Arapahoe Community College Sturm Collaboration Campus at Castle Rock campus rendering.

Lift the Gift

In March 2019, Arapahoe Community College received a gift of up to $10 million from the Sturm Family Foundation, the largest in the history of the 13-institution Colorado Community College System. With an over $5 million match opportunity, bringing the full potential of the gift in excess of $15 million, the funding will be used in its entirety for ACC’s new Sturm Collaboration Campus at Castle Rock. You can help ACC to Lift The Gift through matching dollars raised by the ACC Foundation in 3 unique areas: the program innovation fund, an endowed scholarship fund, and an investment in the future Phase II of the campus.

Lift The Gift Sturm Innovation Fund

The Sturm Innovation Fund is dedicated to providing the Sturm Collaboration Campus with the flexibility to address future innovation needs and respond to emerging industry and workforce trends. Through the $500,000 match opportunity, this gift can be leveraged to create $1,000,000 for the development of relevant workforce development programs and the incubation of new program development and curriculum innovations. A portion of this gift will be allocated for faculty to apply for funding for the implementation of innovative practices in their classrooms.

Lift the Gift Sturm Scholarship Endowment

This up to $1.1 million dollar-for-dollar match opportunity being offered by the Sturm Family Foundation will provide approximately $80,000 per year in scholarships to students attending the Sturm Collaboration Campus. The significance of this gift can be life-altering for future ACC students, making the goal of obtaining a quality education at an affordable cost a reality. Compared to students at public, 4-year institutions, community college students are twice as likely to be non-traditional students, attend school part-time, be independent from their parents, have children, and work full-time. However, our scholarship recipients are more likely to earn higher GPAs, take more credits, complete their degrees or certifications and transfer to a 4-year institution.

Lift the Gift Phase II Activation

The vision for Phase II of the Sturm Collaboration Campus is being established through a $3.5 million match opportunity. Still conceptual at this time, design and program discussions for the Phase II campus are still a few years out. Contributing factors to the ultimate design and concept will be influenced by Phase I enrollment, regional workforce demands, expanded CSU pathways, future industry partnerships, and technical education needs for the Douglas County School District.

For more information on Lift the Gift contact ACC Foundation Executive Director Courtney Loehfelm at courtney [dot] loehfelm [at] arapahoe [dot] edu or 303.797.5914