As March comes to a close and with it Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, the Herald’s editorial board would be remiss in not recognizing the remarkable and durable achievements of women.
The ‘why’ of this recognition is encapsulated in the 1968 Virginia Slims slogan, “you’ve come a long way, baby.” A cigarette marketed exclusively to women that exploited the 1960s civil rights movement’s core messaging in an attempt to appeal to “strong, independent, and liberated” women.
Ad campaigns aside, it is a long way indeed that American women have come, marked as a starting place by the Women’s Suffrage Movement earning the right to vote 105 years ago in 1920 with the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, 133 years after its 1787 signing. This victory provided women – half the population – with the right of citizenship and political representation, of which they had long been denied.
However, Native Americans did not earn that same right until 1924 with the Snyder Act that admitted Native Americans to the U.S. as full citizens. Though with the Constitution leaving who can vote up to the states, they still faced some of the same challenges as African Americans. Trailblazing Colorado afforded women the right to vote in local and state elections in 1893, before statehood.
Amid the progress, challenges, of course, remain. The gender pay gap, underrepresentation in leadership positions in business and government, and an unequal burden of care work, to name a few. Women shoulder a disproportionate amount of uncompensated work caring for children, families, households – all of which limits women’s opportunities and advancement.
Locally, it wasn’t until 1973 that Durango had its first female mayor in Maxine Peterson who served two four-year terms. Peterson spoke via Zoom at the Feb. 27 inaugural Durango Women’s Leadership Conference attended by 330 extraordinary area women and benefiting Fort Lewis College’s Women’s Athletics program.
Peterson spoke to the power of collaboration (with the county), communication (with citizens) and community engagement, and the importance of work-life balance, one of the DWLC themes addressed by an all-star cast of local women of all ages.
And today, it is our local women the Herald’s editorial board wishes to recognize, including the 15 nominees of the Women’s Resource Center’s 2025 Extraordinary Woman Award. WRC honored local women who exemplified the 2025 Women’s History Month theme, “Moving forward together! Women educating and inspiring generations.”
The recognition began at the start of the month with a portrait exhibit at the Durango Public Library and concluded Wednesday night when the three winners – Dr. Heather Shotton, Fort Lewis College’s inaugural vice president of Diversity Affairs and Acting Dean of Students, Elizabeth Howe, Vice President of Business Services at La Plata Electric Association, and Angela Fountain, Youth Development Specialist with the La Plata County 4H Program – were recognized with the 2025 Extraordinary Woman Award.
Shotton, whose name is now synonymous with FLC’s announcement that fittingly also came on Wednesday, is the finalist among a slate of 75 applicants in the board’s 4-month long national search for a new president (Herald, Mar. 26). The board voted unanimously to approve Shotton with a final vote being forthcoming at the board’s April 11 meeting.
She is a descendant of the Kiowa and Cheyenne nations and a citizen of the Wichita and Affiliated tribes. If confirmed, Shotton will be the first Indigenous president at FLC, a Native American-serving, non-tribal institution with 52% students of color and 37% of its students who identify as Native American/Alaska Native representing over 166 tribes.
Like Shotton, 43% of FLC students are first-generation students – the first in their family to pursue higher education. In accepting the WRC honor, Shotton spoke to how her teen mom instilled a value for education and a desire to succeed that strongly influenced Shotton’s dedication to “smoothing down the path” for others. She expressed a desire to “channel her energy into helping future generations rather than struggling for legitimacy.”
The days and weeks and events held as a part of Women’s History Month have reminded us – as was reiterated at the WRC awards dinner – that with power, women create more empathetic places, and more compassionate and equitable communities. When one woman succeeds, all women succeed.
Stated loudly and clearly across events, all spoke to the responsibility women have to lift up one another. During the DWLC Community Advocacy Panel, Beth Drum, Senior Vice President of Alpine Bank, said something that stuck. “Always be the woman that has a place for one more person at your table. Be that person.”
Congratulations to all who were recognized, particularly Dr. Shotton. We look forward to getting to know you and your plans for FLC.
