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Kathryn Venzor

Kathryn Venzor headshot.

Senior Director of Education & Visitor Engagement

Kathryn Venzor (she/ella) serves as the CSU Spur Senior Director of Education & Visitor Engagement, creating and implementing formal and informal educational programs inspiring youth and the larger community to tackle problems around food, water, and health at the new Spur campus. For the past 20 years, Kathryn has been working in program development for K-12 and early childhood students and educators, environmental conservation, and community engagement.

Kathryn began her professional career developing educational programs and curriculum and interpretive resources and exhibits in museums and cultural facilities in New York and Philadelphia. Originally from the Southwest, Kathryn moved back to New Mexico where she worked as the Curator of Education at the City of Albuquerque’s four BioPark sites (Zoo, Aquarium, Botanic Garden, and recreational area Tingley Beach), engaging K-12 audiences and local and statewide communities in conservation science. Kathryn also served on the Board of Directors for Environmental Education of New Mexico and worked with community partners in the STEM fields on multiple projects to engage students from all backgrounds in the sciences and art. Currently, Kathryn serves on the Board of Directors for both the Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education and the Colorado Association of Science Teachers.

After moving to Colorado, Kathryn served as the Director of School Programs & Interpretation at Butterfly Pavilion, working to raise awareness for the importance of biodiversity and promote action toward protecting lands and habitats. Most recently, Kathryn was the Guest Engagement Programs Manager at Denver Zoo, developing exhibits and programs connecting the community to wildlife and the zoo’s conservation and research efforts.

Kathryn holds a Masters in Anthropology and Museum Studies from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. She grew up exploring the desert mountains in El Paso, Texas, and that love of nature and exploration continues in Colorado. She enjoys taking in the beauty of colorful Colorado while hiking (or snowshoeing) with her spouse, Jeff.

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KAREN SCHLATTER

Director, Colorado Water Center

Karen Schlatter was appointed director of the Colorado Water Center at Colorado State University in 2025, after joining the Center as associate director in 2023. Schlatter brings academic, nonprofit, and public sector experience in managing complex water challenges with a deep commitment to building partnerships and the ability to engage in conversations across Colorado’s water community. She joined CSU from the University of Florida Water Institute where her work included facilitating multi-stakeholder/academic teams to achieve shared goals around water management through collaborative, interdisciplinary research. Prior to her role at UF, she served as associate director of the Colorado River Delta Program at the Sonoran Institute, where she focused on building cross-sector and international partnerships to support large-scale ecological restoration, effective binational water management, and community engagement in the Colorado River Delta region. Schlatter earned a Bachelor of Science in biology from McGill University and a Master of Science in environmental studies from the University of Colorado Boulder. She served as an agricultural extension volunteer in the Peace Corps in Paraguay.

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TOM VILSACK

Chief Executive Officer, World Food Prize Foundation

Effective March 1, 2025, Thomas J. Vilsack, former United States Secretary of Agriculture and Governor of Iowa, will become the first Chief Executive Officer for the World Food Prize Foundation. In this new role, Governor Vilsack will focus on expanding the Foundation’s global network, and will further position the Foundation as a leader in addressing global food and nutrition insecurity, continuing his lifetime of public service.

In 1998, he became the first Democrat to be elected as the Governor of Iowa in more than 30 years. During his two terms as Governor, he created an $800 million, 10-year economic development incentive program—the Iowa Values Fund. His administration worked with schools, medical providers, businesses, faith-based organizations and other entities to expand healthcare coverage to more than 90,000 previously uninsured children.

He became the 30th and 32nd United States Secretary of Agriculture, from 2008-2017 and 2021-2025, respectively. Only five people in U.S. history have served in the Cabinet longer, and during his tenures, the United States Department of Agriculture set records for U.S. agricultural exports and provided food assistance to millions of Americans. He helped expand food and nutrition access through summer feeding programs for children and additional support for fruit and vegetable purchases through the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program. As Secretary, he worked to develop new and superior markets for small and mid-sized farms, allowing those operations to remain viable and in turn, strengthening and growing rural communities.

Governor Vilsack has long been connected to the World Food Prize Foundation, having served on both the Council of Advisors and the Board of Directors. His insights and acumen were vital in shaping our mission and initiatives. His leadership and experience will be instrumental in expanding the Foundation’s international reach and continuing the mission of elevating innovations and inspiring action to sustainably increase the quality, quantity and availability of food for all.

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CSU Spur is turning 2! Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025.

It’s our anniversary!

It’s our anniversary! CSU Spur has been fully open to the public, sharing hands-on, family-friendly activities around food, water, and health for two years. Join us on Saturday, Jan. 11, for 2nd Saturday activities, including desserts, a mariachi performance, face painters, horses on treadmills, veterinarians in surgery, scientists in labs, and more. The celebration is from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and CSU Spur will be open 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; no registration required, all public activities are free.

2nd Saturday at CSU Spur is presented by Canvas Credit Union.

We’ll see you Saturday!

2nd Saturday at CSU Spur is 10 a.m.-2 p.m. this Saturday (May 9), and this month, the theme is Spur in Bloom. Join us for flower-themed arts and crafts, horse demonstrations, interactive activities focused on topics like sustainability and gardening, the return of the Market at the Center, and more!

Explore 2nd Saturday activities