Boulder & Community

Early Women’s Sports at �� Boulder

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:34:30 +0000

Early Women’s Sports at �� Boulder Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:34

Christie Sounart

In 1905, �� women’s field hockey made university history as the first women’s team to play on Gamble Field, an outdoor sports stadium on campus. The team was organized by the student-run Women’s Athletic Association (WAA), which began the same year and aimed to cultivate more competitive women’s sports at the university. Prior to the WAA’s efforts, women’s basketball was the sole organized female sport at ��.

By 1908, �� women had their own athletic field, a rarity in the western United States at a time when most women’s teams did not compete publicly. The WAA encouraged participation in women’s athletics through a points system that rewarded athletes with pins, letters and sweaters.

Despite this momentum, a university policy that prevented women’s teams from traveling for competition slowed the development of women’s intercollegiate play for decades. Meaningful change came with the passage of Title IX in 1972, which transformed women’s sports both at �� Boulder and nationwide. In the mid-1970s, the university officially rebuilt its women’s athletics program, hiring Jane Wahl as the first coordinator of women’s sports and, later, women’s athletic director.

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Photo from 1907 Coloradan yearbook

In 1905, �� women’s field hockey made university history as the first women’s team to play on Gamble Field.

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Rise of the BOLDERBoulder

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:29:05 +0000

Rise of the BOLDERBoulder Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:29

Julia MacLean

Olympian Frank Shorter winning the 1981 BOLDERBoulder.

When the BOLDERBoulder race debuted in May 1979 with 2,200 finishers, it was already one of the largest 10Ks in the Rocky Mountain Region. Within a year, participation more than doubled. Impressed by the race’s momentum, then-�� System president Arnold Weber and then-�� Boulder athletic director Eddie Crowder invited race founder Steve Bosley (RelEst’68) to bring the finish line to campus.

In 1981, over 8,500 runners charged towards the finish at Folsom Field. In the decades since, over 1.5 million racers have crossed the finish line on Memorial Day at the iconic �� Boulder stadium.

While the race course has changed frequently, with a dozen differing routes since 1979, every version has weaved through Boulder’s neighborhoods, business districts and the �� campus.

The BOLDERBoulder stands out not just for its size but also for its lively bystanders. From the race’s early years, local residents have lined the streets with sprinklers and speakers, adding encouragement and fun through public Slip ’N Slides, backyard BBQs and costumed characters.

Even with the entertainment, though, the race is a serious competition — at altitude — and its International Team Challenge attracts top athletes from around the world.

“We coined the phrase ‘Sea Level is for Slackers,’” said current race director Cliff Bosley.

Over 105 Olympians have competed over the years, including race co-founder Frank Shorter. In 2010, Runner’s World named the race “America’s All-Time Best 10K.”

In 2025, over 46,000 people participated in the race, ranging in age from 5 to 98, making it the fourth-largest road race in the nation.

Did you race in the BOLDERBoulder while you were at ��? We want to hear your memories! Email us at editor@colorado.edu.

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Photos courtesy BOLDERBoulder

When the race debuted in May 1979 with 2,200 finishers, it was already one of the largest 10Ks in the Rocky Mountain Region.

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�� Boulder’s Rural Colorado Workshop Series Keeps Small Town Main Streets Alive

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:27:53 +0000

�� Boulder’s Rural Colorado Workshop Series Keeps Small Town Main Streets Alive Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:27

Christie Sounart

Six years ago, southwest Colorado resident Mary Hearding launched Karma Tutors, providing academic support to students both locally in and near Telluride, Colorado, and globally through videoconferences. She also began the Karma Tutors Impact Fund to aid students who don’t have the financial means for a tutor.

The program’s successful launch was due in part to her involvement with the Rural Colorado Workshop Series (RCWS), a certificate course offered through �� Boulder’s Leed’s Deming Center for Entrepreneurship for citizens in rural and native Colorado areas.

Led by Erick Mueller (MBA’99), executive director of the Deming Center, the volunteer-run program pairs �� business faculty with local organizations throughout Colorado. Each year for five years, community members attend an in-person, day-and-a-half meeting focused on entrepreneurship and business vitality in their region.

“�� Boulder is Colorado’s flagship university,” said Mueller. “I think it’s important we give back to our state.”

RCWS’ first two sessions focus on turning ideas into businesses, the third and fourth focus on scaling existing businesses and the final session provides tools for enhancing companies through aspects like technology, marketing or performance management.

Mueller has been involved in all 45 of the program’s weekend workshops since they began in 2015. He’s fueled by job creation and elevated entrepreneurial ecosystems, he said. One report out of Chaffee County, for instance, said 56 jobs were connected with workshop series attendees founding or growing companies.

“It’s such a gift to see these amazing community members act on their passions,” he said.

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Map image courtesy Raven Maps & Images

The workshop program visits regions, not cities, to help create community and collaboration.

KEY

Yellow: Southwest Colorado Region

Norwood

Telluride

Ignacio

Montrose

Red: Southeast Colorado Region

Trinidad

Pueblo

Green: Northeast Colorado Region

Sterling

Purple: Northwest Colorado Region

Hayden

Craig

Blue: Central Mountain Region

Buena Vista

Vail

The volunteer-run program pairs �� business faculty with local organizations throughout Colorado.

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A Season of Buffs Giving at �� Boulder

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:26:39 +0000

A Season of Buffs Giving at �� Boulder Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:26

April Driver

Darla Thompson (Soc’92) is eager to support her alma mater. As a Forever Buffs Advisory Board member and Homecoming volunteer, she has long enjoyed participating in university happenings. After moving back to Colorado in 2021, she started volunteering to read student scholarship applications and became inspired to contribute even more.

Last March, during �� Boulder’s annual giving day, Buffs All In, she donated to the university, citing her belief in the power of collective generosity.

“When so many people come together, even small gifts add up to something meaningful,” she said.

Thompson chose to contribute to scholarship funds to help make a �� Boulder education more accessible to students.

The Buffs All In campaign runs throughout the month of March, allowing for the creation of a network of �� donors who can see their collective giving in real time, further emphasizing the value of their gifts.

In past years, Buffs have chosen to amplify their giving through challenge gifts, which unlock additional funds when the challenge reaches a milestone, such as a donor quota or collective giving threshold.

Scott (Econ’79) and Linda Flanders offer a $25,000 challenge each year for the College of Arts and Sciences. “Liberal arts schools are often underfunded compared to business and technology degrees,” he said. “My �� education positioned me for success in business and helped me relate to many different people over a long and varied career.”

The Flanders were inspired after attending an event where a donor matched all gifts received during the dinner, prompting them to give unexpectedly. Now, they create their own challenge during Buffs All In to support the college that shaped Scott’s future.

His advice to Buffs?

“Give what you can. It’ll make you feel good.”

This March, join thousands of Buffs making a difference. Every gift — big or small — supports student success and the programs that can make a real difference. Be all in.

Make a gift or learn more

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Photos courtesy �� Boulder Advancement Marketing and Communications

Buffs All In unlocks potential at the university.

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The History of Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship at �� Boulder

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:24:05 +0000

The History of Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship at �� Boulder Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:24

Sarah Kuta

For years, North Denver residents complained about bad smells wafting through their neighborhoods, but nothing ever seemed to change. Then, they got in touch with Shelly Miller, a �� Boulder professor emerita of mechanical engineering who studies urban air quality.

Miller took their concerns seriously and sprang into action. Working in collaboration with residents and local community organizations, she conducted research to identify the sources of the odors and determine whether and how they might be affecting air quality. As suspected, the pungent aromas were coming from nearby industrial facilities, including a pet food factory, an oil refinery, a roofing plant and an animal rendering plant. Miller’s research also detected higher-than-normal concentrations of air pollutants during stinky periods.

In 2016, as a result of her findings, and with continued lobbying from residents, the City of Denver strengthened its odor ordinance. The new rules didn’t completely solve the problem, but they were a step in the right direction — one that helped make North Denver residents feel seen and heard.

Miller’s efforts are an example of public and community-engaged scholarship, or research that connects with and involves individuals beyond the university and, often, contributes to public conversations and policies.

“A lot of my projects up to that point had been lab-based or more controlled setups,” said Miller. “I started thinking about my contributions to science, and I realized I really wanted to impact people’s lives today.”

For �� Boulder, this kind of research has been crucial to the university’s ethos since its inception 150 years ago. It continues today with innovative scholars like Miller, who are committed to studying and solving real-world problems — everything from reducing wildfire risk to bridging the political divide.

“It’s really essential to our identity as Colorado’s public flagship university,” said David Meens, executive director of the Office for Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship (PACES), which has helped fund Miller’s air quality work. “The spirit of service is so strong, and it really comes from the ground up. People here want the scholarship they’re producing to be of value to people.”

PACES can involve community members directly in research projects

Engagement with the community was seen as essential for any public institution to be viable.

— David Meens, executive director of the Office for Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship (PACES)

Engagement Origins

In 1861, Colorado’s first territorial legislature passed a bill to establish the university, though the plans took more than a decade to materialize in Boulder. These lawmakers commissioned the university to educate students, but they also had a much broader goal in mind: serving every resident of Colorado. That charge was later stipulated in a federal land grant and enshrined in the state’s constitution.

“Engagement with the community was seen as essential for any public institution to be viable,” said Meens. “It would take an understanding of its value and buy-in from really diverse communities — geographically, demographically — because its authorizing charge was really about supporting public life in Colorado.”

In 1912, the university established a new extension office to help bring that vision to life. The unit’s first director, Loran D. Osborn, felt the university’s resources were so valuable they should be made available to “individuals who cannot come within the college walls and communities which are seeking information and guidance in solution of the complex problems of modern life,” he wrote in the first University Extension Bulletin in February 1912.

In the ensuing decades, the unit greatly expanded �� Boulder’s footprint throughout Colorado, with offerings like correspondence courses, public lectures, citizenship programs, radio broadcasts and clinics throughout the state. By the 1970s, �� Boulder had become a major national research institution, an identity shift that also broadened its community engagement focus. �� Boulder researchers began pursuing national and international projects, in addition to those closer to home.

That same ethos has carried through to the modern era. In 2001, the university created a new hub to support its community engagement activities, both in Colorado and beyond — the Office for University Outreach, which is now PACES.

Over the last 2.5 decades, PACES has awarded more than $8 million to various projects, from dance programs in rural Colorado communities to clean water initiatives in Africa — a project that ultimately gave rise to Engineers Without Borders USA, now a well-known and longstanding nonprofit.

�� Boulder scholars have also taken a stand against bullying using live theater, worked to make classrooms more inclusive for all students, and helped Rocky Mountain National Park develop new Indigenous history exhibits and programs. They’ve taught underrepresented youth how to code, helped rural communities maintain their historic water distribution philosophies, and delivered free fossil kits to schools around the state.

“We’re really interested in hearing from people directly and listening to the issues they have,” said Meens. “We want to know what’s going on so we can identify resources and folks on campus who might be able to help. We bridge that gap and put those pieces together.”

In addition to addressing the needs of Colorado communities, this type of work benefits �� Boulder students, faculty and staff.

“Engaging in real-world contexts makes research better and more interesting,” said Meens. “Students who participate in these types of experiences learn more, and they have a more positive experience overall. Really, community-engaged scholarship is a tremendous value-add across all of the university’s core activities.”

Force for Good

In November 2025, Chancellor Justin Schwartz moved PACES into the newly formed Outreach and Community Engagement unit within his office — a move that elevates and reaffirms the university’s commitment to public and community-engaged research, teaching and creative work for the years to come.

Externally, PACES will continue fostering authentic relationships across Colorado and beyond. At a time when public confidence in higher education is waning and communities are facing numerous challenges, Meens believes public and community-engaged research will remain a force for good.

“We have a real opportunity,” he said. “We’re in a moment where folks understand the value of collaboration and working to achieve bigger things in ways that are beneficial to everyone. There’s so much more we can achieve.”

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Photos courtesy Shelly Miller

Research involving the community has been crucial to the university’s ethos since its inception 150 years ago.

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The Takács Quartet Enters a New Era

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:22:45 +0000

The Takács Quartet Enters a New Era Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:22

Sabine Kortals Stein

The Takács Quartet, from left: Edward Dusinberre, András Fejér, Harumi Rhodes and Richard O’Neill. Fejér will step down at the end of the 2025-26 season after a 51-year tenure.

The Takács Quartet, dubbed “the essential quartet of our time” by The New York Times, is fresh off its 50th anniversary season of international touring and critical acclaim. In December, the quartet announced the retirement of cellist András Fejér, the last remaining member of the original quartet, which was founded by four students — Gábor Takács-Nagy, Károly Schranz, Gábor Ormai and Fejér — at the Franz Liszt Academy, Budapest, in 1975.

Fejér will step down at the end of the 2025-26 season after a remarkable 51- year tenure. And the quartet’s newest member, Romanian-born cellist Mihai Marica, will join the quartet this fall. As part of the ensemble’s longstanding residency at �� Boulder (beginning in 1986), Marica also will join the College of Music faculty.

“We’re very grateful to András for the fulfilling and fun quartet work we’ve shared,” said Edward Dusinberre, first violinist. “We’re especially grateful for the sustained integrity of his musicianship, and for his friendship, support and humor. While cherishing András’ extraordinary legacy, we’re thrilled to welcome Mihai.

“From the very first notes we played together with Mihai, we felt an instant musical connection, and we eagerly look forward to the future.”

Fejér added, “It’s the right time — I’ve had a beautifully rewarding quality of life, working on inspiring music with wonderful colleagues who became great friends and performing all over the world for appreciative audiences. My heartfelt thanks to all our friends and supporters over the years — I’ll miss you like mad.”

The news comes among many recent accolades for the quartet, including Chamber Music America’s prestigious Richard J. Bogomolny National Service Award in recognition of the Takács Quartet’s contributions to the chamber music field.

“The quartet not only elevates the reputation of our college and university as a whole through its world-class artistry, but especially through its members’ devoted mentorship of our students and their strong spirit of community engagement,” said John Davis, dean of the College of Music. “The Takács Quartet represents the very best of what we do, and we look forward to its continued impact and influence.”

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Photo by Amanda Tipton

Last year, the group announced the retirement of cellist András Fejér, the last remaining member of the original quartet.

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A Look at Robert Redford's Bat, Ball and Glove from the movie The Natural

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:21:50 +0000

A Look at Robert Redford's Bat, Ball and Glove from the movie The Natural Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:21

Throughout the 1984 film The Natural (1984), Robert Redford’s character, Roy Hobbs, wrestles with the consequences of his past. In a pivotal scene, Glenn Close’s character, Iris Gaines, tells him: “I believe we have two lives. The life we learn with and the life we live with after that.” It’s a line about redemption — and one that echoes Redford’s own early life path.

Redford (A&S ex’58, HonDoc Hum’87) attended �� Boulder from fall 1954 to spring 1956, joining Kappa Sigma and working as a janitor at The Sink. He left to study art in Europe before enrolling in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. He then launched a career that spanned nearly 80 film roles, beginning with War Hunt in 1962. By the time The Natural premiered, he was a household name.

Redford gave the bat, ball and glove from the film to Chancellor James Corbridge, who donated them to the �� Heritage Center in 1992.

Redford died in September 2025 at age 89, but his legacy in Boulder will continue — the Sundance Film Festival, which he founded, moves to the city in January 2027.

Bat, Ball and Glove Facts:

Glove was custom-made for Redford, who was left-handed.
All three items were used by Redford in the film.
Glove and bat feature 1930s styling.

Film Facts:

The Natural was nominated for four Academy Awards.
Film loosely based on a true story about Philadelphia Phillies player Eddie Waitkus
Robert Redford modeled his character after a player he greatly admired, Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox
Robert Redford was 47 years old when the movie premiered

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Photo courtesy Mona Lambrecht, �� Heritage Museum

Redford gave the items to Chancellor James Corbridge, who donated them to the �� Heritage Center in 1992.

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�� Alum Takes An Affordable Approach to Indoor Farming

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:20:19 +0000

�� Alum Takes An Affordable Approach to Indoor Farming Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:20

Marc Zarefsky

Maximilian Knight (EnvEngr’17) was in sixth grade when he saw a documentary that changed his outlook on the world around him.

The Cove, which won the Academy Award for best documentary feature in 2010, featured an in-depth look at a small town in Japan known for capturing and selling dolphins to aquariums around the world. The film featured graphic footage and raised critical questions about dolphin hunting practices.

Knight was transfixed.

“It was a pretty tough subject, but through that film, I became more aware of things going on in the world,” Knight said. “The whole community of people trying to do good in the world and trying to make the world a better place — that really inspired me and continues to.”

Knight took that inspiration and found his own way to improve the world. As founder and CEO of Boulder-based Rooted Robotics, Knight’s mission is to provide affordable automation systems to indoor farms of all sizes.

The company, founded in 2019, offers game-changing technology to small and mid-size controlled-environment growers who can’t afford industrial-sized — and industrial-priced — services.

“If we look to 50 or 100 years from now, if climate change does get significantly worse, as is largely expected, we need to be able to feed ourselves,” Knight said. “We need to be able to do that at scale without having millions or billions of people starve because we can’t grow as much food in the same ways that we used to.”

Enter controlled-environment agriculture, a term Knight explained refers to incorporating a more technology-focused approach to farming. In these environments, which often exist as vertical farms or greenhouses, growers can control everything from temperature and sunlight to humidity and nutrients, along with countless factors in between.

This flexibility allows growers to customize what they grow and when they grow it in a way traditional farmers cannot.

Rooted Robotics offers products that help farmers with seeding, harvesting and cleaning. Each system is designed with simplicity, reliability and sustainability in mind. Everything the company sells is also made to be upgradable with customized add-ons, allowing the machines to grow with the farms they support.

Knight’s own expertise in the field dates back to his time in �� Boulder’s College of Engineering & Applied Science, where he learned many of the technical skills he routinely applies to his work. But perhaps the biggest takeaway from his time at �� was, as he describes it, learning how to learn.

“I studied environmental engineering, which is not really what I do today,” Knight said. “Even though I’m not doing water treatment engineering or sanitation engineering, I learned how to teach myself new skills.”

Christian Maljian (left), Sebastian Vazquez-Carson (middle) and Maximilian Knight (right)

Knight also met Rooted Robotics’ chief technology officer at the school. He and Sebastian Vazquez-Carson (Phys’17) were friends as undergraduates, and the two reconnected in 2022 when Vazquez joined the company to help with a robotic system.

When Knight considered undergraduate programs, he was drawn to the community he found at ��. Today, with his company still housed in Boulder, he has kept close ties to the school. Christian Maljian (Engr’19) is co-founder and head of mechanical engineering. Of Rooted Robotics’ seven part-time employees, six are students from the College of Engineering & Applied Science or the Leeds School of Business.

Rooted Robotics also hosts summer interns from �� Boulder. In addition, the company partnered with the Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering this year to sponsor a capstone project. The senior students involved with the project are helping Rooted Robotics develop a variation of the company’s seeding machine.

Knight’s hope is that, through the partnership and the innovation he’s brought to the company since its founding, Rooted Robotics can continue to be an inspiration and valuable resource for indoor growers.

“A beautiful vision that could exist in 50 to 100 years would be that we’re growing most of our agriculture in these controlled environments,” Knight said. “Because of that, nature will be able to reclaim a lot of the farmland that blankets the Earth. That can also help with reversing climate change at scale. That’s part of the future that we want to create.”

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Photos courtesy Maximilian Knight

Maximilian Knight’s company Rooted Robotics takes an affordable approach to indoor farming.

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Celebrating 150 Years of �� People

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:16:07 +0000

Celebrating 150 Years of �� People Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:16

Julia MacLean

Over 150 years, �� Boulder has been shaped by the vision, courage and tenacity of many students, faculty, staff and alumni. These Buffs have spurred change for the university and left an imprint on the legacy that propels it forward.

Joseph Sewall

1877 — Became ��’s first president

A 19th-century American physician, scientist and educator, Joseph Sewall served as �� Boulder’s first president from 1877 to 1887. Before he arrived in Colorado, he trained in medicine and natural science and taught as a professor of chemistry at Illinois State Normal University. When �� opened on Sept. 5, 1877, there was only a single building — Old Main — which contained classrooms, a library, a chapel and the living quarters for the Sewall family.

Today, Sewall is remembered as the man “in at the birth” of ��, who directed its first steps and helped lay the foundation for what the university would become. In 1935, the university built Sewall Hall in his honor, which is the oldest continuously used residence hall on campus.

Mary Rippon in 1882.

Mary Rippon

1878 — Appointed ��’s first female professor

Mary Rippon’s distinguished career at �� Boulder spanned over 30 years. Besides making history as the first female professor at ��, she is also believed to be one of the first women in the United States to teach at a state university. Beloved by students, Rippon taught language and literature, eventually earning a position as head of the Department of Germanic Languages and Literature. She is honored today by the Mary Rippon Outdoor Theatre on ��’s campus. Rippon also lived a fascinating hidden life — in 1888, she secretly married a �� student, Will Housel, and gave birth to their daughter, Miriam Housel. She concealed this truth for decades to retain her position and support her family.

Lucile Berkeley Buchanan Jones (Ger’1918)

1918 — Graduated from ��

Lucile Berkeley Buchanan Jones was an educator and the first known Black woman to graduate from �� Boulder. Born to parents who had been enslaved, she grew up in the Barnum subdivision of Denver, where her family became the area’s first Black property owners. Before attending ��, she broke barriers by becoming the first Black graduate to earn a two-year teaching degree from what is now the University of Northern Colorado. In 1918, she earned a bachelor’s degree in German from �� — however, due to racial prejudice, she was not allowed to walk across the stage at commencement or appear in the yearbook. Her diploma was handed to her off-stage, an act that led her to vow that she would never return to campus. Nearly 100 years after her graduation, �� formally recognized Buchanan’s achievement, and during the 2018 commencement ceremony, a diploma was symbolically accepted on her behalf by CMDI associate professor Polly McLean.

George Norlin

1919 — Appointed president of ��

George Norlin joined �� as a classics professor in 1899, became acting president in 1917 and began serving as permanent president in 1919, where he remained until 1939. Under his transformative leadership, �� underwent a dramatic period of expansion, despite the Great Depression: the student body more than tripled, several university buildings were constructed and architect Charles Klauder redesigned the campus in the Tuscan vernacular style. Norlin left a lasting moral and cultural legacy at the university. He is famous for resisting pressure from the legislature (influenced by the Ku Klux Klan), refusing to dismiss all Catholic and Jewish faculty. He also wrote The Norlin Charge, first read at the 1935 commencement ceremony, which remains a part of �� tradition today.

Byron White (Econ’38)

1935 — Earned the Buffaloes national attention

Byron “Whizzer” White is among the most celebrated student-athletes in the history of Colorado Buffaloes football. His senior year, he led the Buffaloes through a successful season, earning national attention and helping elevate the profile of the program. He was later inducted into the Buffaloes’ Athletic Hall of Fame in recognition of his elite play and impact on �� athletics. After his athletic career, White distinguished himself in public service, eventually serving as a justice of the United States Supreme Court.

Peggy Coppom (A&S ex’46) and Betty Hoover (A&S ex’46)

1940 — Began cheering on the Buffs

The “�� Twins” earned legendary status on campus through decades of unwavering devotion to �� athletics. The sisters first began cheering for the Buffs as Boulder High School students. They were loyal season ticket holders for �� football (beginning in the late 1950s) and basketball (late 1970s). Wearing matching goldenrod �� sweatshirts and waving pom-poms, Peggy and Betty became a fixture in the stands and remain one of the most iconic fan duos in school history. After Betty’s death in 2020, Peggy’s dedication to �� has remained as strong as ever. In recognition of her lifelong commitment, Peggy was honored with the 2025 Chancellor’s Impact Award.

David Bolen (Mktg; MBA’50)

1948 — Competed in the Olympic Games

After David Bolen served in the Army Air Force for two years during World War II, �� Boulder track and field coach Frank Potts recruited him to the university. He then earned All-America honors. At 25, Bolen became the first �� student to qualify for the 1948 U.S. Olympic Team, where he placed fourth in the 400m race at the London games. After graduating, Bolen began a distinguished diplomatic career, serving as U.S. Ambassador to Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland beginning in 1974, and to East Germany beginning in 1977. He also was the first Black ambassador to a nation behind the Iron Curtain.

Billy Kidd

1964 — Won an Olympic alpine skiing medal

In February 1964, at the Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, Billy Kidd became the first U.S. man to win an Olympic alpine skiing medal, a silver in the slalom. Over the next several years, he captured gold in the combined event at the 1970 World Championships in Val Gardena and became the first American man to win a world alpine title. He then went professional, claiming the pro world championship that same year. After graduating from ��, Kidd remained in Colorado and became the long-time director of skiing at Steamboat Ski Resort in 1970. Beyond instruction, he helped initiate ski-based outreach and inclusion efforts, supporting Special Olympics athletes, wounded veterans and Native American youth through ski camps and mentorship programs.

“Ralph”

1966 — Folsom Field debut

The first official Ralphie mascot, “Ralph” was the live buffalo that launched one of the most beloved traditions at the �� Boulder. In 1965, �� freshman Bill Lowery was determined to bring a live buffalo to Buffs football games instead of a costumed mascot. With the help of his rancher father, he successfully brought a buffalo calf from northeastern Colorado to Boulder. Ralph made her debut at Folsom Field on Oct. 1, 1966, charging onto the field with Lowery and a few of his fellow students flailing alongside her in cowboy boots.

Juan Espinosa (Jour’74)

1972 — Launched the newspaper El Diario de la Gente

As a �� Boulder student, Espinosa launched the bilingual newspaper El Diario de la Gente in 1972 as a member of the United Mexican American Students, a campus group aimed at bringing cultural awareness to Boulder’s Chicano community. The Vietnam War veteran later moved to Pueblo, Colorado, where he co-founded the alternative community newspaper La Cucaracha and worked for 22 years at The Pueblo Chieftain.

Tom Cech

1989 — Awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry

A distinguished professor of chemistry at �� Boulder, Thomas Cech is a renowned biochemist whose work has fundamentally reshaped our understanding of molecular biology. After earning his doctorate degree in chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley in 1975 and completing postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he joined the faculty of �� Boulder in 1978. In 1982, he and his research group made a groundbreaking discovery that RNA molecules, specifically from the pond organism Tetrahymena thermophila, could splice themselves, acting as enzymes in cellular reactions without proteins. In recognition of this paradigm-shifting work, Cech was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1989. Cech continues to lead research and education at �� Boulder as the founding director of the BioFrontiers Institute.

Ceal Barry

2018 — Inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame

As head coach for over 22 seasons, Ceal Barry left an undeniable mark on �� Boulder’s women’s basketball. In her time as coach, she accumulated a record of 427-242, the most wins by any head coach in �� sports history. Under her leadership, the program flourished. She had 13 seasons with 20 or more wins, 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and three trips to the Elite Eight. She was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018 in recognition of her impact and achievements. After stepping down as coach, Barry served for 15 years in �� Athletics administration, including a year as interim athletic director in 2013. The university unveiled Ceal Barry Plaza in her honor in January 2026.

Joe Neguse (Econ, PolSci’05; Law’09)

2018 — Elected to Congress

At �� Boulder Joe Neguse was involved in student government, served as co-student body president under the “tri-executive” system and worked on issues like diversity, affordability and higher-education finance. After graduating, he went on to serve on the �� Board of Regents, co-founded a nonprofit aimed at youth civic engagement and worked in Colorado politics. In 2018, Neguse was elected to represent Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, becoming the first Black Coloradan elected to Congress. During his time in office, he has focused on priorities like public-lands protection, affordable higher education, consumer protection and government accountability.

Wei Wu (MMus’13)

2019 — Awarded a Grammy Award

A bass singer from Beijing, Wei Wu has built a remarkable career in opera, earning international acclaim. Upon arriving in the U.S. in 2007, he auditioned for graduate work at �� Boulder’s College of Music, officially enrolling in 2008. During his time at ��, he honed and perfected the vocal technique, diction and stage presence that became instrumental to his professional success. Wu received his big break after performing the role of Kôbun Chino Otogawa in the world premiere of “The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs” at Santa Fe Opera. The recording won the 2019 Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording.

David Ellsworth (Art’71; MFA’73)

2021 — Honored with the Smithsonian Visionary Award

David Ellsworth helped elevate wood turning from a utilitarian craft to fine art. While studying sculpture at �� Boulder, he developed his signature approach, “blind turning,” a method using a set of bent tools that enables woodturners to hollow out wood into elegant, thin-walled vessels. Ellsworth taught his strategies at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and Anderson Ranch Arts Center, going on to found his own Ellsworth School of Woodturning. In 2021, he was honored with the Smithsonian Visionary Award by the Smithsonian Institution in recognition of his “ground-breaking, innovative and transformative career in wood art.”

Sarah Gillis (AeroEngr’17)

2024 — Played the violin in space

Sarah Gillis made history on Sept. 13, 2024 when she became the first person to play the violin in space, performing “Rey’s Theme” from Star Wars: The Force Awakens aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft more than 870 miles above Earth. Her crewmates captured her performance, which took place in zero gravity conditions during the Polaris Dawn mission, and sent to Earth via Starlink. Gillis first developed an interest in space in high school and went on to study aerospace engineering at �� Boulder. After internships and work at SpaceX, she joined the Polaris Dawn crew as a mission specialist, where she became the youngest astronaut to participate in a spacewalk.

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Photo credits: In order of appearance: Courtesy Carnegie Library for Local History/Museum of Boulder Collection (Mary Rippon); �� Heritage Center (Joseph Sewall); �� Heritage Center (George Norlin); Glenn Asakawa (Peggy Coppom and Betty Hoover); Courtesy the Buchanan Archives (Lucile Berkeley Buchanan Jones); Courtesy Tom Cech; Glenn Asakawa (Tom Cech); Polaris Dawn crew (Sarah Gillis); Glenn Asakawa (Wei Wu); Courtesy Juan Espinosa; �� Heritage Center (David Bolen); �� Heritage Center (Byron White); �� Athletics (Ceal Barry); Courtesy Joe Neguse; Roshni Gorur/Courtesy of Anderson Ranch (David Ellsworth); Courtesy Billy Kidd; Coloradan archives (Ralphie)

�� Boulder has been shaped by the vision, courage and tenacity of many students, faculty, staff and alumni since 1876.

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Spring 2026

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Buffalo Statues of �� Boulder

Anna Tolette — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 21:09:03 +0000

Buffalo Statues of �� Boulder Anna Tolette Mon, 03/09/2026 - 15:09

Some stand framed by the Flatirons; others are tucked into campus corners. A few are carved from marble; many are cast in bronze.

Several have horns smoothed by thousands of hopeful hands, rubbed for luck, for courage, for something just ahead. Each one holds a piece of someone’s �� Boulder story.

Scattered across the �� Boulder campus, buffalo statues are abundant. They stand as enduring symbols of strength, resilience and a united spirit for all who pass by.

Do you have a favorite? Email your photos to editor@colorado.edu.

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Photos by Casey A. Cass, Glenn Asakawa and Patrick Campbell

Where do the buffalo roam on campus?

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Boulder & Community

Early Women’s Sports at ���������� Boulder

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Rise of the BOLDERBoulder

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���������� Boulder’s Rural Colorado Workshop Series Keeps Small Town Main Streets Alive

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A Season of Buffs Giving at ���������� Boulder

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The History of Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship at ���������� Boulder

Engagement Origins

Force for Good

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The Takács Quartet Enters a New Era

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A Look at Robert Redford's Bat, Ball and Glove from the movie The Natural

Bat, Ball and Glove Facts:

Film Facts:

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���������� Alum Takes An Affordable Approach to Indoor Farming

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Celebrating 150 Years of ���������� People

Joseph Sewall

Mary Rippon

Lucile Berkeley Buchanan Jones (Ger’1918)

George Norlin

Byron White (Econ’38)

Peggy Coppom (A&S ex’46) and Betty Hoover (A&S ex’46)

David Bolen (Mktg; MBA’50)

Billy Kidd

“Ralph”

Juan Espinosa (Jour’74)

Tom Cech

Ceal Barry

Joe Neguse (Econ, PolSci’05; Law’09)

Wei Wu (MMus’13)

David Ellsworth (Art’71; MFA’73)

Sarah Gillis (AeroEngr’17)

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Buffalo Statues of ���������� Boulder

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Early Women’s Sports at �� Boulder

�� Boulder’s Rural Colorado Workshop Series Keeps Small Town Main Streets Alive

A Season of Buffs Giving at �� Boulder

The History of Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship at �� Boulder

�� Alum Takes An Affordable Approach to Indoor Farming

Celebrating 150 Years of �� People

Buffalo Statues of �� Boulder