For the sake of Colorado’s future, our legislature and governor must continue to fight for more funding to avoid putting college out of reach for many
Colorado Community College System
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: The Colorado community-college system is built on exploitation of teachers
For educators in the Colorado Community College System, the word “equity” is a familiar buzzword. It’s an admirable goal, one we very much share. The problem is that it can seem like empty rhetoric — or worse, a cynical marketing ploy— given actual labor practices within the 13 CCCS colleges. The decidedly unequal status of […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: A Colorado education leader sees opportunity emerging from the COVID-19 chaos
A year ago, I was in a session with a group of education leaders from around Colorado on the subject of leadership in crisis. At this point, we were a few weeks into the COVID-19 lockdown, shocked about the scale of change we were seeing across the globe and asking ourselves what could be done. […]
Posted inEducation, News, Politics and Government
Colorado’s 2022 budget boosts K-12 spending, reverses higher ed cuts
By Jason Gonzales and Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat Colorado Colorado’s $34.1 billion proposed state budget restores deep cuts made last year to K-12 and higher education, provides more money to help students who have traditionally struggled to complete college, and creates a substantial reserve for K-12 schools that could lay the groundwork for future reforms — if […]
Posted inBusiness, Climate, Education, Energy, Environment, News
In rural Colorado, one town is looking to its community college to help survive the end of coal
By Jason Gonzales, Chalkbeat Colorado Even in the dark of night, chalky smoke from the coal power plant looms over Craig. For generations, coal has been a constant in this northwestern Colorado city. But by 2030, the Craig Station stacks will go quiet as Colorado shifts to renewable energy. Coal has fueled not only Colorado’s […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, Education, News
Colorado needs more skilled workers. But the state provides little help to adults trying to earn a college degree.
By Jason Gonzales, Chalkbeat Colorado Victoria Browning felt trapped. To support her two young children, she worked full time caring for elderly people, earning $14 an hour. Every week was a struggle. So she enrolled at Concorde Career College Aurora Campus to get a shot at a better-paying job. Instead, she ended up with thousands […]
Posted inColoradans, COVID, Education, News
Enrollment usually rises at community colleges during an economic downturn. That’s not the case during coronavirus.
Times of economic distress typically give rise to bustling community college campuses, where students of all backgrounds turn to enhance their skills or build new ones in pursuit of a new career altogether. Accessible to all, community colleges offer a safe harbor for students — both traditional and nontraditional — trying to navigate toward an […]
Posted inBusiness, Coloradans, Education, News, Politics and Government
Thousands of Colorado workers already earn college credit for their time on the job. But even thousands more could.
Laura Seitz spent more time in a clinic than a classroom as she learned how to become a medical assistant but still earned college credit toward her certification. She was enrolled at Front Range Community College, but most of her practical education came at Associates in Family Medicine in Fort Collins. There, she trained with […]