Denver, CO…The Anti-Defamation League Mountain States Region will honor three advocates of educational opportunity and access at the 34^th Annual Civil Rights Awards Reception on Feb. 24 in Ponti Hall at the Denver Art Museum. The honorees are Carlotta Walls LaNier and Leslie and Noel Ginsburg.

Carlotta Walls LaNier is one of the Little Rock Nine. At age 14, Carlotta was the youngest of nine African-American students to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957. She was the first black female to graduate from Central High School. In 1999, Carlotta and the other members of the Little Rock Nine were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President Bill Clinton. She is a Denver resident and president of the Little Rock Nine Foundation, a scholarship organization dedicated to ensuring equal access to education for African-American students. She is the author of “A Mighty Long Way: My Journey to Justice at Little Rock Central High School.”

Leslie and Noel Ginsburg have dedicated their energy and financial resources to ensure that at-risk youth have equal access to educational opportunities.  Noel is a founding member and past President of the Colorado I Have A Dream Foundation, and Leslie, a board member since 2007, is the current Board Chair. Through the Foundation, the Ginsburgs have sponsored 42 inner-city children to help them obtain a post-secondary education. In addition, Leslie was an active member of ADL’s Board.  Among other things, she co-chaired the Governor’s Holocaust Remembrance Program and Education Committee. Noel has been the Chair of JEWISHcolorado (formerly Allied Jewish Federation) and the Mile High United Way. He has also served as President of the Denver Public Schools Foundation.

The ADL Mountain States Region has presented civil rights awards to 57 Coloradans since 1982.  Prior recipients include:  Judge Jim Carrigan, Gerald Quiat, Judge John Kane, Jr., Sheldon Steinhauser, Gary Lozow, Rabbi Steven Foster, the Reverend James Peters, Dottie Lamm, Jonathan Asher, Hon. Ken Salazar, Joyce Meskis, Tim Gill, Sen. Lucia Guzman, Hon. Federico Pena, Cleo Parker Robinson, Governor Bill Ritter, Jr., Artie Guerrero, Hon. Wilma Webb, Dr. Vincent Harding, Tim Sweeney and Patricia Barela Rivera.

This year’s event co-chairs are Pamela Hirschman, Greg Karsh, Elisa Moran and Holly Stein Sollod.

Event sponsors include: Holland & Hart, Lindquist & Vennum LLP, David & Laura Merage Foundation, Cushman & Wakefield, Dependable Cleaners, Sheridan Ross, Otten Johnson Robinson Neff + Ragonetti PC, Kaiser Permanente and Shalom Cares.

For information and to purchase tickets, visit www.adl.org/civilrights2016.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world’s leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.