Colorado Women's Hall of Fame names 2027 inductees

The Colorado Women's Hall of Fame announced its Class of 2027 on July 22 at IMA Financial Group in Denver, recognizing 10 contemporary inductees and three historical figures, including founder M.L. Hanson. The gala induction is set for March 26, 2027, as the organization marks Colorado's 150th anniversary of statehood.

Why it matters: - The Class of 2027 adds 13 women whose work shaped Colorado in education, science, healthcare, public service, media, philanthropy and advocacy. - The announcement lands during Colorado's 150th year of statehood, giving the class added symbolic weight. - The inductee list also includes Hall founder M.L. Hanson, tying the 2027 class to the organization's own origins.

What happened: - The Colorado Women's Hall of Fame announced its Class of 2027 on July 22, 2026, at IMA Financial Group in Denver. - The Hall said the new class brings its total to 205 honored women. - The 2027 theme is "Dream Big," centered on women whose courage and determination turned ideas into lasting impact. - Executive Director Barb Beckner said the class reflects achievements that expanded opportunities and strengthened communities. - The inductees will be formally honored at the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame Induction Gala on March 26, 2027. - Businesses, organizations and community leaders are being asked to support the gala through sponsorships, corporate tables and attendance.

The details: - Janine Davidson, PhD, is a former Air Force pilot, the first woman to fly the tactical C-130, and the 32nd Under Secretary of the U.S. Navy. - Davidson has led Metropolitan State University of Denver since 2017 and has worked as an author and defense expert. - Lucille Echohawk, a citizen of the Pawnee Nation, has spent more than four decades advancing Native American child welfare and philanthropy. - Echohawk co-founded the Denver Indian Center, the Denver Indian Family Resource Center and Native Americans in Philanthropy. - M.L. Hanson founded the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame in 1984 after serving as Assistant Vice President at United Bank of Denver and later leading nonprofit organizations and the Women's Leadership Foundation. - Florence Hernández-Ramos founded Denver's KUVO jazz public radio station and became the nation's first Latina president and general manager of a jazz public radio station. - Hernández-Ramos later co-founded the Latino Public Radio Consortium and helped expand Latino representation in public broadcasting. - Rebecca Love Kourlis, a former Colorado Supreme Court Justice, founded the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver. - Kourlis has focused on court reform and broader access to justice in Colorado and nationwide. - Leslie Leinwand, PhD, is a molecular biologist at the University of Colorado Boulder whose research advanced understanding of inherited heart disease and cardiovascular health. - Leinwand co-founded Myogen and MyoKardia, companies whose work led to the first FDA-approved cardiac myosin inhibitor for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. - Margaret A. "Peggy" Lemone, PhD, was the first woman to become a senior scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder. - Lemone's research advanced understanding of the planetary boundary layer and tropical convection. - Donna Lynne, DrPH, served as Colorado's 49th lieutenant governor and first chief operating officer. - Lynne later became CEO of Denver Health and helped lead the 2024 ballot measure that secured the future of the state's largest safety-net health system. - Gail Schwartz served two terms in the Colorado State Senate and sponsored the Building Excellent Schools Today, or BEST, Act to fund rural school construction. - Schwartz also served as a University of Colorado Regent and CEO of Habitat for Humanity of the Roaring Fork Valley. - Diane T. Wendt was the University of Denver's first director of women's athletics and a national advocate for Title IX. - Wendt also served on the NCAA Gender Equity Task Force and led the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators. - Joyce Porter Arneill co-founded the National Federation of Republican Women and served as its first president. - Arneill also organized Colorado's Independent Coalition of American Women, won the state's first women's open golf championship and supported the Denver Dumb Friends League and Denver Botanic Gardens. - Betty Jennings helped establish legal, licensed nurse-midwifery in Colorado and founded the University of Colorado's faculty midwifery practice and nurse-midwifery education program. - Marcy Morrison was the first woman elected to the Manitou Springs School Board and later served as an El Paso County commissioner, state representative, mayor of Manitou Springs and Colorado insurance commissioner.

Between the lines: - The class mixes legacy figures with living leaders whose influence still shapes Colorado institutions. - Several inductees are tied to firsts, from military aviation and public broadcasting to state government and higher education. - The Hall is using the 2027 class to connect women's leadership history with present-day civic, scientific and cultural impact. - The founder's induction underscores the Hall's effort to honor not only achievement, but also the institution-building that made the Hall possible.

What's next: - The Hall will induct the Class of 2027 at its gala on March 26, 2027. - Sponsorships, corporate tables and attendance opportunities remain open for supporters. - The Hall will continue preserving inductees' legacies through education, storytelling and public engagement.