Overcoming 100 years of uncertainty and unlikeliness happens when people rally behind a common mission
There are few moments in history that are as impactful as a historical reflection — and futuristic outlook — that was 100 years in the making. On August 22nd, campus faculty, staff, CMU board of trustees and community leaders across Grand Junction and Mesa County gathered in Asteria Theatre to reflect on each decade that led the university, the Grand Valley and the nation to the time we live in now.
While CMU has faced the odds from inception to now, the Maverick spirit has kept a fire lit within, and the winds that kept the fire spreading were the breath of the community blowing steadily behind the sails.
In 1925, what was then Grand Junction Junior College opened its doors for the first time to 39 students. The community also underwent a transformation that defined the current state of the valley — irrigation systems were built that helped transform the desert into a new agricultural hub. During this time, the nation recovered from the Great War, catapulted into the Roaring 20s, and slipped into the Great Depression all in the span of 10 years.
Fast forward to today, CMU became a university in 2011, CMU Tech got its namesake and entered an era of elevating the trades, enrollment has grown above 11,000, and many more uncertainties have been overcome. The community has witnessed an increase in healthcare capacity with the construction of St. Mary’s tower, the regional airport provided new access to economic opportunity and Palisade is now defined as more than just a peach capital of the world — this little corner of the nation is home to wine country and a world-famous agricultural tourism destination. The 2000s have also been a defining span of time for the nation. The world has overcome an unexpected global pandemic and witnessed the rise of exponentially adapting technology.
The emphasis of the evening was highlighting that the outcomes of good and progress are never certain; in fact, the milestones CMU has experienced were highly unlikely.
President John Marshall spoke to overcoming the unlikelihood, crediting the hard work of everyone involved in defining CMU.
“During our history, on many occasions, people have come together, and our partners here have aligned to do big and meaningful things. It is the people in the room and the community who embrace us that have rallied behind CMU to make 100 years feel certain.”
Time is an ever-evolving marker of change. The measurement of time has yet to be defined in one concrete equation, but to CMU, time defines the institution not in a silo, but as an interconnected pillar of the Grand Valley impacted by the many who have walked through the university’s doors, across the graduation stage, or simply by those who neighbor the campus.
The CMU Century Kickoff Celebration symbolized bringing community together once again to rally behind a vision to better the lives of the people that have orbited the institution for 100 years, while looking forward to the next 100 years of what significant change can and should be made, with the hope that our predecessors look back and report on these uncertainties and unlikeliest hurdles overcame with the same Maverick pride felt today.