The CMU20000 initiative (15,000 students and 5,000 community supporters) is off to a great start with approximately 70 people stepping forward to serve on the four committees of the effort; Community Visibility, Community Engagement, Student Recruitment and Government Engagement. These committees will begin meeting soon and there is still an opportunity to sign up and be part of the planning process and implementation of various projects. Simply go to the CMU20000 website, (www.cmu20000.com) sign up and indicate your area of interest.
The first day of the CMU Academic Year is August 21st. One of the first projects underway is to welcome students back to school for the 2017-2018 school year with “We are CMU” stickers in the windows of as many businesses as possible. Our goal during the first week of August is to distribute 1,500 stickers and brochures to the business owners/managers and discuss other ways to be involved (i.e. offer a discount for showing CMU ID, sign up to be a supporter, volunteer to be a job shadow or intern site). To do that in just one week before students start arriving back will require a lot of man (and woman) power. We are hoping we can get 100 volunteers to make 15 calls throughout the week of August 7th. To volunteer, email info@gjchamber.org or call 970-242-3214. We will provide the stickers, brochures and a list of 15 businesses located in geographic proximity to each other.
Businesses and volunteers are encouraged to take “selfies” putting the stickers on windows and doors and post it on the CMU20000 Facebook page. It is good publicity for the businesses and it sends a strong message that students are welcome in Grand Junction. It’s simple but it is also an effective first step in demonstrating that being a college town is part of our overall identity.
The CMU20000 initiative is a sustained effort to not just reach 15,000 students and 5,000 community supporters; it is a partnership between the University and the Community to grow together. Be part of it!
Click here to download full version of the Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce August 2017 Newsletter.