This summer has flown by. It’s hard to believe that the start of school is less than a month away. Students are already starting to arrive, with volleyball players arriving next week and soccer and rodeo team members soon after.

New student orientation will be Aug. 18-20, and our fall classes will begin Aug. 22. For those still planning to register, it is not too late but time is running short.

Part of the reason the summer seems so short is because of how busy we have been preparing for our outstanding faculty and students to return for the new academic year. Here are some highlights of what we have been up to this summer in preparation for the new academic year:

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• Thanks to great work done by Rangely District Hospital and CEO Kyle Wren on their Community Health Assessment Project, behavioral health support will be available to CNCC students this fall. CNCC has partnered with RDH to provide behavioral health telehealth and crisis intervention for our students on both our campuses.

• Thanks to Commissioner Melody Villard and Bill Sixkiller, the Moffat County Fairgrounds will serve as home to CNCC Rodeo. The rodeo team has moved to our Craig campus and will hold its first season of competition there this fall.

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• Our men’s and women’s soccer teams will begin their first season of play as members of the Rangely community this academic year as well. We thank Superintendent Matt Scoggins and his team for providing us use of their fields to allow our soccer teams to begin play as we work on plans for a field on the Rangely campus.

• Partnering with Pioneer Medical Center, and CEO Liz Sellers, has allowed CNCC to bring back our CNA program in Craig. PMC is also providing us with expanded Athletic Training support for our athletic programs and adjunct instruction for the new Sports Medicine plan of study that will begin this fall.

• On Aug. 25, we will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony for CNCC’s Cyber Range with guest of honor Attorney General Phil Weiser and sponsorship from the Craig Chamber of Commerce. This addition to our Cybersecurity program will provide hands-on learning for our students in this fast-paced industry.

• In response to workforce needs expressed by regional health care providers, CNCC’s nursing program added a guaranteed admission pathway for perspective nursing students. Our first class of students taking prerequisite courses toward nursing’s guaranteed admission program will begin this fall.

• This fall, CNCC will open our eCampus Online Book Store to allow students to order their books online.

• Technology projects are underway to provide added security and enhanced internet access on both Rangely and Craig campuses.

It has been a busy summer, but it is building a brighter future for CNCC and our communities. Finally, we want to welcome new Rangely High School Principal Chris Miller and new Moffat County Superintendent Jill Hafey as new partners and friends.

We look forward to continuing to provide educational opportunities to prepare their students for amazing futures.

Enjoy the last few weeks of summer. We look forward to seeing you on campus or around town.

Dr. Lisa Jones is the president of Colorado Northwestern Community College.