Gresham Riley Award

Victor Nelson-Cisneros, retired associate dean of Colorado College, is the recipient of the Gresham Riley Award. Nelson-Cisneros joined Colorado College in 1981 to serve as the assistant dean of the college. Known for his candid, compassionate, and direct style, Nelson-Cisneros arrived at CC following graduate study in history at both the University of Texas and the University of California. He also spent time on the board of the National Rural Center, working on a government-funded grant to explore job growth and equal employment in the non-metro area of the Sun Belt.

During his 31 years of service, he was instrumental in developing inclusion and visibility across the college, and establishing the Riley Scholars Program, which brought over 65 minority faculty scholars to campus. He also played an integral role in founding the Associated Colleges of the Midwest Minority Concerns Committee as well as the ACM Minority Scholars Program itself.

His role at the college primarily focused on faculty development and student experience, with particular emphasis on inclusion, representation, and opportunity expansion. CC's renowned and celebrated Venture Grants Program grew under his leadership, and he initiated mentoring options for non-tenured faculty, as well as serving as an interim dean of the college for the 2004-05 academic year.