Latest News

MSU Denver announces plans for $12 million athletic complex

11.5.12
President Stephen Jordan today officially announced plans for a state-of-the-art athletic complex that will include baseball, softball and soccer fields and eight tennis courts. See story

SSB and university status celebrated

09.12.12
Members of the Metropolitan State University of Denver community gathered Sept. 5 to celebrate the institution’s new Student Success Building and its new status as a university. See story 

Jordan cites leadership, courage during SpringHill Suites grand opening 

08.30.12
The SpringHill Suites Denver Downtown at Metro State held its grand opening last Wednesday, when representatives of business, civic life, politics and MSU Denver gathered for a ribbon cutting and reflection on the risks and rewards posed by the project. See story 

SpringHill Suites in the Hospitality Learning Center opens Aug. 3

07.30.12
Sixteen months after groundbreaking, the SpringHill Suites by Marriott, part of Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center, is set to open Friday, Aug. 3. See story

Artwork chosen for Student Success Building

06.11.12
The Student Success Building is soon to be adorned with accessories—courtesy of artwork made by members of the campus community. See story

Signs of the time: Interactive kiosk, flat screens display messages and other content

05.29.12
Evan Tynan wants to put your name—or message—in lights. Pixels, actually. See story 

SSB roof is a green success

04.30.12
Green stuff sprouting on the roof of a building usually would be cause for alarm, but that’s not the case for the newly opened Student Success Building.See story

OWOW sculpture to grace SSB entrance

04.09.12
At the south entrance to the Student Success Building (SSB) a concrete disc stands empty, awaiting installation of the monumental bronze sculpture, “One World One Water” by Denver sculptor Rik Sargent. See story

On the move: Metro State employees move to open-space work environment in the SS

03.12.12
On March 19, the big move begins, as offices ranging from Admissions to the Faculty Senate relocate into their new home in the Student Success Building (SSB). See story

Metro State prepares to move into new Student Success Building

02.27.12
In offices across campus and downtown, Metro State employees are cleaning drawers and packing boxes in preparation for the move to new offices in the Student Success Building. See story

Move to Student Success Building to start in March

01.30.12
Bright signs now grace the exterior of the Student Success Building and offices will start moving March 19. See story

Tour the new Student Success Building

10.10.11
As the Student Success Building nears its expected March 2012 completion and interest in it escalates, the College is offering employees tours of the new building. See story

Call for Entries

09.26.2011
Looking for premier places to display your art? How about the Student Success Building and the Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center? See story

Auraria Parkway lane closures begin Saturday

07.21.2011
Auraria Campus has announced a slight change in the timing of lane closures scheduled for Auraria Parkway this weekend. The two rightmost lanes leading into downtown Denver will be closed from 7 a.m. Saturday, July 23 through Wednesday evening, July 27. See story

Auraria Parkway lane closures begin Friday

07.20.2011
Auraria Campus has announced that the two rightmost lanes of the Auraria Parkway leading into downtown Denver will be closed in two phases beginning this Friday. See story

Student Success Building topped out! 

07.05.2011
Anyone who has passed by the construction site for the Student Success Building (SSB) knows that it’s only a matter of time before faculty, staff and students are walking the hallways heading to one of many classes or offices in the new facility. See story

Metro State’s success begins with…Michael Wray

05.16.2011
Two of the classes Michael Wray taught when he arrived at Metro State in 2000 helped lay the foundation for a new minor, major, five certificates and special features to be offered in the new Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center (HLC). See story

HLC groundbreaking continues new era for Metro State

04.01.2011
Singer-songwriter Bob Dylan’s 1964 song “The Times They Are A-Changing” could serve as the current anthem for Metropolitan State College of Denver as it is celebrating a historic wave of changes including a groundbreaking on March 31 for its new Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center (HLC). See story

Metro State helps mayor toast start of Denver Restaurant Week

02.28.2011
The opening for Metro State’s Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center is more than a year away, but already a who’s who of Colorado’s hospitality leaders has converged on the Auraria Campus to toast an $8 billion part of the industry: restaurants. See story

March 31 groundbreaking set for HLC

01.17.2011
Roadrunners, it’s time to dust off your hard hats. The groundbreaking for the Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center (HLC) is scheduled for Thursday, March 31, and you’re invited. So mark your calendars. This Week @Metro will post more details as they become available. See story.

E-mail set up for questions about campus construction projects

01.17.2011
An e-mail address has been set up to answer questions or take comments regarding capital construction projects happening on the Auraria Campus. See story.

Construction projects to impact parking starting Dec. 20

12.15.2010
Two major construction projects impacting the Auraria Campus will begin Monday, Dec. 20, including construction activities for the Regional Transportation District (RTD’s) West Corridor Light Rail line project and the demolition of the tennis courts in preparation for the construction of Metro State’s Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center. See story.

General Counsel helps College navigate through new frontier

12.14.2010
At Metro State just short of a year, General Counsel Loretta P. Martinez says that she is still deepening her understanding of the College in order to provide the best counsel to the campus community. Yet, to date, her office has helped lead the College through new frontiers. See story.

Ground broken on Student Success Building

12.7.2010
Metro State broke ground, literally and metaphorically, last Friday with the first shovelful of earth dug for the Student Success Building—the first Metro State-owned building on the Auraria Campus. See story.

Fun 45th Fact: The landscape is changing... thanks to students

11.16.2010
Auraria was supposed to be square. Thanks to preservationists, it's only square-ish.

The original design was called a five-foot-by-five-foot grid, said Bill Trimble, the campus structural trades manager in 2005. Horizontally and vertically, the entire place would be divisible into units of five feet: every wall, every column, every window. The classroom buildings are what the whole campus could have been. See story.

Reminder: Tivoli lot fenced off, reduced in size this Monday, in preparation for Student Success Building

11.9.2010
In advance of the formal groundbreaking on the Student Success Building on Dec. 3, early construction activity will begin on Monday, Nov. 22. See story.

BOT celebrates milestones, braces for budget challenges

11.9.2010
At its Nov. 3 meeting, the Board of Trustees celebrated the College’s progress on capital construction projects, approved the College’s Financial Accountability Plan, and braced itself for the budget challenges that lay ahead based on the results of mid-term elections and the latest budget proposal from Gov. Bill Ritter. See story.

Institutional Advancement helps College find right partners for success

11.2.2010
Institutional Advancement Vice President and Executive Director of the Metro State Foundation Carrie Besnette Hauser. Connecting the dots in a maze of relationships to develop partnerships and collaborations that build capacity and sustain support for the College is at the core of recent successes for the Division of Institutional Advancement (IA). See story.

Groundbreaking for Student Success Building set for Dec. 3

10.26.2010
On Dec. 3, Metro State will hold a reception for the groundbreaking of the Student Success Building, the first Auraria Campus building constructed specifically for the College. See story.

Backfill Project Update: Draft of timeline released

10.19.2010
A tentative timeline for the two phases of the Metro State Backfill Project has been set.“The College community needs to know that this project is coming soon,” says Sean Nesbitt, director of facilities planning and space management. See story.

Higher Education Funding Update: College submits 5-year plan

10.12.2010
At last weekend’s retreat, Metro State’s Board of Trustees reviewed and discussed the College’s five-year draft Financial Accountability Plan (FAP) submitted to the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (CCHE) on Oct. 1. Submission of a FAP is a requirement of the Tuition Flexibility Bill passed by the legislature last spring. See story.

Groundbreaking for Student Success Building less than two months away

10.12.2010
The Student Success Building will be the first building on the Auraria Campus entirely dedicated to Metro State. The Metro State Neighborhood is moving from concept to reality as the Dec. 3 groundbreaking for the Student Success Building nears. See story.

First Year Success Program sets foundation for growth

10.5.2010
The groundbreaking for the Student Success Building in December will bring the First Year Success (FYS) Program one step closer to a new and permanent home. Serving nearly 700 incoming freshmen this fall, the program expects to have nearly 2,000 participants per semester by the building’s 2012 opening date, according to Sandra Mizumoto Posey, the program’s academic director since last May. See story.

Dept. of Education grant allows College to take first steps toward forming a
School of Education

10.05.2010
A $1.8 million grant awarded last week will enable Metro State to establish a framework for the formation of a School of Education. See story.

Administration, Finance and Facilities Update

9.28.2010
The specter of higher education budget shortfalls over the last couple of years has formed an ominous cloud over Colorado state colleges and universities, including Metro State. Not surprisingly, the headlines and resulting water-cooler talk began taking its toll on employees and students. Would jobs be lost? Would salaries freeze? Would some schools actually close? Would tuitions rise? There were many more questions than answers. See story.

Metro State leaders part of city-to-city delegation

9.21.2010
Last week, Metro State leaders, including President Stephen Jordan and Vice President for Institutional Advancement Carrie Besnette Hauser, traveled to Portland, Oregon as part of the 2010 City-to-City Leadership Exchange (LEX) sponsored by the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation (DMCLF).See story.

Big day on campus with Welcome Back Ceremony and BOT meeting

9.1.2010
Today started bright and early at 7:30 a.m. with the College’s 6th Annual Welcome Back Ceremony on Ninth Street Park, and was followed by an historic decision by the Board of Trustees at their first meeting of the new academic year. See story.

Engineering Technology alumna kicks off grand day for campus and Colorado

8.24.2010
A $10,000 check presentation from an alumna to the Metro State Department of Engineering Technology (ET) at an early morning reception kicked off a celebratory day for the College, the campus, the city and the state on Friday, Aug. 20. See story.

BOT approves ‘special purpose corporation’ for HLC

8.18.2010
At a special meeting early Tuesday morning, the Board of Trustees voted unanimously to establish a “special purpose corporation (SPC)” that will own the proposed hotel and hospitality learning center (HLC) and provide for its financing, construction, operation and management. The corporation, to be known as HLC @ Metro, Inc., will be a nonprofit. See story.

College secures low rate for Build America Bond

6.23.2010
On Friday, Metro State officially closed at a low rate of 3.35 percent on the Build America Bond – Recovery Zone Economic Development Bond to be used for the College’s Backfill Project Program Plan. See story.

Consultant continues to gather feedback in designing the Student Success Building

6.9.2010
RNL, leading the eight-firm design consulting group on the Student Success Building, continues delivering presentations to Metro State employees and soliciting feedback as the firm develops concepts for what will be the first building in Metro State’s Neighborhood Master Plan. The building will be at the southwest corner of Auraria Pkwy. and Ninth St., directly west of the TAPS parking garage. See story.

Governor recognizes College’s use of stimulus funds

11.25.2009
In a press release, the Governor’s Office of Colorado announced Metro State as the first state institution of higher education to take advantage of provisions in Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which will help lower the cost of construction projects, namely the Student Success Building.

Hotel and Hotel Learning Center team announced

10.28.09
Metro State Foundation closed on the nearly $1.5 million purchase of 965 Santa Fe Drive to house its renowned off-campus art gallery, the Center for Visual Art. See story.

RNL selected

08.19.2009
Metro State selects RNL to design the Student Success Building. See story.

CDC unanimous vote

04.22.2009
The Capital Development Committee of the Colorado State Legislature voted unanimously to approve the construction of the Student Success Building and Hotel and Hotel Learning Center. See story.

Vote: student fee passed

04.17.2009
Metro State students voted 53 percent to 39 percent during the Student Government Assembly elections for the student fee for the Student Success Building, the first building in the Metro State Neighborhood. See story.

State Budget Crisis

04.07.2009
A lot of students have been asking what Metro is planning to do in the wake of the state budget crisis, and I want to give an update.

Dr. Jordan, President of Metro State, made the following statement:
“Metro State is moving forward with the student fee for the first building of the neighborhood.  However, as I promised the student body at yesterday’s SGA meeting, if the higher ed funding crisis is not solved, we will drop the fee.  If the state does not restore funding to higher ed, we would not have such a critical space problem, and our enrollment could be reduced dramatically.”

Metro State is committed to solving the space shortage for Metro students and faculty, improving the delivery of student services, and increasing the visibility of the College. In order to accomplish this goal, it is important that Metro State continue to move forward on its plan for the new building. As well, it is important that students vote in the coming student election, April 13-17.

Dr. Jordan has promised that if the students pass the student bond fee for the new building and the budget crisis cannot be solved, the College will NOT charge students the fee. 

If you have any questions or concerns, about the budget situation, how it affects the plan for the building, or anything else, please post your comments here or click “contact” above.

Higher Education in Colorado

04.04.2009
So this past week we saw a powerful statement from Colorado’s legislature about the priorities of the State. Further cuts to higher education were proposed, and it is clear that some do not see the value of investing in or state by investing in our students and in higher education. Though things may look bad for higher education, we are not without hope.

We at Metro State have an opportunity to chart a new path for the college. It is important that we continue to call attention to the value of investment in our colleges and universities, but we can take steps on our own to move forward as well.
If you are concerned about the future of the college, please send me your questions and comments. If you have concerns about how the proposed cuts to higher education impact Metro’s plan to move forward, I encourage you to comment here. This site is intended to be a place for discussion. 
I will post updates as they come.

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