Finish the race you started. College, in itself, is a marathon and 33 percent of American students, according to USA Today, transfer at least once in their undergraduate career. 55 percent of college students also drop out before completing their four-year degree.
Students at Colorado Mesa University should be the outliers and stick it through until the very end at CMU. Why? Because CMU is no longer a ‘lower-tier’ Colorado school.
Don’t get me wrong, even back when CMU was called Mesa State College, it was still a very successful university which would only grow to what it is today. But the matter of the fact is, CMU is often well forgotten by the majority of the population in Colorado.
All eyes are normally on schools like the University of Colorado-Boulder or Colorado State University. Even the smaller schools like UNC-Greeley are main prospects for students who are looking for colleges in the Centennial State. While on the other hand, CMU sits as a hidden treasure on the western slope.
That is exactly how I see CMU: A hidden treasure.
Grand Junction within itself is not the most desirable town compared to Boulder or Fort Collins; however, students who come to CMU have the tendency to fall in love with the small town of 61,000 people.
Both the communities of CMU and Grand Junction are growing as a whole and will be one of the more desirable Colorado college towns within the next 5-10 years.
That is why students should see their college careers all the way through at CMU. It is growing and expanding with the goal of being the best they can be for the sake of the students.
Being a Maverick has a meaning to it, and believe it or not, there is a unique tradition at CMU. Thriving athletics, unique diversity and constant growth ofthe community.
As there are currently more than 10,000 undergrad students at CMU, the school is constantly improving itself to be more appealing to the eye. New buildings and resources are added almost every other year.
The newest building, Confluence Hall, is a testament to how much CMU cares about their diversity in majors and want their students to succeed in their life endeavors. Even for lesser enrolled majors, like mass communication, the university has created Escalante Hall, which is the home for student media at CMU.
Besides academics, the athletics at CMU remain to be one of the best NCAA Division II schools in the country. 27 varsity sports, the most out of any other university or college in Colorado, currently exist and are thriving nonetheless.
Sports like baseball and softball rank among the best in the nation on a yearly basis and compete for national titles year in and year out.
CMU is also attempting to attract students by adding sports such as women’s wrestling, in which them the only school in Colorado that offers that program. Moves like this attract students who are looking to further their athletic careers, therefore, they come to CMU and tend to stick around.
Every school has it faults but CMU is attempting to have the positives of being a Maverick outweigh the negatives tenfold.
More students should look at CMU for what it truly is: a growing university with a staff that significantly cares about the student body and their futures. While other universities around the country just care about taking students’ money and wasting four years of their lives, the small
Division II school on the western slope cares to only benefit your life after graduation. Stop looking for alternatives, because being a Maverick is a full blown commitment
