As we begin a new chapter for Colorado College, we have an opportunity to remind ourselves of the mission we steward: to deliver an exceptional liberal arts education that creates the leaders our society needs. Achieving that goal requires us to regularly pause, reflect, and ask how we can best use our collective resources—dollars, staff talent, technology, and physical space—to serve our students and community effectively.
With our mission in mind, we’re launching an Institutional Review to give us a clear, data-informed picture of how resources are allocated across the College. The Review will assess all areas of the College, from academic areas and administrative units to athletics and the Fine Arts Center. The goal is to help us understand where we’re strong, where we can be more agile, and how we can better align resources with both immediate needs and long-term strategy. As this work will touch all corners of the College, I am committing to sharing transparent, regular updates as phases unfold, beginning with this announcement of the initiative and insights into its current status.
It’s important to note that we are entering this initiative from a position of strength. CC continues to thrive because of your commitment and because our educational model remains distinctive and compelling. But higher education is shifting—costs continue to rise, federal policy moves unpredictably, and perceptions of the liberal arts and the value of a College degree continue to evolve—making this the right moment for a proactive, first-of-its-kind review of College resource allocation to ensure we remain nimble and firmly in control of our future.
So, where do we begin? We are currently in the process of engaging with an independent, external firm with deep expertise in evaluating organizations to conduct the Review. Their objective perspective will ensure CC leaves this work with the clarity and concrete insights necessary to align our efforts with our strategy. I anticipate the firm will begin data collection as early as December. In the end, the firm’s findings will be recommendations only. Discussion and decisions determining which recommendations we implement, considering our values and on-the-ground understanding of what our community needs to thrive, will follow. I look forward to sharing more about the firm selected, its credentials, and the projected timeline in the coming weeks.
Because this work involves all College units, there will be numerous opportunities to learn more and share your insights in the coming months—including at the upcoming Work of the College Series: Institutional Review on Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 3-4 p.m. in Gaylord Hall. Register here.
Stewarding our resources wisely is a shared responsibility, and I am excited to help us gain additional insights to help us continue to do this critical work well. Thank you for your commitment to this work and to CC, and for the work you do every day to keep CC strong.
Sincerely,
