News Release
February 10, 2006
Emily Griffith's 138th Year Birthday Is Today (Friday, Feb. 10) At Fairmont Cemetery
Legendary educator Emily Griffith will be honored today (Friday, Feb. 10) - 138 years after her birth - at a 1 p.m. gathering at her gravesite at Fairmont Cemetery, 430 S Quebec St. Founder of Emily Griffith Opportunity School, the former Denver Public Schools teacher was born in 1868.
The fourth-grade class from Lowry Elementary School will gather at the grave site and hear from one of the foremost authorities on Emily Griffith; Debra Faulkner will appear dressed as Griffith and provide an oral history of Griffith's life.
Griffith is one of most revered women in Denver history and is the only woman depicted in a stained glass window at the State Capitol Building. Griffith founded Opportunity School in 1916 'for all who wish to learn" and ran the school until 1933 when she retired.
EMILY GRIFFITH BRIEF HISTORY
- 1904-1908 Deputy State Superintendent of Schools
- 1910-1912 Deputy State Superintendent of Public Instruction
- 1916 Founded Emily Griffith Opportunity School
- 1927 Founded # 9 Pearl Street, a residence for homeless boys; now the Emily Griffith Center in Larkspur, Colo.
- 1946 Denver Kiwanian Award
- 1985 Inducted into Colorado Women's Hall of Fame
- 2000 Recipient of Mayor Wellington Webb's Millennium Award Selected as "Denver's Most Useful Citizen"
EMILY GRIFFITH OPPORTUNITY SCHOOL
With a current enrollment of nearly 11,000 students, Emily Griffith Opportunity School is a public post-secondary institution dedicated to responding to the educational needs of the community. Its mission is to serve as the premier college of excellence in the delivery of career and technical education, offering 45 certificate vocational programs and 19 trades (apprenticeships). Emily Griffith Opportunity School provides affordable educational opportunities at approximately two thirds the cost of the community college system. Students attain marketable skills and training in accredited programs that can stand alone or transfer to the community college system. Founded in 1916 in order to provide opportunities "for all who wish to learn," the school has assisted over one million students in attaining the skills necessary for initial employment, career advancement and further education.
The Emily Griffith Opportunity School is located at 1250 Welton St. For information, contact Marla Rodriguez, Public Relations and Marketing Manager, Emily Griffith Opportunity School, at 720-423-4755 or Marla_Rodriguez@dpsk12.org.