Cowart, Spaanstra named to Mines Board of Trustees

GOLDEN, Colo., Dec. 13, 2007 – Gov. Bill Ritter has named two Coloradans to the Colorado School of Mines Board of Trustees. Vicki J. Cowart, of Denver, and James R. Spaanstra, of Lakewood, will serve terms effective Jan. 1 and expiring Dec. 31, 2011.

Cowart, who received a master's degree in geophysics from Mines in 1977, serves as president and chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains. Previously, she was state geologist for Colorado and director of the Colorado Geological Survey for 10 years and prior, spent 19 years working in the oil and gas industry.

She belongs to of a number of organizations including the Colorado School of Mines Alumni Association, CSM Foundation Board, International Women's Forum of Colorado, American Geophysical Union, Association for Women Geoscientists and is an honorary member of the Association of American State Geologists.

Spaanstra is a partner at the Denver law firm of Faegre & Benson LLP, one of the largest and most diverse environmental practices in the Rocky Mountain region. He has spent more than 25 years in private practice and specializes in environmental law, natural resources and energy, land use, zoning and environmental review. He began his career as a staff attorney for the Council on Environmental Quality in the executive office of the U.S. President, where he helped advise President Jimmy Carter regarding national environmental policy.

His professional affiliations include service on the Industrial Waste Committee of the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, Colorado Bar Association Environmental Law Section Advisory Council, the American, Colorado and Denver Bar Associations Environmental Law Committees, and is founding director of the Colorado Hazardous Waste Management Society.