Founded in 1925, Colorado Mesa University is a comprehensive, public liberal arts university situated in Grand Junction in the Western Slope of Colorado.
With over 11,000 students, the Colorado Mesa University is the regional hub for professional, technical, and liberal arts training at the bachelor’s, associates, and graduate level. With a roster of noted scholars who serve as faculty, Colorado Mesa University creates an environment designed to foster a dynamic exchange of ideas and to prepare its students for success in today’s interconnected world. By focusing on regional and national employment needs and trends, students at Colorado Mesa University gain the skills necessary to find meaningful work upon graduation and beyond.
The Center for Teacher Education at Colorado Mesa University prioritizes building community among the western slope counties in Colorado by placing students in local districts for field learning. The center works closely with districts to prepare new teachers for future employment. It works hard to ensure that future teachers have access to the highest quality learning by offering programs to individuals at all levels in their professional and student life. Each of the 13 different approved licensure and endorsement programs in the Center for Teacher Education at Colorado Mesa University are authorized by both the Colorado Department of Education and the Colorado Department of Higher Education.
Also, the Center for Teacher Education offers an opportunity for students to pursue a career as an elementary education teacher while continuing to live in their Colorado community. The program provides students access to a Bachelor of Arts degree with elementary education licensure, using a cohort model that starts each fall. The four semester sequence is designed for students to complete the education coursework through online and computer-based coursework. All of our online elementary students must complete field hours in area schools. Students are typically placed within our 14-county western slope community of school districts.
Students at Colorado Mesa University have reduced the cost of their program using these methods. Check with Colorado Mesa University to see if you can, too!
Amount
Description
Grants, Stipends, Scholarships
The Reisher Scholars Program is available to students who transfer from community college to traditional universities and who have already demonstrated academic and leadership potential as undergraduates.
The Saccomanno Higher Education Foundation awards scholarships to eligible students from Mesa County, Colorado and Carbon County, Utah.
Delta Kappa Gamma, an international society of outstanding women educators, offers the Title XI Scholarship to support an outstanding female educator during her final student teaching semester.
Work Study, Working While Still Enrolled
Work Study is offered based on student need. If a student is not eligible for Pell Grants, CMU also offers work assistantships to students who do not have a financial need.
English Language Arts (7-12) Music (K-12) Physical Education (K-12) Science (7-12) Social Studies (7-12) Special Education Elementary Education (Pre-K) Visual Arts (K-12) World Languages—Spanish (7-12)
Program Semesters/Steps Overview
During their first year on campus, students begin to fulfill Colorado Mesa University essential learning course requirements and take EDUC 115.
Students move through Colorado Mesa University required coursework and take 2 education program prerequisites. By the end of the second year, CMU students will complete 20 field hours as part of their application to the CTE.
Pending their acceptance to the Center for Teaching Education, and depending on their program, students take between 9 and 12 upper division course credits in education. Courses focus on inclusivity, building relationships with parents and students, and understanding assessments and self-expression in preparation for focused disciplines.
Students spend the first semester in preparation for their field internship by taking method courses designed to dovetail with their increasing role in the internship classroom. During their final semester, students complete the student teaching internship (12 credit hours).
Program Hallmarks
Prerequisites for acceptance to the Center for Teacher Education include 20 hours of field experience. Once accepted, all licensure programs have state-mandated field hours associated with them. Students fulfill these hours with a regional education partner within the 14 counties on the Western Slope. Distance learning students may complete these hours outside of these partnerships but will meet with a program coordinator for approval.
The Center for Teacher Education at Colorado Mesa University prepares future teachers to work with diverse populations with unique needs, including students in poverty and students with different racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. All CTE students must take and pass courses which prepare them for this type of classroom experience. Required courses like Teaching to Diversity are comprehensive courses that prepare students to reflect on their own worldview, and to plan and differentiate their instruction to meet the diverse needs of students.
The Center for Teacher Education follows a team-teaching model. This model fosters collaborative efforts and draws on the strengths of each partner in the development of curriculum and the practice and implementation of effective teaching strategies. The key components of the team-teaching internship model include collaborative teaching approaches, reduced student-teacher ratios, peer support groups at host schools, and increased professional development opportunities. Students are placed with at least one mentor teacher and assigned a University Supervisor.
The Center for Teacher Education adheres to the Colorado Teacher Quality Standards by focusing on overlapping performance goals for students. The CTE focuses its education areas on the student’s knowledge of the subject matter, their professional skills, and by fostering a passion for innovation in education. The planned sequence of courses and field experience ensures students are exposed to and are accountable to achieving these standards.
Stats
Gender
Male
Female
24%
76%
Ethnicity
American Indian or Alaskan Native
Asian
Black
Hispanic/Latino
Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
0%
0%
1%
9%
0%
88%
2%
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