Elevate Western one pagers

CREATING A SPACE FOR COMMUNITY MOUNTAINEER BOWL EVENTS COMPLEX Western is a centerpiece of the Gunnison Valley, and as such, it warrants the creation of a central space that will serve and support not only our students, faculty and staff, but our entire community.

Thanks to another generous lead commitment from the Rady family, the

“ One aspect I have always championed is that Western is not only in the community, but an essential part of the community and this project highlights that relationship.”

Mountaineer Bowl Events Complex is undergoing major renovations that will transform the athletic experience and amplify the school spirit at Western, while creating a central space that will serve the entire community.

Jonathan Houck

Gunnison County Commissioner Western Alumnus Class of 1996

LEARN BY DOING PAUL M. RADY SCHOOL OF COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING The Rady School partnership program has a proven track record of supporting the local community by incorporating projectbased learning in all core engineering and computer science courses. Due to small classroom sizes and engaging industry

focused faculty, Rady students outperform their peers in creative problem-solving and engineering design work. Supporting project-based learning in the classroom ensures we continue this crucial differentiation.

“ I made my gift to Western because I believe in the potential of Colorado’s future computer scientists and engineers and have experienced Western’s academic excellence firsthand. Thanks to the collaboration between Western Colorado University and the University of Colorado Boulder, The Rady School gives students the chance to pursue their academic aspirations and accelerate the sophistication of our state’s workforce.”

Paul M. Rady

Chairman & CEO Antero Resources Corporation Antero Midstream Corporation Donor and Alumni Class of 1978

POSITIONING DIVERSE LEADERS FOR SUCCESS THE PAUL M. RADY SCHOOL OF COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING INITIATIVE The demand for highly qualified computer scientists and engineers has never been greater. Despite existing workforce opportunity and the growing interest among learners to earn degrees in these fields, rising tuition costs and crowded classrooms prevent countless students each year from enrolling in these programs.

In a competitive economic market where technology and engineering are evident pillars of success, more must be done to increase the supply of skilled and relevant graduates and expeditiously populate the workforce pipeline.

And in classrooms and boardrooms alike exists another unsettling trend — a lack of gender and racial diversity among students and professionals. Due to an assortment of structural barriers, individuals from various gender and racial backgrounds are largely underrepresented across the computer science and engineering space.

THE PAUL M. RADY SCHOOL OF COMPUTER SCIENCE & ENGINEERING SCHOLARSHIP INITIATIVE will secure private support for computer science and engineering scholarships, with an emphasis placed on recruiting and supporting females and students of color throughout their academic journey.

MAKING A PROMISE TO OUR NEIGHBORS GUNNISON VALLEY PROMISE ENDOWMENT The Gunnison Valley is rich in many things. Among them are stunning mountainous views, a harmonious spirit of community, and abundant talent from the more than 160 students who graduate from the Valley’s high schools each year.

Unfortunately, the talent and ambition of these students – many who come from working-class families – see shortened paths toward success, viewing their high school graduation as a final destination due to the high cost of college tuition.

In Gunnison, we have the unique characteristic of having one of the highest costs of living in the United States paired with the lowest median income.

In addition, the percentage of students in elementary and secondary school

“ The Gunnison Valley Promise goes far beyond rewarding our local students; it is truly a community-building vision that strengthens the valley by enabling our own kids to become leaders and creators of our collective future.”

who rely on free and reduced lunch has increased by 43 percent in just the last fifteen years. Approximately half of the students in Gunnison Valley are eligible for federal aid such as Pell Grants, which are intended to provide a boost to learners from low-income families.

Western wants to support students in the Gunnison Valley as they pursue their dream of a university education.

Therefore, through ELEVATE WESTERN we seek to endow the GUNNISON VALLEY PROMISE ENDOWMENT and provide students from Gunnison and Crested Butte community schools who qualify for admission with access to a Western degree, regardless of their family’s ability to pay.

Leslie Nichols, EdD Superintendent Gunnison Watershed School District

CHAMPIONING THE PINNACLE OF MOUNTAINEER EXCELLENCE MOUNTAIN SPORTS SCHOLARSHIP FUND At Western, competitive sports are not limited to just those recognized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). We take full advantage of all that our mountainous backyard has to offer and provide students with the opportunity to participate in everything from Alpine Skiing to Trail Running to Mountain Biking. Recently, Mountain Sports teams have won four national championships and numerous other high-profile individual and team awards, and Western continues to lead the nation in the non-traditional studentathlete experience. But that unique experience comes at a cost.

Currently, the fees that Mountain Sports student-athletes are required to pay cover only thirty percent of the costs directly associated with their participation in each sport, ranging from $2,000 to $4,000

per athlete per sport, not including equipment. This cost, in addition to regular expenses tied to tuition and room and board, has proven to be prohibitive, causing an annual average of ten highly qualified students to reevaluate whether they can realistically afford Mountain Sports, a valuable experience that is uniquely Western.

To ensure student-athletes from all socioeconomic backgrounds can participate in Mountain Sports and to improve our current student-athlete retention rate of 85 percent, Western seeks to endow the MOUNTAIN SPORTS SCHOLARSHIP FUND. Private philanthropic support will not only create memorable and long-lasting experiences for our students but will undoubtedly elevate the distinctiveness of our university and the entire Gunnison Valley.

REVITALIZING A WESTERN LANDMARK PAUL WRIGHT GYM RENOVATION Credited as being the highest collegiate gym in the world, the Paul Wright Gym is named after Western’s late professor, coach, and athletic director, Paul Wright, and is a flagship space for Western athletics and recreational activities. The PAUL WRIGHT GYM RENOVATION will improve the main entryway, Hall of Fame Room and add new student services like a nutrition center.

Western seeks private support to renovate and expand this 68-year-old facility. Doing so will position Western to improve student-athlete recruitment and retention, accommodate an array of current athletic programs, and the creation of new programs.

“ Athletics and academics make a transforming educational partnership that prepares students for unmatched success in careers and life. They are an integral part of Western’s DNA, from which my husband Rich (’83) and I have both personally benefited. We are proud to have committed one of the largest gifts of our lives to establish and endow the Joanie Mancini Scholarship Fund to benefit the Women’s Swimming and Diving Team. Join us in elevating student-athletes to become tomorrow’s leaders!”

Joanie Mancini Todd Mountaineer Athletics Hall of Fame Inductee Donor and Alumna Class of 1985

KEEPING WESTERN COMPETITIVE NCAA INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIP FUND It is difficult to imagine a professional sports team staying competitive with a salary cap that is a fraction of its competitors, but thanks to the private support of our donors, Western does precisely that.

Yet, the opportunity to bolster our currently limited pool of athletic scholarships remains.

Despite the financial pressures of the last decade, Western has stayed competitive with fewer scholarships than is typically available in most Division II Universities and what our RMAC competitors offer.

Approximately 30 percent of our studentathletes go without any scholarship support, placing Western in the lower third of all RMAC schools regarding scholarships available to award.

Increasing our NCAA INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIP FUND will give Western the competitive edge that it needs to recruit more outstanding studentathletes and ensure current students are adequately supported so that they can continue to focus on performing at their best, both academically and athletically.

“ Playing football for Western not only gave me the opportunity to pursue my goal of being in the NFL, but also inspired me in the classroom – so much so that I returned to Gunnison to finish my degree. Simply put, Western gave me the platform to fulfill my lifelong dream and to pursue a successful life after football.

That’s all a student-athlete can ask for.”

Austin Ekeler

Running Back Los Angeles Chargers Alum Class of 2018

FUELING COLORADO’S FUTURE ADDRESSING REGIONAL WORKFORCE NEEDS Incorporating innovative and interdisciplinary curriculum and enhancing our students’ career guidance and professional pathways will strengthen Western’s ability to meet Colorado’s growing workforce needs.

AMPLIFYING FACULTY INFLUENCE AND IMPACT ENDOWED CHAIRS AND PROFESSORSHIPS At Western, we are grateful to have a robust cohort of faculty leaders who are exceptionally proficient in their respective disciplines and demonstrate an unmatched level of investment in our students’ intellectual and personal growth.

Absent the dedication of Western faculty, our students would find themselves at a very different kind of university. The highly personalized instruction Western professors deliver is a treasured rarity in higher education, where oftentimes, a single faculty member is more commonly tasked with giving lesson plans to large lecture halls, diminishing the opportunity to build personal relationships with individual students.

The commitment of Western faculty is steadfast despite significantly stretched budgets, limited operational support, and pay that is below market rates.

Currently, only four fully endowed positions exist in a faculty body of more than 125. Gifts to ELEVATE WESTERN in support of ENDOWED CHAIRS AND PROFESSORSHIPS will help ease financial burdens in academic departments across campus and will ensure faculty are rightly compensated with competitive salaries.

Further, increased faculty support will enable Western to continue attracting toptier academic talent, bolster curriculum development and other learning opportunities, and ensure faculty-tostudent ratios remain small.

ENSURING THAT STUDENTS WHO ASPIRE TO ACHIEVE, CAN NEED-AND MERIT-BASED SCHOLARSHIPS Students today face numerous academic, personal, and social demands. As an upshot of their impressive academic acumen, high-achieving students especially tend to place equally high expectations on themselves, striving to succeed regardless of what it costs to do so.

At Western, we believe that financial burdens should never dictate a student’s successful path toward graduation.

Unfortunately, a growing number of highly qualified students struggle to select Western as their academic home or continue their studies once on campus due to financial strains.

Currently, more than 30 percent of the students at Western are solely responsible for the cost of their education. Despite uneven financial support at the state level,

Western continues to meet 45 percent of tuition costs for students with high financial need and 32 percent of tuition costs for students with moderate financial need.

But it is not enough.

The average student at Western still requires $9,000 in additional financial support to bridge the gap between their family’s ability to pay and the actual cost of attendance. This need, and the number of students expected to demonstrate this need in the future, is only projected to grow.

Through ELEVATE WESTERN, we will raise philanthropic support for NEEDAND MERIT-BASED SCHOLARSHIPS to help alleviate financial hardship on students, improve retention, and enhance the overall learner experience.

PUTTING RESEARCH-INSPIRED STUDENTS AT AN ADVANTAGE THE WESTERN ADVANTAGE FUND National data confirm student research and creative work with faculty improves retention, academic success, graduate school placement, and career opportunities. The Western Advantage intends to allow our students to experience these same positive outcomes.

Modeled after Western’s hugely successful Thornton Biology Undergraduate Research Program, the Western Advantage will give all students – regardless of their academic discipline – the opportunity to partner with faculty on cutting-edge research initiatives. On an annual basis, at

least fifty faculty members will be paired with at least three hundred students in their respective fields of interest, with each faculty member mentoring no more than six students per year.

Through ELEVATE WESTERN, Western will establish the WESTERN ADVANTAGE FUND, which will, in turn, offer students up to a $2,000 stipend each year to pursue their research projects and will also provide funding for faculty so that they can maintain their instructional capacity in the classroom.

“ The support we receive allows students and me to participate in applied research, collecting real-time data that informs collaborative decisions. Being part of this adaptive process shows the power and importance of science at the crossroads of conservation and human activities. Our intention is to contribute impactful research that makes the world a better place.”

Patrick Magee, Ph.D. Faculty Senate Chair Associate Professor Wildlife & Conservation Biology

ADVANCING ACADEMIC CURIOSITY WESTERN GRADUATE STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP FUND Students who pursue advanced degrees bring to Western a high caliber of intellectual maturity that directly contributes to our longstanding reputation of academic excellence. Despite their drive and educational aptitude, graduate students do not have the same level of access to private scholarship support as their undergraduate counterparts, yet they continue to play an integral role in shaping the overall academic identity of an institution.

At Western, we are committed to supporting current undergraduate students who aspire to obtain an advanced degree.

Through our Master’s Pathway Programs, known as 3+2 offerings, students can complete both their undergraduate and graduate studies in just five years.

To help relieve financial pressures on our graduate students – many of whom are a part of the growing population of students in the U.S. who collectively share more than $1.5 trillion in student debt, a disproportionate amount resulting from graduate studies – we will endow the WESTERN GRADUATE STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP FUND to help further the dreams of our most academically driven learners.

SUPPORTING THE DREAMS OF A NEW GENERATION FIRST-GENERATION SCHOLARSHIP FUND Western’s commitment to creating a vibrant academic community with access to toptier faculty and personalized learning opportunities is at the very core of who we are and uniquely positions us to provide a pathway for first-generation students who want to change the trajectory of their family tree and earn a university diploma.

ELEVATE WESTERN will enable Western to alleviate the financial burden on firstgeneration students and their families, including those from minority and historically underrepresented populations.

Campaign investments will allow us to establish the FIRST-GENERATION SCHOLARSHIP FUND to support tuition costs for qualified first-generation students.