Alumni

David Allen Spring Valley Alumnus (class of 1991) After sustaining extensive injuries in a car accident, David Allen attended the CMC campus in Spring Valley, graduating in 1991 with an associate degree. He went on to study business at Phillips University in Oklahoma. Allen, who was named to the Alumni Hall of Fame posthumously, left a lasting impression on many of his classmates and leaves an ongoing legacy at CMC. His family gives credit to the college’s staff and faculty for assisting him in overcoming the many challenges he faced. In his honor and through his estate, a CMC scholarship was established to support students experiencing personal or financial difficulties while endeavoring to achieve their goals in higher education. In 2006, the college dedicated the David Allen High Ropes Course, at Spring Valley. Allen was an active participant in the college’s experiential learning program, of which the ropes course is now part. A plaque at the rope course reads: “Despite a debilitating head injury, David pursued his education with tenacity, perseverance, his grin and a sparkle in his eye. He stubbornly overcame the odds. He graduated. He succeeded. Never give up.” His parents, Paul and Joan Allen, who were present at the ceremony, currently reside in Enid, Oklahoma.

Copi Vojta CMC Spring Valley Alumnus (class of 2009) Derek Johnston, program director of photography at CMC, said that when Copi Vojta arrived at Spring Valley, he brought a passion for fly-fishing. “His love and understanding of the sport – and more importantly, an understanding of why the pursuit of fish on a fly rod and being in these environments was special to him – allowed him to make images that went beyond the typical ‘grip and grin’ images and other clichés that were the norm in this type of photography,” Johnston said. To be a successful photographer, he added, a person must find their own unique vision and voice. Vojta found success in fly-fishing trade magazines, standing out so much that the editors at “The Flyfish Journal” head-hunted him. Vojta is currently the photo editor at the magazine and works remotely from Carbondale. The magazine was recently awarded a Western Publishing Association “Maggie” award for best quarterly, about which Johnston said, “Copi Vojta’s vision is a critical component to this collective voice.” Vojta, who attended the ceremony, said, “The best thing this school has going for it is the passionate faculty and staff.”

Maegan Carney CMC Steamboat Springs Alumnus (class of 1990) While a student at CMC in Steamboat Springs, Maegan Carney maintained impressive academic and athletic records alike. She was the National Collegiate Ski Association slalom and overall ski champion in 1988 and 1989, maintaining a 4.0 GPA and being named the student athlete of the year both years. Carney, who could not be present at the alumni induction ceremony, wrote to the CMC Foundation: “A lot of people see CMC as a stepping stone to greater projects, which is wonderful, but I also want to remind people that it is an incredible experience in and of itself. When I was a student, CMC was full of brilliant professors who truly cultivated our minds, but more importantly, I knew that they really cared about us. My teachers nurtured me as a whole person and my time at CMC was clearly the best years of my formal education.” After graduating from CMC, Carney transferred to the University of Colorado, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy, with honors. She then went on to earn a master’s in counseling psychology from Naropa University. She continued to excel at skiing, being named the world champion in extreme skiing in 2001 and 2002. After earning her master’s degree, Carney went into private practice as a therapist – originally in Boulder and currently in Canada, where she now resides. She also spent 21 years as an instructor and course director with the Colorado Outward Bound School.

Michael O’Hara CMC Spring Valley Alumnus (class of 1976) Michael O’Hara, who graduated from the Spring Valley campus, started his prestigious career at an early age. At 26 years old, he was promoted to vice president of a multi-million-dollar retail company. Since that promotion, the serial C-level executive and change agent has established a career that has spanned companies with revenues ranging from start-up to $7 billion. O’Hara has spent more than half of his 25-year career focusing on venture capital/private equity backed technology, software, SEO, lead-generation, media, e-commerce and financing and his international experience includes work on four continents in sales, technology, mergers and acquisitions, and partner development. O’Hara, who could not attend the ceremony, wrote to the CMC Foundation that the most important skill he learned from the college was in graphic arts technology, including hands-on printing, darkroom work, stripping and typesetting. Those skills came in handy during his first job, when he was tasked with transforming a national retailer’s old-school graphics art department into one of the first camera-ready advertising departments within its industry. “Without this . . . certificate, I might not have started that department or come up with in-house printing facilities. This knowledge and what to do with it launched my career. Because of this success, by age 26, I was promoted to vice president of the company,” he wrote. O’Hara is now acting CEO of an e-commerce start-up and reverse auction website, Yumani.com. He lives in New Jersey with his wife and two daughters. “Working with people, coaching, motivating and getting things done through others, is the key to success in business and life and also the key to personal fulfillment. CMC gave me that fundamental start that I needed to launch not only a reasonably successful career, but more importantly, what I… Read more: O’Hara, Michael

Saed Tayyara Yampa Valley College / CMC Steamboat Springs Alumnus (class of 1968) Saed Tayyara, who was honored posthumously, was nominated by classmate and alumni board member Charlie Eckstrom. Eckstrom said, “I believe Saed is worthy of being a member of the inaugural CMC Alumni Hall of Fame because he truly lived the American Dream, thanks in part to Lucile Bogue.” Bogue, founder of Yampa Valley College, which became Colorado Alpine College and then CMC’s Steamboat Springs campus in 1981, took Tayyara under her wing. “All I want is a chance to make a difference,” he told her. Tayyara emigrated from Syria in 1963 to escape political persecution, becoming an American citizen in 1972. In 1965 he moved to Steamboat Springs, where he attended Yampa Valley College. After graduating, Tayyara forged a political and entrepreneurial career that spanned periods of boom and bust in Moffat County until his death in 2008. Tayyara achieved many noteworthy accomplishments. He opened the Red Stone Hotel and Tartus Restaurant in Hayden; opened Kentucky Fried Chicken in Craig; served three terms as Craig mayor and two terms as Moffat County commissioner; served on the Club 20 board of directors and executive committee; established the Lucile Bogue/Saed Tayyara Scholarship for Colorado Northwestern Community College; and received the Daughters of the American Revolution Americanism Medal.  

Janice Kauvar CMC Spring Valley Alumnus (1976) Janice Kauvar moved to Colorado at the age of 18 to attend Colorado Mountain College at Glenwood Springs-Spring Valley. After receiving her associate degree, she moved to Boulder in 1975 where Kauvar worked at Storage Tek during its start-up years, and then began working at the National Center for Atmosphotopheric Research where she stayed for 25 years. Kauvar received her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Regis University in Denver in 1995, graduating magna cum laude, while raising her two children and working full time. Kauvar passed away in 2013 after a long battle with cancer. Family, friends, and colleagues remember Kauvar as a woman of tremendous grace and character, dedicated to her family and her work. She is described by those close to her as selfless, modest, and kind, someone who was unflinchingly professional yet caring with colleagues. Kauvar’s devotion to her education, career, and family make her a noteworthy alum of Colorado Mountain College. She went on to become a leader at NCAR and continued her studies at Regis University. Her passion for excellence in her own way is an inspiration.