1970 - 1975

The organization was originally called the Colorado Collegiate Career Planning Association. Records, dating back to 1970, show that Warren "Bud" Best, University of Northern Colorado, was then president of this rather informal group of college placement officers. The organization probably dates back further than 1970, but there were no records to confirm that.

Jim Jones, placement director at Fort Lewis College, appears to have been one of the founders of the association. Letters from Jones indicate that he was elected president in 1972.

Prior to his election, according to Jones, placement officers in Colorado had met once a year on a very informal basis for "tea and sympathy." Correspondence dating back to 1972-73 further reveals a marked resistance on his part to creating a more formal organization.

A planned for meeting of the group in the spring of 1972 never materialized. According to Jones, in another letter to the placement officers in the association, "...nothing was done."

At the RMCPA conference in Omaha in 1972, Jones confronted the Colorado members who were present. he said "That we (should) dissolve our organization due to lack of interest." Bud Best is reported to have been quite vocal in opposing the idea and the group decided to continue as an organization. Those who remember Bud Best will no doubt smile at the image of Bud "forcefully" making his point.

Another year went by, however, with apparently no meetings of the group and little or no commitment from the membership to carry out a project to which all had agreed - namely, to bring into the organization placement officers from Colorado's junior/community colleges.

In fall of 1973, Al Serafin from Denver University and Earl Young form the University of Colorado at Boulder, contacted Jim Jones to see if the long dormant organization could be resuscitated. A poll of the membership at the time indicated interest in having a formal organization with two meetings a year. Apparently what had been missing was the leadership to simply get the thing off the ground.

Serafin and Young, with Jones' blessing, agreed to host and co-chair the first meeting after a two year hiatus. That meeting was held at Denver University on May 7, 1974.

O.J. (Joe) Norton, placement director at Western State College, was treasurer. he informed Serafin and Young that the organization's checking account balance was $481.48. There having been no demands on the treasury for several years, Jones agreed to have the association pay for the lunch.

Among the many topics discussed at that meeting, several have become perennial favorites: confidentiality of records, reciprocity, placement file retention and coordinated scheduling of one-day job fairs.

Attendance at the meeting in 1974 was quite good and the group agreed to meet again in September. Helen Jacober, Colorado Women's College, and Earl Young were elected to serve as co-chairs for the September meeting to be held at CWC. And, the members all agreed to meet at least two times a year from then on. There was, after all, life in the old "body."

Many familiar names appear on the membership roster of the time:

  • George Schiltuis, Adams State College
  • Larry Morris, Colorado School of Mines
  • Jay Rosson and Pat Brelesford, Colorado State University
  • Jim Jones, Fort Lewis College
  • Helen Jacober, Colorado Women's College
  • Maxine Coleman, Loretto Heights College
  • Ted Giles, Metropolitan State College
  • Marion Shaw, Mesa College
  • John Dodson, Regis College
  • Dick Zelany, University of Southern Colorado
  • Al Serafin, Denver University
  • Bud Best, University of Northern Colorado
  • Joe Norton, Western State College
  • Hermine Offerle and Earl Young, University of Colorado

The effort to include the placement officers from the Colorado junior/community colleges in CCCPA proved unsuccessful. No common ground could be found and so after a year they dropped out. For a brief time they tried having their won organization, but that seems to have failed also.

In 1975, a committee was established to determine the feasibility of publishing a brochure that could describe all of the Colorado colleges and universities. The intended market for this information campaign was to be employers. A similar booklet had been produced in 1970, with an introduction written by Bud Best who was identified as president of the organization. The booklet devoted a full page to each institution in the state. It essentially provided a thumbnail sketch of the school, i.e. size, degrees, programs and location. So, the idea was not new. It was really a plan for updating the earlier publication - perhaps in a different format.

However, in 1975, employer feedback clearly indicated that they saw no need for the brochure as they believed that they were sufficiently familiar with the schools in the state. The committee also concluded that the venture was too expensive. And so, the project was suspended.

It was in 1975 that CCCPA decided to reinstate a system of annual dues for each member school. Dues had not been collected since probably around 1970. Joe Norton, treasurer, retired as the 1974-75 academic year came to a close. The financial records and bank account was transferred to Earl Young who has acted as treasurer to the present time.

The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs established a fledgling placement office in 1975 under direction of John Ormanoski. Today, John is Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Support Services.

By: Earl Young 

CCSA