Alumni News

¿Dónde Está Boulder? The Baca Family's Three Generations of Buffs

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 20:34:05 +0000

¿Dónde Está Boulder? The Baca Family's Three Generations of Buffs Anna Tolette Mon, 03/10/2025 - 14:34

Patricia Kaowthumrong

"I don’t know what I would have done if my brother was not recruiting Chicano students to the �Թ�� of Colorado."

As a teenager growing up in Trinidad, Colorado, during the early 1970s, attending the �Թ�� of Colorado Boulder seemed out of the question for Bernal Baca (A&S’75). Instead, he planned to follow the advice of his high school guidance counselor and enter an auto mechanics program after graduation. But his older brother Richard Baca (Edu’71) intervened.

Richard, a student at CU Boulder at the time, was back home visiting his former high school. As a United Mexican American Students (UMAS) member, he was recruiting Hispanic students like Bernal to attend the university. Bernal was hesitant, insisting he wanted to become an auto mechanic — but Richard wouldn’t take no for an answer. Bernal heeded his brother's advice and applied to the school, where he was accepted and enrolled.

In retrospect, following in his brother’s footsteps to an education on the Front Range turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to Bernal — and future generations of Baca family members.

“I don’t know what I would have done if my brother was not recruiting Chicano students to the �Թ�� of Colorado. That signaled to me that we had a chance,” Bernal said. “So I took that chance, and I’m glad.”

Deep Roots

Richard and Bernal earned degrees from CU Boulder and went on to achieve doctoral degrees in psychology and education, respectively. According to Richard, these feats were considered improbable at the time, given the siblings’ humble upbringing.

The Baca family’s history in the United States dates back to the 1600s, when a settlement from Spain’s Oñate Expeditionary Group landed in northern New Mexico. Eventually, the family migrated to the southern Colorado city of Trinidad, whose establishment in the 1870s by Felipe Baca and his wife, Dolores, was a catalyst for Hispanics to settle in the area.

“In essence, [Bacas] have been here for a long time,” Richard said. “We often hear the notion that ‘America came to us’ because our family was here long before the United States was founded.”

The Bacas, a family of farmers, ranchers and entrepreneurs, were influential in southern Colorado. However, after Richard graduated from Trinidad State College in 1969, he thought his only two choices in the rural town were to work in the coal mines or join the military. An unlikely opportunity arose, though: Richard was selected with a cadre of other Latino students to apply to CU Boulder under what was then called the Educational Opportunity Program, which was established in the 1960s to recruit young Latinos who might not have met all the established admissions criteria at the time.

"My brother was the one who showed me the way, and he was able to teach his own son and granddaughter the same thing. I love it."

Without this program, the thought of attending the university would have been as unlikely as eating “frijoles sin tortillas” (beans without tortillas), Richard said. “Formal admission to the university opened an educational dimension immeasurable by traditional means and inexplicable to [my] mother who had all of a third-grade education,” he wrote in a letter about his family to the Coloradan this past August.

Boulder or Bust

When Richard told his mother he was accepted to CU Boulder, she replied, “Ah, que bueno jito. ¿Dónde está Boulder?” which translates to, “That’s good news, my son. Where is Boulder?”

Over the next few years, Boulder evolved from what Richard called “a strange land” into his second home. He credits his success to living of campus with a group of graduate students and to his participation in student groups and campus activities. Richard’s tenure at CU coincided with the Chicano movement of the 1960s and 1970s.

“At that time, the movement was really becoming strong, so I just became involved in campus activities related to Chicano students and learned more about my roots, my heritage and the importance of trying to advance ourselves as a grouping,” Richard said.

"I got my spark at [CU Boulder] because I was mentored by one of the best professors I think I’ve ever met."

As a result of initiatives such as the Educational Opportunity Program that supported Richard, CU Boulder began recruiting hundreds of students from new communities — including Native American, Mexican American, Black/African American and Asian American communities — to attend the university. Some of these students formed organizations inspired by broader civil rights movements, including UMAS.

Bernal also became involved with the Chicano Movement, joined UMAS and studied under Salvador Ramírez — who taught Chicano studies. When Ramírez moved to the Pacific Northwest, Bernal followed to help him establish the first Chicano studies program at Washington State �Թ��. After a long career as a college professor, Bernal now serves as executive director at a nonprofit called Mi Centro, which provides social, cultural and educational services to the Latino community in the greater Tacoma area.

“I got my spark at [CU Boulder] because I was mentored by one of the best professors I think I’ve ever met,” Bernal said. “I feel really honored to be bestowed that university bachelor’s degree because it was the most important degree I have received.”

Passing the Torch

From left: Ryan, Alexandra and Richard Baca.

While Richard is now retired, his career in higher education, mental health, consulting and politics spanned over 40 years. He even ran for �Թ�� of Colorado regent in 1994 and served as the assistant vice president of student affairs and enrollment management at Mesa State College (now Colorado Mesa �Թ��) in Grand Junction. Richard raised his family on the Western Slope, and his son Ryan (Bus’96) was admitted to CU Boulder in the 1990s, continuing the legacy started by his father and uncle nearly three decades prior.

Ryan’s daughter, Alexandra (Bus’28), is the latest Baca family member to become a Buff. She moved into student housing at CU Boulder’s Cheyenne Arapaho Hall in fall 2024. Like her father, Alexandra was admitted to the Presidents Leadership Class, which Ryan said was key to his success as a student and later as a management professional. The university also offered her scholarships from the Latinx Association and the Business and Engineering Women in Leadership program.

“I don’t know another place I would want to go to for a university experience,” Bernal said. “My brother was the one who showed me the way, and he was able to teach his own son and granddaughter the same thing. I love it.”

While Richard, Ryan and Alexandra each experienced the university in different eras, they’re united by their love for the beautiful campus, Boulder’s ever-evolving cultural scene and their love for Colorado Buffaloes football.

The legacy they continue to nurture is one we know Alexandra’s late abuela would definitely be proud of.

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Have a CU Boulder family legacy to share? Email us at editor@colorado.edu with your story.

CU Boulder is involved in several programs in Trinidad, Colorado. Visit the Office for Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship for more information.

Illustration by Emiliano Ponzi; Photo courtesy Richard Baca

Attending CU Boulder changed Bernal Baca's life and sparked a multi-generational family legacy.

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Astronaut Sarah Gillis is the First to Play Violin in Space

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 20:29:29 +0000

Astronaut Sarah Gillis is the First to Play Violin in Space Anna Tolette Mon, 03/10/2025 - 14:29

Christie Sounart

At more than 870 miles above Earth, this was no ordinary violin recital.

On Sept. 13, 2024, Sarah Gillis (AeroEngr’17) played “Rey’s Theme” from Star Wars: The Force Awakens by legendary composer John Williams — from a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. As she played, Gillis firmly pressed her violin to her shoulder with her chin as she floated around the zero-gravity chamber, her hair flowing wildly.

Gillis’ three astronaut crewmembers filmed the inaugural performance as part of the Polaris Program’s Polaris Dawn mission, then transmitted the video to Earth via Starlink, a laser-based satellite communication.

Polaris Dawn posted the video, “Harmony of Resilience,” on X that day as part of a partnership with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and El Sistema USA, which supports American music education programs. The video included Gillis’ performance and clips from orchestras playing the same piece in Los Angeles, Boston, Haiti, Sweden, Brazil, Uganda and Venezuela.

“The whole music moment was meant to inspire and show what’s possible when you can bring the world together,” Gillis said in an interview two months after returning to Earth.

“The whole music moment was meant to inspire and show what’s possible when you can bring the world together.”

Gillis reflected on the months of preparation for the performance, which included having engineers completely reconstruct her violin to survive the harsh space environment, and meeting Williams himself at the Los Angeles recording session.

“That was probably more stressful than actually going to space, if I’m completely honest,” said Gillis, who does not play violin professionally. “I was so nervous that he would show up and say, ‘No, you don’t have the rights to use this anymore.’ And instead he was so kind and supportive.”

From Training Astronauts to Becoming One

Gillis first gained interest in space as a high school student at Boulder’s Shining Mountain Waldorf School, where she attended a CU Boulder space for nonmajors course with her brother David Levine (FilmSt, Hist’13) and met former CU instructor and NASA astronaut Joe Tanner. Tanner helped Gillis with a space-related project she had for school, and he encouraged her to consider engineering at CU Boulder.

“He really planted that seed,” she said. “I honestly don’t know that I would’ve considered engineering if that hadn’t happened.”

After Gillis returned to Earth, Tanner — who flew on four NASA space shuttle flights from 1994 to 2006 — was eager to swap space stories with her.

“Being a friend to Sarah was perhaps my greatest joy during my eight years at CU,” said Tanner. “I may have helped open a few doors for her, but she made everything happen. I couldn’t be more proud of her, even if she were my own daughter.”

During her junior year at CU, Gillis took an internship at SpaceX that lasted more than two years. She helped develop and test displays and interfaces on the interior of the company’s Dragon spacecraft, the first private spacecraft to take humans to and from the International Space Station.

“I got to see some of those design decisions in space on my mission,” she said. She joined SpaceX full time in August 2017 as a space operations engineer, training astronauts on the interfaces she’d already worked on.

Several years later, her boss called a surprise meeting with her. Jared Isaacman, Polaris Dawn’s mission commander, was there to invite her to become part of the crew as a mission specialist, joining himself, Scott Poteet (mission pilot) and Anna Menon (medical officer and mission specialist).

“My response was, ‘Hell yes, but I’ll need to talk to some people first,” she said. “I immediately walked out of the room and straight downstairs to my husband, who worked at SpaceX with me. He had his headphones on at his desk. I tapped him on the shoulder and said, ‘I need to talk to you.’ … It was very special to share that exciting news.”

Five Record-Breaking Days

Two and a half years later, on Sept. 10, 2024, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched the crew aboard a Dragon spacecraft from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. One of the crew’s main objectives on the mission was to conduct research to help better understand the human effects of space flight and space radiation. This included the first spacewalk from Dragon.

On the third day of the mission, Gillis and Isaacman exited the spacecraft in SpaceX’s newly designed and developed extravehicular activity spacesuits. For 10 minutes, she tested different components of the suit and became, at 30 years old, the youngest astronaut to complete a spacewalk.

When asked to describe the feat in one word, she settled on “dark.”

“I was emerging into the total blackness of space. It’s this immense void where you realize how close to Earth we are and how much is still left to explore out there, but it’s also this overwhelming dark blanket that is surrounding you.”

"It’s this immense void where you realize how close to Earth we are and how much is still left to explore out there."

The next day was her violin performance, which was planned to test the connectivity of SpaceX’s Starlink laser-based internet from space. The data may help improve communications for future missions to the Moon and Mars.

The crew also conducted other experiments — including gathering data on space radiation — that could help advance human health for future long-duration space flights.

Gillis noted one surprising aspect of being in space she hadn’t prepared for: how easily things got lost without the presence of gravity.

“It was always a constant treasure hunt of, ‘Has anybody seen this? Has anybody seen that?’” she said, adding that a missing camera SD card was found in the spacecraft weeks after landing. “You’d stick something with Velcro, then turn around and it would be gone.”

The historic mission lasted five days and ended with a successful splashdown off the coast of Florida.

“I hope that it is inspiring to people to see what the future of human spaceflight could be and where we’re going — that it is a possibility that more and more people are going to go to space.”

“I hope that it is inspiring to people to see what the future of human spaceflight could be and where we’re going — that it is a possibility that more and more people are going to go to space,” Gillis said.

The Next Step

Gillis’ husband, Lewis Gillis (Aero Engr’17; MS’17), formerly a SpaceX senior propulsion engineer, reflected on his wife’s extraordinary career to date when the couple visited campus this past November.

“With some curiosity and passion and connecting to all the humans around her, Sarah’s made it quite a long way,” he said. “I’m excited to see what she builds next and who she meets along the way.”

Gillis said she would reconsider another spaceflight if given the opportunity, but she is eager for others to experience space first. She remains in her astronaut training position at SpaceX.

Reflecting on her historic mission, she said: “I think the more people we can get into space to see the world from that perspective, the better off humanity will be.

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Photo by Glenn Asakawa; Polaris Dawn Crew (violin)

SpaceX's Sarah Gillis made history by becoming the youngest astronaut to complete a spacewalk and perform the first violin recital in space.

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Thinking Huts Is Printing a Brighter Future

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 20:24:56 +0000

Thinking Huts Is Printing a Brighter Future Anna Tolette Mon, 03/10/2025 - 14:24

Kelsey Yandura

In 2015, “3D printing” still conjured up images of the absurd, the novel or the futuristic — think custom tabletop game pieces, small replacement parts, decorative novelties and even 3D-printed chocolate.

But Maggie Grout (Mgmt’21) has never been one to think small. At just 15 years old, three years before she enrolled as a Buff, Grout walked up to her dad and asked a life-changing question: “What if we 3D-printed a school?”

The answer, in the form of Grout’s nonprofit Thinking Huts, would ripple out to impact not only her own future, but the futures of families and communities across the globe.

Welcome to Bougainvillea

In 2022, seven years after Grout’s initial idea sparked, Bougainvillea was born — a 700-square foot, 3D-printed school in south central Madagascar and Thinking Huts’ first officially completed project.

According to data from UNESCO and the United Nations, sub-Saharan Africa faces the highest education exclusion rates in the world. In Madagascar, the crisis is acute: three-fourths of secondary-age children don’t attend school due to issues like overcrowding and dangerous commutes. One-third won’t complete primary education, and 97 percent of 10-year-olds who finish primary school cannot read simple sentences.

Thinking Huts hopes to change that. Bougainvillea is small but mighty, holding up to 30 students and serving as a beacon of hope for the local community and proof of Thinking Huts’ potential to address the global education opportunity gap.

And while the grunt work of planning and preparing spanned the better part of a decade, the execution was swift — using an industrial-scale 3D printer and a cement mixture, an on-site team printed the modular wall components in just 18 hours. These units were designed to fit together seamlessly, forming a puzzle-like assembly to complete the structure. The roof, doors and windows, handcrafted by local artisans and builders, were added on several weeks later.

Grout recalls: “When I was looking at the walls being printed, I kept thinking, ‘Oh, my gosh, this is crazy. It’s finally happening.’”

Patience Pays Off

Thinking Huts was forged at the intersection of two different causes: education and sustainability. For Grout, they are intimately connected.

“We know that in order for us to continue to increase access to education in these communities, we have to have a focus on sustainable building metrics,” said Kristen Harrington, director of development at Thinking Huts. “A lot of organizations focus on speed. But if you’re looking at how to build more holistic communities and better equip families and address the poverty cycle, you have to take the whole picture into account.”

While this kind of long-term, intersectional problem-solving does not lend itself to the immediate gratification of a “quick fix” — each decision requires careful thought, planning and foresight — Grout said the result is lasting.

“It’s not an overnight thing,” said Grout. “We’re trying to set up the next few generations to succeed and go further than us, rather than thinking of the short term. It’s a long haul type of journey.”

A Relational Approach

For Thinking Huts, this kind of holistic approach means focusing on building strong, equitable, sustainable relationships in their partner communities.

“Relationship building is a slow drip,” Harrington said. “It’s an opportunity for us to really assess what’s going to be able to create sustainability in these structures for generations.”

In order to create this sense of longevity, Thinking Huts spends time building trust with community leaders and students, taking their needs and skills into account and assessing how to collaborate with local workers, builders, artisans and technicians. For Bougainvillea, this meant partnering with area manufacturers in the construction process, handing off 3D operational skills that can be applied to future construction projects.

Grout said this relationship-first ethos has roots in her years at CU Boulder, where she said the people she met were the most impactful, including her mentorship with Mike Leeds (Fin’74).

“I think even now I’m realizing how critical it is to have a network of people around you,” she said. “The relationships I developed are the biggest things that I took away from school.”

CEO with a Story

Grout said her passion for educational opportunities has been a lifelong journey. Born and abandoned in a rural village in China, she was adopted by American parents at 18 months old and grew up in the U.S.

“I think I’ve already always been more aware of how people’s lives are different from mine,” said Grout. “I had big visions from a young age, just knowing my life could have followed a very different path. That’s what drew me more to understanding the importance of education.”

The result is a work ethic and leadership style that Harrington said extends beyond her years and has garnered international attention from major media outlets like Forbes and Good Morning America. In fall 2024, Grout was featured as one of Time magazine’s featured “Next Generation Leaders.”

“Maggie has this true grit and determination,” said Harrington. “She doesn’t want any child to feel like they don’t have the access that she had because she was adopted. So now she can bring opportunity to children in the pockets of the world that often don’t see innovation.”

Honeycomb on the Horizon

For Grout and her team of 10, Bougainvillea is just the beginning. Next up is the Honeycomb Campus. Named for its design of adjoining hexagonal bases, this multi-building project will serve three remote villages on the west coast of Madagascar. The project is set to include solar power and Wi-Fi access and will impact more than 200 students ages four to 16, starting in summer 2025.

When asked about her approach to the future and how she’d encourage other innovators in philanthropy and sustainability, Grout emphasized a sense of hope.

“I know that what we do now will have a major impact later on,” she said. “I am trying to aspire for a legacy of change, even if it takes time.”

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Photos courtesy Thinking Huts

Thinking Huts, founded by Maggie Grout, uses 3D printing technology to build sustainable schools in underserved communities.

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From College Roommates to National Business Co-Founders

Julia Maclean — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 19:55:22 +0000

From College Roommates to National Business Co-Founders Julia Maclean Mon, 03/10/2025 - 13:55

Sophia McKeown

In 2023, Eddy Connors (Bus’21) and Luke Siegert (FilmSt’22) went from college roommates and fraternity brothers to startup co-founders when they launched Goodie Bag, a marketplace for surplus food. The app aims to reduce food waste by offering “perfectly good unsold food” from local businesses at a significant discount. Since its inception, Goodie Bag has expanded nationally to over 200 partnering shops, including OZO Coffee, Charleston Bagels and Blend Juice Bar. Connors, who serves as CEO, talks about the company here.

Eddy Connors, middle left, and Luke Siegert, far left, started Goodie Bag in 2023.

You came up with Goodie Bag during a CU entrepreneurship course. How did it come about?

From the get-go, we wanted to muster up an idea that would both make positive social change and generate profit. There was an opportunity to prevent good food from going to waste by connecting it to people at lower prices. That business idea ended up winning the “Startup Summer” pitch competition.

How did you and Luke go from college roommates to business partners?

As roommates, we would always talk about different business ideas, different industries that needed to be shaken up. We both knew there was so much opportunity to create better outcomes for people and our planet, and that excited us.

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in scaling the business?

In the beginning, our biggest challenge was figuring out the technology of our app since Luke and I were not engineers ourselves. We also faced some team challenges that required difficult conversations early and often as we took the company from a school project to a full-time business. Team is everything.

With over 200 partner shops and 45,000 meals saved from going to waste, what are your next big goals for Goodie Bag?

Our greatest goal is to ensure no good food goes to waste. That’s the vision that guides us. As for what’s next, we want to increase our presence in existing markets by partnering with more shops in cities like Denver, Boulder and Fort Collins.

Reflecting on your journey from CU student to CEO, what advice would you give current students interested in launching their own businesses?

Do it! In all seriousness though, just remember that inaction is always the wrong answer. Know that you’re going to have failures along the way, but as long as you’re able to learn and adapt, it’ll be a worthwhile experience.

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Photo courtesy Goodie Bag

Eddy Connors and Luke Siegert transformed their college project into Goodie Bag, a successful startup that connects local businesses with consumers to reduce food waste.

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Authentic Storytelling in Higher Education

Julia Maclean — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 19:49:51 +0000

Authentic Storytelling in Higher Education Julia Maclean Mon, 03/10/2025 - 13:49

Kelsey Yandura

A principal at TVP Communications, a boutique public relations agency specializing in higher education (higher ed), Teresa Valerio Parrot (Comm, EPOBio’97; MPubAd’03) is known as the agency’s “president whisperer” for her ability to help senior administrators translate their expertise into sharable insights (think: blogs, podcasts and other media formats). Valerio Parrot also co-hosts the Trusted Voices podcast and is the founding co-editor and a contributor to the blog “Call to Action.”

What are some of the biggest issues higher ed is facing?

Higher education is critiqued for being too elite, expensive and out of touch — but these criticisms boil down to an education being too far separated from someone else’s current experience, reality or memory. When I talk to people about their own experiences of college, I almost exclusively hear stories about how a degree positively changed someone’s life.

If you could communicate one thing to institutions, what would it be?

I would encourage institutions to own their excellence and stop trying to be like everyone else. Each institution has its own sparkle, and they often lose what makes them unique when they try to be like everyone else. Mimicry is where institutions go to die.

You’ve been called a ‘higher ed truth teller.’ What does that mean?

It is easy for leaders to surround themselves with those who tell them what they want to hear. I tell presidents and boards what the moment requires and what it demands from a leadership response — which means telling the truth. It’s never the easy route, but it’s the appreciated approach.

Why does higher ed matter today?

Higher education provides opportunities. Degrees and institutions make a difference in graduates’ lives, create economic impact in their communities and directly benefit society through research.

How did your time studying and working at CU shape your career?

I majored in just about everything CU had to offer before settling on communications and public relations, and I’m so thankful this is where I landed. This field has allowed me to travel the world, specialize in higher education and launch my own business. Through the university, I have been fortunate enough to learn from and have access to phenomenal leaders, mentors and communicators who invested in me as a professional and human being. I’m forever grateful to CU and the Presidents Leadership Class for seeing my potential and investing in me as a professional.

Sko Buffs!

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Photo courtesy TVP Communications

Teresa Valerio Parrot, a principal at TVP Communications, helps higher education leaders communicate their unique stories and expertise.

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81-Year-Old Earns PhD from CU Boulder

Julia Maclean — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 19:40:59 +0000

81-Year-Old Earns PhD from CU Boulder Julia Maclean Mon, 03/10/2025 - 13:40

Christie Sounart

At the age of 81, Alan Cohen (PhDHist’24) defended his dissertation and received his doctorate in history from CU Boulder. His work focused on the early years of commercial jet aviation and the Boeing 707. Before returning to school, Cohen spent many years working in government and running a Denver-based scrap metal business, Iron & Metals, Inc.

Talk about your career.

I received my undergraduate degree from �Թ�� of California, Berkeley, then went to graduate school for economics at Yale. Afterward, I got a job working with USAID in South America and spent nine years in Guatemala and Colombia before becoming an economic consultant on natural resource issues in Washington, D.C. Later, I took over as manager at the family scrap metal business in Denver. When I approached retirement myself, my son took it over from me.

What was your experience pursuing a PhD?

Economic history interested me, particularly in the American West. When living in Colorado, I met CU professors Ann Carlos and Patty Limerick and took their courses as an auditor and eventually decided to take the courses for credit. I figured I would learn more by actually doing the work. I took the first course about 15 years ago. It took me six years to do all of the coursework before I passed the oral exam. My wife and I moved to Palm Springs because she was sick, and that slowed my research down. When she died, I moved back to Denver to be near my two sons. After another long break during COVID, I finally finished my dissertation in about two years.

What was it like going to school in your 70s?

Going back to graduate school was a wonderful experience — learning from younger people and this generation of teachers. One of my biggest takeaways has been political: I think of myself as progressive, but I’m actually a lot more conservative than some of the younger generation.

Will you take any more classes?

I think I will start another research project. I’m fascinated by Singapore and its modern history, especially how it managed to break away from colonialism successfully.

What else should we know about you?

I started out as a young person learning about the American Civil War, and my interest grew out of that. Also, when I went to Berkeley, it was free — California didn’t charge tuition to in-state students at the time. Right now, I’m helping a couple of other students go to college by paying their tuition. It’s payback for my free education.

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Photo courtesy Alan Cohen

Alan Cohen earned his doctorate in history from CU Boulder, reflecting on his diverse career and passion for research.

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Introducing CU Boulder's Alumni Weekend

Julia Maclean — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 19:22:46 +0000

Introducing CU Boulder's Alumni Weekend Julia Maclean Mon, 03/10/2025 - 13:22

On April 5–7, CU Boulder is launching Alumni Weekend, an event where former classmates and fellow Forever Buffs can reminisce on old memories while creating new ones during campus tours, Boulder excursions and plenty of opportunities to network and socialize over meals and happy hours. This inaugural weekend will include reunions for graduates from 2020, 2015,

1985 and 1975 and the Golden Anniversary Club, which is for those who graduated 50 years ago and earlier. Participants also are invited to extend their campus visit and attend CU Boulder’s Conference on World Affairs, a cost-free event April 7–10.

Register for Alumni Weekend.

A New Alumni Volunteer Experience

The CU Boulder Alumni Association is revamping its volunteer experience, starting with an updated online platform to connect alumni and friends to a broader range of CU-related volunteer opportunities. Forever Buffs can host or help at events, mentor alumni or current students, and support CU Boulder initiatives. Alumni are also invited to host events in their local areas, further strengthening the Forever Buffs community and fostering deeper connections with each other across the globe.

Learn more about volunteering.

Buffs Give Back

April is National Volunteer Month! Join Forever Buffs across the country to make an impact in your community through Buffs Give Back. Last year, over 700 alumni, family and friends volunteered on behalf of CU Boulder through scholarship reading, outdoor clean-up, event planning and mentoring programs. This year, there are plenty of opportunities during the month of April for alumni to get involved.

Find more information.

Scholarship Impact

For the 2024–25 academic year, the Alumni Association, chapters and clubs awarded $317,250 in scholarships, benefitting 204 students. Alumni volunteers and donors make these scholarships possible, which help cover the cost of attendance at CU Boulder and create lasting opportunities for students across academic disciplines.

Learn more about scholarships.

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Photo by Ian Scott

2025 Trips

Istanbul and the Turquoise Coast

Sept. 10–20, 2025

Flavors of Tuscany

Oct. 2–10, 2025

Patagonia and Chilean Fjords

Oct. 22–Nov. 2, 2025

Egypt and the Eternal Nile

Oct. 31–Nov. 14, 2025

Iceland and Northern Lights

Nov. 15–23, 2025

For more information about the Roaming Buffs travel program, email roamingbuffstravel@colorado.edu, call 303-492-8484 or visit here.

CU Boulder is launching Alumni Weekend from April 5-7.

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How Alumni Keep Their CU Boulder Bonds Strong as Forever Buffs

Julia Maclean — Mon, 10 Mar 2025 17:34:29 +0000

How Alumni Keep Their CU Boulder Bonds Strong as Forever Buffs Julia Maclean Mon, 03/10/2025 - 11:34

April Driver

For many CU Boulder alumni, the university is more than just the location of their college experiences. It’s a part of their lives today. They want other CU students and alumni to experience this deeper connection too, starting with embracing themselves as “Forever Buffs.”

“Your journey as a Forever Buff begins when you enroll on campus,” said Ryan Chreist (Kines’96,MPubAd’09), Alumni Association executive director. “The day you graduate, you join the larger Forever Buffs community of over 300,000 who live all over the world. It is a way to have a relationship with the university and your fellow alumni for life.”

For alumni like Rochelle Maki-Williams (Psych’96; ExecMBA’11), being a Forever Buff means more than staying actively involved with the university — it means nurturing future generations of Buffs. Since 2011, Maki-Williams has volunteered for the CU Boulder Alumni Association, the CU Athletic Department and Buffalo Belles, a group dedicated to supporting CU Athletics. As a Denver Forever Buffs chapter leader, she’s also helped raise scholarship money for local high school students.

Maki-Williams’ bond with CU is personal. It’s where she met her husband, T.H. Williams (A&S’95; ExecMBA, MFin’04), built lasting friendships and created cherished memories.

“Being a Forever Buff is something I live every day,” she said.

For Royer Lopez (Mktg’18), “being a Forever Buff is about creating endless possibilities — for yourself and others.”

His involvement is wide-ranging. He holds roles on the Leeds GOLD Board and the Forever Buffs Advisory Board, volunteers as a Leeds School of Business mentor and helps host reunions for the Multicultural Greek Council. Plus, he attends every CU football home game with his family.

Through his many CU connections, he aims to create a broader impact and ensure that future Buffs have expanded opportunities. Lopez, a first-generation college student, is passionate about helping other first-generation students and often recruits interns from Leeds.

For Maki-Williams and Lopez, being a Forever Buff is more than a point of pride — it’s a lifelong commitment to give back, stay connected and make an impact.

Become involved with the Alumni Association to connect with other Forever Buffs. Visit colorado.edu/alumni/volunteer.

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Photo courtesy Rochelle Maki-Williams

CU Boulder alumni stay connected to the university through lifelong involvement, giving back and supporting future generations of Buffs.

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Sights Set on Boulder: Why Two CU Alums Moved Back

Anna Tolette — Tue, 12 Nov 2024 20:57:54 +0000

Sights Set on Boulder: Why Two CU Alums Moved Back Anna Tolette Tue, 11/12/2024 - 13:57

Karen Reid

When my husband, Charlie Reid (PhDMechEngr’89), and I were grad students at CU, leaving Colorado was definitely not on our to-do list. But after graduation, new job opportunities drew us eastward. Our plan was always to return to Boulder, but what started out as an anticipated five-year stint in New Jersey stretched to 10 and continued across multiple states as our careers progressed.

Now, after three decades, we’ve finally moved back. And while we were expanding our horizons, growing professionally and raising a family, Boulder was growing, too. We kept an eye on our town from afar, but now we have the opportunity to see and experience the changes firsthand.

The university’s campus has grown both in size and reputation: CU has doubled down on research, now boasting five Nobel laureates, and has gained international recognition. Students have so many more options for courses, programs and opportunities. The number of buildings, dorms and parking structures has also grown exponentially, and what were once empty fields filled with prairie dogs is now the thriving research hub of East Campus. Other notable changes include the expansion of Folsom Field and the shifting of school colors from sky blue and gold to a more sophisticated palette of gold, black and gray. Even the journalism school (where I studied) has been reincarnated as CMCI.

Things off campus have changed, too. The town of Boulder has put itself on the map. It consistently ranks as one of the nation’s top college towns, is a hotbed for entrepreneurial and innovative endeavors, and is currently in contention to host the Sundance Film Festival.

While change is inevitable, it’s bittersweet to see some of the transformations: Friday Afternoon Club (FAC) events at the Harvest House hotel are no more, Tulagi’s on The Hill is gone, the Kinetic Sculpture Challenge race folded, Crossroads Commons has been razed and reconceived as the 29th Street Mall, and the Pearl Street Mall no longer boasts many of our old haunts.

That being said, the myriad of new restaurants, experiences and shops to explore seem boundless, and old favorites like Peppercorn, Trident Booksellers and Café, and Into the Wind remain. Mike’s Camera is still nearby, and The Sink is as vibrant as ever!

Daily, I meet fascinating people, motivated students and inspiring colleagues. Boulder is bikeable and walkable — and who can deny the spectacular view? Even when things seem unfamiliar, all I need to do is glance at my beloved Flatirons and I am reminded that, while evolution is unstoppable, some things never change. Boulder will always be vibrant, beautiful and, quite simply, home to me.

Karen Reid (Jour’84; MA’90) works for CU Boulder RIO as a marketing and communications specialist and teaches public speaking as a lecturer in the CMCI communication department.

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Photo courtesy Karen Reid

Karen and Charlie Reid graduated from CU Boulder and left town over 30 years ago. Here's why they decided to move back.

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Fall 2024

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Full STEM Ahead: CU Engineering Steps Up

Anna Tolette — Tue, 12 Nov 2024 20:53:21 +0000

Full STEM Ahead: CU Engineering Steps Up Anna Tolette Tue, 11/12/2024 - 13:53

Jeff Zehnder

In the midst a national growing need for engineers, Dean Keith Molenaar (ArchEngr’90; MCivEngr’95; PhD’97) has led faculty, staff and students in the co-creation of a new strategic vision for the College of Engineering and Applied Science, committing to expanding its role in the high-tech economy and further emphasizing a goal of engineering gender parity in the college.

How is the College of Engineering and Applied Science changing at CU?

This is a time of disruption for higher ed across the nation. Some universities are struggling with enrollment, and people are questioning the value of a four-year degree. But our record here is stronger than it’s ever been. For the second year in a row, we welcomed the largest classes of both undergraduate and PhD students ever.

You’ve put a major emphasis on recruiting more female engineers. Why is this important for the college?

Historically, the engineering profession has been male-dominated, and that puts us at risk of creating solutions to problems that don’t represent our broader society. Inclusion is a pillar of everything we do and integral to our impact. We need a more diverse workforce to solve the complex technological and infrastructure challenges of today’s world.

Where do gender parity efforts start at CU?

It starts early. The current vision builds on long-standing efforts by CU Boulder and national groups to expand access in science and math for girls in K-12. By showing up in early education, we’re giving students confidence that they can make an impact on society by being an engineer. And it’s paying off. Last year, 41 percent of our first-year engineering undergraduates were women, putting us #1in the nation in terms of gender parity among 167 public colleges of engineering, according to the American Society for Engineering Education.

You’ve been focused on fusing engineering with business. What impact has that had?

We’re beyond the traditional metrics of publishing papers as a primary metric for success. Patents are important. Economic impact is important. We need to focus on the implications and implementations of our work, not just the work itself. It’s inspiring the next generation of graduates and PhD students to be entrepreneurs. CU launched 35 companies last fiscal year through the Venture Partners program, placing us second among all universities over the last decade.

You recently created a new position within the college: Assistant Dean of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

And we quickly selected Wil Srubar for the position. He’s a crucial addition to our college. He has both fundamental engineering and applied business experience — he’s started three companies already. The new position is helping us with translational work, moving things out of the lab and into companies through patents or startups.

The college is dramatically scaling up its economic impact for Colorado, with a particular focus on translating research into business success.

In a time of disruption, we need leaders. CU Boulder is a flagship of Colorado’s success — and the college of engineering is an economic driver in all that. There’s something special going on in Boulder. There have always been pockets of innovation and entrepreneurship in the college, but we’re evolving to focus more across the board on economic impact. We have a responsibility to help the state grow in a sustainable and equitable manner.

In 2021, CU built the Rustandy Building, connecting the Engineering Center and the Koelbel Building, home to the Leeds School of Business. What was the thinking behind this fusion?

Our partnership [with Leeds] is paramount, and the connection between business and engineering on campus is both an idea and a physical reality. We’re scaling up. The donor-supported project physically joined the buildings, adding 45,000 square feet of new classroom and collaboration spaces. It is a joy to see the energy in this shared space and make me hopeful for Colorado’s future leadership in high-tech industries.

How do you measure success for the college?

We compete with universities across the nation and continue to come out at the top. But while it has been great to climb in the rankings, we don’t chase that. People are seeing what we’re doing here. We’re leaders in AI, aerospace and sustainability, among other areas. We contribute to national defense and national security. Our faculty are highly sought after for leadership positions across the U.S. and participate in national conversations that shape the future of technology. Those are the indicators I look at.

How does engineering fit in with the rest of the campus?

Our rankings and national reputation come because we’re part of a comprehensive university — it’s one of our key advantages. We’re educating holistic engineers. They need to understand historic, political and business aspects of their work. To serve society well as engineers, we must have deep partnerships with the other colleges, schools and institutes across campus. We are fortunate to be part of a comprehensive campus, and we strive to contribute to our campus mission every day.

Interview by Jeff Zehnder, condensed and edited for clarity.

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Photo by Jesse Morgan Petersen

Dean Keith Molenaar has led faculty, staff and students in the co-creation of a new strategic vision for the College of Engineering and Applied Science, committing to expanding its role in the high-tech economy and further emphasizing a goal of engineering gender parity in the college.

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