CollegeInvest is a not-for-profit division within the Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE), here to help everyone who wants a post-secondary education achieve that goal and to help make saving for higher education a little easier. CollegeInvest is a self-supporting state enterprise and does not receive taxpayer funding.
In 2024, assets under management are $12 billion. CollegeInvest currently represents 405,000 accounts, the majority of which are held by Colorado residents.
Under Angela’s leadership since 2009, CollegeInvest has become one of the fastest growing 529 college savings plans in the country, growing at a rate of 7 times the industry average.
With Angela at the helm, CollegeInvest launched the nation’s first FDIC insured 529 option and was the first to eliminate the barrier to entry for lower-income families by creating accounts with no minimum deposit. In 2017, Angela launched Colorado ABLE, a program offering tax-advantaged savings plans for people living with disabilities. She also developed a scholarship program to help middle class families avoid large student loan debt, and has more than tripled the number of matching grants given to lower-income families.
She was also instrumental in passing legislation giving Colorado employers a tax incentive to contribute to their employees’ CollegeInvest accounts, which helps businesses attract and retain talent, and helps working families pay for college. In 2020, First Step was created to give every child born or adopted in Colorado a free $100 college savings starter account. A child is seven times more likely to attend college and graduate if they have a college savings account.
Angela has impacted profit, nonprofit and government sectors during her career, spanning from the Denver Zoo, to her appointment as Denver’s first Marketing Director by Mayor John Hickenlooper.
Angela currently serves on the College Savings Plan Network (CPSN) and National Council for Higher Education Resources national boards. She is also committed to community improvement through board and committee roles with Colorado Succeeds, Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce Higher Education Committee, and World Denver.
Kirk Mielenz
Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder
RevGen Partners
Allen Padilla
Vice President, CFO
Colorado State University Foundation
David Chiavacci, CIMA®, CFP®
Private Wealth Manager
Merrill Private Wealth
David Simon, CFP®, CLU
Managing Director & Founder
SRS Capital Advisors, Inc.
Marti Awad, CFP®, CFA
Senior Vice President, Financial Advisor
Wealth Enhancement Group
David M. Gross PhD MBA
Teaching Professor of Finance
Leeds School of Business, CU Boulder
Christine Heitz
Senior Education and Non-Profit Leader
Danielle Shoots
Founding Partner and Managing Director
Domestic Emerging Market Investment (DEMI) Fund
Thursday, November 14, 2024
Offsite Denver Location TBD
Thursday, February 20, 2025
1600 Broadway, Suite 2300
Denver, CO 80202
Thursday, May 15, 2025
1600 Broadway, Suite 2300
Denver, CO 80202
All meetings are from 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm.