It’s not far-fetched to think there’s a link between Karen Wilde’s tenacity in getting a college degree and her role today as the first Native American to serve as chairwoman of the Fort Lewis College board of trustees.
Wilde presided over her first board meeting last week.
Raised in a single-parent household in Oklahoma, Wilde was also a single parent while pursuing higher education.
“I was a young single mother when I took my 20-month-old daughter to college with me,” Wilde said in a statement. “I knew I had to have that education in order to support the two of us.”
Parenting didn’t stop with her daughter. Wilde is now raising a 16-year-old grandson.
“I believe each of us is born with the ability to rise to any occasion,” Wilde said. “As an elder (tribal), I strive to be a role model, and I have been blessed to be an individual who advocates for the minority of the minorities.”
Wilde is of Muscogee and Pawnee descent on her father’s side.
The board of trustees supports the administration and faculty in recruiting and retaining students, Wilde said.
“I would like to see the board come together with faculty, staff and students to be recognized as a transparent institution as we move forward through the return of the three-credit hour for seamless transfer and to comply with state law and policies,” Wilde said.
FLC is eliminating four-credit hour courses in order to be in step with other Colorado colleges and universities.