Concerned Citizens' Scott, who attended all of the public hearings where applicants spoke, says she's also impressed with Dowe. "She seems very competent, down to earth, with a lot of interest in kids' programs. I'm optimistic, but we'll have to see what happens when she runs into the conservatives' social agenda," she adds. "We'll watch with caution."
Although Tisha Dowe had heard about the department's political controversies before she accepted the job and has learned more since she moved to Colorado Springs, she says she's not worried. She remembers her graduate-school dean, who warned that to be in public health is to be surrounded by controversies. "They may be a little larger here," she admits, "but it's not much different than what I saw in Hawaii, Massachusetts and Oklahoma."
A helping hand: Dr. Tisha Dowe learned early to take responsibility.
Anthony Camera
A helping hand: Dr. Tisha Dowe learned early to take responsibility.
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Pointing to her work with the teen-pregnancy group in Oklahoma, Dowe says she knows how to get opposing sides to the table and work from there to find compromises that everyone can live with. Her experiences with other cultures in Hawaii and Massachusetts have taught her that it's important to listen to all sides, she adds, which should please religious groups whose members have complained about being shut out of the discussion.
Already she's talking about programs to help end unplanned pregnancies, about funding to deal with the growing health issue of hepatitis C and, of course, about stopping kids from getting hooked on cigarettes. But she neatly tap-dances around the issues that keep fueling the fires in El Paso County.
Abortion is "a horrible means of birth control," she says, uttering a statement that almost anyone can agree with. But Dowe also acknowledges that there are times when it may be medically necessary, such as when the health of a mother or fetus is in danger. Under Amendment 14, no taxpayer money can be spent providing abortions anyway, she points out. She won't say how her views might affect the department's family-planning counseling.
As for condom distribution, it's too early to know what will become of those programs, she says. "Every place is different," she adds. "No one size fits all. I need time to sit down and see if what we're doing is appropriate for this area."
This early into her tenure in what could be the toughest public-health job in Colorado, it's clear that Dowe is concerned about saying anything that could stir up trouble. (Her press officer repeatedly inquired as to "what sort of article" Westword was looking to publish when a reporter asked to interview Dowe.) But if things get tough in El Paso County, neither side should expect Dowe to go down without a fight.
Her former husband, with whom she remains friends, taught her that you don't quit just because things are tough at the moment. And besides, can a political battle be worse than standing at the edge of a bomb site where 168 people died?
Dowe, who turned fifty in July, says she'd like to retire in Colorado Springs. Evidence of that is contained in a box on the floor of her office, which she found in the basement of the department. The box contains photographs of former directors dating back to 1894. Not only does the department have a long history of service to the community, she notes, but it has a history of longevity with its directors. "Two of them alone account for 45 years," she says, "and Dr. Muth was here sixteen years.
"The only one we don't have is Dr. Englender, and we'll get that one, too, and hang them all up on the wall of my office."
