Welcome to life after graduating FLC

We are the Fort Lewis College Alumni Engagement Office, your hub for staying connected and engaged with our vibrant alumni community. Regardless of when you graduated, our goal is to support and enhance your relationship with Fort Lewis College.

We foster lifelong connections, celebrate your achievements, and provide valuable opportunities for networking, professional development, and personal growth through events, career services, mentorship programs, and community initiatives.

This is a dynamic and inclusive space where alumni thrive, contribute, and make a lasting impact. Join us as we build upon the legacy of Fort Lewis College and celebrate the journeys of our alumni.

Show your FLC pride!

Request an alumni sticker and enter to win a day pass from Purgatory Resort. 

Request sticker

Upcoming events

Alumni stories

Alumna confirmed as newest member of FLC Board of Trustees
Anonym
/ Categories: Campus News, Alumni

Alumna confirmed as newest member of FLC Board of Trustees

“This is one of the most important jobs I’ll have in my career,” DeFore said. “Being a first-gen college graduate, I understand the importance of having someone advocate on your behalf. I’m honored to be stepping into a role to support students.”

DeFore sees herself as a messenger and storyteller on behalf of students. She wants to help students transition into the workforce by introducing new strategic partners to their stories and capabilities.

Essential experience 

DeFore’s career has been a blend of academic, government, and industry roles across Colorado. She brings essential experience in engagement and strategic growth to the FLC Board of Trustees. DeFore is responsible for stakeholder engagement and government relations at Lockheed Martin Space, aligning customer and stakeholder engagement to planning for growth in existing and emerging markets across all lines of business.

Stacey DeFore smiling with trees in background
Stacey DeFore was confirmed as FLC's newest member of the Board of Trustees on April 5, 2023.

Before joining Lockheed Martin Space, DeFore was the director of strategy and business development for Teledyne Brown Engineering Space Systems Segment. She was responsible for shaping opportunities for segment growth and sustainment of programs with objectives for human and robotic missions.

DeFore also held the role of director of government relations and strategic engagement at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She developed and executed university stakeholder mapping, special projects, and outreach aligned with the university’s strategic roadmap. She focused on partnership development, emphasizing industry workforce pipeline curriculum and capital campaigns for the Advanced Manufacturing Sciences Institute.

A champion for students

DeFore is eager to be a conduit for students at the beginning of their careers through collaborations with other colleges, government partners, and agencies. Additionally, she’s committed to ensuring that the curriculum at FLC translates into the skills and workforce needs of state industries.

This is one of the most important jobs I’ll have in my career. Being a first-gen college graduate, I understand the importance of having someone advocate on your behalf. I’m honored to be stepping into a role to support students.

Stacey DeFore

Since 2018, she has served on the Business Advisory Council for FLC’s School of Business Administration. 

“We’re excited to be joined by a very successful alumna who has made a critical impact on Colorado’s economy and has long supported FLC’s workforce development and university partnerships,” said FLC President Tom Stritikus.

DeFore’s other service roles include vice chair of the Colorado Aerospace States Association, which Lt. Governor Dianne Primavera chairs, and several industry, association, non-profit, and academic boards throughout Colorado.

In 2021, DeFore was acknowledged by the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce as one of the Top 25 Most Powerful Women in Colorado, and in 2020 she received the Colorado Space Business Roundtable’s Cosmic Contributor Award. DeFore is also the proud recipient of the Club 20 Johnson-Theos Bridge Builder Award for her work on the Western Slope.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis appointed DeFore earlier this year, and on April 5, she was confirmed by the Colorado Senate Education Committee. DeFore will serve on the FLC Board of Trustees for a four-year term. Additionally, trustees Adam Red and Janet Lopez were reconfirmed for four years.

“I’m humbled at the opportunity to work alongside the other trustees,” DeFore said. “We have an amazing strength in the current board, and there is absolute passion in the trustees who are united in a mission to serve the College, students, faculty, community, and administration.”

DeFore is ready to continue the board’s progress in workforce development and community partnerships, and in bolstering the diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts FLC has been instrumental in leading in the Four Corners region.

“FLC has always had that as a tenet and mission, to be a leader and pathfinder for the future,” she said. “We’re at an inflection point. This work is really important to me.”

Previous Article Alumni-owned marketing agency sets the bar at least 6,582 feet high
Next Article Coffee company brews up win at Hawk Tank
Print
4781 Rate this article:
No rating
Please login or register to post comments.

Follow @flcalumni on Instagram

Alumni in the Media

FLC Summits

An alumni story video series

FLC Summits S2 E3 | Reed Clément FLC Summits S2 E3 | Reed Clément

FLC Summits S2 E3 | Reed Clément

Reed Clément, English Communications ’05, created his own degree emphasis in videography while at FLC. After graduating, Reed headed for the locus of all things cinematic, Los Angeles, California. He now heads up Netflix’s CREATIVE LABS division at their Hollywood branch headquarters. Reed discusses his time at FLC, how it changed him, and how what he learned at the school informs his work today.
Justin Beals (English-Theatre, '95) Justin Beals (English-Theatre, '95)

Justin Beals (English-Theatre, '95)

In the fall of 2022, entrepreneur Justin Beals stopped by the school to have a look at his old haunts. Beals has built a career in cybersecurity and credits his success to time spent pacing the boards of the FLC Mainstage, where he learned to tell stories.
Jacquelene & Angelo McHorse Jacquelene & Angelo McHorse

Jacquelene & Angelo McHorse

In 2012, FLC alums Jacquelene and Angelo McHorse started Bison Star Naturals, a small family business whose products are made with organically, naturally and locally sourced ingredients. FLC caught up with the McHorses to chat about their time at FLC, their approach to entrepreneurialism and community, and their plans for the future!
Ray Boucher Ray Boucher

Ray Boucher

1980 Class President Ray Boucher talks about life at the Fort in the Seventies, bed racing, his professors and the importance of conviction.
P.T. Wood (Business Administration, '90) P.T. Wood (Business Administration, '90)

P.T. Wood (Business Administration, '90)

P. T. Wood isn’t the first person to have his life changed on a river trip. Nor is he the first to imbibe some liquid spirits on said trip. But for Wood, the convergence of the two has led to a life and occupation in one of those unique mountain-lifestyle ways: as a distiller and mayor of a thriving Colorado mountain town.
Joshua Been (Art '99) Joshua Been (Art '99)

Joshua Been (Art '99)

For Joshua Been, a career in art has been an art unto itself. As a working artist, change, adaptability, and growth – as well as the U.S. Army and the wildlands of the American West -- have been essential to his success. And that eclectic, self-crafted path was enabled by his ability to carve his own academic vision – both personally and professionally – at FLC.
Ricardo Caté (Education, '06) Ricardo Caté (Education, '06)

Ricardo Caté (Education, '06)

The most prominent Native American cartoonist working today, Marine veteran, speaker, and standup comedian Ricardo Caté was employed by the Santa Fe New Mexican immediately after his graduation from FLC in 2006 to publish a daily single-panel cartoon called “Without Reservation,” which he had created while working for FLC’s student newspaper, The Independent.
Chris Schauble (Broadcast Journalism, '91) Chris Schauble (Broadcast Journalism, '91)

Chris Schauble (Broadcast Journalism, '91)

Every kid has their favorite TV show. For Chris Schauble it was the evening news. That early obsession led to a career in broadcast journalism that has spanned thirty years, five daytime Emmy Awards, and six Golden Mikes. These days Chris is the morning news anchor for Los Angeles’ KTLA, serving the second-largest media market in the United States.