Clustered near the Four Corners in Colorado, the Southwest Colorado Education Collaborative, a coalition of nine rural districts, partnered with higher education including Fort Lewis College and business leaders to expand career and college pathways for their students successfully. (The Hechinger Report and Chalkbeat)

Colorado lawmakers convening for a special session about property taxes have been sent a clear message by the governor and others: Protect funding for K-12 and higher education, or we won’t be happy. The article quotes a Fort Lewis College Board of Trustees resolution opposing the measures. "Such significant state budget cuts could lead to severe reductions in funding for essential services and higher education, reminiscent of the Great Recession’s impact." (Chalkbeat) 

Farming and ranching statistics in Southwest Colorado trend opposite to national numbers thanks, in part, to the Old Fort which hosts hands-on agricultural education, including Farmers in Training, Farm Incubator and Ranching Apprenticeship programs. (The Durango Herlald)

Sixty years ago, Morley and Arthur Ballantine, Jr. agreed to donate $10,000 to establish a Center of Southwest Studies on the Fort Lewis College campus. Andrew Gulliford, a professor of history at FLC, explores how that idea has expanded and grown since then. (The Durango Herald)

The FLC Athletics Department is celebrating a successful second annual Skyhawks Club Casino Night. This year, the event raised over $60,000—surpassing last year's amount and totaling over $110,000 raised since the event's inception.

"I'm incredibly proud of our coaches and staff for their commitment to our external goals," said Director of Athletics Travis Whipple. "This has been a complete team effort. Also, I would like to recognize and thank the FLC Foundation for being such a great partner in this important work."

In an official letter commenting on the recent report on the Federal Indian Boarding School Investigation, NEH highlights several programs seeking to remedy the present-day impacts of the federal Indian boarding school system, including its funding of the FLC All Of Our Kin Language revitalization program. ( The National Endowment for the Humanities)

Andrew Gulliford, FLC professor of History and Environmental Studies, discusses the effects of climate change he witnessed during a trip to Alaska this summer. Gulliford and a handful of current and former FLC students traveled by canoe the Birch Creek, one of Alaska’s wild and scenic rivers east of Fairbanks. (The Durango Herald)

Even with all the choices we can access through our screens, we still need to be in the same location while something is created in front of our eyes and ears, writes Charles Leslie, director of FLC’s Community Concert Hall, as he unveils the new 2024-25 performing arts season. (The Durango Herald)