Jack Graham (politician)

John Collins Graham (born June 17, 1952), also known as Jack Graham, is an American business executive and former Colorado State University athletic director.[1][2] He was a Republican Party candidate for a United States Senate seat in Colorado in the 2016 elections.[3][4][5]

John Collins Graham
Born (1952-06-17) June 17, 1952
Alma materColorado State University
Occupation(s)Entrepreneur, politician
Children3
Websitewww.jackgraham2016.com

Biography

Early years

Graham was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Janet Elizabeth Collins, a homemaker, and Joseph Jacob Graham, former president of Montgomery and Collins, a brokerage firm owned by the Insurance Company of North America (INA), subsequently CIGNA. Raised in Palo Alto, California, Graham attended Ellwood P. Cubberley High School and played football, basketball and golf. He earned an athletic scholarship and played as quarterback at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). The riots and social unrest of 1970 led to the termination of his University football program in 1972.[6] He transferred to Foothill College where he attracted the attention of Colorado State University (CSU). As a result, Graham received an athletic scholarship following an invitation to visit Fort Collins, Colorado. He played quarterback at CSU and set the record as the second highest passing yards in a single game in school history in 1974.[7] Graham graduated from CSU with a Bachelor of Arts in history. Then, he was drafted into the National Football League (NFL) by the Miami Dolphins in the spring of 1975. Later, Graham landed in San Francisco with the San Francisco 49ers where he was unsuccessful in making the roster, ending his professional football career.

Graham and his wife Ginger live in Colorado. They have three children and three grandchildren, including actress, Kendel Graham.

Business career

ICAT

Graham built a career creating collaborations with businesses to bring private capital to public markets. As a result, he helped solve large financial problems and keeping markets open to protect homeowners and small business owners in catastrophe exposed areas of the U.S. Graham was the founder, chairman and CEO of International Catastrophe Insurance Managers, LLC (ICAT) renamed ICAT Holdings, LLC. He formed ICAT Syndicate 4242 at Lloyd's of London in 2007.[8] Graham was the CEO of Paraline Group Ltd., a holding company formed in 2010 by Elliot Capital to acquire ICAT and other businesses formed by Graham.[9] In July 1998, Graham founded International Catastrophe Insurance Managers, LLC.

Natural disasters

In 1992, as Hurricane Iniki hit Hawaii, Graham collaborated with the insurance commissioner,[10][11] which led to Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund legislation, a local solution to hurricane insurance.[12] Following the 1994 Northridge earthquake that hit California, Graham contributed in establishing the California Earthquake Authority (CEA) in 1996.[13] Then, Graham was invited to join the Advisory Council for the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) due to his market utilization of atmospheric data and significant business expertise in managing risk associated with hurricane activity. He sat on the NCAR Advisory Council for over a decade.[14]

Recognition

In 1989 and 1996, Graham earned the E.W. Blanch, Sr. Award for outstanding reinsurance intermediary of the year.[15] Graham was recognized as the 2003 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year for financial services in the Rocky Mountain Region.[16]

Athletic activities

After retiring from ICAT in 2011, Graham was recruited by the president of Colorado State University as its athletic director for a D-1 program including 16 sports, over 400 student athletes and the 200 members of the athletic department staff. During his tenure, he proposed the construction of a new on-campus football stadium,[17] led the creation of a sports Hall of Fame, a retail outlet called the Ram Zone, and negotiated contracts with ESPN Radio and Under Armour. Based on internal disagreements, Graham's contract with CSU was ended in late 2014.[18][19] Graham was recognized as the Triple Impact Professional by the Positive Coaching Alliance in 2013. In January 2015, he joined the board of the Positive Coaching Alliance of Colorado and became its chairman of the board.[20]

Graham joined the University of Colorado's Sports Governance Center Board of Advisors in early 2016.

Political activities

Graham became the first Republican candidate to be officially named on the June 28 primary ballot through the petition process alone.[3][21][22] Jack Graham supports reducing federal regulatory burden and income taxes on corporations,[23] and is in favor of a balanced budget amendment.[24] Graham contributed $1 million of personal money into the campaign, raised a record $341,000 in the first three months of 2016 of campaign money from local donors,[5][25] and participated in several public debates with other Republican candidates:[4][26]

  • on June 8, 2016, sponsored by The Gazette newspaper and KKTV[27][28]
  • on June 22, 2016, sponsored by the Douglas County Republican Women's Forum in Castle Rock.[29]

References
  1. Dempsey, Christopher (December 1, 2011). "CSU fires AD Paul Kowalczyk, hires ex-Rams quarterback Jack Graham". Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  2. Kensler, Tom (November 23, 2013). "Colorado State athletic director Jack Graham: dreaming is believing". The Denver Post.
  3. Schrader, Megan (February 16, 2016). "Former CSU athletic director Jack Graham announces bid for U.S. Senate". The Gazette.
  4. Lyell, Kelly (January 29, 2016). "Former CSU AD Jack Graham enters U.S. Senate race". Fort Collins Coloradoan. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  5. Mattews, Mark (June 9, 2016). "Jack Graham, fresh from CSU, tackles U.S. Senate race". The Denver Post.
  6. Haggerty, Taylor (December 2010). "From the Ashes: 40 years after the infamous burning of the Bank of America, UCSB alumni take a look back at the event that shaped Isla Vista". CoastLines. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  7. "The Rams Playing Career of New CSU Athletic Director - Jack Graham". Colorado Aggies.com/. December 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  8. "ICAT Establishes Syndicate at Lloyd's of London". ICAT News. November 30, 2006. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  9. "Paraline Group, Ltd. Established New vehicle dedicated to global insurance and reinsurance markets acquires ICAT Holdings, LLC" (PDF). October 21, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  10. "State Approves New Owner for a Hawaii Hurricane Insurer" (PDF). State of Hawaii: Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs - Insurance Division. July 9, 2009.
  11. "Hawaii approves new owner for hurricane insurance". Pacific Business News. July 9, 2009.
  12. Simpson, Andrew G. (September 6, 2004). "Have Catastrophe Risks' 'Bring 'Em On!' Says Specialized Writer ICAT". Insurance Journal. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  13. "California Enters New Era Of Quake Insurance". Business Standard. December 2, 1996. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  14. "University Corporation for Atmospheric Research Minutes: Board of Trustees Meeting 8-9 October 2001". National Center for Atmospheric Research. October 9, 2001. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  15. "Jack Graham - Profile". Colorado State Rams.
  16. "Entrepreneur finalists announced". Denver Business Journal. May 30, 2003. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  17. "Colorado State board endorses stadium, chief repeats no-taxes pledge". October 4, 2012. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  18. Frei, Terry (August 10, 2014). "Frei: CSU's Jack Graham got fired for being who he is". The Denver Post. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  19. Kurtzman, Rich (June 7, 2015). "Column: Colorado State should still be thankful for Jack Graham". BSN Denver.com. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  20. "Jack Graham Joins Board". Positive Coaching Alliance. June 22, 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  21. Harmon, Gary (March 7, 2016). "Ex-CSU official to run for Senate as a Republican". Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  22. Mattew, Mark K. (April 20, 2016). "Jack Graham makes primary ballot; pressure builds for rivals". The Denver Post.
  23. "Where the Republican Senate candidates come down on key business issues". Denver Business Journal. June 9, 2016.
  24. Hutchins, Corey (March 24, 2016). "What you need to know about Colorado's U.S. Senate race". The Colorado Independent.
  25. Mattew, Mark K. (April 15, 2016). "Jack Graham raises $341K in 1Q; Jon Keyser raises $300K". The Denver Post.
  26. Salzman, Jason (March 17, 2016). "Pot Brings Vagrants, GOP Senate Candidate Falsely States". The Huffington Post. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  27. Schrader, Megan (June 7, 2016). "U.S. Senate candidates set to debate in Colorado Springs". The Gazette. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  28. Strescino, Peter (June 2, 2016). "Senate candidate Jack Graham says state needs to adjust to new reality". The Pueblo Chieftain. Archived from the original on June 4, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  29. Wynne, W. (June 2, 2016). "Special Event - DCRW U.S. Senate Candidate Forum". DCRW. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
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