"Metropolitan State College of Denver is a hell of a good institution," says Metro State Board of Trustees member Mark Martinez. "And it's time to leverage that and take it to the next level."

In order to reach the "next level," which is for Metro to receive proper recognition for its quality, Martinez says, the board must hire the right president, someone who can serve as the public face of one of the largest baccalaureate-degree granting institutions in the nation. Martinez said the college should see "some movement" on the president search in the next few weeks.

"That's why the board is being so deliberate about its choice, because we want Metro to achieve the prominence it deserves."

Deeply involved in the community and in the economic development of the region, Martinez, the Colorado area executive for Ironstone Banks and a Republican activist, was reappointed to Metro's board by Gov. Bill Owens for a four-year term that expires in 2008. He is a member of the board's finance committee. Martinez also serves on the Governor's Council on Small Business, was appointed by U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch to be a member of the U.S. Senate Republicans Advisory Council on Hispanic Affairs, was elected assistant treasurer and national board member of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly in Washington, D.C. and was appointed by U.S. Congressman Bob Beauprez to his Hispanic American Advisory Committee.

Raised by a family of educators—his mother taught elementary school and his father was a college professor—Martinez grew up in Denver and is an alumnus of Regis College. His background, he says, has inspired a passionate interest in educational choice and K-12 education. Because of Metro's outstanding teacher education program, he sees the college playing an increasing role in developing strong educators to serve Denver and the state.

In addition, he says, Metro's board and the college community are beginning to work more in concert, something that wasn't always the case. "Many of us come from the corporate world," he says of the board, "and we came in with a lot of ideas that were quite foreign to academe, so there has been a fair amount of distrust."

As time has passed, he says, relations between the board and Metro's many constituencies have improved, with both sides coming to see "that we all really do care about the institution and that we are interested in the same thing. It's possible for Metro to shine even more over the next four to five years."