Shannon Donnelly directs the cannabis hospitality certificate program at Metropolitan State University of Denver, the first program of its kind housed within a university School of Hospitality. She founded The New Lavender, a women-owned Cannabis media company, and serves as Board President of Expunge Colorado, a nonprofit focused on criminal record sealing. She is also a town trustee in Lochbuie and building Afterward, a tool that helps families navigate estate settlement. Her work lives where cannabis education, social equity, and community building meet.