Metro State developing leadership program for Denver Hispanic Chamber
State funding likely to decrease, again
New center for urban water education
College to help school districts throughout region with equity issues
The changing face of campus
Metro State enters community partnership to train teachers for high-need DPS classrooms

President Stephen M. Jordan, Ph.D.

Dear friends,

There is a lot of positive buzz about Metro State in the Colorado community these days. Business and other community leaders often approach me asking about Metro State’s latest achievements and upcoming initiatives or to discuss ideas for partnerships that will benefit both their organization and our students. For instance, the Denver Hispanic Chamber Education Foundation has asked Metro State to develop a leadership training program. I believe that much of this interest comes from the growing understanding that, with one in five undergraduates choosing to attend Metro State, we truly do educate Coloradans and so are critical to our state’s economy.

Some of the successes I’ve shared with these leaders are a testament to the fact that, despite a grim budget outlook, our institution is thriving. For instance, this fall saw a fivefold increase in enrollment in our revenue-generating master’s programs, including more than 115 students in the first year of our master’s in social work program. We are set to open a new center for urban water education. Our construction projects are continuing apace, and we recently struck a deal to acquire greater ownership of new campus acreage. We also recently received two federal grants: one to operate an Equity Assistance Center that will help public school districts with desegregation and equity issues and another to train never-before teachers to fill critical classroom needs in Denver Public Schools.

As I think about what's ahead for Metro State, I am encouraged by our recent accomplishments and our progress in areas of strategic importance. I am also grateful to be part of such a vibrant, caring community, for whom the future holds so much promise. Thank you for your interest in Metro State, as well.

If you have anything you would like to see addressed in this newsletter, please send your suggestions to me personally at stevejordan@mscd.edu. And I encourage you to support Metro State by passing along this information to others who might be interested.

Sincerely,
Stephen M. Jordan, Ph.D.
President

Metro State developing leadership program for Denver Hispanic Chamber

The Denver Hispanic Chamber Education Foundation approached Metro State earlier this year to help them establish a Hispanic Leadership Development Program (HLDP); that program is now three months away from launching.

The HDLP six-month program kicks off in February 2012 with a goal of securing 25 participants in the inaugural class. Monthly sessions taught by Metro State professors and community leaders will address leadership topics such as identity, culture, policy, purpose and principles. The program’s goal is to teach the emerging leaders how to overcome obstacles that traditionally hinder Latinos from receiving promotions.

Leroy Garcia, New York Life partner and incoming foundation board chair, acknowledges that this program would never have gotten off the ground without Metro State’s support. “We are fortunate to have partnered with Metro State and believe this program will serve a tremendous role in fostering growth and personal development within the Hispanic community,” Garcia says.

State funding likely to decrease, again

The biggest challenge to Metro State’s growth and success—and that of all of higher education in Colorado—is the continuing dire financial outlook for state funding. Preliminary estimates for the 2012-13 state budget show cuts to higher education alone on the order of $60 million, which would equate to a $4-$4.5 million reduction to Metro State. With a series of budget cuts in recent years, we have already made reductions and eliminated what we could. Since the 2008-09 fiscal year, Metro State’s funding from the state has dropped from $49 million to $36 million (27 percent), while our student enrollment has increased more than 10 percent.

Last year we had to increase tuition and fees by 21 percent. Nevertheless, we continue to offer the lowest tuition and fees of Colorado’s five largest institutions—$895 less per semester than the next lowest. And, the combination of Metro State’s size and the role it fills in providing affordable undergraduate and graduate education to Colorado’s historically underrepresented students magnifies the economic impact that budget cuts have on the College.

We will keep you posted as we learn more about the budget situation. Meanwhile, read on about different initiatives we are pursuing through alternative funding sources.

New center for urban water education

The One World, One Water Center will address urban water issues.

Water is a central issue throughout Colorado and particularly in Denver, where explosive residential development along the Front Range depletes aquifers. With an urban campus adjacent to a major headwater river, the South Platte; a focus on educating underserved/disadvantaged populations; and graduates who largely stay in Colorado and the Denver metro area, thereby affecting change in our region, Metro State is in a unique position to address water issues.

In September, our Board of Trustees approved the One World, One Water Center for Urban Water Education and Stewardship at Metro State. The center will be established with the support of a $1 million gift from a local philanthropist and will offer an interdisciplinary water studies minor, as well as related co-curricular activities on urban water issues.

College to help school districts throughout region with equity issues

The changing demographics in Colorado—and in many other states in the Mountain West—raise a number of equity issues around race. To address these, Metro State was recently awarded a three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education, anticipated to reach more than $2 million, to establish and operate an Equity Assistance Center (EAC).

One of only 10 such centers around the country, the Metro State EAC will offer technical assistance and training to public school districts, at the request of school boards, in desegregation and equity issues regarding race, gender and national origin. The center will have a focus on improving school safety by decreasing the incidence of racial and sexual harassment and bullying; and promoting science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education to reduce achievement disparities.

Because Metro State educates more students of color–including the STEM fields–than any other four-year Colorado higher education institution, we are well-positioned to effectively address the needs outlined in the grant. Our own overall demographics are changing, too; this fall, students of color make up 31.6 percent of the student body, up from 28.4 percent last fall.

Soccer and baseball fields will eventually move to the new land.

In September, our Board of Trustees approved a deal that will give Metro State a greater presence near Colfax Avenue. Metro State will own the13.5 acres south of West Colfax Avenue and west of Rio Court in a 50/50 partnership with the Auraria Higher Education Center.

Not only will the new fields increase Metro State’s visibility, they will also greatly improve the area for the surrounding community, turning the vacant land into acreage that has sidewalks, lighting and artificial turf.

This acquisition will allow us to have naming rights to facilities we develop and construct there, a phased move of the tennis courts, baseball and soccer fields, and the option to charge for use of the land. Through a request-for-proposal process we hope to select an architect soon.

And, I’m pleased to report that our two current construction projects, both funded entirely without taxpayer dollars, are progressing on time and on budget. The Student Success Building, on Auraria Parkway across from the Pepsi Center, will open in March 2012 and the Hotel and Hospitality Learning Center, at Auraria Parkway and Speer Boulevard, will be complete by next fall.

These buildings, along with the new land, are the beginning of the evolution of the Metro State Neighborhood on campus, with a strong presence on two of the main arteries into and out of downtown Denver.

Metro State enters community partnership to train teachers for high-need DPS classrooms

Through the m-NET program, more Metro State teachers-in-training will enter DPS classrooms in hard-to-fill roles.

Metro State and Denver Public Schools are partners in a multi-state consortium of higher education institutions, local schools, education departments and nonprofits participating in Project m-NET (Mobilizing National Educator Talent).

Funded by a federal grant, of which Metro State will receive $415,500 over five years, m-NET’s goal is to recruit and train never-before teachers to fill critical classroom needs. DPS will recruit and Metro State will train 20 teachers a year from 2012-16 to teach science, technology, engineering, math (STEM), or other high-need subjects in DPS. Qualified candidates will enroll in Metro State’s Alternative Licensure Program, and will fill full-time classroom positions in DPS as they move toward state certification as teachers.

Metro State was asked to join the project by Ohio State University, m-NET’s lead institution, at last April’s Great Teachers for Our City Schools national summit sponsored by Metro State’s Center for Urban Education.