The Friends of Football and members of the Pueblo community have privately funded the $3 million budget for the construction and upgrades of the athletic facilities at the Neta & Eddie DeRose ThunderBowl.

Included in the plan is the construction of a 10,000-square-foot weight room, renovations to the training facilities, an expanded locker room and the re-surface of the existing football field.

The home of the 2014 NCAA Division II National Champions was overdue for an upgrade.

According to Colorado State University-Pueblo Head Coach John Wristen, the project is scheduled to be completed by the end of August 2016.

The most notable part of the ThunderBowl construction project is the new weight room, which will be three times the size of the old one and will accommodate in excess of 600 athletes.  The building will be located next to the field house in the southwest corner of the stadium.

Additional features include a brand new $75,000 underwater treadmill and a cold tub that can accommodate up to 12 people.

The expansion of the existing locker room is aimed at providing the players with comfortable space to get ready for practice and games, while providing a team-friendly environment.

Until the completion, the student-athletes will make do by using the Massari Arena for weight lifting.

CSU-Pueblo alumna Sarah Lawson has taken over the reigns from Quatisha Franklin as coordinator of the college’s Health Education and Prevention program.

Lawson, who is currently pursuing a master’s degree in marketing from Regis University has worked closely with Franklin as graduate assistant before taking over the role as coordinator at the beginning of April.

The HEP program focuses on the education and prevention of drug and alcohol abuse among CSU-Pueblo students. Students may be mandated to complete an assessment and educational intervention track with the HEP prevention coordinator as a result of violating the college’s drug and alcohol policy.

“Bystander intervention is a huge thing that comes out of this office. It’s better to be proactive as opposed to being reactive,” Lawson said.  She wants students to be educated on how to deal with potentially life threatening situations.

The program incorporates workshops and opportunities for direct engagement in order to educate students on the dangers of drug abuse and binge drinking, and to equip them with the coping skills to handle adverse situations.

“Presentations are a key component that will remain part of what we will be doing, but the tabling and just getting out there seeing students and getting them involved is huge,” she said.

One of the activities offered to students during the spring is Late Night at the Rec, which is geared towards providing students with opportunities to engage with the peers in a positive setting.

Lawson works closely with Carol Daugherty, the director of the CSU-Pueblo Student Health Services Department, who is her direct supervisor.

Action plans for the fall semester include revamping and placing more focus on the Healing from Addiction through Resources and Teaching program.

The team’s focus will be on providing more effective and visually appealing marketing approaches for the HART program, instead of printed statistics. “It is much harder for students to relate to a statistic than to a story,” Lawson said.

Other HEP program incentives will require volunteer student involvement, including Protecting the Pack, a student-oriented designated driver campaign, and the SOUL Peer Educator Group – peer-to-peer support groups for students in distress.

The HEP social norming campaign includes the Even Zombies Know race – an obstacle course with a zombie theme where participants, including students and faculty, compete for gift cards and parking passes. The event is scheduled to take place during fall orientation week.

The main focus of the HEP team is on providing students with the tools required that will ensure their success at CSU-Pueblo and after they graduate.

“I definitely think that working with students in higher education you have to stay up to date with what’s going on,” she said.

For additional information on resources and services, students can contact the HEP program coordinator at 719-549-2121.

8th Annual Colorado Springs Native American Intertribal Powwow

One Nation Walking Together is sponsoring a one-day Native American Traditional Powwow July 16 at the Mortgage Solutions Financial EXPO Center, 3650 N. Nevada Ave, Colorado Springs, CO.

The sponsors are calling on people in Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and surrounding communities for support.

The family-friendly event celebrates the rich Native American culture and history. Visitors can participate in traditional music and dance and enjoy live exhibits.  It is a great opportunity to learn about Native art and artisans, Navajo Code Talkers, live exhibits, Aztec Dancers, Native vendors and Native food.

Approximate 2,000 to 3,000 people attend the event annually.

Admission is $4. Native Americans in full regalia and children 12 and under admitted free.

The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Visitors are encouraged to donate non-perishable food items to help feed the hungry.

For more information, organizers are encouraging guests to visit www.coloradospringspowwow.org.

While most Colorado State University-Pueblo students are taking the summer off to enjoy vacations with friends and family or working part-time summer jobs, a lesser few – 1,045 to be exact – attend summer classes at the college on a daily basis, according to data from the Institutional Research Office.

The summer semester, which encompasses May, June and July, is divided into three sessions – each ranging in length from four to 12 weeks.

Other challenges students face during the summer, include depleted financial aid funds, fewer housing options on campus, and the lack of meal services.

On-campus housing is limited to Wolf Village and Greenhorn Hall for the summer months.  Students pay $125 per week or $500 per month for lodging.  During the fall and spring semesters, regular on-campus housing cost ranges between $2,830 and $2,895 – excluding fees – per semester.

A Q&A with CSU-Pueblo electronic media professor, Sam Lovato, revealed how the summer semester vary from other semesters.

How you think the summer semester impacts students and professors differently than the fall and spring semesters?

Summer courses require a different kind of commitment from students and professors, if you are a newbie prof or newbie student, results can me mixed – all parties need to know what they are getting into, it’s hard work meets high reward.

Do you think students struggle more keeping up with assignments during the summer?

I find students can be more successful over the summer; the intensity and rate of delivery can actually be a benefit to some.

Why are fewer classes offered during the summer than during regular semesters?

Professors are not required teach over the summer, the course offered have to “make” (enough enrollment) or you must take a reduction in pay/stipend, and Professors look forward to an opportunity to take a break.

Costs should be identical
. The university should only offer summer courses if it’s profitable.

How do you deal with the intense summer class schedule?

I’ve offered courses over the summer on and off for over two decades, I’ve gotten very good at developing course plans that are rigorous, intense, and very meaningful – long story short I can cover miles of territory in a very short period of time, then give the students the perfect blend of homework, hands on, testing opportunities – it’s all trial and error, and two decades of summers is plenty of opportunity to dial it in.

Are some classes more conducive to the summer sessions than others?

Certainly, I’ve found applied courses offered in MCCNM can work very well over the summer – that includes web design, audio/video production, broadcast newswriting, scriptwriting, digital photography, digital publishing/design, etc.

What advice would you offer students and professors who are contemplating attending or teaching classes during the summer?

Summer courses are difficult but worth it, it’s a good trade off, short-­‐term intense work for long term benefit, summer courses require endurance -­‐ not all students or professors are ready for the challenge.

Gena Alfonso, director of Student Engagement and Leadership, and team CSU-Pueblo Purple Pack will represent Colorado State University – Pueblo at the 2016 American Cancer Society Relay for Life event in Pueblo, scheduled to take place on June 10 at Pueblo Community College.

The event starts at 5:00 PM.  The opening ceremony will take place at 6:00 PM.

Volunteers are needed to assist in various capacities during the event – opportunities include distributing team packets, guiding survivors to various locations, monitoring parking lots, safety and meal service.

A total of 63 teams and 437 participants have raised  $91,706.22 thus far.

Entertainment will include music and games. Fundraising efforts will continue throughout the duration of the event.

Those interested in signing up to participate can visit the Pueblo Relay for Life website here  or contact Patrick Armstrong, Team Development Lead, at 719-225-0081 for more information.

Rendering of the exterior of the Occhiato building after completion in 2018

The largest portion of the budget for the Occhiato University Center renovation was appropriated from student facility fees. The Colorado State University-Pueblo Foundation, according to John Barnosky, Director of Planning and Construction at the college, pledged the remaining $5 million.

The OUC will be LEED Gold certified, a designation that stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, which makes it less costly operate – per square foot.

Once the project is completed, the food service area will incorporate various small eateries.

“The bookstore will be where the cafeteria is now and the new food service, a mini-restaurant dining area, will move to where the current ballroom is now,” Barnosky said.

“The new area will consist of a pizza area, a grill area, a food of the day area – with different seating arrangements – an Einstein Bros. Bagels on the first floor, and a retail ‘cantina-style food venue’.”

The design-build project contractor is the Colorado Springs-based Nunn Construction and Hord Coplan Macht Architects, the same firm that worked on the GCB building.

Three graduates from the construction technology program at CSU-Pueblo have been recruited, one as Nunn’s main project manager, and two others as interns on the project.

“The biggest challenge was figuring out how to vacate the existing building for the major remodel and where to put the existing entities until March 2018,” Barnosky said.

He does not anticipate any unforeseen issues as the bookstore and food services will be temporarily relocated to the new addition after its completion in December, where they will remain for three semesters.

Two contingencies, amounting to 16 percent of the total budget, have been written into the contract to cover any additional unforeseen costs.

The existing setup in the OUC does not allow for sufficient separation between the different entities that utilize the facility.

“One of the basic concepts that came out of meetings with faculty, staff, and especially students, during the design, was to separate the student spaces from the community spaces, like the use of the ballroom,” Barnosky said.

The design concept is conducive to creating more efficient pedestrian traffic in and out of the newly renovated building.

“It’s much like the library project where the shell was very sound, but all of the infrastructure and walls didn’t work anymore.  It’s still cheaper to gut the entire building because it is structurally sound and renovate it with modern interior design,” Barnosky said.

Enhancing the entrances and redoing the interior design of the existing structure have reduced the cost of the overall project by approximately $2 million.

ASG’s Generation of Victory team is gearing up for the next year. | Photo courtesy of Antonio Huerta

It has been a little over a week since Antonio Huerta and Maggie Geolat, along with 12 senators, were sworn in as Colorado State University-Pueblo’s Associated Students’ Government leadership team for the 2016-17 academic year.

The newly elected Generation of Victory leaders took over the reigns from Sarah Zarr and Gene Wilson’s team, Legendary.

The 12 senators are Alex Hyland and Keragan Ettleman from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Anthony Ball and Annica Roberts from the Hasan School of Business, Rachel Ruiz and Brandon Bayer of the College of Science and Math, Tyree Brown and Anna Jordan from the College of Eduaction, Engineering and Professional Studies and Matt Schein, Daniella Trujillo, Isaiah Morgan, and Hannah Higgs, who are at-large representatives.

Huerta and Geolat attribute their team’s victory to solid teamwork, successful branding and knowing when to let others take the lead.

“Learning when to follow is important,” Huerta said.

Huerta said he believes that the GOV logo, which was designed by Jonothan Stephenson and features aspects of the Colorado flag, struck a chord with voters.

It was the first year students accessed PackLink, via the T-Wolf portal, to vote. The number of votes was down form last year.

The GOV team managed to stay within their campaign budget of $700, to which all 15 candidates contributed evenly.

Geolat offered some advice to future ASG leaders. “Make sure that you get involved on campus and understand the different aspects of how the university works,” she said.  The team is currently focusing on planning and organizing its priorities for upcoming fall semester.

The newly elected ASG leaders expressed their utmost respect for the opposing Moving Forward team.

“I really appreciate the other team because I really got to know them and they really wanted to get involved,” Huerta said.

The university recommends taking a revised route to campus starting in May. | Image courtesy of CSU-Pueblo

The Colorado Department of Transportation announced that construction will begin on the Bonforte Bridge May 9 to remove and replace the deck, resulting in the closure of the bridge and main entrance to campus throughout the summer.

The closure will last from May 9 to mid-August.

The bridge will be refinished to provide a more level driving surface, along with wider sidewalks and new guardrails, resulting in a safer and more attractive entry to the campus. Construction was originally intended to take place last fall, but was rescheduled by CDOT.

The tentative completion date for the project is August 13. No access to the campus will be available via Bonforte Boulevard until construction is completed.  Traffic will be detoured to either the Troy Avenue or Walking Stick Blvd exits off State Highway 47.

Traffic flow into the university may be impacted due to lane closures and other delays.

Due to the closure, Pueblo Transit has revised the university and Belmont routes for the length of the project. The university will continue to be served by the University No. 9 Bus, which will arrive at our bus stop at five minutes before the hour on weekdays and Saturdays. For more information on the bus schedules, call 719-553-2727 or visit www.pueblotransit.com.

The GOV campaign is focusing on student retention in its platform. | Photo courtesy of Paulena Schoenthaler

Part One

Student retention is the main focus of Antonio Huerta and Maggie Geolat’s Generation of Victory campaign.  The duo is running for president and vice president of Colorado State University-Pueblo’s Associated Students’ Government for the 2016-17 academic year.

Campaign week spans from April 4 through April 8. A debate between the presidential and vice presidential candidates will take place on April 7, in the Occhiato University Center Ballroom from 5-6:30 p.m.

Huerta is a graduate student at the Hasan School of Business and Geolat is a mass communications major with a minor in marketing and leadership.  They chose the theme of their campaign based on how they want the current generation of CSU-Pueblo students to be perceived, which is to be instrumental to positive change.

“We’re just here for the students – we’d love to win, we’d love to make a change, and even if we don’t, you can expect us to still be out there to ensure student success,” Huerta said.

The other candidates running for ASG senator positions on the GOV platform are Alex Hyland and Keragan Ettleman of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences; Anthony Ball and Annica Roberts of the Hasan School of Business; Rachel Ruiz and Brandon Bayer from the College of Science and Math; Tyree Brown and Anna Jordan of the College of Education, Engineering and Professional Studies; and Matt Schein, Daniella Trujillo, Isaiah Morgan, and Hannah Higgs, who are running at large.

The GOV team has an equal representation of male and female students campaigning for leadership positions.

According to the campaign’s mission statement, Huerta said, “Our mission is to create a better future for current and upcoming ThunderWolves, by providing them with servant leadership, advocacy, empowerment and dependability. Our main focuses will be on student retention, sustainability and student involvement, ultimately decreasing tuition fees will be our never ending commitment. We will also try to work hand-in-hand with faculty, staff and administration to ensure student success.”

The GOV party’s main focus areas include student retention, promoting diversity, increasing student organization involvement, decreasing tuition fees and facilitating more student traditions and involvement in on-campus activities.

Brandon Wilson and Jordan Moniz are running for president and vice-president of the opposing Moving Forward party.

On Monday, April 11, online election polls open at 8 a.m. Polls will close April 12 at 5 p.m. and can be accessed via Pack Link on the T-WOLF portal.

On Thursday, April 14, all winning candidates’ names will be posted in the office of student affairs, in the ASG office, and on the ASG election website. The newly elected leaders will be sworn into office on Monday, April 18, at 6 p.m. The date may be subject to change.

Editor’s note: The Today will feature Moving Forward’s platform in the coming week.

Correction: A previous version of this report said GOV’s mission was to provide “certain leadership.” The mission, according to Huerta, is to provide “servant leadership.”

UPDATE: The Today reached out to the Moving Forward party twice, but did not receive a response. More information about each party’s platform can be found here.

ASG chief justice Jacob Stice (right) plans to join the military after graduation. | Photo courtesy of Jacob Sitce

For Colorado State University-Pueblo senior Jacob Stice, being in a leadership role requires an ability to listen to the concerns of others while voicing his own opinion.

Stice, who currently serves as Chief Justice of the Associate Students’ Government, is a business major in the Hasan School for Business. As a student, Stice has been able to get involved both on and off campus.

After graduation, he said he plans to join the military.

His duties as ASG Chief Justice include attending committee meetings as a judiciary representative of the various appeals committees on campus. He plays a big role in deciding the outcome of appeals filed with the Parking Appeal Board.

Stice, a Pueblo native, transferred from Pueblo Community College in the fall of 2014 to pursue an undergraduate degree in business management at CSU-Pueblo.

Aside from a full load of 16 credits this semester and his ASG responsibilities, Stice is involved in Rotoract Club – a volunteer and leadership organization on campus, the Boys Scouts and Eagle Scouts organizations and the ENACTUS Club at CSU-Pueblo.  He manages to balance school and three jobs, which includes a job at Pizza Hut, working as a technician for The Office of Engagement and Leadership and fulfilling his responsibilities as ASG Chief Justice.

Stice’s long-term career goal is to own and manage his own business.  He draws inspiration from those close to home. “I admire my dad for his work ethic.  At 62, he is still working,” he said.

Stice is also motivated by business owners in the Pueblo community whom he met through his involvement with the local rotary chapter. He has an appreciation for their bold and direct approach when it comes to business.

Stice said he feels that while the academic aspects of the business program exceed students’ expectations, he would like to see CSU-Pueblo incorporate a business law degree in its curriculum.

“CSU-Pueblo professors are very business focused and the legal aspects that come to play, are very complicated, like tax codes that are very specific to corporations.  Studying some of the case laws would be very beneficial to students,” he said.

When he’s not studying or working, Stice enjoys woodworking, sound engineering and he describes himself as an avid gamer.

Editor’s note: This story is part of a series of profiles about members of the Associated Students’ Government at CSU-Pueblo.