Leadville Archives - Colorado Mountain College

Professional Tutor, Part-time, Leadville

Colorado Mountain College, Leadville is seeking an Accounting and Business tutor. This position will provide assistance to students in a virtual format for six hours a week during the college semester. Tutors clarify specific course content and promote the use of appropriate study strategies. An Associate’s degree in the area of tutoring or a closely related area is required.

The current pay rate is $20.12 per hour.

View/download job description: Professional Tutor

Pre-requisites for Position (Qualifications Standards)

Education and experience sufficient for the rigors of the position. Examples may include: Associate’s degree in the area of tutoring or a closely related area. Bachelor’s degree preferred. A grade of B or higher in all course(s) and/or academic subject areas for which tutoring services will be offered. A cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher in all post-secondary coursework. Experience in the field: Teaching/tutoring experience, particularly in post-secondary courses, preferred. Other relevant work experience that demonstrates either knowledge of the content or the ability to work with students or the ability to communicate ideas effectively. Individuals with Associate’s degree in career and technical fields would be considered equivalent education. Or equivalent education and experience that will provide the necessary knowledge, skill and abilities to perform the functions of the position. Special Skills or abilities directly applicable to the position: Excellent interpersonal communication skills required. Basic computer literacy.

Ability to interact with a diverse student population. Applicants must demonstrate a commitment to working in a culturally competent environment and the ability to effectively work with students, employees, and community members having diverse backgrounds.

Bilingual (English/Spanish) or conversational language abilities preferred.

To apply: Please submit the required letter of interest, a resume, and a list of three professional references. CMC is an EOE committed to diversifying its workforce.

External applicants: Apply Online

Internal Applicants: Please proceed to the HR page of Basecamp for instructions on applying for a position as an internal applicant.

Selig, Windy

Windy Selig, M.S.

Instructional Coordinator, Ecosystem Science Field Experience Lab
719-486-4239 | wjselig@coloradomtn.edu

Education

Masters of Science in Forestry, Northern Arizona University
Bachelors of Arts in Sustainable Community Development, Prescott College

Professional Certifications

Negotiating Environmental Solutions, U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution, Udall Foundation
Collaboration Skills for Environmental Professionals, U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution, Udall Foundation

Awards/Publications

Adjunct Faculty of the Year, Leadville Campus, Spring 2020
Greer, W. 2012. Fact Sheet: Managing Sources of Conflict in Collaborative Settings, Ecological Restoration Institute, Northern Arizona University.
Greer, W. 2012. Notes from the Field, Landscape Conservation Forecasting, Parashant Partnership Workshop. Fire Learning Network.
Egan, et al. 2014. The History of the Four Forest Restoration Initiative: 1980s–2010, Ecological Restoration Institute, Northern Arizona University.
Greer, W. 2014. Collaboration. In D. Egan & T. Dubay (Eds.), Breaking Barriers Building Bridges: Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Handbook (pp. 36). Ecological Restoration Institute, Northern Arizona University.

Professional Interests/Associations

Windy Selig joined the CMC Leadville team in Spring 2020 as adjunct faculty member and received the Adjunct Faculty of Year award that same year. Windy brings a decade of professional and educational experience in collaborative natural resource management, including collaborative leadership, student engagement, and field research. She is passionate about working with students to enhance their academic experience through real world science applications. She believes there is no better investment of time than mentoring students in the process and discovery of science in the outdoors.

Prior to joining the CMC Leadville team, Windy worked at the Ecological Restoration Institute (ERI) while simultaneously pursuing a Master’s in Forestry at Northern Arizona University. At ERI, she had the opportunity to engage in multiple field studies, facilitate collaborative partnerships, and work with non-profit and government partners on large-scale public lands restoration projects. As principle of WSelig Facilitation, Windy has also facilitated natural resource management collaborative groups in partnership with government agencies focused on landscape restoration in central Colorado.

Family

Windy and her family live in Salida, where they take every opportunity to get out hiking, rafting, and skiing in the beautiful Arkansas River Valley.

Climbing Wall Coordinator, Part-time

Under the direction of the Director of Recreation & Events and the Outdoor Studies Program Manager, the Climbing Wall Coordinator will be responsible for safe and proper use of the climbing wall; opening and closing the climbing wall on a daily basis, and efficiently and effectively completing all tasks associated with managing climbers. The Climbing Wall Coordinator is responsible for checking climbers in, teaching belay classes, monitoring climbers/belayers in the climbing area and helping to create a positive and welcoming climbing environment. This position will assist in cleaning the climbing wall area including the wall, flooring and the holds. The Climbing Wall Coordinator will register participants for events and be knowledgeable about other aspects of the Field House including trips, services, equipment rental, etc. The position is responsible for as assuring climbers have completed required paperwork; risk waivers, accident forms, health forms, etc.

View/download job description: Climbing Wall Coordinator

Pre-requisites for Position (Qualifications Standards)

Previous outdoor experience is required. CPR and First Aid Certification are required but can be acquired upon employment. A Wilderness First Aid/Wilderness First Responder Certification or higher is strongly preferred over basic First Aid.

Special Skills or abilities directly applicable to the position: Be a self-directed individual with a strong work ethic; possess a positive attitude, have the ability to thrive in adverse conditions and be competent to make important decisions; and have the ability to work well with others; understanding of all climbing gear being used and understanding of appropriate and effective use. Possess general office skills (filing, typing, answering the phone, customer oriented and attention to detail); excellent communication and interpersonal skills, willingness to learn, work independently towards established goals and deadlines.

Applicants must demonstrate a commitment to working in a culturally competent environment and the ability to effectively work with students, employees, and community members having diverse backgrounds.

Bilingual (English/Spanish) or conversational language abilities preferred.

To apply: Please submit the required letter of interest, a resume, and a list of three professional references. CMC is an EOE committed to diversifying its workforce.

External applicants: Apply Online

Internal Applicants: Please proceed to the HR page of Basecamp for instructions on applying for a position as an internal applicant.

'Truck camping’ to a college degree

Colorado Mountain College graduate Thomas Schoonover, right, hugs Rachel Pokrandt, vice president and campus dean of CMC Leadville and Chaffee County, as Schoonover receives his associate degree in natural resource management during the campus’s May 4 commencement ceremonies at the Climax Molybdenum Leadership Center at the Leadville campus. Photo Andy Colwell

By Mike McKibbin

LEADVILLE — Earning a college degree is tough, but doing so while enduring subzero winter temperatures at more than 10,000 feet of elevation in a pickup truck might be enough to discourage many people.

With help from Colorado Mountain College Leadville staff and programs, Thomas Schoonover stayed the course. He received his associate degree in natural resource management on Friday, May 4.

Schoonover, 29, enrolled in CMC classes in the fall of 2016 to make a career change. He chose CMC Leadville for the natural resource management program and smaller class sizes.

“I went to (the University of Colorado Denver) about 10 years ago in 2007 and didn’t like the large class sizes,” Schoonover said. “And I read about the hands-on experience you get in the natural resource management program, which really appealed to me.”

Schoonover found an apartment in Leadville for his first year but had some family health issues that put a pinch on his personal finances. He moved into a trailer for a couple months last fall, but that plan didn’t work well in the winter. “So I was just truck camping for a while,” he said.

‘So supportive’

Skip Lee, dean of student affairs at CMC Leadville, and Katy Warner, director of the college’s natural resource management program, learned he needed a better housing solution for the winter. Warner said she had been Schoonover’s supervisor for about a year and had always found him to be “someone who, in everything he does, gives his best effort.”

When Schoonover missed some classes, Warner and Lee talked to him and obtained a residential scholarship so the student could live in the residence hall on campus. They also arranged for other resources to help him be successful during his last semester.

“They really helped me be able to hang in there and keep my grades up,” Schoonover said. “I never had co-workers or colleagues before that were so supportive. When you’re in a tough situation like I was, it’s easy to get down on yourself. But the atmosphere at CMC was always great and they kept me on track.”

After graduation, Schoonover plans to work for the natural resource management program’s field institute over the summer. The institute provides paid internship opportunities. Student employees work on environmental projects, interact with environmental professionals and get relevant field and laboratory experience to help prepare them for future education and employment.

Schoonover said he will likely pursue a bachelor’s or master’s degree in natural resource management somewhere in Colorado or Wyoming.

“We’re really excited to see him walk in graduation and we’re all really proud of him and all other students that have to overcome whatever obstacles and adversity they face,” Warner said several days before graduation.

CMC work backbone of Leadville ski joring course

photo: Cameron Schuelke (student) and Jason Gusaas (instructor) with the Ski Area Operations program

Cameron Schuelke, Ski Area Operations student and Jason Gusaas (instructor) pose with CMC's PistenBully groomer at the 2016 Leadville Ski Joring event.

The Leadville Herald Democrat published this CMC Corner column in its Feb. 22 edition. This article is also published on enews.coloradomtn.edu.

By Rachel Pokrandt, CMC vice president and campus dean, Leadville and Chaffee County

The ski area operations program at Colorado Mountain College Leadville has been helping to make Leadville Ski Joring a success for over 20 years. To create the event course, the county deposits 250 dump truck loads of snow onto Harrison Avenue. Then two CMC faculty- and student-driven snowcats cruise from the campus, along the Mineral Belt, and to the top of Capitol Hill. Every year students in the Grooming Lab class enter a lottery to have the honor of working the event. This year’s winning ’cat drivers are Brad Holmes and Matt Davis.

“This event is a great way for the campus and the students to give back to the Leadville community, and for the students to gain valuable technical experience in grooming,” said Jason Gusaas, ski area operations professor.

It takes the team eight to nine hours to create the course. CMC donates the use of the snowcats, the students and faculty time, and the fuel used to power the snowcats. In addition, to support the event Acorn Petroleum has begun deducting 75 gallons off CMC’s fuel bill.

The students first create a six-inch base of snow down Harrison Avenue and then build the required eight- foot jumps. “It is technically challenging to create this initial six-inch layer,” said Gusaas. “Usually we are working with an 18-inch snow base to create recreational trails, but this event is special. When you’re being pulled by a horse at 40 miles per hour over an eight-foot jump it’s critical that the jump be constructed properly and that there is a flat and firm landing.”

Gusaas said that the ski area operations students complete about 80 percent of the work, and then he finishes the fine tuning. He is a 24-year veteran groomer and has taught grooming and overseen the creation of the skijoring course for the past eight years.

“This is a true community event,” he said. “I get the plans for the design of the course from the event coordinators, then the county Road and Bridge brings us the snow, and then ski operations makes their vision come to life.”

Experience the unique sport of ski joring and other winter events at the Leadville Ski Joring and Crystal Carnival, March 2 - 4, 2018.

Kristen Wells: Prepared at CMC for Stanford

Leadville native Kristen Wells misses her hometown and the Rocky Mountains. The Lake County High School graduate and former CMC student is now pursuing her Ph.D. in genetics at Stanford University School of Medicine. Though she yearns for views of the Collegiate Range, the allure of being on the cutting edge of medical research is more compelling.

“The coolest thing about Stanford is that all the top research is happening right here,” Kristen said. “We’re the first to implement many of the latest innovations in the science world, then a year later everyone hears about it and is talking about it in the public sector. It’s really fun to be a part of that.” For example, Kristen is using CRISPR, the revolutionary new gene editing technology, in her daily work. Her thesis, in layman’s terms, is about looking at gene expression that’s involved in preventing autoimmune disorders. Using CRISPR “really speeds up the research because we can manipulate an individual gene and see what it does,” she explained. The research may eventually lead to improved treatments for devastating autoimmune diseases like MS and lupus.

Wells credits her experience at Colorado Mountain College Leadville with setting her up for success in college. By the time she was a high school junior, she had maxed out on all the science and English courses available at her school. A counselor suggested that she take some college-level courses “up the hill” at CMC. So she did, taking Spanish with former Professor Mary Ebuna, and English with Associate Professor Jeff Runyon. “CMC was an incredible experience for me, especially Mr. Runyon who made English really fun. He pushed me, and made English exciting.” She learned early the rigors of college-level study, including increased homework and higher expectations from her instructors. “It made the transition to college much easier for me.”

Upon graduation from high school, Wells won a Boettcher scholarship and a full ride to Colorado College where she earned her bachelor’s in biology. She then was accepted into the doctoral program at Stanford where her education is completely paid for by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. “I use the writing skills I learned at CMC in my work now”, she said. “There’s a lot more creativity in science than you would expect, as writing and communication are a big part of the process. We write and publish papers, and orally present our work to our peers.”

For now, Kristen’s return to her home state will have to wait. She estimates it will take 4 more years of study to complete her doctorate. After that, she would like to continue advancing the study of genetics, wherever that pursuit takes her.