The Centers
University of Colorado Denver
Campus Box 133 - P.O. Box 173364
Denver, CO 80217-3364
Phone: (303) 315 - 2492
Fax: (303) 315 - 2497
E-mail: zsaidman@carbon.ucdenver.edu
Bio: Mr. Saidman is an Associate Director for the Center for the Improvement of Public Management and the Center for Public-Private Sector Cooperation. Mr. Saidman specializes in meeting facilitation and task forces designed to address and resolve a variety of community issues. Previously, he worked as a community organizer building and staffing multiracial, interfaith citizen coalitions.
He has a long list of successful collaborative efforts including work in school districts as distinct as Douglas County, Durango 9-R, and the Aurora Public Schools. In those districts he has facilitated for stakeholders and groups focusing on budget reductions, high school graduation requirements, pay for performance and school board retreats.
Mr. Saidman has worked on many issues including youth violence, teen pregnancy and the Colorado Department of Transportation's Child Transportation Safety Initiative. Mr. Saidman has facilitated focus groups for organizations as diverse as the city of Denver's Auditors Office, the Colorado Department of Health and Environment and the Northern Colorado Medical Center Foundation's efforts to reduce the number of traffic fatalities in Weld County. Currently, he is working with the Denver Public Schools on the construction of a new facility and the designing of a new curriculum for the Denver School of the Arts.
Prior to joining the Centers, Mr. Saidman served as a senior staff member in Denver Mayor Federico Pena's office. During the early stages of Denver International Airport, Mr. Saidman was a community relations officer working with union leaders, construction trade industry associations and neighborhood organizations. Mr. Saidman holds a BA in Psychology from Wilkes University and an MA in Teaching from Antioch-Putney Graduate School.