University of Colorado Regent Ken Montera was appointed to the Board of Regents by Governor Jared Polis in December 2021, and elected in 2023 for the remainder of the term for Congressional District 5. Montera has been unanimously elected vice chair of the board two consecutive years. Montera spent over 30 years as a senior executive in four Fortune 200 companies leading strategy, multi billion dollar budgets, and direct responsibility for over 40,000 associates. He graduated from CU’s Leeds School of Business in 1979.

Montera is a third-generation Coloradan and the first in his family to attend a major university. He received the Presidents Leadership Class scholarship allowing him to attend CU Boulder. His education and time at CU built the foundation that launched a very successful corporate career with increasing levels of responsibility at Johnson & Johnson, Baxter Healthcare, PepsiCo, and Limited Brands. At Limited Brands, Montera was Chief Stores Officer and Executive Vice President of Retail Operations, overseeing approximately 5,000 retail locations in addition to sales, marketing, education, strategy, and brand delivery. While there, the organization achieved record sales and profit growth and also received the ICSC award for best service experience among large corporations. His ability to establish and lead collaborative cultures and to foster diverse and high performing teams resulted in consistent high performance throughout his 30-plus year career at the C-suite and Executive Committee levels.

After moving to 10 different cities and having responsibilities for U.S. operations and Canada, Montera retired in 2014 and moved back to his home state of Colorado. Since retiring, he has been active in his community serving as Vice Chairman of the Colorado Springs Philharmonic Orchestra and serving on the board of the Salvation Army and a number of other start up businesses. He consults for the retail/manufacturing/supply chain industry on brand strategy, leadership, and new product development.

Montera has three children, two that live in Columbus, Ohio, and one in the Denver area. He is the proud grandfather of two grandsons Henry (almost 4) and his newest Luka (4 months). Montera lives in Colorado Springs with his fiancé Theresa.