Woman of the Year

Karen Stuart is a former three-term Mayor of the City and County of Broomfield, where she played a key role in creating the consolidated city and county in 2001. Stuart had leadership roles with the Denver Regional Council of Governments, the US36 Mayors and Commissioners Coalition, the Metro Mayors Caucus and the National League of Cities Transportation Advisory Committee. As Chair of the Northwest Parkway Public Authority, Stuart was an active member of the International Bridge Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) and a key negotiator for the NWP’s Concession Lease Agreement in 2007. 

From 2007 to 2012 Stuart worked as a consultant for Carter& Burgess, Jacobs and Collins Engineers.

In 2015 Stuart received the Denver Regional Council of Governments’ Distinguished Service Award and in 2016 was recognized by the “Denver Business Journal” as a finalist for the Outstanding Women in Business in the Education and Non-Profits category.

Stuart holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology and Economics from Marymount College, and a certificate from the Senior Executives in State and Local Government Program from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. 

She is currently the Executive Director of Smart Commute Metro North, a non-partisan, non-profit, transportation management organization, serving the north metro region working to promote mobility options that reduce congestion and improve air quality. 

Ms. Stuart was appointed in 2017 to the Colorado Transportation Commission and to HPTE in 2019. She currently serves as Chair of the Transportation Commission.