Bob Schaffer has been a voice of optimism in business, in the community and in the halls of government. He has helped Colorado achieve common-sense goals by firmly advancing our Western traditions and by bringing people together to find common ground.

He has gained a reputation as a reasoned debater, a persuasive orator and a hard worker. Those who know him best call Schaffer a purposeful leader. For example, when urging voters to elect Bob to the Colorado State Board of Education last year, the Greeley Tribune newspaper wrote:

“Bob Schaffer is a man of his word. When he campaigned in 1996 for the 4th Congressional District seat, he vowed he would step down after serving three terms. And he did just that, leaving Congress in January 2003.

“It’s that kind of principled commitment that makes Schaffer, a Republican, the better choice to again represent the 4th District, this time on the Colorado State Board of Education.”

“That said, we recommend you vote for Bob Schaffer. His integrity is something we can all admire and respect.”

The Pueblo Chieftain newspaper had this to say about Bob:

“Fourth District voters strongly supported Mr. Schaffer as a congressman, where he focused on education, rural America and limits on government. They elected him to three straight terms before he stepped aside in 2003 to fulfill a term-limits pledge. Previously, he spent nine years as a state senator.

”Mr. Schaffer and his wife Maureen are the parents of five children. He gets a grade of ‘A’ for public service and commitment to education.”

The son of public-school educators, Schaffer worked his way through college as a farm hand and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Dayton.

With his new wife and high-school sweetheart, Maureen, Bob settled in Fort Collins, Colorado. The couple chose to live and raise their family in Colorado where they could pursue their love of the outdoors and the mountains. They have been married 21 years and have five children.

By his mid-twenties Bob Schaffer was a small business owner and a Colorado State Senator who distinguished himself as the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Chairman of the State Veterans and Military Affairs Committee and Vice-Chairman of the Senate Education Committee. It was at that time that Bob developed his passion for education reform, an issue he has pursued with enthusiasm ever since.

As a state senator Bob visited every school in his district. In 1993, Bob and Maureen were founding parents of Washington Core Knowledge School (later renamed Traut Core Knowledge), the first school in Colorado to offer the Core Knowledge curriculum (www.coreknowledge.org). In 1997, they helped open Fort Collins’ first charter school, Liberty Common School (www.libertycommon.org). Over the years, Bob and Maureen have regularly volunteered in their children’s schools and served as soccer and little league baseball coaches.

During his years in the Colorado Senate, Bob owned and operated Northern Front Range Marketing and Distribution, a small marketing business serving Colorado’s tourism industry. As a small business owner, Bob gained a reputation as a hard-worker who understood the needs of an essential industry for Colorado. Maureen pursued her career as an engineer and continued her education earning a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Colorado State University.

From 1997 until early 2003, Bob represented Colorado’s Fourth Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. He served on the House Resources, Agriculture, Workforce and Education Committees. He earned a reputation as a tax reformer and an advocate for child-centered improvements in public education. Upon his retirement from the Congress, His Holiness John Paul II awarded Schaffer with the Benemerenti Medal.

Bob Schaffer currently volunteers as an elected member and the Vice-Chairman of the Colorado State Board of Education where he continues his work as an avid education reformer. Schaffer also volunteers as the Chairman of the Leadership Program of the Rockies, a non-profit organization providing economic and political leadership training across Colorado.

As the Colorado Chairman of the Judicial Confirmation Network, Bob works hard to make sure America has competent and well-qualified judges. He also volunteers as Commissioner of the Eighth Judicial District Nominating Commission where his goals are identical.

In his professional life, Bob is Vice-president for business development for a Denver-based energy investment firm. His work experience includes conventional and renewable energy, mining, education and other domestic and foreign business projects.

Bob spends his free time with Maureen and their children. When not at one of the kids’ sporting events, the family enjoys skiing, snowboarding, backpacking, and biking in the Colorado Rockies and playing with their two dogs, Ed and Roxy.

Bob Schaffer is the rare individual who still believes deeply in America’s ability to build a better future. He is a man of vision and demonstrated principled leadership who never stops working for common sense in Colorado.

-Bio from BobSchafferForSenate.com