
Dr. Susan Rae Jensen is a Colorado trailblazer, having been the state’s first board-certified female cardiologist. Now, she’s helping UCCS students blaze their own trails with her generous support to the university and its scholars.
Known to friends as “Dr. Diva” for her interest and talent in the art of classical voice and opera, Susan is a longtime donor dedicated to helping local arts thrive and has pledged funds for two arts-related scholarships at UCCS – one for Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) students studying Voice, and another for students working with Theatreworks at the Ent Center for the Arts.
Beyond the arts, Susan is also committed to supporting medical students and has established a scholarship for students in the Colorado Springs branch of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus School of Medicine. These scholarships are part of a gift in perpetuity from Susan, through the The Dr. Susan Rae Jensen Scholarship Award Fund.
Though Susan’s donor interests are in different areas, she noted the importance of both an education and a creative outlet.
“You can never lose the education,” Susan emphasized. “You can lose money, you can lose other things, but if you have an education, you can’t lose that. And, sometimes people cease to grow as they get older. You also need to have those other interests, something that’s creative.”
“I support the arts and medical students because that’s what I’ve been involved in, and I know how hard both of them are,” she added. “But I also know that the disciplines are very rewarding when you have developed them, when you have people that have cared about you and have had that mentorship to show that it can be done.”
Susan’s own mentors helped instill those values. Before moving to Colorado, she attended the University of Iowa for her undergraduate where her passion for, and involvement in, local and regional vocal arts, musical theater, and local opera really flourished, with the guidance of her voice teacher and faculty members.
“At the University of Iowa, I was very, very supported,” she recalled. “It was an incredibly supportive atmosphere, and I could do music, I could do anything. During my undergrad, I was actually a music major with a general science background, too. But I liked that mentality that the world was your oyster.”
With the other benefits of cultivating creative interests came the opportunity to build community. During her time at both the University of Iowa and here in Colorado Springs, Susan made connections, met fellow arts enthusiasts and found like-minded friends.
“I’ve done hundreds of concerts in this region,” she said. “I’ve been very lucky as a soloist, especially when I first got here, because there weren’t as many professional vocalists moving into this region as there are now. If you gravitate towards and find people of similar interests, they’re often people that end up being supportive. I won’t say that it was easy here because it was kind of lonely at first being in the male-dominated field of cardiology but being a soloist and in the choirs and opera groups helped formulate community.”
And for those working on building their own community and interests, Susan encouraged trying as many new experiences as possible.
“Go for broke, go for everything you can possibly do right now,” she urged. “You’re going to fail at some stuff, but then you’ll know what you succeeded at and what you like. My whole emphasis in doing any sort of scholarships or any donations is because it’s important that every person should be able to develop their own potential the most they can, in whatever way they can.”
As Susan reflected on her journey, she had these inspiring words to share.
“I worked hard, and I think that’s part of imbuing a message, too – doing what you like and never taking advantage of somebody,” Susan said. “See what you can do and do it the best you can. If you as a donor can emulate that and say, ‘Spread the positive. Don’t spread the negative. Don’t take down somebody else to build yourself up.'”