Our Board of Directors
Jessica Mace, Co-Chair
Financial Consultant; Affiliate
Faculty, Finance Department at Metropolitan State University
Jessica has spent the majority of her career in the financial services industry as a stock analyst with various Wall Street firms. With this, she brings over a decade of experience in financial statement analysis to the Board. Over the past few years, she has also taught at Metropolitan State University in Denver. She is an instructor for the Managerial Finance course and also taught workshops in Personal Finance for Student Success. Jessica received her B.A. in Economics and International Studies from Northwestern University and her MBA from Cornell University.
jessica.mace@newlegacycharter.net
David Meschke, Co-Chair
Litigation Shareholder, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP
David Meschke is a litigation shareholder at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP, where he specializes in high-stakes, complex commercial litigation. He has been practicing law at Brownstein since 2015, and was previously a judicial clerk for now-Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright of the Colorado Supreme Court. David has engaged in a number of pro bono projects, including work in furtherance of a civil right to counsel, representing children in protection order cases, assisting refugees seeking permanent residency, and providing legal assistance to religious organizations. He was an AmeriCorps Community Service Fellow for two years before entering law school. David received his B.A. from Middlebury College and J.D. from the University of Colorado.
david.meschke@newlegacycharter.net
Ashley Jenkins, Treasurer
Independent Consultant
Ashley has over twenty years of finance and accounting experience. She has worked in public accounting and has held senior leadership roles at public and private companies. She has led companies through major acquisitions, divestitures, and large strategic financing structures. She brings executive leadership, governance, and financial expertise to the board. Ashley is a CPA and received her B.A. in Accountancy from Villanova University.
ashley.jenkins@newlegacycharter.net
Liza Coughlin, Former Chair
Independent Consultant
Liza brings fourteen years of strategic planning experience to the board. Liza’s consulting experience has primarily been in the area of child and teen healthcare. She has led operational improvement projects that streamlined existing systems and guided strategic partnerships between major hospital networks. Liza has experience analyzing programs and processes and understanding where and how to increase efficiencies. Liza received her B.A. in Economics from Northwestern University.
liza.coughlin@newlegacycharter.net
Chris Bennett, Member
Chief Financial and Operating Officer, St. Anne’s Episcopal School
Chris brings over 25 years of experience in business and financial leadership within higher education and independent schools. He currently serves as the Chief Financial and Operating Officer at St. Anne’s Episcopal School in Denver, where he helps support the school’s mission through oversight of its finances, operations, and strategic
planning. Chris holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Mary Washington College and an MBA from the University of Denver.
chris.bennett@newlegacycharter.net
Cynthia Cheadle, Member
Teacher, Graland Country Day School
With three decades of experience in teaching, curriculum design, and classroom management, Cynthia is a seasoned educator who is passionate about empowering and engaging every student. She is skilled in using differentiated instruction to customize lessons and activities, ensuring that all students are engaged and supported regardless of their abilities or learning styles. Cynthia offers invaluable educational insight to the Board.
cindy.cheadle@newlegacycharter.net
Amy Everard, Member
Amy brings more than fifteen years of non-profit development and strategic planning experience to the board. Amy founded a non-profit, Share Our Spare, in Chicago in 2011, working with families with young children who are living below the poverty line. Prior to that she was a brand manager for Unilever, leading innovation and advertising for hair care brands globally.
Her passion for the non-profit world lies in understanding the intersection between for-profit corporations and nonprofits and how they can leverage the experience and lessons from each other. Amy received her BBA in Marketing and Operations Management from the University of Michigan and her MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern.
amy.everard@newlegacycharter.net
Brace Gibson, Member
Director of Policy & Engagement, Colorado Perinatal Care Quality
Collaborative
As CPCQC’s Director of Policy and Engagement, Brace serves as a liaison between the Colorado legislature, Governor’s office, state agencies, and patient-family advocates around maternal and infant health policy issues. Brace also provides leadership and support to the Colorado Maternal Mental Health Collaborative. As a former teen parent, Brace believes that just opportunities to achieve optimal health are realized when those most impacted by laws, policies, and practices are properly represented as stakeholders of such initiatives. She is committed to applying deep relational practices that value narrative autonomy and lived expertise, diversify participation in decision-making processes, and aim to increase the personal and institutional power of historically disenfranchised groups. Brace earned her Juris Doctor from Indiana University Maurer School of Law with a focus on public interest law and policy. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Southern Indiana.
brace.gibson@newlegacycharter.net
Paul Heskin, Member
Chief Nursing Officer, Avista Adventist Hospital
Paul Heskin RN, MBA, CCRN, serves as the Chief Nursing Officer at Avista Adventist Hospital. A relationship-focused leader, Paul is passionate about coaching, mentoring, and developing the incredible nurses who care for those in our communities.
Before joining Centura Health in August of 2021, Paul held leadership positions at multiple Colorado hospitals, where he focused on nurse engagement and development. He has frontline experience working in cardiac and pediatric intensive care units. Paul earned his Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Rush University in Chicago and his Master of Business Administration at the University of Colorado Denver.
When he is not leading Avista’s nursing teams, Paul enjoys exploring Colorado outdoors on skis, on his bike, and on foot. A Chicago native, he and his wife have two children.
paul.heskin@newlegacycharter.net
Keisha Lenston, Member
Parent of a New Legacy Teen Father
LaKeisha Lenston is the parent of a current student. Her son, his daughter, and the mother of his daughter all attend New Legacy Charter School. LaKeisha is an active member in the community. She is a Family Nurse Practitioner working in a small private practice in Aurora. She is an active member of Hope City Church of Colorado. She is a proud grandparent known to her grandchildren as “LaLa.” She is excited to join the board and be a voice for our students and parents.
lakeisha.lenston@newlegacycharter.net
Paula Smith, Member
Vice President of
Educational Services, Clayton Early Learning
Paula has more than 25 years of front-line experience working in Early Head Start and Head Start programs, passionately serving culturally diverse children from birth to age five and their families. Since joining Clayton, Paula has led and managed all aspects of education, health, mental health, early intervention, and child and family services to support school readiness and strengthen families. She has also directed and leveraged numerous community partnerships throughout the state, enhancing both quality of and access to early childhood care and education programs, particularly for underserved communities. Paula currently provides leadership and oversight of Clayton’s school-based, home-based, and community-based early childhood programs with an additional focus on strategic initiatives that include professional development and coaching throughout Colorado. Paula earned a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice from Indiana University, and a master’s degree in early childhood studies, specializing in management, administration, and leadership, from Walden University.
paula.smith@newlegacycharter.net
New Legacy’s governing board plays a significant role in advancing the school’s mission and vision by providing strategic direction, conducting academic and financial oversight, and securing adequate resources.
Our Board asserts much of its leadership through its policy-setting responsibilities. Board-level policies allow the school to operate effectively and efficiently in pursuit of its mission by establishing clear frameworks for the implementation of the school’s work. All powers of the Board lie in its collective action.
Our by-laws dictate that our board has 9-15 members with each member serving three-year terms. Terms are staggered so in any given year, three board seats are up for appointment or re-appointment. Board members are limited to serving three consecutive terms. NLCS has a policy requiring 100% of board members to either make a personally meaningful financial contribution or secure a contribution from another individual or organization.