programs at Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, the University of Delaware, NYU, and UCCS, Bri brings a collaborative, people-first approach, valuing relationships and shared purpose. Based in Colorado Springs, she enjoys hiking and camping with her partner and dog, running, woodworking, and staying engaged with her local community.

David Balcom, Chief Operating Officer & Board Member, Freudenberg Medical

David is a Medical Device and BioTech Executive with nearly 20 years of experience in the industry. Joining the Advisory Board in 2022, he brings expertise in Strategy, Operations and Finance. David is also a United States Army veteran who served as an officer on active duty in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.

Prior to joining Freudenberg Medical, David held senior business leadership roles with St. Jude Medical, Abbott, Cirtec Medical and Harvard Bioscience, where he gained exposure to emerging technologies and therapies addressing today’s most challenging medical diseases and conditions.

David has previously served as Treasurer and Board Trustee for Code Savvy, a non-profit based in Minnesota that specializes in providing computer science opportunities to underserved communities and equips educators with the knowledge, skills and support to create with technology. He also previously served as Chairman, Treasurer and Board Member for Bold Idea, another computer science non-profit serving the Dallas area.

David holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the United States Military Academy and a M.B.A. in Finance from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.

Danielle Gaffney, Tax Manager & Partner, Stockman Kast Ryan + Company

A transplant from California, Danielle Gaffney graduated with her Bachelor’s from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs in 2013 and her Master‘s in Taxation from North Eastern University in 2019. Danielle currently serves as Tax Manager with Stockman Kast Ryan + Company (SKR+CO), an accounting firm in Colorado Springs, and has been in public accounting since 2013. She enjoys creating connections with her clients and explaining the tax ramifications of their current and future business strategies. She works primarily with groups of closely held entities and the individual owners. She prides herself on her organization skills and prompt communication, as time can be of the essence when it comes to tax planning.

Danielle is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the Colorado Society of Certified Public Accountants (COCPA), the Southern Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce and the Colorado Springs chapter of the W Source. She currently serves as a board member + a financial committee member for the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum and is on the UCCS College of Business Dean’s Community Advisory Board. Danielle formerly served as the treasurer on the board of directors for Colorado Springs Rising Professionals. A passionate supporter of the Colorado Springs community, Danielle was honored as a Rising Star in 2020.

In her spare time, Danielle enjoys traveling, visiting museums with her son and husband, and hosting summer BBQs.

Cecilia Harry, Vice President of Economic Development, SizeUp

Cecilia Harry is a dynamic leader and economic development professional with over 12 years of impacting economic development outcomes in dozens of communities and regions across the country. She relocated from Wisconsin to Colorado Springs in 2019 with a commitment to serving the Pikes Peak region with her economic development expertise.

Cecilia is Vice President of Economic Development at SizeUp, a Fintech Internet service company dedicated to empowering communities and economic development organizations to provide powerful business intelligence to small businesses and entrepreneurs. She works remotely and is proud to continue to choose Colorado Springs as her family’s home.

She is a certified economic developer (CEcD), and her leadership experience as a practitioner spans multiple states and markets. Most recently, she served as Chief Economic Development Officer at the Colorado Springs Chamber & EDC. She also led a merger between the local economic development and chamber organizations as the first CEO of Envision Greater Fond du Lac (Wisconsin). Cecilia’s economic development leadership also includes the Greater Omaha, Nebraska region and Leavenworth, Kansas, as well as consulting experience with economic development, chamber, and government clients in 10 states.

Locally, Cecilia serves on the Dean’s Advisory Council for UCCS’s College of Business (since 2020) and as a member of Colorado Springs’s Urban Renewal Authority (since 2023). She is a graduate of the Colorado Springs Leadership Institute (2023) and was a finalist for the Mayor's Young Leader Awards (2022).

Nationally, Cecilia’s board and leadership experience also involves service on the board of directors for the International Economic Development Council, the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, and the Association of the Chamber of Commerce Executives Foundation. She is one of only a few professionals who have received national 40 Under 40 recognition for both the economic development and chamber of commerce industries.

Eric Hipkins, Managing Director, Deloitte & Touche LLP

Eric Hipkins is an experienced executive, entrepreneur and founder with significant experience in building and leading high- performance teams across the computer and network security industry. Focused on overachieving metrics including revenue, retention, product development, innovation, and overall market share growth. Skilled in strategic business operations across the public and private sector product and services portfolio. Eric is a senior Intelligence professional with expert skills in cyber product development, cyber operations, cyber defense, threat intelligence and network security operations. As the founder and CEO of root9B, Eric first introduced the concept of threat hunting to commercial markets as early as 2013 with the development of the Edison award-winning ORION HUNT platform and Edison award-winning Hunt-as-a-Service (HaaS).

A military veteran, Eric is an accomplished cybersecurity, intelligence, linguistics and cryptology professional with more than 25 years of specialization in advanced cybersecurity and technical intelligence operations for the defense, Intelligence and commercial communities. Among various senior positions in U.S. Intelligence, special programs and special operations, his assignments included direct support to the President of the United States of America and members of Congress.

Eric is a graduate of NSA’s premier internship program and is professionalized by the National Security Agency (NSA) as an Intelligence Analyst and adjunct faculty. He is the recipient of the distinguished Knowlton Award for significant intelligence contributions to the United States of America. He is a former member of the Homeland Security Advisory Council’s Cybersecurity subcommittee and currently serves as a member of the Forbes Technology Council. He holds a master’s degree in computer resources and information management and maintains numerous professional cybersecurity certifications.

Steve Kaczmarek, CEO/Founder, Borealis Fat Bikes, Chair - Dean's Community Advisory Board

Steve is a passionate outdoorsman, and he coupled his love for the outdoors, and his Colorado go to activity, mountain biking, to create his company Borealis Fat Bikes. He was awarded Startup Company of the Year in 2013 by the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance and World’s Leaders, World’s 10 Most Successful Business Leaders Making a Difference in 2022 for his company.

Outside of Fat Bikes, Steve is a dedicated partner of UCCS. He serves as Chair of the Dean’s Community Advisory Board for UCCS College of Business, has been a board member since 2014, and is a longtime lecturer at UCCS. Steve lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado with his partner, Christianna Kaczmarek who is an instructor for the School of Medicine at CU Anschutz Medical Campus. Steve has a son, Reilly who is a junior studying Geology at the CU Boulder and a daughter, Sarah who is a freshman studying Health Sciences at the University of Puget Sound.

Eric King, Attorney, Miles & Stockbridge

Mr. King is a graduate of the UCCS Master of Business Administration (MBA) program and is a member of Beta Gamma Sigma national business honor society. Throughout his career, Eric has applied his technical, engineering, business, legal, and leadership skills with a passion for supporting, protecting, and identifying technical innovation, inventors, and new products and emerging technologies.

Eric also earned a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California, and holds a Juris Doctor degree with Honors from the George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C. He is a principal in the Intellectual Property Practice Group at the law firm Miles & Stockbridge P.C., where he provides intellectual property counseling and legal services to clients ranging from large corporations to early-stage entrepreneurs. He also served as co-leader of the firm’s IP Practice Group for several years and has been recognized for contributions to various firm management committees including Compensation, Nominating, Strategic Planning and Leadership, and Innovation. His law practice includes representing domestic and foreign companies in matters involving patent preparation, acquisition, enforcement, and prosecution as well as trademarks, copyrights, licensing and other business matters that arise in those technical fields, such as due diligence analysis and counseling for corporate acquisitions.

Mr. King is a registered patent attorney with experience in multiple technical fields, including artificial intelligence, electrical and electronic systems, telecommunications, computers and computer systems, microprocessors, microcontrollers, power electronics, wireless technologies, spread spectrum radio, cryptographic systems, medical devices, aeronautical, software and computer-related inventions, robotics, and financial services. Peer-selected honors he has received include Best Lawyers in America® for 2024, Virginia Business Magazine’s Legal Elite for 2020, and Virginia Super Lawyers® for 2009-2011. Eric is a past-president of the Northern Virginia Patent Lawyers Club and is a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Becky Medved, Chief Executive Officer, Peak Age

For more than seven years Becky Medved has partnered with Dr. Sara Qualls to facilitate the technology transfer of intellectual property generated through the Aging Initiative at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.

Becky Medved is retired COO and President of RCSPros, LLC, a web-based electronic health record (EHR) technology company providing senior housing with care and medications management, communications, and data sharing solutions. The Resident Care Systems (RCS) application was developed over six years by a team of gerontology, senior housing and IT experts with a deep understanding of how to support integrated person-centered care in Assisted Living and other long term care facilities.

Medved brings 35 years of executive level corporate experience in direct marketing, corporate communications and PR, operations and finance to the business including eight years in a successful business startup.

Becky remains active in the community. In addition to serving as a member and past chair of the UCCS College of Business Dean’s Community Advisory Board, she is a Director on the University of Colorado Foundation Board and was elected in 2022 to a two- year term as Vice Chair. She is a member of the Ent Center Community Advisory Board and serves as a Director on the UCCS-Centura Health Athletes’ Medicine and Performance (U-CHAMP) Board.

Becky completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Colorado at Boulder and received an MBA from UCCS. Becky and her husband Jon Medved, retired CEO, enjoy traveling, hiking, theatre, skiing and spending time with friends and family.

Harry Salzman, Broker, Salzman Real Estate Services

In 1978, Harry founded The Salzman Group, LTD in Colorado Springs, specializing in all facets of Residential Real Estate. Throughout Harry’s career, he has devoted time giving back to the community that has given him so much. He has served and is currently serving on numerous boards such as the Colorado Springs City Council Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee, the Foundation Director for the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity Foundation, Inc., and Government Affairs Committee for the Pikes Peak Association of Realtors. These are only three of the eleven committees on which he currently serves. He is Past President of the National Relocation Directors Council and a member of Worldwide Employee Relocation Council.

Harry has achieved every first-place award in the local Real Estate community from Realtor Salesman of the Year to Homebuilders Association Salesman of the Year. The Peak Producers Group named him as one of the top producers in the Pikes Peak area. And, as a member of the National Association of Realtors since 1972 and the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce (now the Regional Business Alliance) since 1973, he has been able to assure high quality ethical service for his clients when they are seeking to buy, sell, invest, or relocate.

Prior to his long, distinguished career in the Residential and Relocation Real Estate arena, Harry earned his Bachelor of Science in Finance from Arizona State University. He then graduated from the Real Estate Institute at the University of Colorado. Other designations are: Certified Residential Specialist from the National Association of Realtors; Certified Relocation Professional from Worldwide Employee Relocation Council and E-PRO Internet Professional. His career right out of college began in Investment Banking. That background continues to play an important role in working with his clients, enabling him to find not only the best home, but also the best financing for their particular needs and situations.

Harry is married to Carol who he has known since he was 14 years old and enjoys spending his free time at his Summit County home where he attends concerts, hikes and simply takes in the “Rocky Mountain High”.

Craig Smith, Chief Revenue Officer, Angi

Craig Smith is a fourth-generation Coloradan raised in Colorado Springs with a deep appreciation for his home state. He currently lives in Denver with his wife Amy and three children – Elle, Colin, and Brendan.

Craig graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs in 1997 with a degree in Finance. Craig earned a fellowship with El Pomar Foundation in Colorado Springs where he helped manage the endowment for three years. After completing the Fellowship program, he joined a technology and online marketplace in Denver called ServiceMagic, now known as Angi. In 2017, the company merged with Angie’s List and went public on the NASDAQ under the symbol ANGI. At age 33, he was named a Colorado Biz “COO of the Year” finalist and helped earn the company top honors as CTA Technology’s “Company of the Year.” Craig was instrumental in building the leading online home improvement marketplace in the world.

In 2020, after two decades of leadership at ANGI, Craig announced he is transitioning from the corporate world to philanthropy. He is energized and excited to focus on his lifelong passion for increasing opportunities for at-risk children and enhancing the neighborhoods where they live and play. Based on his own childhood youth sports experiences, Craig believes deeply that participation in athletics teaches critical life lessons and builds character and resiliency. To that end, he hopes the next 20 years of his career will focus on increasing access to youth basketball and baseball programs -- and supporting children in need --regardless of their economic standing or athletic skill level.

Craig’s roots in the not-for-profit community run deep. In addition to volunteering with several youth sports programs here in Colorado and Florida, he is a founding member of the Colorado Inclusive Economy. In addition, Craig serves at the board or leadership level for several well-known community organizations including the Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation, UCCS College of Business, Rocky Mountain PBS, and Employers Council, and was recently named to the University of Colorado Board of Trustees.

Craig was a member of the Colorado Governors Fellowship program and received the first-ever Governor's Citizenship Medal recognizing his professional excellence and positive impact on the Colorado community.

Gene Sullivan, Retired

Presently retired, Gene spent 39 years in banking. His responsibilities included commercial banking and community banking. Gene was hired and completed formal credit training at United Bank of Denver in 1981. Gene joined the commercial bank group and eventually rose to the position of Vice President. After being acquired by Norwest Bank in 1991, Gene became Business Banking Manager in Boulder, Colorado in 1992 and later Community Banking President for Boulder County, managing the business and retail banking operations for the county. In 2005, Gene accepted the position of Regional President in Southern Colorado (Wells Fargo as successor) responsible for 425 team members and 23 locations. In 2007 Gene relocated to Denver and the commercial bank as Regional Vice President of Commercial Banking for the states of Colorado, Wyoming and Montana. Gene retired from Wells Fargo in 2019.

After graduating from UCCS in 1978, Gene spent two years with The Western Casualty and Surety underwriting performance and payment bonds before transitioning to banking.

In addition to a position on the UCCS College of Business Dean’s Community Advisory Board, Gene served on many boards including Boulder Chamber of Commerce, Boulder Downtown Business Association, The Colorado Music Festival, The Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce, Colorado Springs YMCA, and The Colorado Chamber of Commerce (fka The Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry).

In retirement, Gene is enjoying golf, cycling, fly fishing, Pickleball, traveling, grandkids and reading.

James "Jim" Waldrop, Retired Businessperson & Entrepreneur

Currently, Jim uses his extensive leadership experience across multiple industries to help early-stage companies achieve their desired goals. As a retired U.S. Air Force officer, business executive and serial entrepreneur over the past 45 years, he has led and/or founded and successfully exited companies in the technology, construction, and real estate sectors from startups to multi-billion-dollar revenue corporations. Besides his organizational leadership experience, he has raised multiple rounds of equity/debt capital, worked with venture capital funds and traditional lending institutions, and worked with investment banking firms to negotiate multiple M&A events.

Since 2016, Jim has served as an advisory board member and mentor to several angel investment networks including the Thunderbird School of Global Management Angel Investment Network (TAN), Arizona State University – Thunderbird Angel Investment Network (InvestU), and the Venture Attractor at UCCS where he also serves as a mentor.

From 1999 through 2016 Jim founded, led, and successfully exited an Internet startup company, HomeSphere, Inc., a two-sided-marketplace technology entrant serving the building product manufacturer and residential construction communities. From 1995 to 1998, he served as CEO of Cathy Global Investments, an international family office with investments in numerous companies across multiple business sectors. Previously, he served from 1984 to 1995 as EVP of Pulte Homes, Inc. a multi-billion-dollar residential construction company (NYSE: PHM). He also served as president for various of its subsidiaries and affiliates including a large national mortgage company and regional homebuilding affiliate. Prior to that experience, Jim served in the international oil and gas industry in technology leadership roles.

Jim holds an MBA from the University of Colorado and a BS from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio where he also served on its School of Applied Science Advisory Board from 1986 to 1991.His experience includes being a member of the National Association of Homebuilders Information Technology Committee for several years. He has been an invited guest speaker at several universities and national construction and technology conferences. Jim is also a retired United States Air Force lieutenant colonel (active duty 1969 – 1975; reserves 1976 – 1990).

Deborah Wheeler, Global Chief Information Systems Officer, Delta Air Lines

Deborah is a passionate Information Technology Executive whose career focus has been on the protection and privacy of information and information assets, as well as on technology innovation, education and awareness.

As the current Global Chief Information Security Officer for Delta Air Lines, Deborah brings more than 25 years of cyber security expertise, information technology risk management and data privacy experiences to the aviation sector. Deborah is a Board Director for the Aviation Information Sharing and Analysis Center and the Vice-Chair of A4A’s Cyber Security Council.

Deborah has applied her experience and skills in information technology risk management and cybersecurity in building security programs for PNC Bank, Fifth Third Bank, JPMorgan-Chase, Ally Financial, and Freddie Mac in addition to her work at Delta.

Deborah also serves as an independent Board Member for SERC Reliability Corporation, as a Board Trustee for Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School, and serves on the Customer Advisory Boards for Proofpoint, Sailpoint, Crowdstrike, and ForcePoint Software companies. Deborah was inducted into the 2022 CISO Hall of Fame and has been recognized on the 2021 and 2022 Top 100 CISOs list by CISOs Connect, the 2020 Cyber Defense CISO 100 list, and was also recognized as the 2007 ISE CISO People’s Choice Award winner for CISO of the year.

Deborah holds a CISSP certification and is a graduate of the University of Colorado with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems Management.

Deborah resides in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and two of her four children. She enjoys the great outdoors and is an avid gardener and quilter in her spare time.

Jane Young, President & CEO, More Than Your Money, Inc

Jane Young is a Certified Financial Planner and President of More than Your Money, Inc. She has been a financial planner since 1996, and is enrolled to practice before the Internal Revenue Service. Jane provides integrated financial planning including investment management, retirement planning, and tax planning and preparation. She is also a personal finance columnist with the Colorado Springs Gazette. Prior to becoming a financial planner, Jane held several management positions at Digital Equipment Corporation and Quantum Corporation, where she worked for 14 years. Jane holds a BS in Business Administration and an MBA from the University of Colorado.

Jane is very active in the community. She is a past president of the Rotary Club of Colorado Springs and a past president of Leadership Pikes Peak. She is a graduate of the Leadership Pikes Peak class of 2004, the Financial Planning Association of Southern Colorado, and the Pikes Peak Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners. Jane is also the past Chairperson of the UCCS College of Business (COB) Alumni Leadership Team. She is a 2009 graduate of the Leadership Program of the Rockies and a 2011 graduate of the Colorado Springs Leadership Institute.

Jane currently serves on the Dean’s Community Advisory Board for the COB and is the Vice President of the Estate Planning Council of Colorado Springs. She is a previous board member of the Colorado Springs Leadership Institute, a member of the Rotary Club of Colorado Springs, and a member of the Southern Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce. Jane is also active in several financial planning organizations.

Jane was selected as a 2010 Woman of Influence by the Colorado Springs Business Journal and was nominated for the 2014 Athena Award by the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance. She also received the Colorado Springs Gazette’s 2014 ‘Best of the Springs’ Silver Award for Best Financial Planner. In 2018 Jane was featured in Living Well magazine as a ‘Woman Who Inspires’. Jane has been quoted in several local and national publications including The Wall Street Journal, US News and World Report, Consumer Reports, Investment News, MSN Money, Kiplinger Magazine, Money Magazine, Financial Advisor Magazine, Bankrate.com, and the Colorado Springs Business Journal.

Jane is from St. Louis, but grew up in Colorado Springs and enjoys skiing, golfing, traveling, painting, and studying French.