Colleen Walker
CEO | Auraria Higher Education Center
Colleen Walker has spent her career driving transformative change at the intersection of education, science, and leadership development. She has served as CEO of the Auraria Campus since 2019, bringing a wealth of experience in strategic growth, operational excellence, and mission-driven innovation. With over 45,000 students, faculty, and staff, the Auraria Campus is Colorado’s largest college campus and the unique home to the Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and the University of Colorado Denver.
A dynamic and visionary leader, Colleen is committed to fostering a collaborative and inclusive campus environment that seamlessly integrates into Denver’s physical, intellectual, cultural, and economic fabric. Under her leadership, Auraria has experienced unprecedented growth and transformation. She has secured over $100 million in capital for construction and infrastructure improvements, revitalizing the campus environment and driving forward innovative projects. Additionally, she has procured over $22 million in grants and soft-dollar funding to support scholarships, workforce housing, historic preservation, sustainability programs, and infrastructure enhancements. Colleen leads a dedicated team of more than 400 dedicated professionals who support the dynamic needs of this thriving campus.
Previously, Walker served as the Eugene McDermott Chief Executive Officer of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas, where she led the operational transformation of the newly built institution. Under her leadership, the museum made groundbreaking strides, including acquiring a nearly complete Columbian mammoth skeleton, “Ellie May,” and launching the Kosmos Energy STEM Teacher Institute and the Dell TECH Truck. Walker hosted the first U.S. visit from National Geographic World Explorer Dr. Lee Berger, unveiling his South African discovery of Homo naledi, a newly identified species in the human family tree. She also spearheaded the museum’s first self-curated exhibition, The Eye of the Collector, which attracted over 100,000 visitors and earned unprecedented media attention.
Before her tenure at the Perot Museum, Walker served as CEO of Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas, where she successfully unified three separate councils into a single, high-impact organization. She was pivotal in shaping the national strategy for 21st-century Girl Scouting and launched a capital campaign that reimagined a historic South Dallas camp into a STEM Center of Excellence. This pioneering model has since been adopted nationwide by Girl Scouts of the USA. In 2012, she orchestrated the country's largest Girl Scouts Centennial celebration at the State Fair of Texas, marking 100 years of empowering young women.
Walker’s passion for STEM education and leadership development began early. She founded Engineers of Dreams, a nonprofit that fosters math and science literacy among fourth- through ninth-grade students, focusing on young women. Through this initiative, she reached over 60,000 students across Texas, Colorado, and Louisiana, designing an innovative multimedia educational program and engaging with 175 schools.
A distinguished academic achiever, Walker holds a bachelor's degree in architectural engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder and earned her MBA from Harvard University, where she was awarded the prestigious Horace W. Goldsmith Fellowship for her contributions to the nonprofit sector.
Her leadership extends beyond her executive roles—she serves on the Downtown Denver Partnership Board. She has also served on the Board of Trustees for the National Endowment for Financial Empowerment (where she was Chair and Vice-Chair) and was a national Miss America Foundation board member.
Walker’s impact has been widely recognized—she has been named one of the Top 25 Female Business Leaders in Dallas by the Dallas Business Journal, honored as Woman of the Year by the Women’s Council of Dallas, and recognized as one of the Most Powerful Dallas Business Leaders by D CEO.
