The Colorado National Guard has its first female leader in Army Brig. Gen. Laura Clellan.
Gov. Jared Polis appointed Clellan to Adjutant General of the guard this week, and she is scheduled to take command around the beginning of August.
She is also the first openly LGBTQ person to hold the role.
Clellan will replace U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Mike Loh, who is waiting for Senate confirmation to become the next director of the U.S. Air National Guard.
“I will continue to build on Major General Loh's accomplishments, with an emphasis on ensuring our Colorado National Guard is an inclusive organization that is ‘Always Ready and Always There’ for our communities and partners in Colorado and around the globe,” Clellan said in a statement from the guard.
Clellan first joined the Colorado Army National Guard in 1998, following various assignments with the Army and Army Reserve. She also served in military police units on international assignments in Honduras, Saudi Arabia, Panama, Hungary and Afghanistan.
She retired as the Colorado Army National Guard assistant adjutant general last November following nearly three decades of military service.
In her civilian life, Clellan most recently worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Lakewood.
