Located in the heart of Montrose’s historic downtown, CMU’s smaller sister campus aims to offer a quieter, more intimate college experience than its larger counterpart in Grand Junction.
As CMU expands its reach across the Western Slope, students from the main campus have begun questioning whether CMU Montrose is a viable alternative for degree completion and hands-on training.
Due to its lack of recognition, main campus students often share common questions about CMU Montrose: whether the quality of instruction is the same, whether students can begin a degree in Montrose and later finish in Grand Junction and if the facilities are comparable to the main campus.
The answers reveal a campus with strong community ties and academic potential, but also one facing criticism and calls for improvement.
The most significant concerns about CMU Montrose center on its facilities, particularly in technical certificate programs like welding.
Thomas, a former welding student at the Montrose campus, described the welding program’s shortcomings. Reported concerns may be outdated, as Thomas graduated from CMU Montrose a few years prior to making the statements.
“It is an afterthought and a weak attempt at robbing hard-working families,” Thomas said.
The student alleged multiple OSHA violations in the welding shop, and said students were exposed to several risks, including electrocution, fire and respiratory hazards.
“The tiny shop was way out of code,” Thomas said. “Students were forced to occupy that building during repairs.”
The former student also criticized the equipment, noting that students shared outdated welders, a single vise and a pocket-sized band saw.
“You’ll have to elbow your way in or waste countless hours waiting in line,” Thomas said.
Another concern was the application of the AWS welding certificate itself. It is a basic certification required for nearly all welding jobs.
“It’s not an AWS certificate,” Thomas said. “It’s merely a piece of paper made up by the college that holds no value in the real world.”
At CMU Tech and CMU Montose, the welding program’s technical certificate is not equivalent to an AWS certificate. Rather, the program intends to set students up for success when testing for their AWS certificate.
To receive an AWS certification, the student claimed that the process required an additional fee and a visit from an instructor based in Grand Junction.
Despite the program’s cost of more than $7,000, which is the same as the cost of the CMU Tech program, Montrose students reportedly received outdated equipment.
CMU Tech recently benefited from a $200,000 donation from the Sturm Family, and there have been no published updates regarding Thomas’ concerns.
Despite these criticisms, other students praised the campus’s location and atmosphere.
CMU Montrose is currently housed in one building, with a significantly lower number of faculty. Residence Life offers the Kyle House as an on-campus housing opportunity for second-year students and up.
It offers 14 degree types, which range from technical certificates to four-year bachelor’s degrees. One of the most popular degrees at CMU Montrose is the nursing LPN to BSN program, which is one of two four-year programs.
Students across all programs have reported benefits from the small class sizes and personalized attention from professors. Students noted that staff are also easily accessible.
“The quality of classroom instruction has always been good,” CMU Montrose student Ray Buriss said.
However, Buriss noted that, unlike the main campus, Student Life’s presence is minimal.
“Student life is nearly non-existent,” said Buriss. “More students need to care, and more teachers need to support it.”
Advising services are available on-site through the recently established IRIS branch and Student Services. Over the summer, IRIS hired CMU Montrose Lead Advisor Chrissy Simmons to provide support.
While the Montrose faculty offer a supportive academic environment, students believe it lacks the breadth of extracurricular activities and campus engagement found in Grand Junction.
However for students seeking a focused, distraction-free setting to pursue their degree outside of Grand Junction, the campus is reportedly a good fit.
CMU Montrose students complete general education and lower-division coursework before transferring to Grand Junction for upper-level classes. This flexibility has been beneficial for nontraditional students or those balancing work, academics and personal life.
The campus offers associate degrees and certificates in business, criminal justice, early childhood education, nursing and other fields.
However, some students say the program selection is limited.
“There are several degree options for CMU Montrose,” Buriss said. “But, I do not think any of them are humanities or art. Administration needs to bring hybrid classes to Montrose so that we can finish more degrees here.”
CMU Montrose remains a vital part of the university’s mission to serve rural communities.
As the university continues to expand, students and faculty hope to see improvements in program quality, certification transparency and resource distribution.
