DENISE BURGESS HEADS DENVER METRO CHAMBER

Denise Burgess assumed the position of chair of the board of directors of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce Wednesday, marking the first time in the organization's 150 years that an African-American has held the top post. Burgess took over at the chamber's annual meeting in Denver in front of some 1,000 attendees. She replaces Todd Munson. Burgess took over the family business, Burgess Heating and Air Conditioning and shifted the focus to construction management. The company has worked on several large projects, including the Westin Hotel at Denver International Airport.

DIGITALGLOBE IMAGES ASSIST IN HARVEY RELIEF AND RECOVERY

Westminster-based DigitalGlobe has sent all five of its satellites over areas affected by Hurricane Harvey and is sharing its images with those working on recovery and rebuilding the communities along the Gulf Coast. Satellite images can help authorities identify areas that have suffered the most damage and pinpoint that damage. This allows disaster relief efforts to direct resources to the areas with the most damaged roads, bridges and buildings.

DENVER'S GUILD EDUCATION GETS $21M IN VENTURE FUNDING

Rachel Carlson and Brittany Stich founded their technology-education startup Guild Education in 2005, and Wednesday, the company received $21 million in Series B funding from Silicon Valley venture capital firms. It brings to $31.5 million the funding the company has generated. The Guild will hire engineers, developers and education coaches for its tech-based program for employers to offer employees tuition reimbursement and even a college degree. Clients of the Guild include Chipotle, DaVita and the Denver Public Schools.

KESSLER LEAVING TDC FOR RIVER DISTRICT POSITION

Zane Kessler, who was instrumental in organizing and directing the efforts of the Thompson Divide Coalition over the past four years, is leaving the organization to become the communications director for the Colorado River District, based in Glenwood Springs. The position is a new one for the river district and Kessler will work on state-level water policy issues along with the district's external affairs staff. Kessler said that he would continue to work with TDC in a volunteer capacity.

SMOKE TO BEGIN CLEARING OUT?

The air quality advisory that was put into effect by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment for most of the Western Slope remains in effect until 9 a.m. today, but the forecast from the National Weather Service in Grand Junction calls for the high pressure holding the smoke over western Colorado to weaken and the smoky skies should begin clearing today. There is a 20 to 30 percent chance of rain in lower elevations on Friday, with a greater chance of rain at higher elevations. The rain would help clear the air.

INTERIOR SETS NEW EIS RULES: SHORT AND SWIFT

Last week, Interior Department Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt, a Rifle native, issued the new guidelines for environmental impact statements on projects submitted to agencies of the Interior Department. All environmental impact statements for which an Interior agency is the lead agency must be kept to no more than 150 pages, or 350 pages "for unusually complex" projects, excluding appendices. The target for issuing a final environmental impact statement will be a year after notice of intent to prepare one is issued and agencies must seek approval to exceed that target by three months.

ONE MORE ROUND OF CONE ZONES ON HWY. 145

The summer construction jobs on Highway 145 are nearing completion, with that work due to wrap up by Sept. 15, however, there is one remaining project on Highway 145 near Sawpit. The Colorado Department of Transportation will construct a new concrete culvert, with construction lasting through the end of October. Traffic delays will begin after Sept. 18, with traffic reduced to one lane and an alternating flow. Work is scheduled Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

MESA VERDE HAS $65M IN DEFERRED MAINTENANCE NEEDS

Mesa Verde National Park has an estimated $65.7 million in deferred maintenance needs, which is the second-highest level of any National Park Service operation in Colorado, topped only by $75 million in needs at Rocky Mountain National Park. Of the $65.7 million at Mesa Verde, $15 million in maintenance is considered critical. In addition to Mesa Verde, Howenweep National Monument lists $255,000 in backlogged repairs, and Yucca House National Monument lists $125,000.

U.S. COLLEGES SLIP IN GLOBAL STANDINGS

In the 2018 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, Oxford and Cambridge, the intellectual giants in the U.K. ranked No. 1 and No. 2, marking the first time in the 14-year history of the list that schools outside the U.S. were in the two top positions. The U.S. still took seven of the top 11 spots, but it was the fifth year of consecutive decline in the overall showing for the U.S. In the 2018 ranking, there were 62 U.S. schools in the top 200. Just four years ago, there were 77 U.S. universities in the top 200. Making the greatest upward push were Chinese universities. In the latest ranking, seven Chinese schools were in the top 200. In 2014, there were just two. Peking University and Tsinghua University topped Chinese schools, ranking 27th and 30th, respectively. The World University Ranking awards about a third of its score to the research generated by the scholars at each university. Research funding also is factored in.

WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS

• 1. University of Oxford (U.K.)
• 2. University of Cambridge (U.K.)
• T-3. California Institute of Technology (U.S.)
• T-3. Stanford University (U.S.)
• 5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (U.S.)
• 6. Harvard University (U.S.)
• 7. Princeton University (U.S.)
• 8. Imperial College London (U.K.)
• 9. University of Chicago (U.S.)
• T-10. ETH Zurich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (Switzerland)
• T-10. University of Pennsylvania (U.S.)
• 12. Yale University (U.S.)