Heins: Let’s talk Colorado State University

On Colorado State University’s 2014-2015 Institutional Profile, it reads, “CSU ranks 60th among public universities nation-wide, according to U.S. News and World Report’s 2014 “Best Colleges.” While 60th may not seem like 1st, considering the number of four-year and two-year institutions in the U.S., 4,140, we’re doing pretty well. However, of the distinguished teaching scholars and distinguished professors, a total of 29, listed on our institutional profile, four are professors and scholars with expertise in humanities and art.

CSU may be known for it’s incredible veterinary medicine program and it’s amazing environmental science programs as well, but as a masters in fine arts candidate, I had no knowledge of campus life when I applied. CSU’s creative writing MFA was on Poets and Writer’s 2012 Top 50 program list when I applied, and now, Publisher’s Weekly has included our program on it’s 2015 list of M.F.A. Programs to Watch. Our notable accomplishments include operating a small literary press, our state journal, “The Colorado Review” and hosting a collection of readings including Gary Snyder, one of the last living beat poets, and Cheryl Strayed, author Oprah book club selection, “Wild,” and close friend to my adviser here, E.J. Levy. We also foster some of the most interesting, young writers I’ve had the pleasure to have as peers. In short, I’m swimming in a sea of scientists, but let me tell you, the water is pretty warm in the humanities end of the pool.

As a first-year candidate however, I couldn’t grasp that I had been accepted into an incredible program, but only that I had been accepted at all. MFA programs are competitive and I was chomping at the bit to get back to school, discovering that writing for a paycheck in the advertising world wasn’t as satisfying for me as it could be for others. I picked the school for the professors, not necessarily the program. I came from the University of Missouri (my near and dear undergraduate experience), and received a degree in journalism and advertising at the top institution in the country. My time in Columbia was intense and my experience was carved by competition.

Fort Collins and CSU did not have to fight to make space. Of all the pleasant surprises in my life, Fort Collins remains one of my most treasured. With its incredible residents and community, beautiful mountainous view, selection of local shops and breweries and warm atmosphere, I had assumed, wrongly, that this place was a cow-town. Well done, KT. Now, I know the meaning of what it is to make a room of your own, a home outside what’s given to you as a child. My fondness for this place doesn’t come without concern. The new stadium broke ground with a divided opinion on whether it should stand, but relative excitement over the new game schedule. Tuition is increasing for out-of-state and in-state residents, something that, with the growing amount of students from out of state, is important to consider.

CSU offers very little student service to its minority population, roughly 18 percent of campus, and its LBGTQ student quality of life isn’t monitored, either. We also need to talk about the students, subjectively. I want to discuss what they think of the purpose of college is, to discuss their feelings on the outside world, local politics and their degrees, including program structure. As a graduate teaching assistant, I’ll have exposure to our entering freshman class, and I’m ready to learn as much as I can about the student sentiment on campus.

So, let’s talk shop, FoCO.

KT Heins is a columnist writing about Colorado State University from the perspective of a student. Reach her at keh9t9@gmail.com.