Lesley Del Rio

RootED Denver
Aurora, Colorado

Lesley is a proud first-generation college graduate with roots in Westwood, Denver. Deeply committed to her community, she engages with various non-profit organizations to advance equity and access for underserved populations. Lesley’s leadership and advocacy roles include serving as a Parent Advisor for Ascend at the Aspen Institute, co-chairing the Denver Health Community Advisory Panel, being a 2024 Piton Leadership Fellow, and participating in the Ednium Deep Dive cohort.

Lesley is passionate about education equity as a recipient and parent of the public school system. She is committed to helping elevate change and advocating for policies that support equitable access to quality education for all students.

In her free time, Lesley and her son enjoy a range of outdoor activities such as camping, paddleboarding, and exploring new destinations. Additionally, she finds joy in crafting and other creative hobbies.

Stories featuring Lesley Del Rio

Group photo of Ascend Parent Advisors standing outside in Aspen, Colorado with their arms outstretched upward.
Snapshots from the 2023 Ascend Parent Advisor Convening in Aspen, Colorado.
Aspen Postsecondary Success for ParentsOctober 2, 2023
In a Hechinger Report op-ed, Lesley Del Rio reveals her mental health journey and the need for campuses to improve supports for students and their fam...
Media MentionsSeptember 13, 2021
Hailing from Denver, Colorado, Lesley Del Rio and her son Leo enjoy all the great activities that the state offers. She graduated from Florence Critte...
Aspen Postsecondary Success for ParentsMay 10, 2021
The Aspen Postsecondary Success for Parents (PSP) Initiative is a partnership with Imaginable Futures and the ECMC Foundation to raise awareness about...
Aspen Postsecondary Success for ParentsJuly 13, 2020
This op-ed by Lesley Del Rio, an Ascend Parent Advisor for the Aspen Postsecondary Success for Parents Initiative, was published on April 9, 2020 by I...
BlogMay 12, 2020
The Aspen Postsecondary Success for Parents (PSP) Initiative at Ascend at the Aspen Institute hosted a two-day convening to mark entering its second p...
BlogFebruary 12, 2020

Convenings Featuring Lesley Del Rio

Location: Aspen, CO (in-person) & Live Webcast (virtual)
There is no single story—we each bring our own unique values, experiences, joys, sorrows, and convictions to the work we do every day. Tonight, you will hear Ascend Fellows and Partners share their stories. At a time when pundits and politicians...
ConveningOctober 17, 2019