By Jessica Peterson
This major surge in scholarships is helping strengthen Colorado’s workforce and our communities.

More than 1,000 Front Range Community College students received life-changing scholarships this year, fueled by a record-breaking $1.9 million in support from the FRCC Foundation—a 50% increase over the prior year and the largest annual investment in student success in the Foundation’s history.

The Front Range Community College Foundation has just released its 2025 Annual Impact Report, showcasing a year of transformational partnerships, record-breaking scholarship support and continued investment in Colorado’s future workforce. These scholarships are removing financial barriers and creating pathways to family-sustaining careers in health care, advanced manufacturing, quantum technology and other high-demand fields that strengthen Colorado’s economy.

Through the generosity of donors, community partners and local businesses, the FRCC Foundation awarded more than $1.9 million in scholarships to students across the college’s three campuses in fiscal year 2025—its largest annual amount to date. These funds helped more than 1,000 students access exceptional education, complete degrees and certificates, and enter high-demand careers that provide sustaining wages and strengthen Colorado’s economy.

“This impact report shows the ripple effect of every act of generosity from our FRCC community—students, employees, donors and partners—coming together to expand opportunity, advance equity and fuel student success,” said FRCC President Colleen Simpson, EdD. “Their support empowers students to transform their lives, strengthen Colorado’s workforce and contribute to the vitality of the communities we proudly serve.”

Who We Serve

FRCC Foundation scholarships support the students who need it most:

• 61% are first-generation college students.
• 67% are Pell-eligible (demonstrate exceptional financial need).
• FRCC Foundation scholars achieve an 88% completion rate and a 3.3 average GPA, demonstrating that students thrive when financial and systemic barriers are removed.

“These aren’t just numbers: They are lives changed, careers launched and families lifted,” Simpson said.

Scholarships Change Lives

Foundation scholar Heather Meyer had a lot of doubt as to whether she was going to be able to afford college. “Even as affordable as community college tuition is, there just wasn’t money in my budget for that,” she said.

“I hit a lot of barriers over the past year and the scholarship notification about was the first green light I’d had in a long 12-month process. This scholarship was really that pivotal moment that reinforced for me, yes, this is where I’m meant to be.”

Building Strong Futures… and Colorado’s Workforce

This year’s impact report celebrates what happens when generosity meets purpose,” said Executive Director of the FRCC Foundation & Community Partnerships Beryl Durazo. “Our donors and community partners are helping build brighter futures for our students—and, in turn, they are shaping the future of Colorado.”

Foundation scholarships are opening doors to FRCC’s most in-demand programs:

• Health Care
• Advanced Manufacturing
• Quantum Technology (FRCC’s Optics, Quantum & Laser Tech program is Colorado’s first community college quantum-related program.)
• Early Childhood Education
• Business and Information Technology

What’s Next

As Colorado’s workforce needs evolve, FRCC will continue to innovate in programs like health care, advanced manufacturing and quantum technology, preparing students for careers that strengthen Colorado’s economy. With the continued partnership of the college’s supporters and donors, FRCC will expand access and increase equity in education—while creating pathways that change lives for generations to come. 

The full report is available digitally:

View the 2025 FRCC Foundation Impact Report