The Aspen campus's Ceramics Club is having its annual holiday sale Dec. 1 and 2 featuring the works of local artists, students and faculty.

CMC Aspen Ceramics Club holds holiday sale Dec. 1 and 2

Colorado Mountain College Aspen Ceramics Club is having its annual holiday sale on Dec. 1 and 2 at the Aspen campus.

The sale will feature ceramic artwork created by local artists, students and faculty of CMC, and provides an ideal opportunity to support local artists and to find one-of-a-kind gifts for family and friends.

The sale will take place from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Dec. 1 and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Dec. 2 at the CMC Aspen Campus Gallery, 255 Sage Way, at the Aspen Business Center. The event is free and open to the public, as is a reception during the event from 4 to 8 p.m. on Dec. 1.

For more information, contact Lauren Mayer, CMC associate professor of art and gallery director at 970-360-0435. More at CMC Aspen.

The outside of the Glenwood Center may look familiar in this summertime photo, though inside, there are several changes that will be highlighted at an open house on Nov. 30.

CMC’s Glenwood Center invites community to open house

College building is adapting to the times

Colorado Mountain College’s Glenwood Center will host an open house to introduce the community to some updated changes, including a new student center, on Nov. 30.

According to Laura Hardman, the Glenwood Center’s site administrator, the space was recently refreshed so it could better serve the wide range of changing needs of people who use it.

A learning lab, which used to be a bustling hub prior to the pandemic, became underutilized so the space underwent a transformation. Now, amidst a new shipment of comfortable couches, chairs, floor lamps, plants and a Keurig coffee maker, students can meet in study groups or use a private office for solo studying. Counseling offices, an adjunct faculty office and space for tutoring are centralized within the student center.

CMC counselor Cory Rikard said the open house will also be a good time to learn about different CMC programs, check out the other parts of the building, take part in a raffle, pick up college swag and enjoy some snacks and coffee.

Glenwood Center’s open house is free and open to the public and will take place from 5-7:30 pm. at 1402 Blake Ave., Glenwood Springs. This will be a drop-in, drop-out event, so people are encouraged to come when they can.

For more information, contact Cory Rikard at crikard2@coloradomtn.edu, 970-947-8480. More at CMC Glenwood Springs.

Two actors from 'One Act Play Goes Wrong'

Sopris Theatre Company’s Julia Whalen and Wyatt Tulk in “The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong,” running from Nov. 18 to Dec. 4 at CMC Spring Valley. Photo by Scot Gerdes

Sopris Theatre Company presents ‘The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong’

Live performances at CMC Spring Valley run Nov. 18-Dec. 4

Sopris Theatre Company at Colorado Mountain College is offering up “The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong” by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields for its next production from Nov. 18 to Dec. 4 live at CMC Spring Valley.

From the British theatrical company Mischief, this play within a play features the opening night of the Cornley University Drama Society’s newest production, “The Murder at Haversham Manor,” where things are quickly going from bad to utterly disastrous. This 1920’s whodunit has everything you never wanted in a show – an unconscious leading lady, a corpse that can’t play dead and actors who trip over everything, including their lines. Part Monty Python, part Sherlock Holmes, this Olivier Award-winning comedy follows these accident-prone thespians as they battle against all odds to make it through to their final curtain call with hilarious consequences.

Directed by Brad Moore with cast members Joshua Adamson, Michael Banks, Delven Bourne, JD Edmonds, Bostyn Elswick, Scott Elmore, Wyatt Tulk and Julia Whalen, “The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong” will be performed live at the New Space Theatre at CMC Spring Valley at Glenwood Springs, 3000 County Road 114 on Nov. 18, 19, 25, 26, Dec. 2-3 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 20, 27 and Dec. 4 at 2 p.m. Running time is 65 minutes with no intermission. The show has haze/fog effects and simulated gunshots. Post-show conversations with the cast will be held on Nov. 20, 26 and Dec. 2.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for seniors, students and CMC faculty and staff. Full-time CMC Spring Valley students are admitted at no charge as part of their student activities fees. To purchase season or individual tickets, visit Sopris Theatre Current Productions, buy tickets directly at The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong Tickets or call 970-947-8177 or contact svticketsales@coloradomtn.edu.

The company has two more productions this season. “The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong” will also be performed live at the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen on Jan. 27 and 28 at 7 p.m. And “Frankenstein, Monster or Man” is an original musical by Los Angeles-based playwright and composer Carol Weiss, who will collaborate with Sopris Theatre Company’s actors to bring her production to life from April 7 to 23 at CMC Spring Valley and livestreamed. CMC’s annual Student Workshop Productions will wrap up the season on April 27 at CMC Spring Valley.

Producers of "The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong" are Kelly and Jim Cleaver, and Heather Exby. Associate producers are Karen and Tom Cochran. Sopris Theatre Company’s season presenting sponsor is US Bank. For more information, call 970-947-8177.

At the Regional Assessment Center in Salida, four Solvista Health employees are taking online certified addiction counselor training through a collegewide program offered through Colorado Mountain College. Photo by H. Mark Weidman

Addiction counselors learn skills at CMC

New program helps Solvista Health improve mental health, substance abuse treatment

By Mike McKibbin

Four Solvista Health employees in Salida are learning what they need to know to become certified addiction counselors through a new collegewide Colorado Mountain College program.

The employees are taking nine credit hours of online classes this fall semester through CMC's certified addiction counselor program – and their employer is paying for the lessons. Solvista is also paying for phlebotomy certification through CMC.

Courses are available online, in a combination of real-time virtual class meetings and some self-paced semester courses. Students can enroll in and take these classes from any CMC location and must live within the college’s 12,000-mile service area for support in placement of field experience.

The counselors will meet regulatory requirements when they finish, according to Julie Anderson, Solvista's regional assessment center program director.

"We'd used online classes before and when we noticed CMC was going to offer them, we thought that was great," Anderson said.

Qualified for care

The center began mental health and substance use crisis treatment in May in Salida on the Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center campus. It offers residents in Chaffee, Custer, Fremont, Lake, Park and surrounding counties treatment they previously had to travel over 100 miles to receive.

Tammy Moruzzi, chief nursing officer, said the four staff members will be qualified to care for the needs of center clients.

"Right now we have both in and outpatient services and with substance abuse you need highly skilled individuals to provide the care," she stated.

Moruzzi said Solvista officials were "super excited and a little shocked" when they discovered the program.

"It's really a testament to CMC," she said.

Anderson said the costs of the CMC program are comparable to other online training classes.

"But the students really like it because they have felt lots of support and access to facilities right here in Salida," she added. "And they're in cohorts with students from Glenwood Springs and Rifle."

Keeping it local

Moruzzi noted it was important to support a local community partner like CMC "and keep local money local."

"They also get really awesome sharing experiences," she said. "We hope we can continue other training with CMC, too."

The CMC program offers certificates of proficiency as certified addiction technicians and addiction specialists. With the certificates, employment in addiction recovery, counseling centers, hospitals, youth recovery facilities or residential treatment centers is possible.

Certification in Colorado requires specialized training and supervised field experience in the addiction field. CMC's programs offer all the technical training for credit college-level courses and field experience opportunities.

For more information, call the Salida campus at 719-530-7900.

CMC nursing student Travis Samila cares for a 2-month-old infant mannequin who is having trouble breathing in a CMC nursing simulation lab. "Sim labs" give students the ability to assess patients and practice medical techniques. Photo by Ben Suddendorf

CMC receives $125,000 from Google to enhance nursing training

Colorado Mountain College recently received a $125,000 grant from Google to be used to support three nursing simulation labs that are part of CMC’s nurse education program at the Spring Valley, Steamboat Springs and Breckenridge campuses.

In the same grant cycle, Google also awarded St. Vrain Valley School District, headquartered in Longmont, $125,000 to support the district’s Pathways in Technology Early College High School program.

“Google is proud to support the efforts of these institutions to advance career readiness in Colorado with innovative technology solutions,” said Javier González, Google’s interim head of government affairs & public policy for the Southwest region. “Google has had a presence in Colorado for over 15 years, and we look forward to continuing our local partnerships to create a greater impact within the state.”

"Colorado Mountain College's leadership in addressing the nursing shortage across Colorado communities is critical to our healthcare system,” said Julie McCluskie, Colorado House District 61 state representative. “I am grateful for Google's investment in their nursing program and new simulation laboratories, which provide a realistic educational experience for our students and reduces costly travel to distant training sites.”

Expediting Colorado’s response to the nursing shortage

As part of addressing the shortage of registered nurses in Colorado, Colorado Mountain College is applying Google’s $125,000 donation to the CMC Foundation’s Rural Nursing Success Fund Capital Campaign that is funding the three new high-fidelity nursing simulation labs. Set in life-like healthcare environments, simulation labs bridge the gap between skills labs and theory coursework and are proven to foster the critical thinking, self-confidence and quick reflexes necessary to prepare students for the clinical environment.

“The experience that Colorado Mountain College’s nursing students are receiving as a result of Google’s generosity is an important part of establishing countless health care careers,” said Dr. Carrie Besnette Hauser, CMC president and CEO. “CMC is so grateful for Google’s support in bringing these state-of-the-art training labs and true to life mannequins to our students and to our rural mountain resort communities.”

More nursing students will be able to complete up to 50% of their clinical hours in the simulation lab, reducing the need for costly travel to distant training sites. Additionally, more ESL/GED students will be able to receive training in medical interpretation.

For more information about Colorado Mountain College’s nursing program, visit https://coloradomtn.edu/programs/nursing/

Expanding for Impact

March 31, 2021

By Dr. Carrie Besnette Hauser

Recently, I received my first COVID-19 vaccination. As the nurse who administered my shot – a Colorado Mountain College nursing program graduate – placed a small bandage on the injection site, I was once again energized by the contributions CMC makes to our state. This “shot in the arm” was both cause for optimism and a symbolic reminder that many challenges still lie ahead.

While it has been an exhausting year, it has also been inspiring and transformational. Ever since the pandemic rocked our world in March 2020, our team never missed an opportunity to make the dream of college a reality for students enrolled at CMC’s 11 campuses and online.

We worked nearly nonstop to gather facts, plan, innovate, communicate and implement strategies – all while maintaining an operation and facilities that support over 15,000 learners and nearly 2,000 employees without interruption.

Mere days after the Governor’s stay-at-home-order, we launched CMC Responds, a major initiative to provide local businesses with no-cost consulting and free summer tuition for thousands of students whose lives were disrupted by an economic nose-dive. Our employees and students agreed to practice the Five Commitments to Containment, which resulted in very few COVID-related incidents on our campuses.

This spring, CMC has offered more than 1,000 courses online or in a flex format, while safely delivering select classes in-person.

Facing a devastating recession, we were still able to secure several multi-million dollar grants, reinvesting them locally to make CMC even more accessible to learners in rural Western Slope communities.

I could not be prouder of our faculty and staff for their resilience and going above and beyond to maintain continuity of CMC services in new and creative ways.

And, their efforts paid off. We are on track to graduate the largest class of students in CMC’s history this May.

So, where do we go from here?

It will take more hard work, thinking differently about how we relate to each other and avoiding a “return to normal” that reinforces cultural divisions in our society. It means exploiting what this massive disruption taught us and using that information to more effectively reach all students.

And, by “all students,” I mean every individual who could benefit from CMC irrespective of income, age, gender, background or political beliefs and especially those marginalized by an unforgiving and rapidly-changing economy.

Colleges across the country articulate commitments to diversity and inclusivity. Noteworthy progress has certainly been made at CMC. The 15-point achievement gap between Hispanic and majority students when I arrived in 2013 is gone. The college’s senior leadership team is nearly equally gender balanced. I’m approaching eight years of service as the institution’s second female president.

While these are milestones to celebrate, the pandemic intensified barriers to college in our high-cost mountain towns. The lack of affordable housing, food insecurity and inadequate mental health services add great pressures to existing and aspiring CMC students.

Additionally, segments of the public remain dubious about the value of college. The pandemic’s heavy economic toll only reinforces their doubts. While higher education has become more open and accessible to a broader range of individuals, a renewed and charged perception that it is “elitist” has some students and families choosing to bypass its benefits. Better understanding and addressing this unfortunate narrative will be critical, especially for an open access institution that prides itself on welcoming everyone.

So, considering the challenges that will remain post-pandemic, we must recommit ourselves to finding and serving those still excluded from higher education.

CMC’s vision statement begins with these words: “We aspire to be the most inclusive, innovative and student-centered college in the nation…”

While this important phrase guides our institution daily, I also wonder if being “inclusive” underscores the disconnection some individuals feel? Inclusive implies inviting others in to an existing culture, environment, family structure or community. It doesn’t suggest that the culture or community itself must change.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate for higher education to expand itself to reach those not currently enrolled, aware or interested by examining long-standing norms and practices to find missing voices and divergent ways of thinking, challenging existing mind-sets and questioning operating practices that may exclude certain groups or individuals.

For CMC, “expansion” means looking differently at the hurdles that exist for our students (and potential students) to live, learn and thrive.

As we face the months ahead, I remain hopeful. This fall, all of our campuses will welcome students – both in person and online – with new tools, perspectives and attitudes. Together, our team will evaluate who is missing from the college, barriers that prevent their enrollment and strategies to ensure that all are successful and belong.