| In 2019, Dr. Joann Ginal was sworn into the Colorado State Senate on behalf of Senate District 14, after representing House District 52 for three terms. She currently serves as Chair of the Local Government Committee and as a member of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.
Senator Ginal is a healthcare professional, bio-scientist, and professor. During her time in the House, she served as Chairwoman of the Health, Insurance, and Environment Committee and served on the Public Health and Human Services Committee. As a legislator, Senator Ginal worked to increase transparency for the cost of prescription drugs and to help physicians and veterinarians pay back student loans by working in rural areas. She has been a champion of patients' rights and was the sponsor of the End of Life Options Act, which would allow a terminally ill patient to self-administer a lethal dose of medication.
Before serving in the Colorado House of Representatives, Senator Ginal worked in the pharmaceutical and medical fields for more than 20 years as a scientist specializing in reproductive endocrinology. She was also a professor of biology at Florida Institute of Technology and did aging research at the University of Florida in Gainesville.
Senator Ginal earned her Ph.D. in reproductive endocrinology from Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine, a Master's degree in zoology from Iowa State University, and a Bachelor's degree with honors in biology and a minor in microbiology from the University of New Hampshire.
She has also been a lead biologist for several international eco-travel companies, leading expedition biodiversity trips down the Amazon River in Peru, Columbia, and Brazil as well as African photo safaris in Kenya and Tanzania. She recently returned from a trek in Botswana and Nambia.
In her spare time, Senator Ginal loves being outdoors. Her favorite activities include hiking and slot canyoneering in Utah and Arizona. She has trekked for many weeks at a time in the U.S., Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and South America. Other activities include skiing, paddleboarding, riding her motorcycle, and collecting vintage maps and books. |