Governing Board

Jane Shirley has twenty-five years of experience in business, education and the arts, holding a master’s degree in education with extensive post-graduate work in systems thinking and structural consulting. Currently, she is a partner with Team Tipton, a consulting firm that works with teams and organizations to design and implement future-focused strategy.

Jane and her husband Dave are co-founders of Rattlebrain, the creative team that envisioned and opened a cabaret theater in the historic D & F Clocktower. They have one son who is currently in film school and who sometimes gets roped into running tech for one of their shows.

Elise Topliss is a Policy and Performance Manager with the State of Colorado, Office of Economic Security. Elise earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Services – High Risk Youth from Metropolitan State University of Denver, and earned a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of Northern Colorado. Elise is passionate about education and ensuring all children have access to safe and quality schooling, which includes minimizing the nutritional disparities among varying populations. Additionally, Elise is committed to ensuring professionals in the education field have resources and supports to be effective in their chosen field as well as have job satisfaction. Elise and her husband Jesse are the proud parents of two High Point Academy students.

Marcus Bratton is a Denver native with over a decade of experience in K-12 public education. Before joining the Colorado Education Initiative earlier this year as Director of Implementation and Partnerships, Marcus was a school administrator at a K-8 in Denver, and prior to that, a high school teacher in Aurora. His work has always been guided by his belief that public education should give every student the opportunity to create the lives they want for themselves. Marcus has been married for 14 years to his wife Krista, who is a Seventh Grade Teacher, they have a son (7) and a daughter (3).

Michael is a former HPA teacher and basketball coach. He works in public policy and is an adjunct professor of American Politics. He graduated from Valparaiso University and earned his J.D. from University of Colorado – Boulder. He and his wife, Mele, have 3 children.

Mickale Gilbert is a licensed financial consultant with seven years of experience in the financial services industry. He lives in Green Valley Ranch with his wife and three children, two of whom attend High Point Academy as 4th and 6th graders.

Mickale has a strong passion for education with both his parents being teachers and educators. He has spent the last 5 years working closely with Denver nonprofit organizations such as College Track, The Goodwill, Junior Achievement and Special Olympics of Colorado. He is very passionate about promoting financial literacy and has worked with Denver Public Schools to speak in their schools on financial literacy initiatives and fundraising to give back to the local community.

Laurie has over 30 years experience in public education in Colorado.  She began her career teaching in Northwest Aurora and then served as a math coach, AP, and Principal in an Expeditionary Learning School.  Laurie was the Head of School of SOAR Charter School in Denver for 4 years and is currently serving as the Interim Principal at Cole Arts and Sciences Academy in Denver. Laurie earned her B.A. in Elementary Education from Metropolitan State College and her M.A. in Educational Administration from the University of Colorado.  Laurie is actively involved the educational community in Colorado focused on educational reform, equity, and teacher development.   Her work is focused on supporting teachers and leaders in diverse schools to ensure that all students receive an excellent education.

Mirela Phillips has been living in the High Point (HP) community since 2014 with her husband and two children.  She is a Healthcare IT professional for Cognizant Technology Solutions with over twelve years of consulting experience. Mirela enjoys welcoming new neighbors to HP and loves helping the families settle into their new community including highly recommending High Point Academy for preschool through 8^th grade.