Derek Dash

Derek Dash is living proof of the positive impact that a charter school can have on an individual. Prior to serving on the board, Derek spent the past 8 years working in multimedia advertising, statewide Colorado political campaigns, and for federal and state governments.

Currently, Derek is a master’s candidate at the University of Denver where he is pursuing a degree in Media and Public Communication with a certificate in Public Diplomacy. Prior to pursuing his advanced degree, Derek lived in New York City where he helped to manage over $10 million in annual revenue by implementing local, multimedia advertising campaigns for a variety of political and advocacy organizations.

Before moving to New York, Derek worked in communication and operations-related roles in federal and state politics in Colorado. He served on two U.S. Senate campaigns during the 2014 and 2016 elections, as well as serving as the Director of Advance for the Colorado Governor’s Office. Prior to these roles, Derek also served as an Advance Associate for the White House Office of Scheduling and Advance in 2014. Derek graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU Boulder) with his B.A. in Political Science in 2013. He is a proud member of the founding class of the DSST Public Schools, a charter school network established in his hometown of Denver, Colorado.

Derek has valued three things throughout his career: education, diversity, and integrity. As the product of a public school system, Derek has faced the challenges that are created by diminishing public school budgets. He has been an active volunteer with education organizations, such as the Denver Scholarship Foundation, to help ensure that every public-school graduate in Denver has the resources to attend college. While attending CU Boulder, Derek joined the Student Academic Success Center (SASC), a multi-cultural academic learning community serving low-income and first-generation college students similar to him, where he worked until graduating. His professional experience has taught him that it’s easier to hold your principles 100% of the time than it is to hold them 98% of the time. He applies this lesson each day while working for the Ganas Network, making sure that every action the organization takes is for the ultimate benefit of its program fellows.