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Two years ago, our Colorado College community began a journey that led us to rediscover
ourselves. I look back at this "Year of Listening" as the foundation for the plans and recommendations
you'll find at coloradocollege.edu/theplan, and I'm proud that our process raised awareness
of what makes this college such a powerful force in the world. Many, many people contributed
to this plan, which affirms our core mission and defines powerful opportunities to make
Colorado College an even more dynamic center of learning.
Colorado College has always been identified with bold action. The Block Plan, developed
in 1970, thrives today with a new generation of independent learners who just happen to
have a whole lot more technology at their fingertips. For the new strategic plan, we
focused on our core strengths — the liberal arts, engaged teaching and learning, distinctive
place of learning — in the context of higher education and what today's Millennial-era
students need. To educate tomorrow's leaders we must pair
a liberal education with strong career development. Our plan includes strategies to help students
move from college to work more easily, and ways to extend our reach beyond our immediate
circle of students, alumni, and parents, so that more people around the world are able
to connect with us — and stay connected throughout their lives.
We must stay nimble so we can adapt to new generations of learners, new issues, and ever-changing
technology. Change is easier when you know who you are and what's important. This plan
strengthens CC's distinctive Block Plan, engaged teaching, and our special place of learning,
while encouraging a more innovative, responsive organization.
The Block Plan is more relevant than ever. Close interaction with faculty and hands-on
experiences in the classroom and in the field show students how to translate ideas into
action and work together as teams. Our new Center for Immersive Learning and Engaged
Teaching will help faculty, students, alumni, and others take the block to a new level,
and take full advantage of our location. CC will become more widely known nationally and
internationally as a premier liberal arts college that stands apart because of our unique
culture. Our new Innovation Institute will offer students
and faculty a place to go from theory to idea to practice, while showcasing students' cutting-edge
work on social and environmental issues. Innovation will extend to academics, the residential
program and its integration into the curriculum, and the very landscape itself. Both the Institute
and the Center will reach out to involve alumni and the community in meaningful ways.
The plan will make Colorado College more resilient than ever before. The college will become
a more sophisticated organization that emphasizes shared leadership and progressive professional
development for faculty and staff. Developing this plan has been a learning adventure
not unlike the adventure our students engage in at CC. I invite you to join us in this
journey as we listen, collaborate and take bold action to raise Colorado College to new
heights in the decades ahead.