Dear Alumni, Parents, and Friends of Colorado College,

During the past year, the early seeds of our Vision 2010 began to bear fruit. Let me highlight a few of our advances.

First, with respect to our foremost goal – enhancing the rigor of our intellectual life – we added five new tenure-track faculty positions and doubled grants for faculty-student collaborative research, further strengthening our academic core.

More important still, Dean Susan Ashley and the Faculty Executive Committee began efforts to boost expectations for faculty tenure and promotion, to clarify the relationship between performance and compensation, and to provide a faculty perspective on key issues that have an impact on our budget (especially enrollment levels, tuition, and financial aid).

These are significant steps that demonstrate our commitment to teaching excellence – the heart of our enterprise.

Second, as a benchmark toward nurturing a more diverse and respectful community, our intensified admission efforts resulted in the most highly qualified, most ethnically diverse first-year class in three decades entering in the fall of ’05. (While I do not want to put undue emphasis on where CC stands in the U.S. News & World Report rankings, our increased selectivity indicates the trend is in the right direction.)

Finally, progress toward a 21st-century campus included Packard Hall renovations and expansion and preparation for the highly anticipated ground breaking for the Cornerstone Arts Center. In addition, we have taken critical steps to enliven our Web site and protect our information infrastructure.

These and many other accomplishments have contributed to an exciting sense of momentum here on campus. And, coupled with Colorado College’s heightened national visibility, they are creating a palpable enthusiasm that I encounter on my nearly weekly journeys to meet with alumni, parents, foundations, and prospective students across the country.

I invite you to enjoy this special report on Colorado College 2004-05 and thank you all for your generous and energetic support.

Sincerely,

Richard F. Celeste
President