Education builds futures and is a pathway to hope. A prosperous future for Colorado depends on educated employees and skilled workers.
The global coronavirus pandemic has created economic hardship for countless Colorado families, and has created difficult and challenging times for many Front Range Community College (FRCC) students. More than 125,000 Coloradans have filed for unemployment. As the pandemic continues, Coloradans face losing not only their jobs, but their savings and homes.
Supporting Students Who Need It Most
As a response, community supporter Adolfson & Peterson Construction (AP) is contributing $10,000 to the FRCC Foundation’s High Needs Fund. This emergency fund will help students who are experiencing unexpected financial hardships during this pandemic that require immediate attention, such as medical, utilities, internet and housing expenditures. The fund will also support campus food pantries, ensuring that no student goes hungry.
AP is fortunate to be in an industry considered essential under our governor’s recently issued stay-at-home order. Our family-owned business offers preconstruction and construction services to commercial, education, health care, hospitality, municipal, recreation and senior living market segments.
Thankfully, with our jobsites still running, we have been able to maintain employment for our hundreds of workers—and keep thousands of subcontractors, vendors and suppliers employed during this time. We protect our employees’ health and safety each day by enforcing strict preventative and safety protocols in both our offices and jobsites. Our employees are at the center of our culture and daily represent our mission to build for our communities.
A Long-Term Partnership
AP and FRCC have been business partners since 2009, completing 24 projects together in the years since. This partnership has allowed FRCC to expand and offer more educational services and operational efficiencies.
Included in this work was building a new lab for the college’s Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) certificate program. Now more than ever we recognize the value of FRCC’s EMT training—providing the skills needed by Colorado’s fire departments, ambulance services, hospitals and emergency rooms.
The EMT program is just one of many FRCC degrees and certificates that graduate essential health care professionals. This frightening coronavirus underscores the importance of these programs and the sacrifices all our health care workers make every day for us all.
In addition to the college’s many varied and numerous certificates and associate degrees, FRCC students also have the opportunity to affordably complete the first two years of their bachelor’s degree—and then transfer to a four-year college or university.
Real-Life Impacts
On a personal level, I began my college experience at a community college, and it was a great milestone in the early years of my career and professional development. I fully support the opportunities FRCC provides to our community and future professionals.
Construction companies will need 60,000 workers in the next five years as older employees retire. I can’t emphasize enough the significance of the skilled workers FRCC graduates, who are critical to the growth of Colorado businesses and the economic future of our state.
As the construction industry is already pressured with the challenges of labor shortages, future trade workers and professionals are essential to supporting our industry, the economy, and the ability to continue to build quality infrastructure for our world. Twenty-thousand FRCC students are 20,000 future working professionals for our community.
Life offers difficult decisions; however, contributing to the FRCC High Needs Fund was not one of them. By donating to the fund, AP supports students today for Colorado’s future.
