Lena Lovato Archuleta

Lena Lovato Archuleta (July 25, 1920 – April 3, 2011) was an American educator, school librarian, and administrator in New Mexico and Colorado for more than three decades. In 1976 she became the first Hispanic woman principal in the Denver Public Schools system. She was also the first Hispanic president of the Denver Classroom Teachers' Association and the Colorado Library Association, and the first female president of the Latin American Education Foundation. She was instrumental in the founding of several political and community advocacy groups for Latinos and served on numerous city and community boards. Following her retirement in 1979, she became a full-time volunteer for the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). She was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame in 1985. In 2002 the Denver Public Schools system dedicated the Lena L. Archuleta Elementary School in northeast Denver in her honor.

Early life and education

Lena Lovato was born in Clapham, New Mexico, to Eusebio Lovato, a shoe repairman and World War I veteran, and his wife Dominguita. She was an eighth-generation Mexican American. She had one sister. In 1922 the family moved to Raton, where she graduated from Raton High School. She obtained a scholarship to the University of Denver, where she majored in Spanish and minored in Latin and education, graduating with a B.A. in education.

In 1976 Archuleta became the first Hispanic woman principal in the Denver Public Schools system with her appointment at Fairview Elementary School. In 2000 she helped found Circle of Latina Leadership, a leadership training group for Hispanic women in Denver, and mentored many of its participants. She was a committee member of the Hospice of Metro Denver and the Denver Catholic Archdiocese finance committee. She was also president of the Greater Denver Rainbow Chapter of AARP and represented Colorado at the 1995 White House Conference on Aging.

Awards and honors Archuleta received the Bernie Valdez Community Service Award from LARASA, the Civis Princeps (First Citizen) Citation in Humanitarianism from Regis University, the Hispanic Annual Salute, and the Denver Hispanic Chamber of Commerce "Famous Firsts" Award, among other local honors. In December 2001 Archuleta was honored as one of Denver's "Unsung Heroes" by Mayor Wellington Webb.

In April 2002 the Denver Public Library Association introduced the annual Lena L. Archuleta Community Service Award, LARASA initiated its annual Lena L. Archuleta Education Service Award in 2004. and educating grades K-5, was the first Denver public school named for a Latina.

Personal She married Juan U. Archuleta in 1943. After their move to Denver in 1951, he worked for the Denver Public Schools system in power and water system maintenance. They were married for 55 years at the time of Juan's death in 1998. In 2004, the group created an annual awards brunch called the Las Madrinas Tribute, recognizing women who have made significant contributions to the community. An auction held at the brunch has been named the "Lena Archuleta Mercadito" in her memory.

Archuleta's interests included piano playing and dance. She was a member of Las Estrellitas Alegres (The Happy Little Stars) women's Spanish and Mexican dance group in Denver.

The Lena L. Archuleta Papers, covering her career from 1942 to 2010, are housed at the Denver Public Library.