Cooperative Strategies is a consultancy that supports campaigns to finance education facilities for K-12 educational institutions and school districts and to gain public acceptance for school district redistricting. ¹

Financing

Cooperative Strategies uses a variety of methods to assist its clients, mainly school districts, to finance the purchase of educational facilities and services it offers. ²

The financing solutions Cooperative Strategies provides include the creation of Community Facilities Districts (CFDs). ³ CFDs allow local governments to impose additional property taxes in a community to finance community specific projects such as schools and public works projects. ⁴ In addition, Cooperative Strategies advises school districts on how to develop bond programs to finance facility projects. ⁵ Cooperative Strategies consults school districts on not only what type of bond to issue, but also assists with origination and marketing of bonds to finance educational facilities. ⁶

Redistricting

Cooperative Strategies provides public affairs and targeted community messaging services to school districts in order to address community concerns related to school redistricting. ⁷  The large financial investment, and potential expansion of educational facilities, at times forces the school district to shift students from one school to another school within the district to justify the expansion. ⁸

Cooperative Strategies’ public affairs service states that it is “mindful of approaches to reduce anxiety” related to redistricting schools, ⁹ given that taxpayers often select to live in a specific town within a given school district for the opportunity to attend a specific school within that district. ¹⁰

Leadership

Scott Newell is the CEO of Cooperative Strategies. ¹¹ Prior to joining Cooperative Strategies, Newell was the Division Director for the Office of Capital Construction at the Colorado Department of Education and a member of the Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) Energy Impact Advisory Committee. ¹²

1. “Who We Are” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/who-we-are/
2. “Our Services” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/our-services/
3. “Community Facilities Districts” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/planning-services/community-facilities-districts/
4. “Introduction to Community Facilities Districts” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.civicmic.com/introduction-to-community-facilities-districts/
5. “Special Tax Bonds” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/funding-plans/special-tax-bonds/
6. “Special Tax Bonds” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/funding-plans/special-tax-bonds/
7. “Redistricting Studies” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/planning-services/redistricting-studies/
8. “Redistricting Studies” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/planning-services/redistricting-studies/
9.  ^[1] “Redistricting Studies” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/planning-services/redistricting-studies/
10. Semuels, Alana. “Good School, Rich School; Bad School, Poor School” The Atlantic. August 25, 2016. Accessed December 15, 2022. https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/08/property-taxes-and-unequal-schools/497333/
11. “Scott Newell-Our Team” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/our-team/#:~:text=Scott%20Newell,Chief%20Executive%20Officer,about%20helping%20school%20districts%20succeed
12. “Scott Newell-Our Team” Cooperative Strategies. https://www.coopstrategies.com/our-team/#:~:text=Scott%20Newell,Chief%20Executive%20Officer,about%20helping%20school%20districts%20succeed