Colorado Mountain College students took part in Chile 2018 and 2020: Rivers of Life, a two-week study abroad course utilizing the Pucon Kayak Retreat on the Rio Trancura as a base of operations.

US Department of State awards IDEAS grant to Colorado Mountain College

Colorado Mountain College recently received an IDEAS (Increase and Diversify Education Abroad for U.S. Students) grant from the U.S. Department of State’s Capacity Building Program for U.S. Study Abroad. The grant is intended to expand the college’s capacity to offer affordable and meaningful study-abroad opportunities for students who less often take study-abroad courses – including low-income, first-generation and other underrepresented students.

CMC is one of 24 colleges and universities from across the United States, selected from 115 applicants, to create, expand and/or diversify American student mobility overseas in support of U.S. foreign policy goals.

The IDEAS grant amounts to $35,000 and is specifically funding the creation of the Pucon Kayak Retreat Cooperative Leadership and Management program, a new CMC study abroad educational opportunity in Chile that will be offered in the 2021-22 academic year. The course will be introduced depending on health and travel considerations related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To further support students, the CMC Foundation is continually looking into scholarship opportunities for students interested in studying abroad.

CMC 2018 and 2020 study abroad location

The new program is centered on the Pucon Kayak Retreat, a world-class outdoor education and recreation business on the Rio Trancura in Chile. Owned and operated by educator and kayaker David Hughes, the retreat previously served as a base of operations for Rivers of Life, a two-week 2018 and 2020 CMC study abroad experience. Students will enroll in the new program for either a semester or a full year, focusing on sustainability, business and outdoor leadership skills to complete coursework toward their degrees.

According to Dr. Kathryn Regjo, CMC vice president of Academic Affairs, Colorado Mountain College is now formulating an articulation agreement with the University of La Frontera in Temuco, Chile, to credential faculty to teach for Colorado Mountain College while in that country. The grant is also supporting an on-site visit by Matt Jost, CMC Steamboat Springs assistant dean of instruction, and plans are in place for two to four faculty to take intensive Spanish-language training.

Colorado Mountain College is carefully monitoring the status of international travel as it relates to COVID-19. The grant has a year-long cycle, though the State Department is prepared to be flexible now and in the future in light of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

‘A strong return’

 Colorado Mountain College’s grant is possible through the Capacity Building Program for U.S. Study Abroad, a program of the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the federal government and supported in its implementation by World Learning, an international nonprofit based in Washington, D.C.

“We are committed to continuing our support for U.S. colleges and universities as they build their study abroad capacity now, in anticipation of a strong return to U.S. student mobility in the future,” said Marie Royce, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. “When American students study abroad, they support critical U.S. foreign policy goals by building relationships with foreign peers, sharing American culture and values, and developing valuable career skills. With these international experiences, the next generation of Americans is being equipped with the skills necessary to compete and succeed globally.”

For a full list of 2020 IDEAS grant recipients, visit the Capacity Building Program for U.S. Study Abroad website at www.studyabroadcapacitybuilding.com. Go to CMC Study Abroad for more information about all of Colorado Mountain College’s study abroad offerings.

Online performance kicks off Sopris Theatre Company season Nov. 6

The show must go on, even in the time of COVID-19, so Sopris Theatre Company at Colorado Mountain College is going online with its first production of the season, “Rogues’ Gallery.” A collection of monologues by Pulitzer Prize-winner John Patrick Shanley, the show opens virtually Nov. 6 and centers on nine unforgettable characters, each with a startling or darkly humorous story to tell.

Orchestrating a live performance, and filming it for online viewing, has been a fresh challenge for Brendan Cochran, CMC graduate and director of the production. “At this point, we’re trying to preserve the theatricality of the safe, shared space,” he said. “We’re playing into the idea of a bare interrogation room.”

To that end, only one camera will capture the actors performing live, and the minimal set will result in a shared, stark, gray backdrop.

Sopris Theatre Company at Colorado Mountain College is going online with its first production of the season, “Rogues’ Gallery.”

The cast of “Rogues’ Gallery” has rehearsed individually on a staggered schedule, following physical distancing and face covering restrictions.. The plan is to film the monologues over two evenings at CMC’s New Space Theatre at Spring Valley, where one actor at a time will take the stage to create a one-take, filmed performance. The crew will have face coverings at all times and the actors will wear face coverings any time they are not actually recording their piece.

“The key is to stay flexible,” Cochran said, noting that both cast and crew are ready to pivot and capture video from remote locations if necessary.

Watchable from anywhere

“The beauty of doing a monologue show like this is we can keep people safe while involving a fairly large group,” said Brad Moore, CMC theater operations manager and adjunct instructor. “It provides a way for us to create art together in a global pandemic.”

Written by John Patrick Shanley, who penned the 2005 Tony award-winning play “Doubt,” “Rogues’ Gallery” offers insight into a diverse group of flawed characters facing their own complicated circumstances, questionable behaviors and internal quirks.

“I think it’s a perfectly human piece,” said Cochran. “The script is reflective of our current experience of feeling trapped in little boxes on a screen. A lot of self-reflection can come out of staring at ourselves all the time.”

The nine-person cast includes CMC graduates Gerald Delisser, Nick Garay, Cassidy Willey, James Steindler, Ciara Morrison and Travis Wilson alongside former student Emily Henley, local community member Mike Banks and newcomer to the CMC stage Lauren Kenning.

Current students in Moore’s theater production course will handle all of the technical duties. Midge Glidewell is stage manager, Chris Merino runs lights, work-study student Jauneen Moore rounds out the backstage production team, Colton Grove is the videographer and Owen Hooten is the sound engineer. CMC faculty and students provided filming support, the photo club supplied head shots and graphic design students created the show poster.

For actors, Shanley’s monologues offer a rare opportunity to strengthen the core tools of their craft. CMC theater program graduate Willey said that the structure of this piece invites intense, one-on-one collaboration with a director that’s unusual, especially in a larger cast production. Currently at work on her own one-woman show, Willey said, “It’s such a valuable experience to go deep with a script and a director like this.”

Kenning, who studied theater at the University of Denver and with the Stanislavsky Summer School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, agrees. “Because a monologue is all you have,” she said, “you become a detective working with the director to uncover the missing information surrounding your character.”

The process, she said, gave her time up front to “focus on the words and intentions of the character without having to think about movement right away.”

Moore noted at least one more blessing of the virtual theater experience. “We can safely reach audiences across all our campus locations, without anyone having to leave home,” he said.

Season tickets are available at Eventbrite.com or by sending an email to svticketsales@coloradomtn.edu. Single tickets are on sale only via ShowTix4U . “Rogues’ Gallery” contains adult content for mature audiences. Streaming will begin promptly as scheduled on Nov. 6, 7, 13 and 14 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 8 and 15 at 2 p.m.

From left, Luke Plummer from Seymour, Indiana; Skyler Winter from Peyton, Colorado; and Paul Hans from Breckenridge, are all first-year members of the CMC men’s cross-country team.

CMC Eagles cross-country team scores ‘firsts’

Colorado Mountain College’s cross-country running team is back from two National Junior College Athletic Association meets – and scoring lots of “firsts” along the way.

In only its second season of collegiate competition, the team raced in Carr, Colorado, on Sept. 5, At their first race of the season, the CMC Eagles men won their first-ever meet in the young team’s history, while the CMC women’s team competed in their first-ever NJCAA race. On Sept. 12, the team headed to Central Wyoming College in Riverton, Wyoming, where 10 CMC student-athletes ran their fastest races ever, while three others ran their season best.

A first-ever win

While Leadville was experiencing an early cold snap at the beginning of September, CMC’s Eagles had just returned from northern Colorado after running in temperatures over 95 degrees.

“It was dry as a bleached bison skull on the plains,” said Darren Brungardt, the team’s head coach and an associate mathematics professor at CMC Leadville. “To say the race was difficult is an understatement.”

The men overcame the high temperatures to win their first-ever meet, competing against Central Wyoming College’s team. First-year runner Reese Fledderjohn won the 8K, followed by Jason Macaluso of Vail. CMC runners Luke Plummer, Skyler Winter and Dylan Dunbar finished fifth, ninth and 10^th, respectively, giving the Eagles the overall team win.

The five-member women’s team was missing two CMC runners at the Carr meet, though first-year Eagle Kya Jackson finished fifth overall in the 5K, followed by Madisen Johnson and Anayeli Almanza.

Following the meet in Carr, the NJCAA ranked the CMC men’s team 10^th in the nation. “Although this is way too early,” said Brungardt, “for racing in such extreme heat, and missing two of our male runners, this is exciting news.” The women will be ranked once the full team is competing.

Successes in Wyoming

The following weekend, the team traveled farther north to Riverton, Wyoming, competing against the College of Southern Idaho and Central Wyoming College. CSI swept the meet, winning both men’s and women’s races, though the Eagles’ Macaluso ran a strong 8K (28:36), placing him 10^th place overall.

Second-year runner Jack Setser broke 30 minutes for the first time in his career, while first-year Eagle Autry Lomahongva finished with a 29:52, marking only the fourth time in CMC history that runner broke 30 minutes in the 8K.

The Eagle women hit their stride as well. Jackson stayed within striking distance of regional rival runners from Central Wyoming to have a season best race of 23:04 and 16^th overall in the 5K. Johnson ran a nine-second PR finishing in a time of 23:41 and Cami Trujillo ran her first race of the season, finishing with a time of 26:54. Just behind her was Almanza with a two-minute PR of 27:09.

“There isn’t an ‘I’ in this group,” said Brungardt. “I only hear ‘we,’ ‘us’ and ‘family.’ I am having so much fun coaching them, and they are working extremely hard.”

The CMC runners also hosted a home meet in Leadville Sept. 26.

Back to school and work at Colorado Mountain College

In May Carissa Hernandez of New Castle, here with husband Hernan Hernandez and son Daniel Lewis, was furloughed from Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs due to the effects of the pandemic. Hernandez is now studying at CMC thanks to the CMC Responds: Back to Work Scholarship.

Up until May 2020, Carissa Hernandez loved her job at Valley View Hospital in Glenwood Springs.

“Valley View is a great place to work,” said Hernandez, who lives in New Castle with her husband and 6-year-old son.

As part of the hospital’s central medical supply team, Hernandez stocked everything from syringes to thermometers. However, that all changed on May 11, when she was furloughed from her job due to COVID-19 workplace restructuring. To make matters worse, her husband also lost his hotel job due to impacts from the virus. “We have lots of bills,” she said. “We’ve been stressing the last three months.”

But a new program at Colorado Mountain College, called the CMC Responds: Back to Work Scholarship, is giving a financial boost to Hernandez and others across the seven-county college district, enabling them to return to school to retool their skills and improve their options for finding new work.

A way out

Another such recipient of the scholarship is Frank Donaldson, who has lived in Glenwood Springs on and off for the past 10 years. He was self-employed in event production, coordinating décor and lighting for large Fortune 500 conferences in places like Vail and Aspen.

“I was going to be so busy this summer,” Donaldson said. “Though once COVID hit, there were no events, no big gatherings” – and there was no work.

Abruptly, the pandemic forced both Hernandez and Donaldson to rethink their occupations. That’s when they found the CMC Responds: Back to Work Scholarship, which provides money for tuition and other expenses for qualified workers who have had their hours reduced or were laid off or furloughed because of COVID-19. At CMC, students are able to study for new professions that can help them be more resilient in the event of a sudden downturn in the economy.

The funds are part of a $750,000 Displaced Workers Grant being distributed statewide by the Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative, an innovative program of the Colorado Department of Higher Education that leverages public and private investment to make post-high school education available to more Colorado students.

The Displaced Workers Grant enables public colleges, workforce centers and training programs to provide  professional staff to support displaced workers and help students access multiple sources of financial aid to help them succeed. COSI is granting Colorado Mountain College with $150,000 over two years to provide dedicated professional student success staff to help these displaced workers.

Recipients of CMC’s Back to Work Scholarship have lost employment, lost jobs and regained employment but not at the same level, been temporarily furloughed, or had hours reduced and have received decreased pay due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The scholarships average $1,000 to $3,000, and sometimes more, depending on each student’s unmet need,” said Yesenia Arreola, CMC’s executive director of student affairs strategic projects and initiatives. “We ask all students to fill out the FAFSA or other institutional aid form when being considered for COSI funds. We want to make sure they are taking advantage of all available resources to help pay for the cost of attendance.”

Support is here

For Donaldson, CMC is familiar territory. He received an Associate of General Studies degree 10 years ago at the college, and is now studying digital media in CMC’s Isaacson School of Communication, Arts and Media. He hopes to either incorporate video production into his event production work in the future or practice videography solely.

“The scholarship has helped me so much,” said Hernandez. “I have always wanted to go back to school, and I don’t know when or if I’d be able to if it wasn’t for the scholarship and the help I got from CMC.”

Arreola said Colorado Mountain College’s goal is to grant 150 credentials to students through this scholarship during the next two years.

Contact cosi@coloradomtn.edu or visit CMC Responds: Tommorw Ready for more information and to contact an advisor about Colorado Mountain College’s Tomorrow Ready Scholarship.