Colorado College Essay, Research Paper

Colorado College

How about this for your imagination. Snow all around you, skiing or

snowboarding any weekend that you like, and Denver only 50 miles away. That has to

sound good unless you hate the cold, but Colorado College has 300 sunny days every

year. The campus area is moderately warm, but it is very close to the mountains and the

downtown area. This college is a fun place to be, but it is also a very demanding school in

the area of academics.

Since 1874 Colorado College has been strongly committed to undergraduate

instruction in the tradition which began with the medieval European University. Colorado

College started in 1874, two years before Colorado became a state. It all started as

General William Jackson Palmer founded Denver and Rio Grande Railroad in 1871.

Looking into the future Palmer reserved land and contributed funds for a college which

opened on May 6, 1874.

Colorado College?s first building, Cutler Hall, was occupied in 1880. The College

held it?s shape until the 1950s. Since the mid-1950s it has practically been rebuilt. The

facilities include three large residence halls, Worner Campus Center, Tutt Library, Olin

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Hall of Science and many more. Cutler Hall and Palmer Hall were placed on the National

Register of Historic Places in 1986.

The academic development has probably been more significant than the physical

development. The College has started a number of special programs. Some of those have

been honors programs, a Southwest Studies, North American Studies, Environmental

Sciences, Neuroscience, summer institutes, and most significant of all is the ?Colorado

College Block Plan? implemented in 1970 (Colorado College 11).

Colorado College is a independent college, which means it is not state funded. It

will be quite expensive, but there are many scholarships and financial aids that can help.

Tuition and fees start out $19,026. A room costs $2,520 and board costs $2,304. That is

a total of $23,850.

The College wants the students that are accepted to be able to go to the school

dissipate their financial circumstances. The financial aids come in the form of scholarships,

grants, loans, and student employment. The qualification for aid is determined by the

difference of the cost of the student?s education and the family?s ability to meet that cost.

Colorado College started unique program in1970 called the Block Plan. The Plan

divides the academic year into eight three-and-a-half week blocks. Students take one

principal course at a time and faculty teach one. Each block ends at noon on the fourth

Wednesday, giving the students a short vacation ( Colorado College 15).

During the 96-97 year there were 3,544 applicants and 2,055admitted. There are a

total of 1,962 students at Colorado College. The College has 915 men and have 1047

women. There are not many students at the College, so that it helps the teachers go more

one on one help. The average class is 16 students, and almost all are limited to 25. The

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requirements are middle 50% of SAT composite scores 1200 to 1300 and at least 16

secondary school academic units required ( Colorado College Online no page).

About 84% of the students at Colorado College graduate. Out of those 84%

students that graduate, 80% graduate in 4 years, 3% after 5 years, and 1% in 6 years.

16% of students transfer to another instituion and 60% of grads begin graduate work

within 5 years. For graduation you need a minimum of zero to seven units in the first

year, eight to fiveteen the second, sixteen to twenty-three the third, and twenty-four or

more the fourth year ( Colorado College 58).

The Admission Office suggests that incoming students and their parents to visit the

campus. Visits might consist of speaking with a director of admission. You can also

attend a class and see for your own eyes how the classes are done and you can spend the

night with a student host. This requires at least a week notice in advance.

If you like starting your classes in the summer and get out earlier you would

probably take the Summer Matriculation Program, also known as the Summer Start

Program. If you took this course you would start in the summer and get out during the

fall to relax, or go to the mountains, or anything that comes to mind. Freshmans can take

summer sessions if they wanted to. About 10 to 15 percent of the freshmans do just that.

The nine-week Summer Session that is available for the students is an extension of

the Block Plan, which offers three, three week blocks. The first block begins in mid-June

and the third block ending in mid-August. The courses last for three, six or nine weeks,

giving one, two or three Colorado College units of credit. There are some courses that

will send students off campus in the United States and abroad.

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All single students at the College, except seniors, military veterans and students

living at home, are expected to live in College residence halls. The reason for that is

because Colorado College is a residential college. The Loomis Hall is where most of the

first year students live in, which provides facilities for men and women. The other living

areas or used by both men and women. Upperclass resident assistants act as resident

counselors.

The Minority Student Life office in Worner Center serves all students by

promoting multi-cultural programs. The director advises ethnic groups on campusand

assists other individual who want to join in some multi-cultural programs, and provides

support to ethnic minority students. The religious life at the College is as varied as its

community is diverse. The center for these activities is Shove Chapel where the Chaplain

acts as a coordinator and facilitator of programs.

If lucky enough you may operate a motor vehicle, but you must register your

vehicle with the college. The privilege of operating a motor vehicle on campus is the

continuing observation of parking and driving regulations.

The College offers 24-hour campus security coverage by both foot and vehicle

patrols. The patrol works with the Colorado Springs Police Department, which provides

vehicle patrol for the campus area during selected hours. There are also security

education programs, such as self defense for women, a campus escort system, a Victim

Assistance Team, and discussions about personal security.

In addition to those residence halls there are six language houses, where students

try to perfect their foreign language speaking. Each house accommodates 11 to 25

students and has a foreign head resident who helps organize and plan cultual and social

events.

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Colorado College participates in many athletic sports. They are a member of the

NCAA and several individual collegiate sports associations. There are a total of 18

intercollegiate spoorts. The men?s ice hockey and women?s soccer play are the only sports

that play in NCAA Division I, and the remaining 16 teams play in the NCAA Division III.

The men sport teams consist of baseball, basketball,coss-country, soccer, swimming,

tennis, track and field, lacrosse, football, swimming,and tennis. The women sport teams

include basketball, cross-country, soccer ,swimming, tennis, track and field, lacrosse,

softball, and volleyball. The men?s hockey team recently lost to North Dakota in a 6-2

game, which allowed them to reach the finals.

Colorad College is close to Denver and the mountains. It is also one of the top

rated schools in the country. Many people will highly recommend this school to whoever

enjoys the following: many opportunities for off campus activities like skiing,

snowboarding, biking, and mountain climbing. A unique program that will give you four

and a half days off every month and the student ratio to facuility is only twelve to one,

which will give you plenty of help from the teachers. Colorado College is also one of the

most progressive and challenging schools in the country.