Emily Griffith was born February 10, 1868, in Cincinnati Ohio. The eldest of four children, with a frail mother and crippled father, Emily went to work at an early age to help supplement the family income.

At 14, she started teaching in a sod schoolhouse in Broken Bow, Nebraska. It was here that she first discovered that many of her students' parents did not know how to read, write or figure their bills. Many were immigrants and did not know the English language.

These realizations made a profound impression on Emily. Her dream of a school for adults was born. She envisioned a place where students could attend classes day or night and receive as much education as they wanted or needed. In 1895, the Griffith family moved to Denver, Colorado. Denver Public Schools hired Emily. She continued to work for the district until her retirement in 1933. Emily's warmth, sense of humor and teaching competence made her loved and respected by students and peers.

Emily Griffith’s Accomplishments

• 1904-1908 Deputy State Superintendent of Schools
• 1910-1912 Deputy State Superintendent of Public Instruction
• 1927 Founded # 9 Pearl Street, a residence for homeless boys; now the Emily Griffith Center in Larkspur, Colorado
• 1985 Inducted into Colorado Business Hall of Fame
• 2000 Recipient of Mayor Wellington Webb's Millennium Award Selected as "Denver's Most Useful Citizen"
• Honored at the Colorado State Capitol building for her contribution to Colorado history; she is the only woman