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Lieutenant Governor Barbara O'Brien
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Lieutenant Governor Barbara O'Brien leads alongside Governor Bill Ritter to fight for all generations of Coloradans, pursuing innovative solutions to improve education, health care, and the economy in Colorado.
Public Service Record
Barbara has served Colorado for decades, and is widely respected both statewide and nationally for her effective work on children's issues. As President of the Colorado Children's Campaign from 1990-2005, she provided the vision for the state's premier child-advocacy nonprofit agency and improved the lives of more than 1 million Colorado children.
Prior to her election as Lieutenant Governor, Barbara also served on the Mayor's Leadership Team on Early Education, the Governor's Commission on Children and Families, the National Kids County Steering Committee and the Tony Grampsas Youth Services Fund. She also founded and co-chaired the Kids Caucus, a bi-partisan group of state legislators committed to supporting policies that benefit children.
In 2006 Bill Ritter selected Barbara O'Brien to serve as his running mate, and she continues to serve Colorado with him as Lieutenant Governor.
Accomplishments as Lieutenant Governor
Barbara is a relentless advocate for quality education in Colorado. As co-chair of Gov. Ritter's P20 Education Commission, she was key in providing leadership to offer full day kindergarten statewide and expand preschool programs for at-risk children. She is leading the effort to get Race to the Top grant funds, which could result in hundreds of millions of dollars for Colorado's education system.
Barbara has also focused on improving health and wellness for both children and adults, traveling statewide to visit communities and help reconnect kids to the outdoors. She has also advocated for healthier foods in schools and LiveWell Colorado, an organization fighting obesity in Colorado.
As co-chair of the Colorado Space Coalition, Barbara has been a lead promoter of Colorado's aerospace industry, the second largest in the nation. She also has supported science, technology, engineering and math education to ensure a new generation of aerospace workforce.
Family
Barbara is married to Rick O'Brien, a doctor specializing in pulmonary and sleep disorders. Barbara and Rick moved to Colorado in 1982 and raised their two grown sons, Jared and Connor, here. It is Barbara's strong passion for her own family, and her early work for former Gov. Richard Lamm on education and health policy, which led Barbara to dedicate her life's work to children's issues.
