Colorado Women's College

Colorado Woman's College (CWC) was a private woman's college located in Denver, Colorado. It was opened in 1909 and closed in 1982 when its assets were acquired by the University of Denver.

Porter Hall (now President's Hall) at the former Colorado Women's College campus

Curtis Hall (now Gaebe Hall) at the former Colorado Women's College campus

The chapel at the former Colorado Women's College campus

The chapel and amphitheater at the former Colorado Women's College campus

History

CWC was founded by the Rev. Robert Cameron, the pastor of Denver's First Baptist Church, who wished to open a women's college in the Western United States that would be equivalent to Vassar College in terms of prestige and academic offerings.

Incorporated in 1888, the college did not open until 21 years later. It received its accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission as Colorado Woman's College in 1932, which it maintained until its closing. The college was renamed Temple Buell College in 1967 in honor of a local philanthropist who made a $25 million (USD) gift to the college the year before. The name-change alienated old grads and their donations fell. Ironically, the Buell "gift" was in fact a legacy in the philanthropist's will (Temple Buell 1895-1990). In response to these financial struggles, the college changed its name to Colorado Women's College. A residential college, CWC had an active social life for students. The campus newspaper was titled The Western Graphic; other publications included yearbooks and scrapbooks. The college also had athletic offerings, including field hockey and basketball.

By the late 1970s, the college had experienced continued falling enrollment and funding, with higher education specialist Gary A. Knight deeming the college "financially desperate" and lacking enough prospective students, the "lifeblood" of the college, to sustain itself. In 1982, CWC's assets were sold to the University of Denver, a private university that opened The Women's College of the University of Denver that same year. The campus was home to the Women's College until 2001, when it became home to the Denver campus of Johnson & Wales University two years after the initial purchase was made.

Notable alumnae

• Bobbe Carney, University of Iowa women's golf head coach
• Cleo Parker Robinson, professional dancer

Rebecca King, Miss America 1974

References

• "Colorado Women's College." Higher Learning Commission. Accessed February 15, 2008.
• Knight, Gary A. "Ethical Recruitment and the Financially Troubled College: The Case of Colorado Women's College." Journal of the National Association of College Admissions Counselors. January 1978.
• "Temple H. Buell, 94, Philanthropist, Is Dead." The New York Times. January 9, 1990.
• Sweets, Ellen. "Johnson & Wales University Expands Denver Campus." The Denver Post. June 9, 2003.

External links

• Colorado Women's College Alumnae Association
• University of Denver Penrose Library: Colorado Women's College Special Collection