Campus Guide

As president of Colorado College, I invite you to explore our Unique Intellectual Adventure.
I expect that you are seeking an educational experience that nurtures your strengths and prepares you for a world of breathtaking changes. You will need to deepen your intellect, affirm your personal values, and strike a fine balance between flexibility and focus.

At Colorado College our goal is to provide the finest liberal arts education in the country. Drawing upon the adventurous spirit of the Rocky Mountain West, we challenge students, one course at a time, to develop those habits of intellect and imagination that will prepare them for learning and leadership throughout their lives.

CORE VALUES

As members of the Colorado College community, we share a commitment to:

• honor the life of the mind as the central focus of our common endeavor;

Colorado College has developed a program for first-year students which exemplifies the college’s character and goals. Different as we are at Colorado College, we share one thing: the activity of learning. In all disciplines we confront compelling, complex questions, and we do it in the setting of a residential college distinguished by the small and intensely-paced classes typical of the Block Plan. Both the nature of the questions we address and the setting for learning promote critical examination and active discussion. Both put conversation at the center of our common enterprise.

Colorado College was established as a coeducational institution in 1874, two years before Colorado became a state. In 1871, General William Jackson Palmer, founder of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, laid out the city of Colorado Springs along his new line from Denver. Envisioning a model city, he reserved land and contributed funds for a college, which was to open May 6, 1874.

Colorado College began a unique program in 1970 by adopting the Block Plan. The Plan divides the academic year into eight three-and-a-half week segments or blocks. Students take one principal course at a time and professors teach one. Some courses may last for one block, others for two or three blocks, depending on the nature of the material.

When will I hear about housing? When do I select classes?

During the first week of June, the college will ship all new first-year students a binder of materials entitled Colorado Colege Bound, which includes sections on academics, student services, health requirements, business office information, housing registration, new student orientation and other areas. We've tried to consolidate all general information in the binder. You should receive your hall assignment and roomate's home address in early August.

What does Residential Life provide in my room?

• an "extra long" single bed, 36" X 80" mattress, and mattress protector
• a chest of drawers, a desk and chair
• draperies or blinds
• mirror - not in all rooms
• wastebasket
• wall or ceiling light
• telephone jack and computer hook-up
• Beginning with the 2008-2009 academic year, most student dorm rooms will be equipped with a Microfridge and personal safe

Are there things not provided, that I may want to bring?

• reading lamp