FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
Linda Relyea (Institutional Advancement) 719-587-7827
ALAMOSA (April 25) – Cathy Mullens, class of ‘82, will give the commencement address at Adams State University in Alamosa on May 10, 2014. The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. in Plachy Hall. Adams State will award 330 degrees, including 276 bachelor’s degrees, and 54 associate degrees.
Mullens will speak on “Great Stories: Right Here, Right Now”. She served as District Attorney for the 12th Judicial District, the San Luis Valley, from 1992-96. She had the distinction of being the first woman elected District Attorney in the state.
While attending Adams State, she served as editor of The South Coloradan, the weekly student newspaper, and was named Rocky Mountain Collegiate Press Association “Journalist of the Year” in 1982. She also served as editor of the campus literary magazine and worked on a Presidential curriculum restructuring committee.
Mullens received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and government from Adams State and went on to earn a J.D. in law from Campbell University in Raleigh, N.C. in 1985. Following law school graduation she returned to the San Luis Valley where she began her legal career in the Office of the District Attorney.
After a stint in private practice, Mullens ran for and was elected District Attorney. After leaving office she worked in several District Attorney’s Offices throughout the state, retiring in 2009 after serving as Chief Trial Deputy in the Pueblo District Attorney’s Office. She worked mainly in the area of felony domestic violence cases, including prosecuting homicides.
Mullens is currently an Instructor at the Law Enforcement Academy at Otero Junior College in La Junta and works as a photographer and reporter for The Signature Newspaper in La Veta. She is also well known as a wildlife and landscape photographer.
This year she received three awards from The Colorado Press Association for her photography and reporting, including coverage of the East Peak Fire in La Veta.
She is a member of the Huerfano County Board of Adjustments, the ASU Foundation Board and serves as Municipal Judge in Walsenburg, CO.
Mullens has two children, Caitlin Campbell of Colorado Springs and Colin Dangler of Altoona, PA. She has four grandchildren. Her son-in-law, Mark Campbell, is an Adams State University graduate, her daughter attended ASU prior to obtaining her degree from the University of Colorado and her granddaughter, MacKenzie Campbell, also attended Adams State and was co-captain of the women’s lacrosse team.
Arnold Salazar, chair of the Adams State Board of Trustees, will convey the greetings from the board, while Hanna Hays will deliver the 2014 class message. Dr. Christine Keitges, professor of music, will lead the singing of the Alma Mater.
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