“A quiet, peaceful atmosphere.” “Insightful conversations.” “Productive projects and goals completed.”

That’s how five students and recent graduates of CU Denver described their summers. They weren’t remembering vacations or home improvement projects, but the classes they took during the eight-week summer semester.

During the summer, undergraduates and graduate students can choose from three ways to take classes: in person, online or a hybrid combination of the two. Support systems, such as the Writing Center, are open to assist students, and, with fewer cars on campus, parking is a breeze.

And if that’s not enough to persuade you to enroll in summer semester, just listen to five students who used summer classes to graduate faster, learn skills inside and outside of their majors and keep the momentum going all year.

Navy Vet channeled excess energy into a degree

After serving in the U.S. Navy for nine years, Charmaine Cassie was nervous about returning to school and embarking on a new “mission.” She enrolled in summer classes in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) to jump-start her education after her military service—and discovered that she loved the small class sizes and fast pace at CU Denver.

Cassie, a Reisher Scholarship recipient, took at least two courses every summer until she graduated with a Communication degree in 2016. “The length of the summer semester was what I liked best,” she said. “The condensed format reminded me of a fast-paced job.”

While summer courses helped Cassie graduate faster, they also kept her busy, something the vet appreciated. “School was my outlet from memories of war—studying, taking tests, and participating in class was a healthier form of “stress,” Cassie said. “I expanded my social network, regained confidence on a greater scale and met my current business partner.”

First-generation undergrad explored courses outside of major

Yoana Martinez-Salazar, a first-gen student and a Reisher Scholarship recipient in the School of Education & Human Development, is busy completing a degree in Human Development and Family Relations, with a minor in Sociology. In summer 2016, Martinez-Salazar took two online classes because the flexibility allowed her to work more hours, complete coursework on her schedule, and stay on track to graduate in fall 2017. “Without summer classes, I probably would not be graduating on time,” she said.

Martinez-Salazar describes the photography course she took last summer as fun and challenging. “Taking that class was a great opportunity to explore outside my major, and it gave me the tools and experience I need to bring back some great pictures from my semester abroad,” she said.

Future police officer completes BA at lightning speed

Spenser Nesladek first learned about summer classes from his School of Public Affairs adviser, Nora Scanlon, who thought summer classes would be a good fit for his goals: Nesladek wanted to graduate quickly and apply to be a police officer.

He transferred to CU Denver bringing 30 credits with him. In May 2017, he will complete a BA in Criminal Justice in less than two years. One real key to his success was summer semester 2016, when he earned 15 credits. “The only way I was able to complete my degree so quickly was because of summer classes,” he said.

Nesladek enjoyed the quiet, peaceful atmosphere on campus in the summer, including personal assistance from instructors. “Summer courses were a great opportunity,” he said. “If someone wants to complete their degree faster, it’s great they have this option.”

Dual major student streamlined her path to graduation

Elizabeth Nylander, who dual-majored in Psychology and Communication, took her first psychology class during the summer semester and learned that she liked the momentum of taking classes year-round.

“I loved the productive, insightful small-class discussions,” she said. “After that experience, I made summer classes part of my graduation plan to ensure that I stayed on track.”

Nylander credits taking classes each summer semester with helping her graduate on time in 2014. Despite a heavy course load, she was able to complete her dual major in four years, while working part-time on campus. “Taking courses over the summer balanced my course load in the spring and fall semesters and streamlined my path to graduation,” she said.

Graduate student prefers condensed core classes

The opportunity to take required classes in a condensed format appealed to Jessica Killian, a grad student who is completing her Master of Engineering in Construction Engineering and Management. She prefers taking required classes over the summer to lighten her load during spring and fall semesters.

“The summer semester is a great way to get core or elective classes you are missing,” she said. “They are quicker and more focused.”

The post Why students love CU Denver summer semester appeared first on CU Denver Today.

Elizabeth Cheng’s father was driven from Cambodia by genocide. Her mother was driven from Vietnam by war. Whenever possible, the CU Denver student tries not to add stress to her parents’ lives—especially not with money.

“I’ve tried to be as financially independent as possible from a young age,” said Cheng, who will graduate in May with a biology major and plans to go to medical school. “ During undergrad, I balanced a full-time course load with a full-time job at times.”

But what tipped the scales for Cheng was a scholarship from the Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF), which covered a portion of her tuition and included individualized college counseling from DSF advisors.

On the morning of March 31, Cheng spoke at a first-ever awards event honoring her and the 318 other DSF scholars at CU Denver.

Funding success

The CU Denver Office of Advancement and the CU Denver Scholarship Services & Programming Office organized the awards breakfast to celebrate CU Denver’s DSF scholars and to recognize 15 graduating seniors in that group with honor cords. As students, staff and faculty members ate scrambled eggs and nibbled croissants, Cheng expressed her gratitude at the podium.

“I want to say thank you to all of the people at DSF for all the help you’ve given me over the years and for all the students you’ll be helping in the future,” she said.

Established in 2006, DSF helps students from Denver Public Schools (DPS) go to college by providing tools, knowledge and financial resources. The organization works with 32 partner schools, of which CU Denver is one of the largest.

“Our goal is for every DPS kid to go to college, period,” said DSF CEO Nate Easley, PhD. “We have funded 5,500 DPS college grads so far, and we can’t do this without the partnership of schools like CU Denver.”

Acknowledging potential

As Easley spoke, students around the room listened, many of them wearing black university hoodies with “Scholar” written on the back. One of them, Mercy Olaka, said she has valued the support she has received from DSF, because as a first-generation student, she cannot always look to her parents for guidance in college-related decision-making. The public health major said being a DSF scholar also just feels good.

“I appreciate the acknowledgement that comes with this honor,” she said. “It means someone sees my aspirations and my potential and has granted me the opportunity to do what I want to do.”

CU Denver Chancellor Dorothy Horrell affirmed Olaka’s sentiments as she addressed the scholars.

“You come here every day with a sense of passion, purpose and perseverance that is unstoppable,” she said. “I applaud you.”

Shattering statistics

At the end of the program, Horrell announced the winner of the DSF Student of the Year Award: Gerardo Banuelos, who plans to graduate in fall 2017 and who happened to be the emcee for the event.

“Based on statistics, I really shouldn’t be in college,” Banuelos told the audience as he accepted his award. “I’m really thankful for DSF and all that it’s given me.”

For Cheng, Olaka, Banuelos and the hundreds of other CU Denver DSF scholars, the path wasn’t always easy. But through DSF, they not only could get help, they had to.

“Because you’re required to meet with your advisor each semester, you’re forced to get the help you need,” Cheng said. “I was raised to be independent, so I didn’t like reaching out for help, but it became a blessing in disguise.”

Life still isn’t stress-free for Cheng and her family. While she and her siblings and mother live in Colorado, her father lives in New York, where he can find work. And right now the Medical College Admission Tests loom ahead of her. But because of DSF, she doesn’t feel alone.

“The DSF scholarship program helps students get to where they want to be in their life,” she said. “Depending on your background, if you don’t have that support already, it’s a great feeling to know that there’s someone who is there for you.”

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It’s 7:45 a.m. in downtown Denver, and hundreds of people stand together in Room 2500 of the CU Denver Student Commons Building. The energy is palpable. Nerves and excitement mix, as the attendees embark on one of the most exciting chapters of their lives: college.

They are new CU Denver students, and they know that New Student Orientation is their best entry point into the dynamic and inclusive Lynx community. Here are five reasons why you’ll want to be like them and start your college experience off right with New Student Orientation.

1. Bagels and coffee await you.

Yeah, the event starts early, but the free caffeine and schmear will make you feel a little happier to be in the heart of the Mile High City first thing in the morning. Oh, and there’s also free lunch, free snacks, free CU Denver swag—and free inspiration.

“In college, you will succeed and you will fail, but when you fail, you’ll fail forward. That’s progress.” – Rubén Viramontez Anguiano, PhD, Professor of Human Development, Family Relations and Education

2. Find all the info you need all in one place.

You’ll find tables hosted by offices across the university, from housing and dining and the health center to the offices of financial aid and veteran and military services. Get answers and make contacts to help you out down the road. You can also choose what interests you most from break-out sessions covering pre-health fields, study abroad and more. 

“I’m a first-generation college student, and New Student Orientation feels like a good way to see what it’s going to be like at the university.” – Jesus Dorado, new CU Denver student, BA/BS-MD 

3. You might just meet your soulmate.

The Student Orientation Staff will break the ice with beach balls, and the end-of-day mixer will give you time to strike up a conversation with someone new. OK, so you’re probably more likely to meet a good friend or study partner than the love of your life. Still, hundreds of new Lynx all in one place—you never know.

“I like the diversity and the urban setting of CU Denver. I’m Ethiopian, and I can find people I can relate to here, and in the city, the opportunities are endless. That’s something only a few colleges can offer.” – Yishak Bedaso, new CU Denver student, BA/BS-MD 

4. Check class registration off your list.

Registering for classes might look complicated, but don’t get tripped up. At New Student Orientation, you’ll meet your academic advisors, get an overview of CU Denver’s academic programs and support services, and register for your first semester of classes with helpful experts right by your side.

“I chose CU Denver for the class offerings and because it’s close to home. I’m at New Student Orientation to get more insights into my university and to register for classes.” – Jessica Alvarado, new CU Denver student, prenatal nursing 

5. Launch your Lynx life with a bang.

Listen to university faculty and administrators welcome you and tell you what an awesome decision you’ve made by coming to CU Denver. Don a college lanyard and get your student ID to make it all feel official. Lynx life is now your life—embrace it.

“Welcome, Class of 2021. Let that sink in for a second …” – Sam Kim, EdD, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Retention and Success

Ready to launch your Lynx life? Find the New Student Orientation session that’s right for you and sign up through UCDAccess.

The post CU Denver New Student Orientation 2017 appeared first on CU Denver Today.

Daniel Ramirez likes to tell people about the phone call that changed his life. It was a call from the University of Colorado Denver, telling him he’d earned a full scholarship.

“I’ll never forget that day,” Ramirez said. “I looked around for cameras wondering if it was a joke! Then I realized it was actually happening!”

For Ramirez, the call was like a miracle. His dream is to become a doctor, and he’s on his way as a junior majoring in biology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS). But for a long time when he was growing up, his ambition felt out of reach.

That was until that fateful phone call.

“So many doors opened for me,” Ramirez said.

Remembering where he came from

Ramirez told his inspiring story at the Denver Public Schools Foundation’s annual Achieve gala on April 27. The fundraiser drew nearly 1,000 guests, including leaders from government and the business and philanthropic communities.

If Ramirez was nervous, he didn’t show it. It might have been because three years ago, he spoke to the same gala as a graduating high school senior. His story then was much different, and it could have been a sad one about dashed dreams.

Ramirez is an immigrant whose parents brought him to the U.S. from Mexico when he was a child. Growing up, he didn’t have many of the advantages college-bound students have.

“I come from a family where college is foreign to us. My parents have grade-school educations,” he said.

They instilled in Ramirez a belief in the importance of education. He excelled academically at North High School, earning a 3.5 GPA. Teachers inspired him and nurtured his interest in science.

Ramirez thrived outside the classroom, too. He captained North’s football and swimming teams and ran track. He played in the honors jazz band.

When the time came to consider colleges, he applied to almost every university in Colorado. Every one he applied to accepted him. However, money remained an issue.

“I had no idea how I’d pay for college,” Ramirez said.

Ramirez dreamed of playing football and was good enough to draw interest from college teams. When he was a junior, it looked like an athletic scholarship from a university in Colorado was a possibility. Then Ramirez suffered a severe knee injury that required major surgery. He was only able to play one game in his senior year, and all but one college team lost interest. A small college in Iowa offered him a partial scholarship. It wasn’t enough though, and Ramirez knew he didn’t want to move that far from home.

It looked like Ramirez would have to put his dream on hold. “I was going to go work in construction and hopefully make enough money to go to college,” he said.

Then his fortune changed.

‘He is going to go to college’

It started at the DPS Foundation’s gala three years ago. Before his speech, Ramirez met then-Lt. Gov. Joseph Garcia. They talked, and Daniel told Garcia he didn’t know if he’d be able to go to college.

Ramirez then delivered his speech. It wowed the audience of DPS benefactors and was the talk of the evening. Afterward, Garcia chatted with Denver philanthropist Barbara Grogan, who asked about Ramirez. Garcia told her about the student’s situation.

“She said, ‘Go tell that young man right now that he is going to go to college,’” Ramirez said.

Garcia returned to Ramirez, relayed Grogan’s message, and gave him his business card and told him to keep in touch. What happened next changed Ramirez’s life.

“About a week-and-a-half later, I received a call from the University of Colorado Denver offering me an academic scholarship. I said yes, and here I am in my junior year of college,” he said.

Ramirez thanked Grogan and Garcia, as well as his mentors, teachers and the supporters of the Denver Public Schools Foundation.

“They’re a huge reason why I’m here,” Ramirez said. “The last time I stood on this stage it changed my entire life. It changed everything for me.”

“I thank God for such a great journey and the path it has provided for my future.”

His next steps

Now, Ramirez is busy with challenging classes and getting ready for the medical school entrance exam. His hope is to attend the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

“I love Colorado and would love to stay in state so I can stay close to my family. And CU Anschutz has a very good reputation,” he said.

Whatever the future holds, Ramirez will always work hard to give back and be an inspiration.

“I believe in giving back and I was raised to never forget where I came from,” Ramirez said. “I know what it is to be hungry.”

The post CU Denver’s Daniel Ramirez wows Denver Public Schools Foundation gala appeared first on CU Denver Today.

Food is often at the center of the strongest friendships. For CU Denver graduating seniors Robera Oljira and Abel Mebrahtu, a bond grew as they dined on Ethiopian delicacies and sipped strong coffee. It evolved further as they tried to best each at billiards, ping pong and on the soccer pitch.

On a recent visit to the Nile Restaurant in Aurora, the graduating seniors laughed and reminisced about their fast-moving college years. Like a flavorful Ethiopian stew, their academic career has been a blend of sustenance and spice – challenging classes and interesting jobs combined with outings of fun, friendship and adventure.

As this chapter of life winds down, they reflected on the rewards of attending CU Denver and talked excitedly about friends and relatives who will journey here – some flying in from Africa – for Spring Commencement.

Robera hoped that his oldest sister, who essentially raised him, can make the trip. Abel, meanwhile, is looking forward to seeing his mother and little brother for the first time in four years. “The graduation list is growing,” he said, referring to relatives who are scattered across the U.S. “It’s all gone by so fast.”

Between bites of injera bread, the roommates, who met in the Tivoli Student Union game room two years ago, talked about the role food plays in strengthening friendships within the Ethiopian community. “It connects us,” Abel said. “It reminds us of home, where we come from.”

New goals, new freedoms

The CU Denver years have been rich with new experiences for the two men, whose upbringings were starkly different. Robera’s parents both died from illness when he was young, leaving him to be raised in a rural village by older siblings. Abel, meanwhile, experienced a somewhat sheltered childhood, growing up in a middle-class family in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

Both families deeply value education. “Life without a dream and goal is like a life without sense,” Robera said. “To have a meaningful life you have to have a goal.”

Abel grew excited when his father suggested he look to the U.S. to attend college. “The idea of just stepping out of the house and having all this freedom really appealed to me,” he said.

The self-described “city boy” didn’t venture out much growing up in Addis Ababa, where his father owns a business-products store. “I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere,” Abel said, citing gangs and prostitution in some parts of the city. “My parents were fearful of what could happen if I went walking around the city. My daily routine was school, home, school, home.”

Exploring the Mile High City

Denver’s friendly confines opened a new world, and Abel thrived on CU Denver’s “CU in the City” vibe. “It helps you see how real life is,” he said. Here at Colorado’s public urban research university, he switched majors from computer science to information systems in the Business School. “CU Denver doesn’t keep you in a bubble situation like a traditional college,” he added. “Here, you’re always in the real world – you’re going to class, working and meeting new people.”

Abel also enjoyed playing on the championship-winning men’s basketball team in CU Denver’s relatively new Club Sports program. “Having those people to cheer and support me just felt good,” he said. “It was a team experience that I never had before.”

Opportunity has likewise knocked for Robera, who completed two years of university medical school in Addis Ababa before following his older brother to the Mile High City. Just months into his freshman year, the backpack-toting premed biology major was randomly chosen to appear in one of CU Denver’s first-ever TV commercials. “It was such a great opportunity to represent the school I love,” he said.

Although he grew up in a small town, Robera has never shied from exploring all that city life has to offer. “Downtown is right there,” he said, “so you think, ‘I’m going to check this place out.’”

Both students struggled to adapt during their first few months – Abel spent a short time at Community College of Denver before transferring – but they quickly made friends and began hanging out with fellow Ethiopians and other classmates.

With more than 1,500 international students, CU Denver’s global mix offered ample opportunities for the pair to enjoy games in the Tivoli arcade. “We were always laughing when we were playing pool,” Abel said. “It was like a bubbly, small Ethiopian country.”

CU Anschutz jobs enhance learning

When not busy with class and friends, Robera and Abel held down part-time jobs. Abel first worked for the Colorado Clinical & Translational Sciences Institute at CU Anschutz and this year he’s been employed at the Center of Advancing Professional Excellence in the CU School of Medicine (SOM) as well as CU Online.

Robera is a research assistant in the SOM. He also joined the CU Denver student club, Future Doctors of Denver, and volunteered in the Emergency Room at University of Colorado Hospital – all while posting top-notch grades. He has been nominated for the Outstanding Graduate award in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and accepted into medical schools that include CU, University of Chicago (tuition scholarship), University of California-San Francisco (tuition) and UCLA (full scholarship). A lover of warm weather and the ocean, Robera is leaning toward UCLA.

His interest in medicine stems from his youth when he saw firsthand the devastating gaps in health care in rural Ethiopia. Robera’s mother and father both succumbed to tuberculosis within a four-year span, and many days passed with little food on the table.

“Ever since I was little I wanted to help people, to make sure they didn’t face what I went through,” he said. In addition to research, Robera hopes to pursue global medicine so he can deliver health care to underserved communities such as his hometown.

Embarking on new paths

Abel, fresh off his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Information Systems, plans to apprentice in his father’s business in Addis Ababa. He hasn’t been home in several years, and he looks forward to seeing how things have changed.

He plans a deep dive into his father’s business, to learn how he got it started and managed to grow a successful shop. As the oldest son, he’s expected to take on the family business along with other responsibilities. “You’re supposed to be the roof – the pillar of the house and the person who manages things,” he said.

Pillars come in many forms, and Abel and Robera point to CU Denver and CU Anschutz faculty and staff who supported and mentored them. Shane Transue, a doctoral student and teacher assistant in computer science, helped Abel understand software coding.

Robera said Matthew Jackman, PhD, and Paul MacLean, PhD, in the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Diabetes in the SOM, as well as “the whole lab,” were supportive of his research work. All the while, Denise Leberer, his pre-medicine adviser, smoothed every rough spot.

Now, as the best friends embark on a new stage of life – Robera to Southern California, and Abel back to Ethiopia –  they carry memories of camaraderie and life-changing experiences from CU Denver.

“It’s like the basketball team,” said Abel, proudly sporting his Lynx pullover, “the belonging aspect is very big.”

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Nearly 2,000 graduates—including 1,211 undergraduates—from 21 different countries celebrated their achievements at CU Denver Commencement on May 13, 2017.

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For many CU Denver graduates, the commencement ceremony signals the beginning of a job hunt.  But for 18 of the nearly 2,000 students who walked in the Spring 2017 Commencement, no job search was necessary—they obtained their degrees while working full-time for CU Denver.

These CU Denver staff members obtained degrees from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the College of Architecture & Planning, the College of Engineering & Applied Sciences, the School of Business, the School of Public Affairs, and the School of Education & Human Development.

As they prepared to walk in the commencement ceremony, three of these full-time staff members reflected on their journeys and on how family, co-workers and CU Denver helped them achieve their goals.

Parent decided to ‘practice what she preaches’

Daria Baker was working full-time for CU Denver’s Risk Management Department when her 7-year-old son began to ask pointed questions. Would he have to go to college to be paleontologist when he grew up? Would he have to finish college? Did she finish college?

The conversation reminded Baker of a refrain in their family. “I always encourage my children to finish what they started,” said Baker. “I realized to set an example, I would have to finish what I started years earlier—my bachelor’s degree in Sociology.”

Baker was inspired by her own mother, who graduated with a bachelor’s in Education when Baker was 7 years old. After her family pledged their support, Baker enrolled in classes through CU Online in fall 2014. Her schedule was intense: homework in the early morning before her three children woke, a full day of work, and then back to the books in the evenings and on weekends. The ability to log into classes during non-traditional hours and the availability of professors via email were crucial to her success.

“We made a lot of sacrifices during the school year, including summer semester,” Baker said. “But what kept me going was that I wanted to have something to show for all our compromises.”

When Baker walked in the commencement ceremony on May 13, she had the distinction of being the only staff member who received an undergraduate degree. Reflecting on the example she set for her children, she said, “If I’m going to be the mother of a paleontologist, I need my degree.”

Technology Director volunteered at her own commencement ceremony

Since 2014, Ashley Cooper has been the Director of Creative Technology in Student Affairs at CU Denver. In the tech field, the skills and software “change non-stop,” she said. “If you’re not learning, then you’re not going anywhere.”

One year into her job, Cooper’s co-workers, as well as the tuition benefit available to staff, motivated her to enroll in the School of Business for her MS in Information Systems with an emphasis in Enterprise Technology Management.

“Online classes made it possible to work traditional hours,” Cooper said. “And my co-workers offered emotional support, checked on my well-being, and shared my belief in the importance of education.”

Because of her respect for education, Cooper has volunteered at each commencement since she began working for CU Denver, seven in total—including her own commencement day. The day before the ceremony, she plants flags, moves risers, and places signage on the Tivoli Quad. On commencement day, she serves as a Faculty Marshall Coordinator directing the graduates onto the stage.

This year her volunteer responsibilities included directing herself onto the stage. The extra hustle was worth it to Cooper, who loves volunteering at the ceremony. “Commencement is a refreshing reminder of why we do it,” she said. “This is the end goal—why we work at CU Denver and why I went to back to school.”

‘Undercover research geek’ is first in family to earn a doctoral degree  

Samuel Kim, the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Retention and Success at CU Denver, enrolled in the EdD (Doctorate of Education) program in 2013 to fulfill a lifelong dream of obtaining a terminal degree. Working full time, while earning his EdD in Leadership for Educational Equity with an emphasis in Professional Learning and Technology, pushed him to his limits, but he discovered he was up for the challenge.

“I learned firsthand what I’m capable of,” Kim said. “This process taught me that I can truly do anything if I put my heart and soul into it.”

Even though Kim describes himself as an “undercover research geek,” he knew the process would be arduous. Kim’s full-time course load required many early mornings, late evenings, and plenty of sacrifices made during the weekends and holidays. The full support of his wife, daughter and supervisor, Vice Chancellor Raul Cardenas, Jr., made it all possible.

“My wife did so much for the family by filling in the gaps when I wasn’t present,” Kim said. “And Raul has been a tremendous supporter of my degree path. He was supportive 110 percent of the time.”

Having gone through the formal dissertation process, Kim plans to help colleagues with their research. “My degree gave me tools to further my research, as well as lifelong relationships with other members from the CU community,” he said. “Both will be valuable to my work as Assistant Vice Chancellor.”

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Cyclists tend to be soft-spoken, non-boastful types. So, it’s not surprising that CU Denver graduate student Cyrus Pearo, who recently won the USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships, summed up the race this way: “Good bit of climbing. Good bit of wind. It was a tough day.”

Tough indeed. The day also included a good bit of “pull” – to use cycling parlance – for Pearo. Against a significant headwind, the Business School student managed to outduel two CU Boulder racers who were drafting off him to become CU Denver’s first national champion in a club sport.

“The odds were stacked against me for about the last 30 kilometers,” Pearo said. “The CU Boulder racers began tactically playing it to where I did 50 percent of the work in the wind, and they shared the other half. As the chase group began to catch us, I convinced them that unless we all worked together, none of us would win.”

A few minutes later, the gold-and-black trio reached the final climb “and I threw down as much of a sprint as I had left,” Pearo said. “By the top of the hill I had a few-second gap over the CU Boulder riders, so I put my head down and hammered the last 1.8 kilometers.”

With the end in sight, Pearo had about 24-second lead, enough time for him to savor the last hundred meters to the finish line.

The late-April road race covered 67 miles of rugged terrain just south of Pearo’s hometown of Grand Junction. He crossed the line at 2 hours, 50 minutes, 12 seconds, ahead of 123 other riders representing club teams across the nation.

Competing against the big teams

CU Denver launched the Club Sports program in 2012, and Pearo has been the cycling team’s captain and driving force since he put on a Lynx cycling kit in spring 2016.

At the Nationals, many large universities, including CU Boulder, Colorado State, Air Force and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, compete in the ‘club’ level along with CU Denver. Universities that don’t offer scholarships in cycling are classified as ‘club’ teams; institutions that offer scholarships in the sport compete in ‘varsity.’

Pearo finished third overall in points at Nationals, including fourth place in the individual time trial and 15^th in the criterium. “It’s hard to compete with the big teams and end up doing well, especially since I was basically racing as a team,” he said.

Leading up to the Collegiate Nationals, Pearo finished second in his division at the Tour of the Gila stage race in New Mexico. He notched a stage win and several other stage podiums in the men’s 1-2 division – the highest competitive amateur level just below professional.

Pearo took up competitive cycling as a freshman at Denver University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in 2015. He started taking the sport more seriously as a junior, and even qualified for the nationals as a Pioneer, but wasn’t pressing the top of the field like he is now.

Previously an avid weight lifter, Pearo switched to cycling when he threw out his back as an undergraduate. “It’s funny that an injury would lead to a sport, not out of a sport,” he said.

Building momentum at CU Denver

CU Denver’s cycling team is, to put it generously, a minnow. “We’re small and grassroots,” said Pearo, who is currently the lone male cyclist on the squad, while Jessie Gibbons competes in the women’s bracket.

The team has improbably produced a national medal winner who is glad the university offers an organized outlet through which cyclists can compete. Pearo would like to build up the Lynx team so that it creates momentum and perpetuates after he completes his master’s in finance. There is hope on the horizon as an elite female road cyclist – Manuela Escobar of Colombia – is planning to attend CU Denver next fall.

Pearo’s national title is even more impressive considering he works full time at TIAA-CREF in Denver in addition to pursuing a graduate degree. The Business School’s online classes offer much-needed flexibility for Pearo as his busy schedule includes 300-plus miles a week of training on the bike.

He intends to take advantage of Colorado’s strong cycling culture and continue to race at a higher level. He is not ruling out even loftier aspirations, including racing on an international stage.

“Long term, I’d love to see the world on a bike,” he said. “I want to push it as far as I can.”

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CU Denver offers a growing Club Sports program, and now it’s home to an elite athlete who is making a serious bid to compete in the 2020 Olympics.

Kamran Madani hopes to represent the United States in a new sport for the next Olympics – karate. “I call it the most collective, well-rounded combat sport right now,” said Madani, who transferred to CU Denver from Front Range Community College this spring. “Karate includes the whole spectrum of combat sports – hands, legs, grapping and throws.”

Madani is a first-generation American who trains in these elements, along with building up his strength and stamina, at the International MartialArts Association (IMA) training studio in Louisville. His parents, who emigrated from Iran, founded the dojo, which has evolved into a mid-America headquarters for karate.

Madani, 20, competes in sparring (kumite) in the light heavyweight division (minus-84 kilos), where he is currently the U.S. top seed. He’s been a member of the U.S. Male Senior National Team for two years, and starting at age 12, he was on the Junior National Team for six years.

Eyes on Tokyo 2020

Madani has won 14 national championships in karate, and will spend the next two years competing in international events to accumulate points and hopefully move up in the world rankings. A total of 30 male athletes worldwide will qualify in three weight categories for the Olympics. Only the top 10 world-ranked athletes in each weight division, regardless of nationality, will qualify for Tokyo 2020, so Madani knows he’s got lots of work to do.

“I can’t think of a world without it,” he said of his sport. “It’s ingrained in everything I do.” Madani said he stayed in state for college so he can continue training at his parents’ studio, and he chose CU Denver largely because – being accustomed to personalized instruction from his karate coaches – he prefers the university’s smaller-sized classes.

He is majoring in psychology and plans to get a master’s degree in the subject. “I like brains. I like picking at athletes’ brains,” Madani said.

Deborah Keyek-Franssen, associate vice president for digital education and engagement at CU, is a member of the IMA in Louisville where Madani trains. She’s impressed with the leadership that he shows. “He is a fantastic instructor and he’s the only one who can get the kids, who are between 5 and 18 years old, dancing at our annual karate camp,” she said. “He pulls the community together.”

Mentoring other athletes

Karate is a sport that incorporates the mind, body and spirit, Keyek-Franssen said, and Madani brings that mix into the dojo and the classroom, she said. “We’re privileged at the dojo because we have Kamran and many other students competing at national level in our classes. They push us older folks.”

When not going to class and mentoring other karate athletes, Madani is boarding planes bound for distant competitions. This spring, he competed in the U.S. Open and Dutch Open, as well as a competition on an island in the South Pacific. The next several months will see him enter the ring in Spain, Austria and Germany.

He pays his own way to competitions, but his parents chip in as well. “As long as my grades are good, they show some love,” he said with a smile. Madani is looking for sponsorships to help defray some of the costs.

Even though he’s been practicing karate since age 6 – “I went into my parents’ studio at age 5, but they took me out when I made too much of a ruckus” – he’s still relatively young to be competing at such an elite level. He’s 20, but the prime ages for full-contact kumite is 25 to 30.

“Experience plays a big role in getting punched or not getting punched,” Madani said with a laugh. “I’m still on the young end of that, but the results have been good so far.”

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When Martin Christensen took a break from his studies in the Business School’s Global Energy Management (GEM) program, he didn’t mention to anyone why he needed a leave of absence.

Only after he had traveled to Nepal, only after he had climbed to the top of Mount Everest, only after he had survived a near-death experience, did the GEM community of faculty, staff and students hear about his accomplishments.

“I’m just not good at self-promotion,” Christensen said. “A lot of people are on social media, but that’s just not me. I just didn’t feel the need to tell everyone about it.”

Christensen’s story is no longer a well-kept secret. With the successful ascent of Everest, he has now climbed six of the world’s “Seven Summits,” the highest mountains in each of the seven continents, including Denali and Mount Kilimanjaro. When he completes the final summit, Vinson Massif in Antarctica, he will join an elite group—only about 400 people in the world have climbed the Seven Summits. But had it not been for a fast-acting Sherpa on Everest, Christensen would never have had the opportunity to finish his quest.

‘You go slowly’

Christensen began the GEM program, a blended-curriculum, in-person and online Master of Science degree designed to develop future leaders in energy, in 2012. At the time, he was working for an energy company in Colorado, but after he relocated for a new position in Massachusetts, the flexibility of the degree allowed him to continue his studies at CU Denver.

“I love it,” he said. “Each term, you have four intense days of class, networking and meeting your teams, and the rest is online with frequent video chats. It satisfies my need for professional advancement and personal curiosity.”

The flexibility of the degree also allowed him to take nearly two months off in spring 2017 to tackle Everest. He left Boston on March 31, in what he described as “the best shape of my life,” after spending months working out six days a week, sometimes twice a day, lifting weights and doing cardio. After arriving in Nepal and China, he began a multi-week process of acclimatizing, adjusting to increasing altitude and decreasing oxygen.

“You go slowly, going up about 1,000 feet a day,” he said. “You just let your body get used to it.”

Christensen chose to climb the North Side of Everest, a route that is slightly less dangerous but in some ways more difficult. The need to acclimatize means that ascending Everest is not a single, steady climb up. He spent five days at base camp at 17,000 feet. Then he made the 12-mile hike to advanced base camp at 21,000 feet. After two nights at advanced base camp, he returned to base camp. From there, he traveled back to advanced base camp, and then on to camp one, at 24,000 feet. As his body adjusted to the lack of oxygen, he climbed back and forth between multiple camps on the mountain, finally starting oxygen just before he reached camp two at about 25,000 feet. The conditions were brutal.

“I was wearing a full down one-piece suit, so I looked like a marshmallow,” he said. “You can’t breathe, it’s crazy cold and the wind is wild.”

After weeks of moving between launch camps, Christensen arrived at camp three, a steep, rocky and exposed ridge at 27,400 feet. From here, he and his group would begin their final ascent to the top of Everest, a long night and day that would lead him to make a near-fatal misjudgment.

‘It wakes you up quick’

Christensen, his tent mate and the rest of the team were scheduled to begin their summit push at approximately 10 p.m. on May 15. As they were resting in their tents preparing for the climb, their guide radioed that he was receiving reports of incoming bad weather from his managers back in Great Britain. They were ordering the group back down.

Christensen and his tent mate, who had become his good friend, sat in their tent distraught at the idea that they wouldn’t be able to accomplish their dream after coming so close. “After 15 minutes of discussion and reflection, my buddy said, ‘This is my life, and I’m going right now,’” Christensen recalled.

Christensen hesitated only briefly, before deciding to join his tent mate in attempting to summit the mountain, with just the two of them climbing before the bad weather arrived. The pair left their tent shortly after 6 p.m. Worried about the weather report, their Sherpas, guide and approximately 20 other climbers stayed behind at camp three.

As they climbed, the pair had the mountain to themselves. Standing higher than anyone else in the world, they watched as the sun set over the Himalayas. “It was an experience that can’t be described,” Christensen said. Now, he was climbing in the “death zone,” where there is not enough oxygen to sustain life. Guided by ropes, he made his way up the mountain, stepping over previous climbers who had failed to conquer Everest.

“I walked by three bodies,” he said. “It wakes you up quick.”

‘Motivated, driven person’

Christensen had left camp with two tanks of oxygen to get to Everest’s summit and back down.  When he was about halfway to the summit, he planned to lighten his load, leaving the half-used tank of oxygen on the mountain and switching to his remaining fresh tank. He figured the full one would get him over the summit and back down to the spot where he dropped the used tank. It was, he admits a “gamble”—and it proved to be a mistake.

“The summit was further than I thought,” he said. “I got to the top, but I ran out of oxygen.”

At Everest’s summit, slightly over 29,000 feet, going from having oxygen to no oxygen is the equivalent of someone turning the lights off in the brain. Christensen remembered feeling immediately disoriented and uncoordinated. He fell, and if he had not been clipped into the fixed ropes, he would have slid down the mountain.

“I just wanted to sit in the snow and go to sleep,” he remembered.

Fortunately, he had a rescuer. The Sherpas who had stayed behind because of weather reports had started climbing after the reports improved, leaving three hours after Christensen. Even with that delayed start, they had managed to catch up with him. A Sherpa saw that he was in trouble and rushed over with an extra bottle of oxygen.

Looking back on it, Christensen said simply, “That was the closest I have ever come to dying.”

Christensen climbed for 36 straight hours on the day of his Everest ascent, finally ending the day back at the advanced base camp. Later, he celebrated his achievement with “the second best beer of my life.”  (He said he drank the best beer of his life after returning from his first 15- month tour of duty as an Infantry Officer in Iraq.) To the best of his knowledge, he was the first American to reach the top of Everest in the 2017 climbing season.

Now, he is planning his ascent of Vinson Massif, the final of his seven summits. But before that happens, he plans to finish his degree at GEM and put it to good use as a project manager for NAES, a company which provides services to oil and gas, pulp and paper and manufacturing industries. The same drive that sent him up Everest and some of the most challenging peaks on seven continents led him to choose GEM, a program and degree that will enhance his credentials as an energy professional.

“I’m just a motivated, driven person,” he said. “I want to challenge myself.”

 

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Each school year brings with it a freshman class filled with talented and accomplished students. This year CU Denver has the pleasure of welcoming two impressive new students, Alexa Powell, recipient of the Bob Kossman Scholarship, and Anmol Singh, recipient of the Comcast Founders Scholarship.

Bob Kossman Scholarship

Powell’s father is a member of the U.S. Air Force, qualifying her for the Bob Kossman Scholarship, a full-ride scholarship for military families, granted to students with a high school GPA of 3.5 or above and demonstrated financial need. “As part of a military family we had to move every three to four years,” Powell said. “Changing schools that often taught me a lot about adapting to new environments and making new friends wherever I went.”

For the last six years, however, Powell has been lucky enough to finish out her high school years at Rampart High School where she graduated from the International Baccalaureate program, a rigorous academic program designed to prepare students for higher education.

For Powell, high school was about more than just making the grade, she also actively volunteered both in and outside her school. As part of the Empty Bowls Project, Powell helped make nearly 500 ceramic bowls to sell at a yearly auction to raise money for a local family battling against cancer. “Working  with the Empty Bowls Project gave the chance to get to know some of my teachers better and give back to the community,” Powell said. She also volunteered with the Helping Hands Food Pantry, delivering food and vaccinations to community members in need.

In addition to participating in the National Honors Society her junior year, Powell was a part of Rampart’s link crew, a group of students that helps welcome incoming freshmen. “I love building relationships and hearing other people’s stories,” Powell said.

Aside from time spent serving the community this past summer, Powell also participated in a 10-day trip to Brazil to help construct schools, houses, and community buildings along the Amazon. “The treatment of special needs children really touched my heart and compelled me to do something by helping to communicate information and equipment,” Powell explained. “There’s also a serious problem with the youth turning to criminal activity, so we want to provide supplies and activities to keep them engaged.” If one thing is abundantly clear, it’s that her commitment to serving others is as strong as ever.

Comcast Founder’s Scholarship

The Comcast Founder’s Scholarship awarded two students $10,000 for being the brightest in their communities, with Singh being one of these students. The other student was Maria Solis-Palma from North High School. Recently graduated from York International in Thornton, Singh has also shown a tremendous dedication to community service work. During his time on the Commerce City Youth Commission, a group dedicated to tackling the concerns and interests of the community’s youth, Singh helped in an initiative to get more students from high school into college.

Going above and beyond, Singh also volunteered as a youth mentor at his temple, the Colorado Singh Sabha. “I would help kids with difficulty in homework and combatting personal problems such as bullying,” Singh said. “I would often tell them to believe in themselves and be proud of who they are because diversity is what makes us unique.” Alongside serving in his temple, Singh volunteered in the emergency room of the local medical center. He also participated in the CU Denver Scholars Program, taking two college-level classes on the CU Denver campus. “At first it was a little out of my comfort zone, but after the second or third week I felt right at home,” Singh said.

When he isn’t too busy giving back to his community, Singh loves to travel and spend time with family and friends. He has visited California, New York, India, and Canada, just to name a few. “It’s such an eye opener to see the world around you, especially to experience it with the people you love the most,” Singh said. “Learning about a place isn’t the same as going there and getting to talk to the people.”

Looking forward

Choosing which college to go to is no easy task, yet Powell and Singh both agree  CU Denver is the right fit for them. “CU Denver meets all of my needs being close to home, yet far enough that I can have a sense of independence,” Singh said. After some hands-on experience Singh is interested in internal medicine, and is excited to take advantage of CU Denver’s BA/BS-MD program housed within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

For Powell, the perfect distance from home was just one of the things she loved about CU Denver. “I also love the diverse culture on campus and having the chance to talk with faculty one on one, ” Powell explained. After shadowing her pediatric dentist, Powell hopes to later enroll in the CU School of Dental Medicine to pursue a career in pediatric dentistry.

Although the first year of college can be a major transition, Powell and Singh are both confident in their ability to tackle the challenges that lie ahead. “The amount of effort you put in is what you get back,” Singh said. “I’m nervous but also completely confident I can do it if I just work hard.”

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Jordan Sien struggled to have a relationship with her older brother. When they were young, she didn’t know how to talk to him. But now that they’re both adults, he’s the inspiration for the CU Denver student’s career aspirations.

Sien’s brother has autism, and with her special education major, she wants to help students like him.

“We need to set kids like my brother up for adulthood,” said Sien, who plans to graduate in December from CU Denver’s School of Education & Human Development (SEHD).

Sharing a love

As Sien and her brother grew older, she learned how to be more patient when talking to him and how to connect with him through things they both love, like music. A Maryland native, she first fell in love with Colorado during a show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, and her brother can “play the drums like he’s in AC/DC.”

When she was in high school, Sien struggled with selecting a career path because of her own learning disability.

“I can’t do simple addition in my head,” she said, “and all the careers I was interested in required me to be good at math.”

Then, she realized she was good at working with her brother. She began participating in a teacher academy program and got internships with students with special needs.

“Teaching came very naturally to me, and I realized this is exactly what I’m supposed to be doing,” she said.

Teaching with perspective

Sien just completed a practicum at Carmody Middle School in Jefferson County, and this fall, she has an internship at Arvada High School.

“It’s been a really rich experience,” she said of being a student in SEHD’s Special Education program. “I like the fact that there’s a diverse population, both in the student body and the population that I teach. And the professors are so supportive and contribute so much to the educator that you become.”

Much of her work has focused on helping students plan for life and a career after graduation—the type of transition support that her brother never received.

“My brother has regressed in some ways and is nearer to the nonverbal end of the spectrum now,” she said. “Watching him go through that put things in perspective of what I can do for other kids.”

Setting big goals

Sien has dreams of starting a summer camp for kids with autism. She envisions the camp offering horse therapy, water therapy, hyperbaric oxygen and, most importantly, scholarships for 20 percent of campers. She has already thought through how she’ll make the camp a reality through nonprofit grant funding, and she has built a professional foundation for herself through CU Denver’s Student Council for Exceptional Children.

“It’s a big goal,” said Sien, who is working this summer as a counselor at a kids adventure and wildlife camp in Highlands Ranch. “But without big goals, how are you going to get anywhere?”

And that’s not even her biggest goal.

“My end-all, be-all goal is to change the perception of kids with special needs,” she said. “People feel like they can’t do things, but if you give them a chance to conquer their world, I guarantee you they can do it.”

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Avondine Hill is passionate about becoming the kind of teacher who transforms his students’ lives.

Although he is still a student in the MA + Teacher Licensure program at CU Denver’s School of Education & Human Development, he is already putting his passion for teaching social studies into action. During his first two internships at Hinkley High School in Aurora, the most remarkable moments in his teacher candidacy involved passionate, respectful and hard discussions about serious societal issues.

“Last semester involved almost daily dialogs about prejudice, racism and oppression as they relate to U.S. and world history,” Hill recalled. “These are perfect teaching moments for me to help my students think critically about their role in the world. I remember saying to myself multiple times, ‘Wow, this is why I chose to teach.’”

For Hill, who attended eight different elementary schools before he reached high school, becoming a teacher is an opportunity to rewrite his personal history, giving students some of the educational opportunities that he didn’t have as a youth.

The importance of a multicultural curriculum

Hill grew up in New Mexico, the son of a single mother who supported them by “working her tail off.” Sadly, when he was a child, the mainstream curriculum in the schools nationwide rarely featured or celebrated diverse cultures.

Now that he is studying to teach social studies at the secondary level, he is mindful of infusing his lessons with culturally relevant literature and activities. “I encourage my students to learn to view the world’s major ideas and events through different cultural lenses,” he said. “I know what it means to have an education that doesn’t incorporate your people’s history into the curriculum. It’s a disservice for students, their families and their communities. When students see their ethnic and cultural identities represented in the curriculum, they see that their history is valued, which serves to further students’ sense of inquiry and political efficacy.”

After graduating from high school, Hill spent four years drifting from college to various jobs and finally enlisting in military service. He spent seven years in the U.S. Navy and then enrolled in community college. As an undergraduate, he found his passion: ethnic studies, a program that uncovered untold histories, ways of being, and provided him with new theoretical tools to critically assess society, himself and the world around him.

But when he graduated, he had to ask himself an important question: What would he do with a degree in ethnic studies? To him, teaching seemed like a natural fit, and CU Denver offered the perfect program for his needs.

His students: ‘They inspire me’

Ask Hill what drew him to MA + Teacher Licensure, and he praises the streamlined program. In just 18 months, he will have his teaching license and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. He also likes the extensive practical experience afforded by the close partnership with multiple Denver metro–area school districts. Hill spent one semester in classes, but by the end of his second semester he had done two internships in local schools. His third semester will bring a third internship, again with coaching from dedicated faculty and master practicing teachers.

“This process gradually eased me into full responsibility for a class,” Hill said. “I learned how to have the emotional energy that it takes to be a teacher.”

Hill praises some of his CU Denver professors for their willingness to “show up outside of class” whenever he needed help or support. In turn, he talks enthusiastically about how he supports his own students.

“They inspire me,” he said. “The kids bring plenty to the plate, and I bring something. It’s a collaboration.”

Prepared to be ‘the best first-year teacher’

With the MA + Teacher Licensure program as his foundation, Hill has clearly already had an impact at Hinkley High School. He was asked to return for another internship during this third and final semester in the CU Denver program. He continues to use his own educational experience to inform his teaching.

“I always ask the same questions,” he said. “Who are we teaching? Why are we teaching this material? How can we do it the best way possible, giving students the opportunities we promised when we ask them to come to class?”

Hill plans to continue his graduate studies with the hope that he can someday complete his PhD. He’s eager to get inside his own classroom and help students understand the world through their own filter.

“My goal is to be the best first-year teacher I can be,” he said. “The MA + Teacher Licensure program is unique. It has absolutely given me the tools to be prepared and successful when I walk into my first class.”

Learn more about the MA + Teacher Licensure pathway at CU Denver

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Sebastian Del Barco, 17, and Kaden Ostendorf, 14, know it’s never too early to commit to your education. That’s why the two high-achieving students are already taking classes at CU Denver.

Both Del Barco and Ostendorf have a talent and a passion for mathematics. Both have big ideas for how to use their unique abilities. And both began taking classes at CU Denver in fall 2016.

The evening courses and flexible schedule options allow them to enroll concurrently at their respective secondary schools and at CU Denver.

“I feel like my experience at CU Denver has been a really good one,” Ostendorf said. “It’s made me realize that I belong in college.”

Teen business pro

Sebastian Del Barco is a high school student, a college student and an engineering research assistant. He has published works in two different academic journals. He co-founded an educational start-up company that was selected to present its work at MIT. He is 17.

“I want to make a positive impact on the world,” said Del Barco, who takes classes in the College of Engineering and Applied Science, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) and the Business School.

He’s already making an impact through his organization Learning Spark, which provides elementary school students with educational kits containing interactive STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) lessons. He and his teenage colleagues secured grant funding after their presentation at the MIT Martin Trust Center for Entrepreneurship and are now looking to expand their offerings to schools across Colorado.

At CU Denver, the young social entrepreneur has engaged in research on a variety of topics – from trends among mutual funds and stocks to the chemical properties of the ionosphere to neuroimaging used to detect brain tumors and early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

All of these topic areas have one thing in common that fascinates Del Barco: data.

“I’m a big statistics guy,” he said. “If you collect enough data, you can make assumptions about a lot of different fields.”

Del Barco, who now has junior standing at CU Denver, was nervous about fitting in in a college setting, but he’s been pleasantly surprised.

“Everyone here is really friendly,” he said. “The take-away from all that I’ve done at CU Denver is to pursue my education further and get skills to better serve other people.”

Video game whiz kid

Kaden Ostendorf started reading at age 2. He started writing computer code at 8. He enrolled in college at 13.

Currently, Ostendorf is a student at the Early College of Arvada (ECA), where students can take middle school, high school and college-level courses. Last year, he got his first taste of CU Denver at ECA through the CU Succeed program.

Now, the 14-year-old is taking a 300-level abstract math class in CLAS. When he graduates from high school next year, he’ll already have 30 college credits. His father, Devon Ostendorf, feels confident in the decision to enroll him at CU Denver.

“Kaden’s experience at CU Denver has been very positive,” he said. “I think the diversity of the school has helped Kaden feel less like an outsider and more like a typical student. Kaden loves the course material and the fact that the other students are so engaged in learning.”

Kaden Ostendorf dreams of being a professional video game programmer and already creates games from raw code. Of the several programming languages he knows, his favorite is C++. He created a game called Blocky World, which is “a non-linear, top-down, 2-D perspective game.” And he’s currently designing a sequel to the Nintendo 64 game, Yoshi’s Story.

So far, he’s enjoyed taking classes at CU Denver. He likes his professor’s sense of humor, and he loves that his classmates are just as interested in the material as he is.

“Not a lot of people have skipped four grades,” he said, “but I think people should push to be challenged. No one should have to be bored at school, and everyone deserves to learn.”

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Paige Barrette still gets “teary-eyed” every time she drives onto the University of Colorado Denver campus. After waking up one day at age 14 unable to walk, higher-education for the then straight-A student and avid soccer player appeared out of reach.

In and out of hospitals, with stumped doctors eventually suggesting it was “all in her head,” Barrette’s brain began abandoning her, stealing her memory and hopes of becoming a first-generation college graduate in her family.

Then, after finally being diagnosed with Lyme disease two years too late for antibiotic-fighting treatment, and struggling to find any effective medical care at all, a specialist told Barrette and her family that she would be confined to a nursing home by age 30.

That was her turning point.

“I just figured eventually it was either going to be all or nothing,” said Barrette, 25, who battled through a string of treatments for nearly a decade in the family’s desperate search to gain her health back. “I just chose then to keep hope through it all,” said the Littleton native. “And I’m glad I did.”

On Saturday, Barrette will walk across the stage at the Colorado Convention Center with upwards of 900 other CU Denver students at the graduation ceremony, accepting a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology with honors. While her disease made the feat more challenging, her educational experience was so transformational, Barrette said she would not change a thing.

Getting through hard times

“She was angry at first,” said Julie Barrette, Barrette’s mother. “It took away her high school and much of her college years,” she said. Her daughter spent most of her high-school time bedridden, with teachers coming to her home. “And a lot of friends forgot about her.”

Caused by bacteria-carrying ticks and most common in Eastern states where Barrette had traveled, untreated Lyme disease can attack the joints, heart and nervous system. “I had terrible brain fog, memory loss and processing issues,” Barrette said. “If someone gave me their phone number, I couldn’t figure out how to put it in the phone,” she said as an example.

Chronic fatigue, nausea, vomiting and pain struck hard during flare-ups. “It felt like all of my bones were breaking all the time,” said Barrette, who only recently tried working out again with a short jog. “If you do a little too much one day, or you get a little bug, it activates it again.”

Often a prisoner in her malfunctioning body during her teenage years, Barrette bought a $30 guitar at Target and turned to music for therapy. “I don’t think she would have survived if it weren’t for teaching herself guitar and writing music and singing,” her mother said. “It’s amazing what music does to you. It just calmed her so much. And the music that she wrote was just unbelievable.”

Barrette, who won the Colorado Solo Artist of the Year in 2013 and still performs in local restaurants, said music remains her biggest comfort.

Going back to school

After the family’s relentless search for help finally paid off with a chronic disease specialist in Kansas, where Barrette began walking without pain again, and a brain specialist in Colorado, who helped her with new tools for learning, Barrette enrolled in CU Denver.

“It was so different,” Barrette said, comparing school with her pre-sickness days when success came easily. Her studying process involved meticulous reading, re-reading, highlighting and taking notes, normally for 10 hours a day, she said. But she loved every minute of it. “I was so excited to be in school. And it was cool to see that, even though it took me longer, I was getting it.”

Barrette believes her CU Denver choice made a difference. “I have not had one teacher who hasn’t been more than willing to help with any aspect I needed. It was always easy to build relationships, and I never felt uncomfortable coming in for help or even asking for an extension on an assignment. The support here has been amazing,” she said.

Searching for new lessons

As a student, Barrette stands out in both her intellectual curiosity and her persistent pursuit to find the answers, said Amy Wachholtz, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. “She seeks out new experiences to add to her career, and she’s always wanting to know more. That’s part of why she joined my lab.”

Attracted to Wachholtz’s lab because of a focus on chronic diseases, Barrette found a knack and love for research. She helped conceive of a project studying migraine symptoms in children and how they vary from adults, possibly leading to delayed diagnosis. Her team was accepted to present its abstract at the Society of Behavioral Medicine conference in April in New Orleans and is awaiting word on publishing a paper in a professional journal.

Barrette, whose experience helped shape her career choice, wants to work with children, particularly those suffering from chronic disease and pain. “Going through this without any mental counseling made me realize how important help is for the chronic-illness community and their families,” she said.

She has worked as a youth treatment counselor at the Tennyson Center during school and also served as a research assistant and teaching assistant while maintaining a 3.9 grade-point average. This past summer, she joined the Maymester Class in Guatemala as part of the Nobel Peace Project, teaching students English and music and conducting a research project on the effect of income and social influences on well-being and happiness.

Despite having so little, Third World countries consistently outrank the United States on the happiness scale, she said. “I think everybody should go to a Third World country where your bubble gets popped.”

Attaining her passion

Although she acknowledges that she lost much of her normal youth time because of Lyme disease, Barrette, who has set graduate school as her next goal, turns the focus around. “I wouldn’t change anything. I gained a lot that I don’t think most kids my age gain: a world view and a bigger appreciation for things. I’m excited that this is who I am, and this is what I’m passionate about.”

Her mother said Barrette will have a large group of supporters in the stands Saturday. “I’m just so proud that she never gave up. I don’t know if I’m going to be cheering or bawling. I can’t even talk about it without tearing up. It’s just going to be incredible. And I can’t wait to see what more she does.”

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Maxine Martin was one of more than 1,200 new graduates honored on Saturday at CU Denver Fall Commencement 2017. But she was the only one who received her diploma from her own mother, Rebecca Kantor, dean of the School of Education and Human Development (SEHD).

“It’s amazing and emotional,” said Martin, who completed the MA + Teacher Licensure program. “We’re both criers, so I’m sure we’ll be crying at graduation.”

She feels pride both for her own accomplishments in a rigorous academic program and also for those of her mother, who has led SEHD since 2012.

“I’m the one who’s graduating, but I’m so proud of my mom, thinking about what she’s accomplished in her career and how many people she’s helped,” Martin said. “I want to be there for her, too.”

A beginning in business

As a kid, Martin observed her mother’s advancement in the field of education, from classroom teacher in Columbus, Ohio, to college professor at Ohio State University to university administrator at CU Denver. Yet, she didn’t envision herself becoming an educator.

“I always knew deep down I wanted to be a teacher, but I didn’t go that route to begin with,” said Martin, who earned a bachelor’s degree in business from CU Boulder in 2011.

After undergrad, she dipped a toe into education, getting a job with the Public Education & Business Coalition and, later, at a higher education tech company. She earned certification as a yoga instructor and began teaching it to kids.

In 2013, she and her best friend went backpacking across Southeast Asia. They visited eight countries in three months, and Martin realized what she wanted to do with her life. She decided to go back to school for teaching, and became what she calls a “classic career changer.”

In fall 2016, she began working toward an urban master’s degree in education at CU Denver.

A degree in education

Martin described her experience at SEHD as “wonderful … and exhausting.” She loved the close-knit cohorts, the “fantastic” professors and the real-world classroom experience.

And she’s grateful for the unique perspective she had as daughter of the dean.

“I got to come into the program with a lens of appreciation and respect for how hard all the faculty work to support students in the program,” she said. “I already had respect and trust for the faculty at CU Denver, so that allowed me to focus on what really mattered, the students and my own learning.”

A future in helping others

With her degree in hand in December, Martin has several months to find a job that’s a good fit for her diverse knowledge and skill set. She’s substitute teaching for Denver Public Schools, teaching yoga classes and trying to get some rest after a year and a half of hard work.

“Getting my master’s in education has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” she said. “It’s been so challenging and rewarding, and now, I’m hitting the pause button for a bit, so I can take care of myself and be ready to take care of my students.”

Self-care and mindfulness are concepts that Martin is passionate about teaching to children, too. One day, she wants to combine her business background with her education experience to create an organization that brings meditation, yoga and mindfulness practices to classrooms.

“It’s really exciting to be in such a meaningful career,” she said. “Every day is different, and every day, you leave knowing that you have supported children in their lives.”

The post SEHD dean hands daughter degree appeared first on CU Denver Today.

The School of Education & Human Development (SEHD) has started two new learning communities for undergraduate students: the Curious Teacher Learning Community, focused on changing lives through teaching in culturally and linguistically diverse settings, and the bilingual Familias y Justicia, or Families and Justice Learning Community, focused on effectively serving culturally and linguistically diverse individuals and families.  

What is a learning community? Ours begin with a group of connected courses in students’ freshman year and extend across their sophomore and junior years. These communities offer SEHD students the chance to combine educational experiences, co-curricular experiences and service learning in a high-impact, theme-based program while supporting college graduation goals.  

Learning communities help students integrate into university life, tap into their passion for a discipline or theme, and support long-lasting friendships with fellow students and faculty. Eight learning communities are organized through CU Denver’s Office of Undergraduate Experiences led by Jeff Franklin, associate vice chancellor for undergraduate experiences. 

“This notion of how to really construct high-quality curriculum that is engaging and interconnected for students, and that pulls them into communities, is something very familiar to us in education,” said Barbara Seidl, associate dean for teacher education and undergraduate experiences at SEHD. “We are really striving for participants to feel a true sense of belonging to the university community, a sense of connection to their profession and an overarching joy and passion for improving the world.”  

Each learning community is based on a common big idea and driving question. The central question to the Curious Teacher Learning Community is “How can I learn about children’s learning?” And the central question to Familias y Justicia/Families and Justice is “How can I support diverse families and communities?” 

Most learning community participants start freshman year by taking three common courses together. Transfer students may enter the community at any point. As undergraduates progress in their studies, they encounter additional courses, community-based field experiences and numerous learning events and programs. All of these touchpoints are designed to keep the essential learning community themes and questions top of mind. Welcome barbecues, book studies, faculty lectures, research presentations and on- and off-campus service learning experiences are all part of the mix of scholarly activities.  

Bobbi Rucker is a dedicated member of the Curious Teacher Learning Community. “I am proud and thankful to be a part of this astonishing teacher education program!” said Rucker. “I’m so happy with it in terms of preparation, community support and enjoyment. I know that any challenge can be overcome with the support and love that resides within our community. The faculty is very open and empathetic; they gladly provide students with whatever they may need to be successful. There is not a better group of people that I could wish to have by my side in the pursuit of my dreams to become an elementary school teacher.” 

Brie Ann Mondragon, student president of Familias y Justicia/Families and Justice for the coming year, thinks that it’s vital for undergrads to be in learning communities. Her learning community is designed for students in the Human Development and Family Relations program. “Not only does it provide life, work and school experience, but it also connects undergrads with other students, faculty, staff, professors, the community and priceless resources,” said Mondragon. “One of the best things about Familias y Justicia is that we do our best to give everyone a voice. And, being involved in a learning community is a great way to make sure your voice is heard.” Mondragon hopes to become a university leader in student affairs someday, after pursuing a master’s degree. With this program, she’s already learning so much about what it means to lead in university life. “I joined the Family and Justice Learning Community because I know that together, we can make a positive impact,” said Mondragon. “Professor Ruben Viramontez Anguiano is such a driving force and is so inspirational. I knew that getting involved in one of his programs would be fun, beneficial and produce amazing results for our school and community. I love the teamwork, planning and then getting to see the products of our hard work.”  

“I am confident these two learning communities will thrive,” said Seidl. “I know how hard the faculty leadership and student teams have been working to imagine and shape vibrant and collaborative experiences for our students. Our students are truly engaged … in heart and mind.” 

To learn more about CU Denver’s undergraduate majors and minors in teaching and the Human Development and Family Relations program, please visit www.ucdenver.edu/education. 

The post New Undergraduate Learning Communities appeared first on CU Denver Today.

When Victoria Zahourek comes back to CU Denver as an alumna, she’ll be able to point to her legacy. She’ll be able to touch its walls, walk through its doors, work out on its elliptical machines.

A master’s student in the Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) program, Zahourek has contributed her skills and knowledge to the new Lola & Rob Salazar Student Wellness Center as a project engineer intern for Saunders Construction, Inc.

“I’m so proud of that building. It will connect our community and give pride to students,” said Zahourek, who plans to graduate in May, the same month the Student Wellness Center is scheduled to open. “When I applied to CU Denver, I described my passion for wanting to see a building all the way through construction. I’ve gotten to do that with the Student Wellness Center. It’s like watching your dreams come up in front of your eyes.”

A born engineer

Ever since she was a kid, Zahourek has seen herself as an engineer – but she didn’t start out on three-story, 85,000-square-foot, LEED-certified edifices.

“I’ve always been digging around in the dirt and fixing things,” Zahourek said. Her parents own the Elkhorn Lodge and Guest Ranch in Estes Park, one of the oldest hotels in Colorado. So, she grew up doing “everything from horse work to housekeeping.”

“I’ve fixed hydraulic lines, run backhoes … whatever my parents needed me to do,” she said. “And I think that experience helped me get the internship with Saunders Construction.”

The Loveland native holds an associate degree specializing in English and mechanical engineering from Colorado Mountain College in Steamboat Springs, as well as a B.S. in geological engineering from Colorado School of Mines in Golden. She serves as president of CU Denver’s student chapter of the Construction Management Association of America.

With an interest in environmental sustainability, Zahourek has visions of integrating green technology in construction.

“There need to be some young, bright minds in the industry to take risks and push us toward sustainability for our kids and our grandkids,” she said.

An industry-backed program

Zahourek found a place for her own bright mind at the College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS). She knew it had the only industry-backed CEM program in the state, and it was practically right in her backyard.

“I love that it’s in downtown Denver, where all of the action is,” she said. “Having that industry connection was pretty much the deciding factor for me.”

She remembers that, as she was researching CEM programs, she kept coming across scholarly articles by CEAS faculty. And since she became a student, she hasn’t been disappointed by those faculty members.

She credits Heidi Brothers, PhD, assistant professor of civil engineering, with helping her clinch the opportunity to work on the Student Wellness Center.

“Dr. Brothers has been my biggest mentor,” Zahourek said. “She has worked as a woman in the field of engineering for more than 30 years, and she is incredibly dedicated to her students.”

A woman in engineering

Zahourek has looked to Brothers for support when she’s been in situations where her voice and her work were undervalued – because of cultural norms and lack of gender equity.

Women make up 11 percent of practicing engineers, according to the Society of Women Engineers. Throughout her eight-month internship, Zahourek was the only female employee of Saunders on the job site daily.

“It’s hard being a woman in this male-dominated industry,” she said. “Often, it feels like there’s no seat at the table for you, as a woman. So, you just have to take your seat, and own it.”

But, Zahourek said, the adversity only fuels her love for the field of engineering and construction.

“It’s a challenge, but becoming an engineer builds the foundation that enables you to overcome extreme challenges,” she said. “As engineers, we wake up every day and face all of the world’s challenges.”

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Luis Arvizo took four Summer Session classes last year and plans to take more this summer. He takes courses online or as hybrid courses, so he gets the best of both worlds – flexible scheduling while getting a jump on required credits.

A junior studying human development and family relations, Arvizo takes summer courses to get his core requirements out of the way, so he can focus on his major during the semester and prepare to graduate earlier – which ultimately saves on tuition costs and helps him advance his career faster.

“It gets me ahead and saves money too,” said Arvizo, who works at an elementary school and hopes to use his degree to become a director or supervisor. “You take more classes, you spend less money.”

Arvizo takes part in the 15 to Finish program, which encourages Summer Session participation. Last summer, he took three online courses and one hybrid course. He earned a 4.0 GPA for the semester – and managed to enjoy some fun and freedom during his summer break, too.

“It’s a 10-week accelerated course, so you think it’d be harder, but I feel like they design the courses so you don’t stress yourself out,” he said. “You don’t realize how much downtime you have in summer. It’s manageable.”

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