The University of Colorado’s 2025 Presidential Outreach Tour brought President Todd Saliman and Regents Nolbert Chavez, Elliott Hood, and Ilana Dubin Spiegel to the San Luis Valley from July 30 to August 1. The tour included stops in Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, and Rio Grande counties, where university leaders met with education officials, nonprofit groups, civic organizations, and business representatives. The purpose was to discuss the unique challenges facing rural southern Colorado and how CU can help address them.
“That’s our foundational commitment,” said Saliman. “We want to be here to educate people so they can get an affordable education and get a valuable degree so they can get a better job when they graduate.”
University leaders shared that 86% of Colorado resident applicants are accepted to CU campuses. Nearly half of these students graduate without debt. Saliman highlighted the university’s $400 million annual investment in financial aid: “CU puts more money into financial aid from internal resources than the state of Colorado puts into financial aid for all universities and colleges combined,” he said. “We are highly committed to bringing college within reach for the people of Colorado.”
Programs such as CU Promise offer full tuition and fee coverage for students with significant financial need, while initiatives like the CU Boulder Tuition Guarantee aim to improve affordability.
A key event took place in Monte Vista, where residents attended presentations from CU Boulder, UCCS, and CU Denver about academic programs, admissions processes, and scholarships.
“We want more people from the (San Luis) Valley at our campuses and that is why we are here,” Saliman stated. “We have lots of choices for people. We want to make sure that all our campuses have communities where anyone from the state of Colorado can feel welcome.”
At the San Luis Valley Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), university officials learned about local efforts to boost student achievement through district partnerships. In Centennial School District, discussions centered on a new Data Science Essentials Certificate Program developed with CU Denver that helps rural students prepare for careers in technology fields.
Meetings with local school administrators such as Luis Murillo focused on services provided by organizations like the San Luis Valley Family Center—including bilingual support and internet access—to help remove barriers faced by families.
“I want to make sure students who go through the University of Colorado can lead happy and healthy lives,” said Saliman. “The University of Colorado needs to be providing the skills, the training, the resources and the connections that you and I need to find that dream. We want to connect with more Coloradans to make sure that we can do that for as many Coloradans as we can.”
Beyond schools, CU leaders visited community groups including Boys & Girls Club locations supporting youth development; Shooting Stars Cultural and Leadership Center working on safe spaces for underserved youth; and met with members of Maestas Commemorative Committee regarding historic legal efforts against educational segregation.
Additional meetings were held with organizations such as San Luis Valley Resource Development Group, Attainment Network, and Alamosa Chamber of Commerce about linking education initiatives with regional economic growth strategies.
“We are Colorado’s university,” Saliman concluded. “It is our mission to serve the people of Colorado, and all of Colorado’s communities.”
