A new economic study reveals the University of Colorado system generated $12.2 billion in economic impact across the state last year. This is an increase of more than half a billion dollars from 2024.
The report says most of that impact about $7.1 billion dollars, is right in the Denver metro area.
Campus by campus, CU Anschutz led the system with $5.7 billion in economic impact. That means it generated the most for nearby businesses.
CU Boulder followed with $5 billion, while CU Denver and UCCS contributed $667 million and $567 million.
Vibe Coffee & Wine is one of the businesses near CU Denver and staff say students play a major role in keeping their business steady.
“I think students play a significant role for small businesses. I think there’s also for this generation that’s coming up, they’re a lot more focused on the quality, and they’re willing to pay more for something that is created with care,” said Liza Giles, Vibe Coffee & Wine, brand operations.
Staff say student foot traffic drops during spring, winter, and summer breaks though, tourists make up for that loss, especially during the summer months.
For more information on the economic report, click here.
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DENVER — A partnership launched this week between the University of Colorado Denver and Denver Public Schools is making the path to college easier.
All eligible DPS juniors with a GPA of 3.0 or higher will receive guaranteed admission to CU Denver.
Current seniors graduating with a 3.0 GPA or higher will also be automatically admitted, with application fees waived.
CU Denver integrative biology major Quan Huynh has his sights set on being a dentist.
DPS school counselors helped him narrow down his options during his senior year at Thomas Jefferson High School.
“They offer a lot of research opportunities, scholarships, and help a lot financially,” said Huynh.
Now his peers at Denver public high schools will have the same opportunity guaranteed.
As of this week, DPS students will get automatic admission to CU Denver with a 3.0 GPA or higher.
“I think this partnership really shows that CU Denver is here to meet students where they are, to connect with students and to really elevate those students,” said Crysta Diaz, Director of Undergrad Admissions at CU Denver.
School counselors like Emily Rivera know firsthand the stress that students are under when it comes to college admissions.
“Once students get into their first college, it’s kind of a huge stress off,” said Rivera.
Rivera works with students at Denver South High School, which has a sizeable newcomer population.
Students at Denver South represent 50 countries, with 32 percent of the student body either participating in the ELA program or having exited the program.
It has one of the most successful graduation rates for English Language Learners in the district, with over 80% of students receiving their diplomas.
Rivera told Denver7 she’s excited to see this new pathway to college serve as a solution to make higher education more accessible to the students she works with.
“To know that you could come as a teenager, learn your English skills while you’re in high school, and have that guaranteed admission at CU Denver is really exciting,” she added.
According to CU Denver, the partnership reflects both institutions’ commitment to expanding opportunity, advancing social mobility, and helping Denver students and families build lasting success.
“A lot of our students in Denver and at CU Denver are first-generation students, and so again, just how do we support these students that are navigating this experience for the first time?” said Diaz.
Quan said he’s quickly found his place on campus with that support.
He’s excited for others to do the same if they take advantage of the guaranteed admission.
“I think it’s amazing,” he said, “there will be a lot of opportunities for high school students to pursue their bachelor’s degree, just like me as a first-generation student in my family.”
CU Denver, DPS launch guaranteed admission partnership
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Chancellor Michelle Marks has served through the COVID pandemic and campus protests over the war in Gaza.
University of Colorado Denver Chancellor Michelle Marks will resign from her role this August.
Marks made the decision citing health worries in her family, according to a release by CU Denver.
“There are health-related concerns in my family, and after much consideration, I have decided that I want more flexibility to be with them over the coming year,” she said. “It was a difficult decision because I love this institution. I believe in our people and our purpose, which is unique within our system and Colorado.”
Marks holds a Ph.D. in industrial/organization psychology and will continue working as a professor for the school.
She has served as chancellor since 2020. Her tenure weathered major events such as the COVID pandemic and campus protests over the war in Gaza. She also led the school to create its “2030 Strategic Plan: Make Education Work for All”.
Marks said she’s left the school in a strong position, with healthy enrollment and sponsored research awards at an all-time high.
“I have treasured my time leading this institution,” she said.
Josephine Clark (left) and Adira Castillo, organizers of the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery, stand in downtown’s Performing Arts Complex. May 8, 2024.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
An explosion of bright yellow, cherry pink and lime green paper flowers help frame a painting of Arlette Lucero’s loved ones, from her late husband Stevon Lucero to beloved tattoo artist Alicia Cardenas.
The adjacent memory photo wall, adorned with papel picado, is part of Lucero’s “Those That Have Passed in 2021” installation that began as a Dia De Los Muertos-inspired piece.
“These are people I knew very well. Some of them were extremely close friends,” Lucero said.
“Those That Have Passed in 2021” by Arlette Lucero on display in the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery at the Denver Performing Arts Complex downtown.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Lucero is part of a bill of Chicano artists invited by two CU Denver undergraduate students with specific interests in the importance of platonic love and friendship from a Chicano perspective.
Josephine Clark and Adira Castillo are each developing their undergraduate theses, one on depictions of friendship in Western Art and the other on Chicano artwork.
Together, the two have worked on this show since February with the guidance of gallery director Jeff Lambson.
Josephine Clark (left) and Adira Castillo, organizers of the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery, stand in downtown’s Performing Arts Complex. May 8, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
“[Lambson] presented this opportunity to us with his guidance,” Clark said. “To have this opportunity in a professional gallery setting … we’re in the heart of downtown … it’s huge.”
The Experience Gallery space, tucked underneath a set of stairs at the Denver Performing Arts Complex and across from the entrance to the Buell Theatre, helps give curatorial experience to CU Denver students.
“These artists spoke to me so much in their work and the way that they represented their livelihoods and community,” Castillo said. “I’m Chicano myself, so it’s really amazing to be able to highlight Chicano artists within Denver.”
Rob Coca plays with Cherish Marquez’s her interactive installation, “Connections To,” set up in the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery at the Denver Performing Arts Complex downtown. May 8, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Chicano artists were inspired by ancestors and community
Featured artists in the show include Lucero, Armando Geneyro, Oswaldo Cepeda, Cal Duran, Pico del Hierro-Villa and Cherish Marquez.
Corn roots hang from the ceiling and woven God’s eyes, or Ojo de Dios, have helped artists like Duran both explore and meditate on artists from the past.
“Art was a way for me to connect to my lineage and my ancestors,” Duran said. “I believe all of our ancestors are inside our blood helping us create.”
“Realm of the Woven Portal: Floating Roots and Memories” by Cal Duran, installed in the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery at the Denver Performing Arts Complex downtown. May 8, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Denver photographer Armando Geneyro debuted an image titled, “Sin Ti” or “Without You.”
“We knew he didn’t have a lot of time left and we wanted to get one last portrait session with the family,” Geneyro said.
The center hand is of Jose Angel Jimenez, also known as Tanque, which means tank in Spanish. Cradled by the hands of Tanque’s loved ones, the image honors the life of a man who lived 37 years with only one arm after losing the other to a cancer diagnosis in 1982.
Jon Romero (left) and Melissa Ivey perform in the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery at the Denver Performing Arts Complex downtown. May 8, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Invited by Clark and Castillo to be part of the show, Geneyro knew this image would fit a show dedicated to showcasing the heart of Chicano families, the treasures of platonic love and the elements of spirituality, depicted by the cross tattoo on Tanque’s middle finger, that “we lean on as Chicanos.”
“He did things that most of us probably can’t do with two arms,” Geneyro said. “But he needed that support from his family all those years to be that strong for them.”
Armando Geneyro’s “Sin Ti” and “Mi Vida” on display in the “No Puedo Imaginar Mi Vida Sin Ti” show at the CU Experience Gallery at the Denver Performing Arts Complex downtown. May 8, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Above the image’s black frame, Geneyro left a toy tank, a nickname that Jimenez carried since childhood and a testament to the “indestructibility” of a loved one.
“We live in such an individualized society right now,” Castillo said. “I hope that when they come in here they recognize that community and friendship is so important.”
Student organizers have asked MSU Denver and CU Denver to denounce the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza and to divest from companies with ties to Israel.
The pro-Palestinian protest camp on Denver’s Auraria Campus, six days after it was first erected. May 1, 2024.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
As the Auraria antiwar camp enters its second full week, student organizers say they’re seeing progress in getting their demands met by university leaders.
On Friday, Metropolitan State University of Denver leadership met with organizers with the Students for a Democratic Society. Shortly afterwards, MSU Denver President Janine Davidson wrote to the campus saying the university has agreed to provide “financial information related to the University’s investments and industry relationships,” as well as brokering a meeting between the protesters and MSU Denver’s Board of Trustees.
“I’m optimistic that based on today’s productive conversation, as well as earlier meetings, we can find common ground,” Davidson wrote in the letter.
Davidson added that the university and its endowment have “no significant investment” in companies operating in Israel.
SDS protesters extended their list of demands to MSU Denver last week. The demands were near identical to the ones they posed to the University of Colorado system, which include a request for the system to denounce the actions of the Israeli government, terminate contracts and relationships with companies operating in Israel, as well as divestment from those companies.
The University of Colorado Board of Regents have not publicly commented on the ongoing protests, however they have met behind closed doors to discuss legal advice on the encampment.
What’s happened so far
Auraria students erected the antiwar camp on April 25 to protest Israel’s ongoing military action in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry there. Israel began the war after Hamas killed more than 1,400 Israelis and took 200 hostages in a surprise attack on October 7, 2023.
On campus a day after the Auraria protests began, Denver and Auraria police officers moved to disperse the camp, arresting over 40 people in the process. Auraria campus officials told Denverite that about half of those arrested weren’t students enrolled at any of its three universities. Protesters quickly reestablished the camp, and Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas has claimed that his department has refused a second request to disperse the camp, although it isn’t clear when that request was made.
Nearly a week following the arrests, Auraria Higher Education Center CEO Colleen Walker told Denverite that calling the police on protesters is a “last resort,” claiming that the campus and its three universities are committed to an open dialogue with students.
They join dozens of other protests on college campuses around the country that are asking universities to divest from Israel because of its war in Gaza.
Activists gather on the Tivoli Quad lawn on the Auraria Campus, beginning a planned occupation protesting Israel’s war in Gaza and demanding the University of Colorado divest from corportations that invest in Israel and end their study abroad program in the country, among other things. April 25, 2024.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
Joining students on college campuses across the country, organizers with Students for a Democratic Society started an encampment at Auraria Campus Thursday to protest Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed about 34,000 Palestinians according to recent reporting from the New York Times.
While pro-Palestinian organizers have been protesting the war for months, a newer wave of protests has been sweeping the U.S. after college administrators at Columbia University suspended students and police made arrests at an encampment at the university’s campus in New York City last week. Since then, police have arrested student protesters across the country, with some campuses switching to remote classes through the end of the semester over security concerns.
Like students nationwide, the protesters at Auraria Campus, home to three colleges and universities, want college administrators to take a public stance against the war and sever any financial ties the institutions have to Israel — including investments and grants. On Thursday afternoon, students passed out rain ponchos and prepared to hunker down as wind blew and rain started. Students chanted “dare to struggle, dare to win,” while later in the afternoon another small group of students knelt in prayer.
Paul Nelson, a communications student at Metropolitan State University of Denver and an organizer with Students for a Democratic Society said students in Denver are following the lead of students at Columbia.
“I think it’s important that we stand for peace, stand against genocide and war, whatever the option is presented to us. And so here’s one of those historical turning points,” Nelson said.
Activists gather on the Tivoli Quad lawn on the Auraria Campus, beginning a planned occupation protesting Israel’s war in Gaza and demanding the University of Colorado divest from corportations that invest in Israel and end their study abroad program in the country, among other things. April 25, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
In a statement Thursday, the student organizers sent a list of demands, which include a statement from the University of Colorado “condemning the genocidal actions of Israel,” a meeting with CU Denver Chancellor Michelle Marks, divestment from any corporations operating in Israel, transparency around investments and an end to University of Colorado study abroad programs in Israel.
The organizers also want CU’s administration to sever ties with and refuse grants from companies that contract with the U.S. military. That could affect programs like CU’s aerospace engineering department, which works with companies like Lockheed Martin. According to federal data, the University of Colorado Denver has accepted nearly $3 million in contracts with Israel since 2016.
Khalid Hamu, an organizer and computer science student at CU Denver, said he was moved to action after seeing images of the aftermath of the war in Gaza.
“Student Action is what got us a lot of things. It’s what got us the first College of Ethnic Studies,” Hamu said. “So we, I, understand, we have to get organized, and we have to bring the fight to [the administration].”
The University of Colorado and Auraria Higher Education Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The encampment at Auraria Campus is the latest in a string of protests against the war both in Denver and nationwide.
Those protests kicked off in October, when the militant group Hamas attacked Israel, killing more than 1,400 Israelis and taking more than 200 people hostage, some of whom remain in Gaza. Israel responded by invading Gaza, which has been under blockade by Israel and Egypt since 2007.
Since then, about 34,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to The New York Times. Humanitarian aid officials are also warning that famine could soon take hold in Gaza.
Colorado Public Radio reporter Paolo Zialcita contributed reporting.
Activists gather on the Tivoli Quad lawn on the Auraria Campus, beginning a planned occupation protesting Israel’s war in Gaza and demanding the University of Colorado divest from corportations that invest in Israel and end their study abroad program in the country, among other things. April 25, 2024.Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
