MONTE VISTA— The Upper Rio Grande Economic (URGED) group met for their monthly meeting at Mountain View Restaurant in Monte Vista on Tuesday, June 11 and enjoyed a presentation by the new Adams State University President Dr. Cheryl D. Lovell.

Lovell was pleased to have the opportunity to speak with URGED and discuss some of the changes the university is working on in their academic programs and how the university is seen through the eyes of their students. “Thank you so much for having me here; I am just so honored to be here and to represent Adams State University,” opened Lovell.

Lovell began her presentation by inviting the group to contact her with any questions at any time and provided them with contact information for her and her staff at the college. Lovell explained that there are some changes coming to the college in the next few weeks and that the hope is to increase student success and new student interest. “I want to talk about some of the academic things we are doing that are new and talk about launching our new Adams State online initiative, our Adams State experience and economic impact.”

Lovell highlighted some of the academic changes coming to the university next semester, including a food study program that will consist of utilizing local food growers. “The food study program draws on the attributes of the San Luis Valley. It is a unique location for the development of a Food Study Degree because the local food economy is so strong,” stated Lovell.

Lovell also highlighted the new outdoor education program with emphasis on conservation and adventure recreation. “This degree will build on existing courses within the earth science program and adventure leadership. It creates a new degree focused on outdoor recreation. This program maximizes a student’s experiences in real world recreation settings, trains them in safe and responsible recreation practices and provides numerous opportunities to learn in the Valley.”

The university is also working to strengthen and add to their online presence with new degrees. The new online program will launch this fall with a soft launch and offer several graduate programs. “This gives us the opportunity to open the university to everyone, everywhere. We do not expect people from other countries to sign up right away, but it gives us the opportunity for that to happen.”

Lovell also explained that they want to create a new experience for students through programs and by emphasizing that Adams State is a destination campus. “We have something very unique to offer students who choose Adams State and we want to work with that. There are so many opportunities to offer students here and through several years of data collection, we have been able to narrow down the specific strengths the university can work with and offer.”

Lovell closed with some statistics of economic impact the college has on the Valley as a whole. Lovell stated that the college produces an average of $8.3 million total impact on the economy annually through money spent on student housing, employee payroll and direct spending, sponsored events and visitor spending as well as operation spending.

The university will be celebrating 100 years in May of 2021 and have plans for several events leading up to the actual anniversary date. “We are life transformers in the truest sense, and we are all about changing lives for generations to come.”