“Don't listen to anyone who doesn't know how to dream”
Liza Minnelli
GOVERNING BOARD
Board of Directors
Joe Smith
Chairman of the Board
Joe Smith is a commercial trial lawyer. He is a partner in the law firm of Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar & Scott LLC. Joe earned his B.A. from Yale College and his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. His professional experience includes service in the leadership of the American Bar Association’s Section of Litigation and public service as a Deputy Attorney General for the State of Colorado. Joe chairs the board of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver and also sits on the governing boards of ACE Scholarships and the Independence Institute. He co-authored (with Tara Ross) the book “Under God: George Washington and the Question of Church and State” (Spence Publishing, 2008), and his work has appeared in the op-ed pages of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Denver Post, The Rocky Mountain News, and other publications.
Length of Service: 2014-Present
Tom Creighton
Board Member
Tom is the Chairman of the Board of Visionbox, is an economist, with undergraduate and graduate degrees from Yale University. He is a non-executive Chairman of High Plains Bank, a family-owned community bank headquartered in eastern Colorado. His other Volunteer positions include Treasurer of Park Hill Congregational Church, Director of Avalanche Schools for the Colorado Mountain Club, and member of the Finance Committee and a shop lead and mechanic at the Park Hill Bike Depot. He is a native of Denver.
Length of Service: 2011-Present
Jovan Tafoya
Secretary-Treasurer
Jovan Tafoya is a businessman, adviser, and the Secretary-Treasurer of Visionbox. He graduated from Yale College with Distinction in the Political Science major. His career has spanned mergers and acquisitions, management consulting, entrepreneurship, and private capital, where he has advised boards, executives, operators, investors, founders, and innovators on complex, high-stakes matters. His professional experience includes roles at Bank of America, Platte River Equity, and Mobility Capital Group. He is also the Co-Founder and CEO of Aaru & Co. and Managing Director of Tafoya Management LLC. His volunteer leadership includes service as Co-Chair of the Yale Alumni Fund’s Class of Agents, Board Member of the Yale Alumni Fund, Founding Director of Port 1701, and former Board Member and Treasurer of the Yale Club of Houston. He is a graduate of J.K. Mullen High School.
Length of Service: 2026-Present