Colorado State University originated in 1870 when the territorial legislature established an agricultural college at Fort Collins. This school qualified for endowment under the Morrill Act of 1862, which provided federal land grants to academic institutions offering instruction in “such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts” and promoting “the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions of life.” Ideally, land-grant schools would make higher education more useful, accessible, and democratic.

Nearly a decade passed before classes began at Fort Collins, but in the interim, experimental work was conducted on the campus farm. How could the emerging modern sciences of physics, chemistry, and biology be applied to Colorado’s distinctive agricultural conditions? Which were the most suitable methods of soil use, irrigation, crop selection, animal care, and pest control? Answers demanded careful study, which an agricultural experiment station would soon provide. Research thus preceded teaching.

On September 1, 1879, President Elijah E. Edwards and a two-member faculty welcomed the first students to the college. In the beginning, a single course of study served all, and the original graduating class – George H. Glover, Leonidas Loomis, and Libby Coy – received degrees on June 5, 1884. By the turn of the century, however, the curriculum included fully developed majors in agriculture, engineering, and home economics, along with fledgling graduate-level work. Dedicated faculty contributed to this development, among them James Lawrence, Clarence Gillette, Theodosia Ammons, and Elwood Mead. Mead, for example, introduced the first instructional program in irrigation engineering to be offered by an American college or university, and Lake Mead, Nevada, commemorates his subsequent professional esteem.

Outreach augmented research and teaching. Knowledge generated in Fort Collins could benefit Coloradans beyond the home campus, and in 1880, the college began offering farmers’ institutes at various locations. Eventually, extension agents would provide locally focused service in all Colorado counties and launch enduring programs, such as 4-H. Research, teaching, and outreach were all key college activities when Charles A. Lory began a 31-year tenure as president in 1909. A former ditch rider, whose family had homesteaded in Colorado, Lory imbued the school with a commitment to practical education and service to the state. During his presidency, enrollments grew from 217 to 2,048, and the college developed into a well-rounded technical institution. By 1940, degrees were available in agriculture, engineering, home economics, veterinary medicine, forestry, vocational education, agricultural economics, and rural sociology. Notable faculty of the Lory era included Inga Allison, Lawrence Durrell, Walter J. Morrill, Isaac E. Newsom, Elizabeth Forbes, and Ruth J. Wattles.

These years also featured extracurricular activities and campus traditions. Fraternity and sorority life, Coach Harry Hughes’ football teams, and painting the “A” all left indelible memories. So did the calamity of the Great Depression, which posed exceptional challenges for Colorado’s land-grant institution as it worked to mobilize outreach support for the state’s hard-hit rural areas.

American involvement in World War II threw normal college routines into disarray. Enrollments plummeted as students and faculty left Fort Collins for military service. Although the college remained open because of President Roy Green’s success in bringing military training programs to the campus, national defense rather than collegiate goals prevailed. Research and extension efforts strongly emphasized agricultural output.

The post-war years saw an influx of veterans attending college on the G.I. Bill. In addition, Cold War tensions led to vastly augmented federal support for scientific research and training. Sponsored projects proliferated, as did graduate programs.

William E. Morgan, who became president in 1949, led the school’s emergence as a modern educational institution. A prudent planner, he foresaw the need for major campus expansion, identified areas of excellence, and encouraged their development. In 1955, the college awarded its first Ph.D. degree (to Adrian R. Chamberlain) and two years later changed its name to Colorado State University. Curricular improvements in the liberal arts, library acquisitions, and international programs gave legitimacy to the title of “university.”

During the 1960s, enrollments soared from 6,131 to nearly 17,000, enabling gifted teachers, such as Willard Eddy and Meyer Nathan, to influence numerous students. Young people of this era also seemed determined to exercise an influence of their own by challenging perceived injustices. Concerns about racism, military power, environmental despoliation, discrimination against women, and rules governing student behavior provoked protests.

Adrian R. Chamberlain succeeded William E. Morgan as president in 1969 amid campus unrest that culminated in the burning of the Old Main building in 1970. Chamberlain worked to consolidate university changes during a period of less rapid growth. By the conclusion of his 11-year tenure, the boom in American higher education had ended, along with the moral fervor of a youthful generation. Good jobs now elicited greater concern than good causes.

During the 1980s, Colorado State University faced many questions. Which programs would best serve a dynamic modern society? Could traditional commitments to agriculture and rural Colorado be balanced against escalating urban needs and international involvements? What role should computers and electronic networks play in facilitating education? The university addressed these and other critical issues despite administrative upheaval that featured three different presidents within a four-year period.

The 1990s imposed both new and traditional demands upon Colorado State University. Particularly notable was the flood of July 28, 1997. Despite devastating damage to the campus, including Morgan Library and the Lory Student Center Bookstore, CSU managed to start Fall Semester classes on time. This achievement reflected remarkable effort, which President Albert Yates defined as a challenge to make the university into “a better and stronger place in all of its dimensions.” During his 13-year presidency, which began in 1990, Yates provided leadership that significantly advanced this goal, seeking, in his words, to “always turn adversity to advantage.” CSU emerged from the flood with an enhanced sense of community, and its rebuilt campus was functionally and aesthetically superior to the earlier one. Under Yates, the quality of undergraduate and graduate education and research steadily improved, along with opportunities for women and underrepresented minorities. Faculty such as Temple Grandin, Stanley Shumm, George Seidel, Stephen Withrow, Diana Wall, and Holmes Rolston achieved international renown, thereby enhancing CSU’s scientific and scholarly stature.

Intercollegiate athletics also flourished. Sonny Lubick’s winning football program, formation of the Mountain West Conference, and unprecedented success for women’s teams highlighted this trend. Olympic champion swimmer Amy Van Dyken and basketball All-American Becky Hammon were among the school’s best-known athletes.

Recently, CSU, like most public universities, has been severely tested by state, national, and global economic problems, along with competition for students by peer institutions and proliferating online academic programs. It has responded by diversifying resources, maintaining fiscal stability, and pursuing appropriate goals. For example, environmentalism has become an institutional objective, rekindling CSU’s longstanding research and teaching expertise in this realm. The university has emphasized science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education, while concurrently promoting the values of international understanding and responsible community involvement. It has also launched a significant building program that initially benefited from bargain construction savings during the Great Recession and consistently low interest rates. Additions included: living-learning residence halls, technology-enabled classrooms, a totally refurbished Student Center, and an on-campus stadium. Rarely has CSU’s commitment to the “power of place” been more evident than in the transformational character of its campus during the past decade – functionally, aesthetically, and sustainably.

Anthony A. Frank, inaugurated as CSU’s president in 2009, facilitated these changes. A faculty member since 1993, he subsequently held key administrative positions and worked actively to advance institutional priorities that embodied its land-grant educational heritage. Frank’s ten-year presidency emphasized academic excellence and the principles of inclusion, service, and social justice, providing a solid foundation for the work of Joyce McConnell, who became the first woman president of the institution in 2019, as CSU began celebrations of its 150th anniversary. During 2020 and 2021 McConnell led the university through an unprecedented transformation of teaching, research, and service necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. As we move purposefully into the future, this transformative work continues under the direction of Amy Parsons, who took office as CSU’s 16th president on February 1, 2023.

Today, tradition finds renewal in the academic ceremony of commencement – simultaneously celebrating past accomplishment, transition, and future promise. Since 1884, Colorado State University has bestowed 296,556 degrees. At present, 25,725 on-campus students, representing 108 nations, receive instruction from 1,892 faculty in eight separate colleges, plus the Graduate School. Research expenditures total $456.9 million annually. This vitality is rooted in a dynamic legacy that enables Colorado State University to address the challenges of the post-9/11 era. Historically, this school has embraced democratic opportunity, rewarded competence and merit, and instilled perseverance. It has advanced wisdom as well as knowledge. These values are crucial to sustaining human civilization in the 21st century.

– James E. Hansen II, Professor Emeritus of History

– Linda M. Meyer, Archivist, CSU Libraries