Christine Johnson, who was ousted as president of Community College of Denver in a bitter public battle last year, has reached a financial settlement and is now working at the University of Colorado at Denver.

Johnson and the Colorado Community College System announced the settlement this week. It includes Johnson's agreement not to sue the system and an agreement by the parties not to discuss the matter.

The Rocky Mountain News obtained the settlement through the Colorado Open Records Act. It says Johnson's lawyer will receive $21,000. But, the language is unclear about how much Johnson will get, and the parties refused to clarify the agreement.

According to the settlement, Johnson will receive $15,000 from Colorado's insurance fund. The Community College System will pay her $24,000. But the settlement also says the system will issue Johnson tax documents showing $45,000 in payments. So it's unclear what the total payment will be.

Johnson told the Rocky she is thrilled to be moving forward. "I want to focus on the future," she said Wednesday.

She is helping launch the Community College Leadership and Policy Center at the University of Colorado at Denver. Johnson said she has been working on the new center for the past month.

Johnson said she takes great pride in the work she did at CCD, where she and Nancy McCallin, head of the community college system, clashed for months before the public ouster of Johnson in June 2007.

Johnson said she was held to a different standard because she is Hispanic and that her June 2007 firing was political.

McCrimmonK@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2502