Our Mission: The University of Colorado Denver’s mission is “To make education work for all”—including incarcerated students. Our program embodies social justice and community engagement and seeks to enrich lives, create job opportunities, and build bridges of understanding and respect. To learn more about CU Denver’s mission and vision, see our most recent Strategic Report, https://www.ucdenver.edu/2030/purpose-vision-values.
The UCD-PEP meets students where they are and tries to empower students to advance their academic skills, personal awareness, and sense of community. In this holistic and student-centered vision, “Success” is defined as facilitating growth in one or more of these areas.
We support Lifelong Learning, Civic Leadership, and Career Success: Our program enables students to pursue academic success and/or career achievement and/or civic leadership. Mastering the skills addressed in our classes will enable students to maximize their agency, to grow as community members, and to thrive as creative and compassionate lifelong learners. In short, we seek to equip students to be ethical and effective citizens within our democracy.
Within those values, the list of career pathways is immense, and includes working in:
Business Development and Leadership, Community-based NGOs, Digital Design and Development, Marketing, Non-Profit Organization Leadership and Communication, Political Campaigns, Public Relations, Social Justice Activism, DEI Consultant and Advocate, Strategic Communications, Educational Leadership, and more.
Accreditation: The University of Colorado Denver is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, https://www.hlcommission.org. Our last round of campus-wide review took place in 2021, when the HCL reaffirmed UCD’s accreditation for another ten-year period. The next comprehensive evaluation is scheduled for 2030-31. The UCD-PEP was accredited by the HLC in 2024 and approved the federal Department of Higher Education in 2024.