Executive Director Maria De Cambra
Before joining the Department of Local Affairs, Director De Cambra served as the Director of Communications and Community Engagement on Governor Jared Polis's Executive team. During her time in the Governor’s office, she worked closely with Governor Polis on delivering on his first-term priorities of free full-day kindergarten, universal preschool, and saving Coloradans money on health care. She also played a critical role in the Colorado COVID response and migrant humanitarian crisis. Before working with Governor Polis, she was Mayor Pro-Tem to the City of Westminster, where she championed affordable housing development. De Cambra has spent almost two decades leading community organizing and public policy efforts.
Director De Cambra has served as the Westminster City Council Liaison to the Adams County Economic Development Board, the Affordable Housing Task Force, the Human Services Board, the Northern Area Transit Alliance, and the Colorado Municipal League Policy Committee. She has also served on the board of directors of various Colorado non-profit organizations. In 2020, the Denver Business Journal awarded her the “40 under 40” award.
De Cambra was born in Tallahassee, FL, and spent her childhood in Caracas, Venezuela. In 2000, she moved to the United States to study at The Ohio State University and graduated with a degree in Political Science. In 2017, Director De Cambra completed the Harvard Kennedy School Senior Executives in State and Local Government program.
Dionne Stroter, Deputy Executive Director
Prior to joining DOLA, Dionne served as the Executive Director of Denver’s Office of Children’s Affairs (OCA), an agency whose primary focus is improving outcomes for children and youth in Denver with an emphasis on programs that serve our most vulnerable and low-opportunity populations. A longtime public servant, Dionne has had leadership roles in several city agencies in addition to OCA including the Department of Finance, the Department of Public Works, the Department of Parks and Recreation and General Services. She also participated in the city’s Retail Marijuana advisory team, helping to develop the city’s regulations and processes when retail marijuana was legalized in 2014. Dionne’s passion is state and municipal governance, and she is a fierce advocate for using the resources of local government to promote equity, remove barriers, and ensure every member of the community is included in long range plans.
A Denver native, Dionne has been a dedicated advocate for children and youth in Denver’s Far Northeast neighborhoods, having lived in the area for more than 30 years. She is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she attained a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Biology. In 2010 she received a Master’s of Public Administration from the University of Colorado at Denver, and she has been an active alumnus for several years.
An active participant in numerous community efforts, Dionne has served as the chair of the Aurora Cultural Affairs Commission and is currently the co-chair of the Central Park United Neighbors Equity and Diversity committee. She is also a graduate of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce Leadership Denver Program and is a current member of the Civic DNA cohort. In her personal life she is an accomplished crafter and a single mom to two emerging adults.
Bruce Eisenhauer, Legislative Liaison
Bruce Eisenhauer serves as the Department of Local Affairs' Legislative Liaison. Bruce has extensive local government experience and previously served as a city manager, community development director, and Main Street Director. Bruce earned his Masters of Business Administration from Mankato State University and Bachelor of Science also from Mankato State University.
Geoffrey Alexander, Chief Financial Officer
Before joining DOLA, Geoff served in the Polis Administration as the Manager for Health, Housing, and Human Services in the Governor’s Office of State Planning and Budgeting (Colorado). He provided budget and policy recommendations on major initiatives including the implementation of the Behavioral Health Administration, Proposition 123 (voter-approved funding for affordable housing), Public Health Emergency transition, administering CARES Act/American Rescue Plan Act funds, and advancing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Governor’s budget. In 2022, Geoff was an honoree for Colorado’s Public Service Recognition Week. Before his time in Colorado, he lived in Washington, D.C., where he spent several years working on policy issues that impact how our cities are built (housing, transportation, parks, economic development), first for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and later AARP. Geoff holds a Master’s in Public Policy degree from Duke University.
Casie Stokes, Board of Assessment Appeals Board Administrator
Casie leads the BAA’s mission of ensuring Colorado taxpayers have access to a fair and impartial hearing process. Casie directs a team of five staff in supporting the work of the nine-member Board that resolves property tax appeals at the State level. Before joining the BAA, Casie clerked at the trial and appellate court levels, and practiced as an assistant county attorney in county and state court and before administrative bodies, including in the area of property tax litigation. She was instrumental in building Jefferson County’s child support problem solving court, a leading-edge and collaborative alternative that provides resources to assist participants in overcoming barriers. She holds a J.D. degree from the University of Iowa College of Law, and a B.A. in Global Studies from the University of Iowa.
Alison George, Division of Housing Director
Alison George is the state director of housing serving the Colorado Division of Housing (DOH) in the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA), where she directs all DOH programs, ranging from statewide housing voucher programs and manufactured housing code and mobile home park regulatory oversight, to Federal and State funding for constructing new affordable housing. Alison brings more than 25 years of experience in affordable housing finance and development. Before joining DOH, Alison served Mercy Housing Colorado as its Regional Vice President of Multifamily Housing and the Michaels Development Company as its Vice President of Development overseeing housing development in Colorado, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Eric Bergman, Division of Local Government Director
Eric Bergman serves as the Director of the Division of Local Government within DOLA, leveraging his extensive background in legislative policy issues cultivated during his tenure as the policy director for Colorado Counties, Inc. (CCI). With over twenty-five years of experience working with local governments, including leadership roles such as director of the Office of Smart Growth in DOLA, Eric is dedicated to advancing sustainable community development. Holding a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Masters in Environmental Studies from The Evergreen State College, Eric's expertise spans a wide range of areas, from elections and open records to transportation, telecommunications, land use planning, and marijuana regulation.
JoAnn Groff, Division of Property Taxation Administrator
The State Board of Equalization appointed JoAnn Groff Colorado’s Property Tax Administrator on January 1, 2006. She is responsible for maintaining a professional working relationship with County Assessor's, the General Assembly, the Department of Local Affairs, the Governor’s office, other elected officials, various industry groups and Colorado’s property owners. She is responsible for administration of fair and equitable property taxation in the State of Colorado as well as maintaining a strong, professional relationship with various county and state elected officials, a variety of state agencies, industry groups and the state’s taxpayers.
Before JoAnn’s tenure as the Property Tax Administrator, she devoted much of her career to public service in the state of Colorado. She served as a state legislator from 1983 to 1989, as a member of the State Board of Equalization from 1993 to 2005 and spent 13 years as the President of the Colorado Retail Council, a not-for-profit membership based trade association for Colorado’s retailers.
JoAnn studied at Georgetown University and earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Boston College. Additionally, JoAnn is the recipient of a Gates Foundation Fellowship and attended the Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.
Elizabeth Garner, State Demographer
Elizabeth is the Colorado State Demographer and has directed the State Demography Office in the Department of Local Affairs since 2004. Elizabeth travels the state talking with Coloradans about social and economic conditions that are brought about by population shifts. The State Demography Office applies an understanding of demographic trends to changes in a range of areas including the state’s economy, workforce, education, housing, migration, and rural populations.
Elizabeth has over 30 years of experience analyzing population and economic trends in Colorado. Her current research agenda involves examining Census 2020 results, demographic impacts from COVID-19, housing supply and demand, and aging. Elizabeth is an economist and received her B.A. in Business at the University of San Diego and her Masters in Agricultural and Resource Economics at Colorado State University. Elizabeth was born and raised in Colorado, something only 43% of the state’s population can claim.
Shannon Gray, Communications Director
Before joining Department of Local Affairs as the Communications Director, Shannon Gray served as a Communications Supervisor for the Colorado Department of Revenue (DOR), overseeing external communication for the Colorado Lottery, the Marijuana Enforcement Division, the nascent Natural Medicine Division and the Specialized Business Group (Auto Industry, Gaming/Sports Betting, Liquor/Tobacco, Racing). Shannon had a particular focus on leading the strategic communication initiatives and media relations efforts for these four Divisions. In April 2023, Shannon was promoted to Communications Supervisor after serving as the DOR Marijuana Communications Manager since 2017.
Previously, Shannon worked at the University of Denver in several positions, including with the Center for Professional Development, University Advancement, the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and as a temporary adjunct faculty member at the Department of Film, Journalism and Media Studies, where she received her graduate degree.
Personally, Shannon is passionate about championing the causes she believes in, including animal welfare, education for all, and providing opportunities for low-income families to achieve financial independence through employment. To that end, she served as a member of the Ambassador Council for the Center for Work Education and Employment (CWEE) for eight years, serving as the Council Chair for three years..
Shannon has an MS in Strategic Communication from the University of Denver and a BA in History, minor in Journalism from Wake Forest University. She lives in Denver with her husband Ryan, her two children Connor and Colleen, and their beloved rescue lab/pit mix Avery.