Construction Management To Host Gala To Celebrate 50th Anniversary, Continuing Success In $1.5 Million Fund-Raising Campaign
Thursday, May 1, 1997
FORT COLLINS--Colorado State University's construction
management program will hold a special 50th anniversary gala
celebration May 10 at the Lory Student Center to commemorate both
the success of the program and the ongoing campaign to raise $1.5
million.
Over 500 people from the university and the construction
industry are expected to attend the gala evening, which will
feature dinner, recognition of major donors, a live auction and a
light-hearted look at the past five decades at Colorado State.
For more information on the event, call (970)
491-7353.
"In all the years of the construction management program,
this year may be the best for a number of reasons," said Larry
Grosse, head of the department of manufacturing technology and
construction management. "The construction management program is
recognized as one of the top programs in the nation, our
graduates are leaders in the industry and we've been very
successful in our fund-raising efforts to help make construction
management at Colorado State even better."
The fund-raising campaign, which was launched to fund
specific improvements in the construction management program, to
date has raised about $1.2 million of its $1.5 million goal,
according to college officials. The campaign will continue to the
end of the year. Funds will be used for three main goals outlined
below.
"What's exciting about this campaign is that the
construction industry and the program graduates have really
rallied around the plans to make an already great program even
better for the students, the faculty and the construction
industry," said Nancy Hartley, dean of the College of Applied
Human Sciences. "We're excited about the future for the
construction management program, a future that is only possible
because of the strong foundation that has been built."
Planned improvements include the following.
REQUIRED INTERNSHIPS
A total of $750,000 from the campaign will be used to
establish the Phelps Internship Placement Program in the
department to help all students in the program gain internships
in the construction industry, as required for graduation. The
internship program is funded largely through a $500,000 gift from
Joseph H. Phelps, alumnus of the construction management program.
The placement office, which will be staffed by a full-time
director and support staff, will act as a liaison between
students and industry and work to find the right matches for
both. About 70 to 100 internships with participating companies
would be required each semester to meet the needs of students.
"Internships are a vital part of the educational experience
and we look at this new program as a way to further connect our
students to the industry," Grosse said. "In working with our
students, we realize the value they place on internships, and
this new program will help us meet their needs better by
expanding and improving the educational experience."
CLASSROOMS OF THE 21ST CENTURY
A total of $250,000 from the campaign will be dedicated to
updating and improving classrooms in construction management and
adding state-of-the-art technology.
As part of the plan to improve the classrooms, the
department will add a centrally stored digital database for use
by department faculty in interactive teaching. The database and
computer equipment will allow faculty to upload instructional
materials for individual lesson plans and then present those
lesson plans to students via computer and other electronic
equipment.
"Educators must step beyond the lectern and chalkboard and
use the latest communication technologies," Hartley said. "Our
graduates must be prepared to enter the increasingly
technological world of construction management. This planned
upgrade will help us better prepare our students for the real-
world business environment of the 21st century."
APPLIED RESEARCH FOR THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
The remaining $500,000 of the fund-raising effort will be
dedicated to practical research projects aimed at helping the
construction industry face the challenges ahead.
"As a land-grant university, an important part of our
mission is to conduct research to help society," Grosse said. "We
take this mission seriously. The fund-raising effort will help
expand and develop solutions to the challenges facing the
construction industry in the coming years."
The research funding will be used to help undergraduate and
graduate students as well as construction management faculty work
on real-world issues in the industry.
"There are tremendous advantages in this kind of applied
research program," Grosse said. "Our students will experience all
facets of research through a wide range of projects. Plus, our
faculty will be able to gain valuable research experience and
publish materials that could benefit the entire construction
industry.
"Best of all, this research will be focused on working with
companies in the industry. We will strive to become an asset to
them by researching and attempting to solve the problems that
plaque them and for which there are currently no solutions."
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