Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame names Class of 2027

The Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame announced 11 new inductees on July 22 in Denver, including founder M.L. Hanson, during Colorado’s 150th year of statehood. The Class of 2027 will be honored at a gala on March 26, 2027, and highlights women whose work has shaped education, science, health care, public service and the arts.

Why it matters: - The Class of 2027 adds 11 women whose work has influenced Colorado’s schools, hospitals, courts, media, science, government and community organizations. - The announcement comes during Colorado’s 150th anniversary of statehood, giving the induction class added historical weight. - The class also recognizes Hall founder M.L. Hanson, underscoring the organization’s own legacy as it marks more than four decades of honoring women’s achievements.

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 the total number of recognized women to 205. - The theme for the class is “Dream Big.” - Executive Director Barb Beckner said the inductees expanded opportunities, strengthened communities and created legacies that will inspire future generations. - 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 invited 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 Colorado State University Denver president since 2017. - Davidson also served as the 32nd Under Secretary of the U.S. Navy and is 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 breaking barriers 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 also co-founded the Latino Public Radio Consortium and helped broaden Latino representation in public broadcasting. - Rebecca Love Kourlis is a former Colorado Supreme Court Justice who founded the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System at the University of Denver. - Kourlis has been a national leader in court reform and access to justice. - Leslie Leinwand, PhD, is a molecular biologist at the University of Colorado Boulder whose work has 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 before becoming CEO of Denver Health. - Lynne led the successful 2024 ballot measure that secured the future of Colorado’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. - 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 was inducted into the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators Hall of Fame. - 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 served Denver Dumb Friends League and Denver Botanic Gardens for decades. - Betty Jennings was a certified nurse-midwife and University of Colorado faculty member who helped establish legal, licensed nurse-midwifery in Colorado. - Jennings founded the university’s faculty midwifery practice and nurse-midwifery education program. - Marcy Morrison was the first woman elected to the Manitou Springs School Board. - Morrison later served as an El Paso County commissioner, state representative, mayor of Manitou Springs and Colorado insurance commissioner.

Between the lines: - The class mixes pioneers from public service, health care, science, education and media, signaling that the Hall is emphasizing broad civic impact rather than one type of achievement. - Including founder M.L. Hanson alongside the 2027 class ties the announcement to institutional memory and the Hall’s origins. - The “Dream Big” theme frames the class as both a celebration of past barriers broken and a call to future leadership.

What's next: - The Hall will spotlight the inductees at its March 26, 2027 gala. - Community support through sponsorships, tables and attendance will help shape the event’s reach. - The Hall continues its mission of preserving legacies and inspiring future generations through education, storytelling and public engagement. - More information is available through the Hall’s social channels, including LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

The bottom line: - The Class of 2027 broadens the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame’s roster with 11 women whose work changed Colorado and, in several cases, the country.