It wasn’t enough to Dean Abrams to say you’re going to save the world. For the Denver businessman and nonprofit leader, you had to prove it.
Abrams, a pioneer in data-driven business analysis and CEO of OpenWorld Learning, lost his battle with pancreatic cancer Wednesday. He was 57.
Co-workers described him as a natural leader who was caring and empathetic to his staff, constantly searching for business measurements and solutions, and passionate about helping kids.
“I admire Dean more than I can say,” said Steve Hal-stedt, a co-worker who was close to Abrams.
Before working in the nonprofit sector, Abrams founded and ran a business that analyzed it. He sold his multimillion-dollar company, NonProfit Builders, just before the economic downturn in 2008. The company hinged on a program that measured organizations’ impact based on data from nonprofit programs and donors.
He implemented a similar evaluation system at OpenWorld Learning, or OWL, when he became its CEO in 2011. He had been volunteering at Children’s Hospital when the educational nonprofit focused on computer technology, and peer teaching caught his eye.
“He was in the position where he’d done well, so he could and wanted to give back,” Halstedt said.
Halstedt was on the committee that hired Abrams in late 2011, which he said was an easy decision given that Abrams was the vice president of marketing and sales at a billion-dollar food-service company and the holder of two master’s degrees from the University of Santa Monica.
In his time as CEO, the nonprofit expanded its 11 Denver schools to include students in Jefferson County and Aurora.
Students’ standardized test scores, Web skills and attendance improved, all of which were tracked and analyzed on Abrams’ evaluation site.
“He was very much hands-on,” said Brett Wilhelm, interim CEO at OWL. “Making sure that what we did from a curriculum level, from a teaching level, had positive outcomes with the kids.”
For a year after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2012, Abrams led the OWL team at board meetings, at the office and, later, from home.
“He’d do chemo on Monday then come in on Tuesday,” Halstedt said.
Abrams resigned in August. Halstedt said OWL met its annual goals by the time school started this fall because their late CEO had them on track.
On Twitter, Abrams shared philanthropic success stories, tips for entrepreneurism and anecdotes from the learning center.
“Spent some time with our OWL kids this afternoon,” he tweeted in 2011. “I’m pretty good with words, but there’s just no words for that experience. I’m grateful.”
A week and a half earlier, he had written: “Listen. Can you hear it? It’s the sound of change. All good.”
Alison Noon: 303-954-1223, anoon@denverpost.com or
