Christopher T. Gates is an American

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

and political activist. He is the former president of the

Sunlight Foundation The Sunlight Foundation was an American 501(c)(3) nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advocated for open government. The organization was founded in April 2006 with the goal of increasing transparency and accountability in the United States ...

. He is the past Executive Director of Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement (PACE). PACE is an affinity group of the Council on Foundations and works as a learning collaborative of funders who are working in the fields of civic engagement and democratic renewal. Gates served as President of the

National Civic League The National Civic League is an American nonpartisan, non-profit organization founded in 1894 as the "National Municipal League”; it adopted its new name in 1986. Its mission is to advance civic engagement to create equitable, thriving communit ...

until June 15, 2006. He was named President in 1995, previously serving as vice-president of the NCL. Gates earned a master's degree in public administration from the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. At Harvard, he studied the interaction between the public and private sectors. Gates also earned an honors degree in economics from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He also spent time as a student at the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a Public university, public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus university, campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and twenty-six schools of ...

in England, where he studied political economics. In 2003, he was elected as the Chair of the Colorado Democratic Party. During his term as Party Chair, the Democrats saw success in Colorado, winning a

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

seat, an additional seat in the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

and winning control of both of the houses of the

state legislature A state legislature is a Legislature, legislative branch or body of a State (country subdivision), political subdivision in a Federalism, federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of ...

. Gates founded the Colorado Institute for Leadership Training, a statewide progressive leadership training program, in 1991 and continues to serve as its board chair. On May 20, 2006, Gates received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from

Elizabethtown College Elizabethtown College (informally Etown) is a private college in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania. History Founding and early years Elizabethtown College was founded in 1899 by members of the Church of the Brethren in response to an initiative by ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

References

External links

Official PACE biography
Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Harvard Kennedy School alumni Alumni of the University of East Anglia Colorado Democrats People from Boulder, Colorado {{US-activist-stub