Judge Celeste was appointed to the bench in 2000, and served as Presiding Judge from 2009 through 2010; the first women to hold that position in the history of the Court. She currently sits on the Colorado Advisory Committee for the United States Civil Rights Commission and is a NHTSA Judicial Outreach Liaison for Region 8.
Judge Celeste has served as the President of the Colorado Women’s Bar Association Foundation, the President of the American Judge’s Association, and as an Adjunct Professor at the Strum College of Law. She has also served as a member of the Colorado Bar Association Board of Governors.
Judge Celeste is a graduate of Cal Western where she was the Editor-in-Chief of the law school journal. She has published many articles in various periodicals including the 2010 AJA White Paper in the AJA Court Review and was the Executive Producer of the CWBA historical video entitled Raising the Bar 2005.
Judge Celeste is the recipient of the Outstanding Editor-in-Chief Award in 1982; Human Rights Campaign Award 1994; the American Association of University Women’s Trailblazer Award 1998; Professional Women of the Year Award 2002 from the Colorado Business Council; the Judicial Excellence Award from the Colorado Women’s Bar Association 2006; the Education Award from the American Judges Association 2007; the Colorado Humanities Award 2008; the Mary Lathrop Award 2011 from the Colorado Women’s Bar Association; and the William H. Burnett Award from the American Judges Association 2011.