Fitzsimons Innovation Community is an integrated urban campus where health and life sciences companies of all sizes work on their next big things. Our customized workspace, collaborative campus, and proximity to one of the top health systems and medical schools in the country make our community the perfect place to put down roots and get to work.
MOVE-IN READY LAB SPACE
GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES
Coming soon
It’s not just additional space—it’s fifty sprawling acres of additional space. And it’s primed for ultra-custom, made-to-order facility development.
Fitzsimons Innovation Community and University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus working together.
Relationships that help you thrive.
FEATURED:
Fitzsimons Innovation Community releases its Second Annual Innovation Report focused on the momentum our Community members build on our campus to take their discoveries and projects from idea to market.
Fitzsimons Innovation Community is where innovators come to turn ideas into business.
A monthly feature of a Fitzsimons Innovation Community visionary.
Our year in innovation.
Find out what’s happening on campus and across the industry.
An urban mountain lifestyle for work and play.
Everything you need.
Right here.
Our Board of Directors is made up of leaders who have your goals and discoveries top of mind. They have the business and health sciences chops to know what success looks like when it comes to innovation, and they make strategic decisions with every Community member in mind.
At-Large Councilmember
After growing up in Aurora and attending both Aurora Public Schools and Cherry Creek Schools, Curtis became an active member of the community. He worked for 15 years in management for a local credit union and served with many community organizations, including the Aurora Arts District and his neighborhood HOA. In November 2019, Curtis was elected as an At-Large Councilmember for the City of Aurora. During his time on council, he has been a strong advocate for taxpayers, promoted public safety, and ensured residents enjoy a high quality of life. Curtis holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Public and Non-Profit Management and a Master’s Degree in Finance, both from Colorado State University Global Campus. Outside of Council, Curtis currently is the Public Sector Solutions Manager for Waste Management.
Independent Board Member
With 40 years of executive leadership in medical device and healthcare services, David Perez serves as an independent board member and advisor to several corporations and non-profit organizations. His expertise encompasses growing highly regulated global businesses organically through R&D, innovation, and inorganically through M&A, leading within a variety of foreign, public and private equity ownership structures, strategic planning, culture and talent development, succession planning, enterprise risk management, operations, compliance, and corporate governance.
Perez retired from his leadership role at Terumo BCT in March 2019 following a comprehensive two-year succession and transition plan. During his more than 18 years serving as president and CEO, Terumo BCT grew from $160M in global revenue to $1B as an innovation driven biomedical company focused on unlocking the potential of blood and cell-based therapies in the blood banking, transfusion medicine and cell therapy/regenerative medicine sectors.
Perez also served on the Terumo Corporation Board of Directors based in Tokyo for 6 years, where he was one of fewer than 300 non-Japanese board members of all publicly traded companies in Japan.
Chancellor
Chancellor of the CU Anschutz Medical Campus since 2012, Don Elliman boasts a successful track record in business and a high-quality reputation in higher education.
A longtime publishing executive at Time Warner for 32 years, Elliman was publisher of People magazine and president of Sports Illustrated before retiring as an executive vice president of Time Inc.
Elliman served four years as CEO of Ascent Sports and then Kroenke Sports Enterprises, overseeing all activities of the Pepsi Center, the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche.
He then served four years in Colorado state government under Gov. Bill Ritter, as executive director of the Office of Economic Development and International Trade, and then as chief operating officer for Colorado.
Following his time with the Governor’s Office, Elliman was executive director of the CU School of Medicine’s Gates Center for Regenerative Medicine.
Elliman’s board service includes Children’s Hospital Colorado (former chair, and co-chair of the campaign to raise funds for its new hospital, current board member), Fitzsimons Innovation Center, Gates Center for Regenerative Medicine, UCHealth, University of Colorado Hospital Authority Board, Colorado Prevention Center, Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome, National Mental Health Innovation Center, the Higher Learning Commission and Western Stock Show Association.
City Councilman At-Large
Dustin Zvonek is the President and founder of Zvonek Consulting, an executive management consulting firm, and a Partner and Senior Advisor at Rising Cloud, a first to market tech start-up.
Dustin was elected to the Aurora City Council in November of 2021 to a four-year term as an At-Large Member. On Council, Dustin is currently the Chairman of the Public Safety Committee and the Vice Chairman of the Planning and Economic Development Committee. Dustin also serves as the Chairman of the Red Tape Reduction Committee and is a member of the Management and Finance committee.
Prior to going into business, Dustin spent over a decade working in public policy roles, including managing the Aurora-based district office for a member of Congress and as the policy director for the Colorado State Senate Minority Leader.
Dustin earned his bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University while working full time at an office supply store to pay his way through college.
Dustin currently lives in Southeast Aurora with his wife and three children, who are students in Cherry Creek Public Schools. Dustin and his family are members of Eastern Hills Community Church.
Senior Counsel
Jim founded the Colorado office of Cooley LLP in 1993 and served as its Managing Partner through 2013. Cooley is an international law firm which represents a wide range of technology and entrepreneurial businesses, as well as venture and private equity funds. His practice involves representing biotech, medical device, and healthcare companies in financing, M&A, and strategic transactions, as well as venture capital and growth equity funds. Previously, Jim worked in the biotech industry for several years as Chief Financial Officer and General Counsel of Somatogen, Inc. He was previously a Partner at Davis Graham & Stubbs, a Denver law firm.
Jim served as Board Chair of the University of Colorado Foundation from 2016-18 and continues to serve on its Investment Policy Committee. He serves on the Advisory Boards of the Ludeman Center for Women’s Health Research on the Anschutz campus and the BioFrontiers Institute at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Jim received his undergraduate degree from Harvard College and his JD from Harvard Law School, both magna cum laude.
President & CEO
Jena Hausmann is President & Chief Executive Officer of Children’s Hospital Colorado, a pediatric healthcare system that includes more than 11,000 professionals.
As president and CEO, Ms. Hausmann has been a champion for advancing quality and safety outcomes, research and discovery, as well as improving pediatric mental health. She has also led initiatives to reduce the cost of care, increase transparency, and build a powerhouse advocacy organization that improves the quality of life for patients and their families through legislative efforts.
Prior to being named President and CEO, Ms. Hausmann served as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Children’s Hospital Colorado.
Ms. Hausmann is an active member of the Denver business and philanthropic communities. She serves on the boards of the Children’s Hospital Association, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, the Global Down Syndrome Foundation and the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. She is also a member of the Colorado Forum.
Ms. Hausmann earned her master’s degree in healthcare administration from the University of Minnesota and her bachelor’s degree in political science from Colorado College. She has been recognized with numerous healthcare industry and leadership awards.
Mayor
Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman has dedicated his career to defending our country and making a difference for Aurora.
Coffman grew up in Aurora, attended Aurora Public Schools, and graduated from the University of Colorado under the G.I. Bill. In 1995, he completed the Senior Executive Program for State and Local Government at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Coffman served a combined 21 years in the Army, the Army Reserve, the U.S. Marine Corps, and the Marine Corps Reserve. In 1990, Coffman took an unpaid leave of absence to serve as a Marine Corps light armored infantry officer in the first Gulf War, and in 2005, he resigned as the State Treasurer to serve as a civil affairs officer in the Iraq War.
Coffman has invested in the city he now leads by volunteering on local boards and service organizations. A former small business owner, Coffman remained a partner for 17 years with the Aurora-based property management firm that he founded in 1983.
Coffman's career in government has spanned over three decades, serving in Colorado's State House of Representatives, State Senate, and U.S. House of Representatives, in addition to being elected Colorado State Treasurer and Secretary of State.
President
Raymond H. Gonzales has over 25 years of leadership experience encompassing nearly every level of government administration. After starting his career with the U.S. Peace Corps, his roles spanned from serving as New Mexico’s Deputy Cabinet Secretary under the leadership of Governor Bill Richardson to County Manager for Adams County, Colorado the 5th largest county, serving 515,000 residents, and one of the fastest growing counties in the country. Although he found great success fortifying these agencies, his heart has always been in economic development. Following this passion, Raymond oversees the Metro Denver EDC in its work to unite nearly 70 cities, counties and economic development agencies across the ninecounty Metro Denver region to promote economic prosperity and serve as the region’s“business brand manager.”
Raymond continuously strives for organizational improvement and his passion for workplace culture where he empowers employees and their personal impact, influence, and inspiration regardless of title or designation. Raymond continuously strives for the premier delivery of art and cultural opportunities to accentuate the culture of an ever-increasing innovative and inclusive region.
In addition to his challenging role leading Metro Denver EDC, Raymond serves as Executive Vice
President of the Denver Metro Chamber, Vice President of the Mountain Plains region of the
International City/County Managers Association Executive Board, President of the Local Government Hispanic Network Board of Directors, and as the Vice-Chair of the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District.
Vice President, Global Marketing
Bob Reddy was named Vice President of Global Marketing for Medtronic Enabling Technologies in
November 2017. He leads the global marketing activities for the Louisville, Colorado-headquartered
division of the medical device company, which is the world’s leading provider of powered surgical drills, integrated navigation and intra-operative imaging solutions, and spinal robotics for neurosurgical and spinal procedures. His teams are responsible for global strategic portfolio management, product marketing, market development, marketing communications, professional society meetings and conventions, and medical education and training.
Bob joined Medtronic in 2005 and progressed through positions of increasing responsibility in Marketing and Program Management. Most recently, Bob was the Sr. Director of Marketing for the division’s Neurosurgery portfolio of products.
Prior to joining Medtronic, Bob worked for Denver, Colorado-based Fischer Imaging Corporation, a
global leader in the design and manufacture of specialty and general-purpose medical imaging systems for the diagnosis and treatment of disease. At Fischer Imaging he held a variety of leadership positions, including Business Unit Director – Mammography, Radiography, and Electrophysiology and Director of program Management.
Bob is currently serving on the Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA) Board of Directors and was the
Board Chair from 2020 to 2022. The CBSA’s mission is to support the regional bioscience community
through advocacy, resources, and advancement of opportunities for collaboration while focusing on
leadership and advocacy, business solutions, economic development, and education. He is also serving
as a board member of the ThinkFirst National Injury Prevention Foundation, a non-profit organization
whose mission is to prevent brain, spinal cord, and other traumatic injury through education, research,
and advocacy.
Bob holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering with a Mechanical Specialty from Colorado
School of Mines and was raised in the state of Colorado.
President & CEO
Tom currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital (UCH). A Florida native, Tom started his career in aviation, and his experience in this field has enabled him to serve as a subject matter expert in communication, reliability, quality, and patient safety design. Tom has been with UCH since 2014. Prior to that, Tom served as Vice President of Operations at UPMC Mercy in Pittsburgh, PA, and started his healthcare career at UPMC as an administrative fellow in 2007.
Tom’s leadership expertise centers on complex adaptive systems and how constructs of leadership, learning, change, and culture are used to impact organizational performance. Tom’s passion is developing leaders and teams to perform and adapt in order to deliver safer, more efficient care to patients. Outside of his professional work, Tom is on faculty for the UC Denver MBA-Health Administration program. He is also a board member for Donor Alliance whose mission is to save lives through organ and tissue donation and transplantation. Tom was also recognized in 2016 as a Modern Healthcare Up and Comer and in 2019 as a 40 Under 40 recipient by the Denver Business Journal.
Assistant Vice President of Engagement
Tony Salazar was selected to lead the new Office of Engagement in 2019. This is Tony’s second tenure with CU, having worked in system administration as the Associate Budget Director near the beginning of his career.
Tony is an experienced non-profit and for-profit C-suite executive. He most recently served as the Chief Affiliate Officer for the NEA Member Benefits Corporation. Tony also served as the Executive Director of the Colorado Education Association (CEA), the state’s largest labor union with over 38,000 members at the time.
In addition, Tony worked closely with the Colorado General Assembly in two roles: a legislative staffer and a lobbyist. Tony began his career as a Policy Analyst at Colorado Legislative Council. He staffed various legislative committees and performed background research for bills.
Tony spends his spare time giving back to the community and is the Board President of the Latin American Educational Foundation. He also served on the board of a California-based auto and home insurance company in 2019.
Tony is a Denver native and fifth-generation Coloradan and attended the University of Denver. He is married and a proud father of three children. Tony and his family live in the Stapleton neighborhood in Denver.
Chairman
Mr. Komppa earned a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, and began his career with a Denver-based engineering and construction firm. He continued his education earning a Master’s degree in Real Estate Investment, and spent seven years in commercial real estate finance.
In 1986, Mr. Komppa founded Corum Real Estate Group to develop and invest in commercial real estate. He led the firm’s efforts in the development, acquisition, and reposition of more than 10 million square feet of commercial office, warehouse, and apartment properties in Colorado and the Chicago area.
He has been Chairman of the Urban Land Institute’s Colorado District Council, University of Colorado Real Estate Council, Colorado Chapter of NAIOP, and Wisconsin Real Estate Alumni Association. He has also served on the board of Downtown Denver, Inc., Cherry Hills Country Club, and currently serves on the Board of Fitzsimmons Redevelopment Authority.
Mr. Komppa and his wife Gloria live in the Denver area, and they have two sons and four grandchildren.
Fitzsimons Innovation Community