New Programs
In a year filled with great uncertainty, demand is growing for leaders who can think critically, solve problems creatively, and work collaboratively. The new Master of Public Policy & Administration (MPPA) and Master of Sport Management (MSM) are preparing the next generation of community and industry leaders with these skills.
Meet some of the students in our professional master's programs in the stories below:
Guest Columns
These views belong to each author, and do not reflect those of colleagues, departments, or Colorado State University.
Guest column: Telling the Truth about Trump
Peter Harris, Assistant Professor of Political Science
Donald Trump began his presidency by targeting Muslim immigrants and visitors to the United States – people with next to no political power, who could be persecuted and bullied without repercussion. Four years later, Trump ended his time in office by inciting supporters to attack the most powerful people in the country. The President of the United States stood by as the carnage unfolded on Capitol Hill, only belatedly calling on the mob to stand down (although not before saying that he loved them). As it turned out, nobody was safe from this President who prizes his own political self-interest above all else. Not even members of Congress.
Guest column: Reaction to the Assault on the U.S. Capitol
Greg Dickinson, Professor and Chair of Communication Studies
About Wednesday. I have struggled with what to say about those events. I suspect many of you share some of my emotions—angry, sad, traumatized, scared. I feel those things 36 or so hours after the fact as I draft these comments. I suspect these emotions will linger because Wednesday’s efforts by insurrectionists are part of a larger, longer pattern.
The folks storming the Capitol were mad because they lost. As these (what appeared to me) white men and women charged the Capitol, I thought of all of the men and women who advocated, spoke up, refused to give up their place on the bus or their place on the earth, who marched, went to prison, were beaten, and shot, and killed as they tried to gain some basic human rights: to have agency of their own bodies, to have a right to education, a right vote, a right to marry whom they want, a right to a living wage and safety at work, a right to worship and believe in their own ways.
Alumni Spotlights
Virtual Events
While in-person events were postponed or canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, our departments hosted several virtual events to engage with the CSU community.
CSU Grads on the Political Frontlines
Seven Colorado State University alumni spoke candidly about their experiences working on the frontlines of America’s political arena – as journalists, lobbyists and lawyers – in a public webinar on Oct. 16.
The program was hosted by the CSU System as part of its initiative to support free speech, voting and civic engagement, Your Voice. Your Vote. Your Rights. It was co-sponsored by CSU Fort Collins, the Department of Journalism and Media Communications, and the Straayer Center for Public Service Leadership.
For the Love of Clark: A presentation by history graduate students
As the university enters the process of assessing a renovation of the Clark building, a class of our history graduate students (HIST 540: History and Material Culture) studied the material culture and material world of the building and its elements by blending public and traditional history methodologies.
In a Dec. 3 Zoom presentation, graduate students and history faculty talk about the building's architectural style, color change, building flow, lighting, and art, among other topics.
Recent stories about Liberal Arts teaching, research, and service
Wicked Problems
The term “wicked problems” has been used for decades to describe dilemmas that don’t have the straightforward solutions of, say, a math problem.
In a series of articles, we explore the Gordian Knot of wicked problems within the realms of democratic institutions and civic engagement; racism and exclusion; environment and sustainability (coming soon); and globalization and global perspectives (coming soon).
The Conversation: Writing for the AP
Recently published by our faculty:
- Tweets reveal Trump’s and Biden’s competing views of masculinity – what that will mean for presidential leadership
- When fracking moves into the neighborhood, mental health risks rise
- From Trump to Trudeau, the escalator is a favorite symbol of political campaigns
- Can a college course teach students to ‘unlearn’ racism?
- To understand the backlash against the women in the running for vice president, watch more TV
To read more stories from CSU faculty in The Conversation, visit SOURCE.
Development Updates
In Memoriam
Languages, Literatures, & Cultures
Dr. Evelio Echevarria, Professor Emeritus from Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, passed away in 2020. Born in Santiago, Chile, in 1926, he immigrated to the US in 1953, living first in Idaho, where he worked as a ski instructor at Sun Valley. He later worked as a landscaper in San Diego, before gaining his PhD. In 1964, he began his tenure at CSU and worked here for 33 years until retiring in 1997. His love of mountaineering along the Andes and the Rocky Mountains was well known. For over 65 years he traveled and researched both ranges, chronicling their known--and unknown--activities from ancient times to present. As recently as 2018, Dr. Echevarria published an 840-page work, The Andes: The Complete History of Mountaineering in High South America.