Welcome to the Work of the College newsletter. Every second Wednesday of the block, we will share updates about various college initiatives including progress reports of the standing and temporary operational groups, Work of the College Series events, important organizational and operational updates, college policy administration, and other helpful information.

As we build on CC’s institutional strength, it is important that we eliminate silos in order to streamline and improve the campus operational processes and foster collaboration across all divisions. The new operational governance model enhances cross-divisional communication, transparency, and decision-making. This will improve the efficiency of daily operations while ensuring input from various campus groups. Faculty and staff are encouraged to participate in Sprint, Temporary, or Standing Operational Groups to contribute their perspectives on key issues.

An important piece of this model is ensuring CC faculty and staff can access information about the work of the operational groups. Meeting summaries, the charge and intended outcomes of the group, and additional information can be easily accessed through the Work of the College: Operational Governance Website.

Standing and Temporary Operational Groups are just starting, so there may be limited content in these folders for now. However, the College Operational Leadership Team (COLT) meets every Monday at 8 a.m., and meeting summaries are available for review.

If you are interested in a particular operational group, you can easily set up notifications in SharePoint that will let you know when new content has been added. Review simple instructions on how to set this up.

We are actively seeking the CC community’s feedback as our operational governance structure and processes continue to evolve to best support CC operations. Learn more about this initiative and current projects on the Operational Governance Website.

We are excited to share with the community a reorganization of the Office of the Dean of the College (DoC) & Chief Operating Officer (COO) that took place this summer. This reorganization served to align the functional areas of academic support services and experiential and applied learning across the DoC, providing deeper opportunities for collaboration.

In this new model, we are shifting from the traditional structure of “offices” to a more dynamic framework centered around functions and cross-functional teams. This approach allows for greater flexibility and integration across programs in the pursuit of shared goals.

In this context, a functional director leads a specific area of expertise that can span multiple teams, ensuring that the work is aligned with broader institutional priorities while fostering innovation and coordination.

Experiential Education at Colorado College (EE@CC), led by Megan Nicklaus, the Associate Vice President for Strategic Operations and Experiential Education, oversees functional areas dedicated to empowering students to bridge classroom theory with practical application, reflect on experiences, and integrate knowledge and skills by co-creating experiential and applied learning opportunities.

The Career Center, Collaborative for Community Engagement (CCE), Global Education and Field Studies, State of the Rockies, and the Office of Sustainability (OoS) collaborate with campus and external partners to facilitate internships, community engagement, off-campus study, field trips, and applied classroom and research projects.

Student Success at Colorado College, led by Aaron Stoller, the Associate Vice President for Student Success and Lecturer in Education, is a comprehensive network of academic programs and support services designed to foster student growth and success. It encompasses Accessibility Resources, The Advising Hub, The Colket Center for Academic Excellence, The Digital Student Experience, and The Office of Academic Programs to work collaboratively in providing holistic support, ensuring students thrive in their journey to, through, and beyond CC.

We are excited to share the expanded focus and leadership of these key functional areas, which will further enrich the student experience and strengthen the connection between academic and experiential learning.

Read this document for further information about the alignment of roles and offices.

In July of 2024, the Office of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness moved from the President’s Office to the Dean of the College and became Institutional Research and Effectiveness (IRE), with Ben Moffitt as Director. This move more directly aligns the work of institutional research with the college’s commitment to efforts in helping students succeed. While the IRE office will still oversee a broad range of external compliance reporting, it now has a prominent role in a) working with cross-functional teams and departments to help assess measures of student success, b) assisting in streamlining data collection efforts that support those measures, and c) utilizing the available data to assess the claim that our students’ experiences at CC add value and enrich their lives.

An integrated Student Financial Services (SFS) model is becoming increasingly popular for delivering centralized and cohesive support to students at colleges nationwide. By adopting the SFS model, CC enables its financial aid, student employment, and student accounts experts to work more closely, promoting proactive communication with families and improving the overall service experience. This unified service model allows staff to coordinate communications more effectively, minimizing duplicative emails and streamlining interactions with students and families. Additionally, this cohesive structure encourages more natural and frequent cross-training of staff, enhancing flexibility.

SFS is now part of our Enrollment Division, supporting students throughout their entire CC journey—from their first inquiry before admission, through every block of their education, and even beyond as they explore graduate school finances or loan repayment options. This transition is already underway, with a new website set to launch in early October.

We hope everyone will take advantage of the opportunity to engage and learn about CC’s organizational structures and decision-making processes and dialogue with leadership about campus affairs, all while building trust and community!

The Work of the College Series is a year-long program of events that consists of:

View the 2024-2025 schedule of events.

Your feedback is welcome, if there are topics you would like to see, questions, or feedback please send them to operationalgovernance@coloradocollege.edu