At the University of Colorado, “bipartisanship” just became a four-letter word.

Six months after being appointed to CU’s Board of Regents in Dec. 2021 by Gov. Jared Polis — who touted his “business experience and passion for CU” — Ken Montera was voted vice chair. His colleagues have unanimously reelected him three times since.

Montera was always a Republican vice chair paired with a Democrat chair, most recently Callie Rennison for the past three years. But on the eve of Montera’s election Thursday to lead the body as chairman — in what was supposed to be uncontested — the partisan hammer came down.

“Colorado Democrats Warn Against Regent Rennison Handing Control of CU Regents to Republicans,” read a press release from the state Democratic Party chair.

A bipartisan arrangement was suddenly intolerable because Montera, a Republican, would lead a Democrat-majority board. God forbid partisanship take a back seat to the university’s mission.

Then came the Trump card — literally.

“Coloradans are tired of Donald Trump’s petty retaliation politics as he attacks child care funding, threatens clean drinking water, and blocks disaster aid for hundreds of thousands of Coloradans because he doesn’t like our election system,” Democratic Party Chairman Shad Murib said. “We should not hand him influence over the University of Colorado by putting Republicans in charge, against the will of the voters.”

The party’s argument for blocking a previously unopposed vice chair from an expected promotion was — Donald Trump.

Never mind that Montera isn’t a “MAGA guy,” or that the post of CU regents chair is an unpaid, time-consuming and largely administrative position.

Murib also attacked Rennison, arguing her continued support for Montera — rather than at-large Regent Elliott Hood, who announced his bid only last week — “will have enormous consequences for the future of the University.”

The claim was absurd — pure political nonsense that flies in the face of the board’s own history.

In 2012, then-Regent Michael Carrigan, a Democrat, was elected chair by a majority Republican board. Carrigan underscored the board’s “ability to put politics aside when working for the betterment of CU.” His colleagues reelected him the next year.

In 2016, then-Regents Irene Griego and Glen Gallegos became the first Hispanics to hold both the board’s top positions together. Again, the majority were Republicans. And again, they voted for a Democrat (Griego) to lead with a Republican (Gallegos) vice chair. Griego said their work must foster “a spirit of collaboration” and “focus on education, not politics.”

This bipartisan approach to regent leadership was often adopted by Republicans during their four decades controlling the board of regents. Now, with Montera as chair — and Democrat Callie Rennison as vice chair this time — it’s the Democrats’ turn to continue the tradition.

In today’s hyper-partisan era, that’s worth celebrating.

The regents have served as a model of the bipartisanship that Colorado’s vast middle craves. That Rennison and Montera — a Boulder liberal and a Colorado Springs conservative — work together so well, for the betterment of CU, exemplifies this fact.

According to Rennison, she wasn’t planning to serve her third term as chair until the regents agreed: one more year for Rennison, then Montera would take over. That was the plan.

Alas, partisan shrillness from the Left pressured the board’s Democrats to flip. The vote is private, but Rennison held firm.

“As vice-chair, Regent Montera has demonstrated himself to be a bridge-builder and public servant who is eager to work in a bipartisan and collaborative way,” Rennison told me. “He has impressed me with his clear vision, strategic thinking and ability to get the job done, even during difficult times.”

Montera struck a gracious tone. He said he’s “truly humbled” to be “elected chair of this flagship university,” especially as the first in his family to attend CU.

“I have one objective: ensure that this board serves the students, faculty and staff in a bipartisan way that always puts the University of Colorado first,” Montera said.

As a first-generation student himself, Montera has made boosting Hispanic and first-generation enrollment a personal mission — regularly attending outreach trips and personally creating an endowment scholarship fund to support students in need who are Colorado residents.

Some years before joining CU’s Board of Regents, Montera served as chief stores officer and executive VP of operations at Limited Brands, overseeing 5,000 retail locations and delivering record sales growth.

One holiday season, Bath & Body Works gift set sales were sluggish. A team member suggested high-performing stores could win a pizza party — delivered personally by Montera and his senior leadership, followed by roundtable discussions on what worked.

“We launched it, and it exploded,” Montera told me in 2020. “We had no idea it was going to resonate so strongly, just us showing up to deliver pizzas.”

The program reached nearly 35,000 employees, including my mother, who worked at Bath & Body Works stores for 22 years — and hasn’t forgotten the videos of “Papa Ken” years later.

“He was dressed as an Italian pizza maker named ‘Papa Ken,’ talking about the contest they were running between all the stores,” she recalls.

For Montera, the lesson was simple: “The more you connect the leadership of an organization with front-line employees, the more they feel like they’re part of the organization, part of what’s going to make it successful.”

Now, “Papa Ken” is Chair Ken. And that’s good news for CU.

Jimmy Sengenberger is an investigative journalist, public speaker, and longtime local talk-radio host. Reach Jimmy online at Jimmysengenberger.com or on X (formerly Twitter) @SengCenter.