Just shy of her one-year anniversary with Cottonwood Institute, Program Director Katie Vega has already made her mark on this organization, spearheading the creation of multiple new programs and constantly evaluating the ways we can address the needs of the communities we serve. Get to know Katie (and her constant companion/relentless Zoombomber Penny) in our… Read more »
Imagine that you are trying to give a sales presentation and you are in a video meeting staring at twenty-three icons. You make a joke—trying to break the ice, get a reaction. The icons are unwavering. This is virtual teaching in a COVID autumn. What you are selling is engagement with peers, connection to each… Read more »
With the US presidential election less than a week away — don’t worry, this is NOT a political post — I wanted to take an opportunity to share Cottonwood Institute‘s (CI) State of the Union in 2020. We are now 8 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and like many, CI’s world has turned upside down…. Read more »
Thanks to our virtual host and friend Jeffrey Kinsey from The Logos Group, Cottonwood Institute is honored to be a beneficiary of the Chai for Charity virtual event on Thursday, November 12, 2020. Chai for Charity connects donors to nonprofits in their community by contributing not just financial support, but also time and talent to… Read more »
Any student that’s taken a CAP Class with Cottonwood Institute can tell you that Action Projects are of the highlights of their experience. Typically, students choose an issue that they want to tackle as a whole class. Together, they find solutions and work to plan an action in their community; classes in the past have… Read more »
Our friends and partners at Cal-Wood Education Center need your support. Cal-Wood is a Boulder County institution, inviting hundreds of students and families into the mountains each year to connect with nature and learn about their world. They have graciously allowed Cottonwood Institute to run program trips on their land for many years. Now, having… Read more »
Although the 2020-21 school year is shaping up to be very different from any other in Cottonwood Institute’s history, it has presented us with an opportunity to work collaboratively with other organizations and reach students in new ways. One of these new programs, which launched in September, is our Lafayette Youth Stewardship Internship. Ten high school… Read more »
As we know at Cottonwood Institute, difficult times often present us with our greatest opportunities for growth. How do we show up when things get tough? How do we use struggle to deepen our connections to one another? Amid the challenges, this year has given us the chance to reflect on ourselves, our communities and… Read more »
At Cottonwood Institute, we’ve got reasons to love every time of year. Winter means plenty of snow for building quinzhees, spring is time for projects in the garden (or more quinzhees if the snow decides to stick around), and summer brings us down to Westcliffe for adventures at Mission: Wolf. But our favorite time of… Read more »
After three years of leading CAP, DirtWorks, and so much more at Boulder’s New Vista High School (NVHS), CI Instructor Amy Atkins will be moving on and pursuing new adventures this fall. We were sad to learn she will no longer be teaching CAP, but are equally glad to say that Amy is still working… Read more »
