Creativity & Innovation

Creativity & Innovation at Colorado College

Creativity & Innovation (C&I) is part of the Crown Center for Teaching. 

Mission

OUR MISSION is to support, cultivate, and amplify creative teaching and learning across campus. We do this by:  

  • Collaborating with faculty to research and implement creativity-building pedagogies, develop discipline-specific exercises and assignments,   
  • Engaging directly with students in curricular and co-curricular contexts, thereby developing capacity for the kind of possibility thinking that transforms uncertainty into multiple options for creative thought and changemaking action, and  
  • Amplifying creative thinking and problem-solving across campus by providing space and opportunities to engage in the creative process. 

Goal

OUR GOAL is to offer pathways to build and operationalize creative courage and—whether you are faculty, staff, or student—we invite your participation and thoughts as we pilot new programs and experiment with systems that maximize our collective service to the College. Through these pathways we provide students with opportunities to develop the essential building blocks of creativity. These building blocks include both mindsets and practices.

Creativity Mindsets

creativity mindsets descriptions

Approach

OUR APPROACH is to emphasize the creative process instead of original products. Unlike skill acquisition or content proficiency, creative development rarely follows a linear path. C&I utilizes a multi-pronged, campus-wide approach that reaches students directly through our work with faculty to develop discipline-specific exercises and assignments, and through our co-curricular programs. When students are exposed to creativity-building pedagogies in multiple contexts, they are better able to integrate creative thinking and problem-solving practices into new situations.

Programs

OUR PROGRAMS reconnect participants with their innate curiosity and cultivate their capacity for the kind of possibility thinking that transforms uncertainty into multiple options for creative thought and action. As the world becomes increasingly more complex, we will need to step outside of what is already known in order to effect positive change in it. You can peruse our programs for faculty and for students by going to the drop-down menus at the top of this page. 

TOGETHER WITH the Crown Center for Teaching, we also implement programs that:

  • Provide opportunities for faculty to explore new approaches to teaching,
  • Leverage unexpected opportunities for engagement,
  • Identify, support, and disseminate innovative and inclusive pedagogies at CC, and
  • Research CC’s signature pedagogies for internal and external audiences.

Podcasts

Jessica Hunter & Kris Stanec

Jane Hilberry & Felicia Chavez

Jane Hilberry

Contact Us

Mailing Address

The Colorado College
14 E. Cache La Poudre St.
Colorado Springs, CO 80903

Physical Address

Creativity & Innovation
232 E. Cache La Poudre St.
Colorado Springs, CO 80903

(Northwest corner of Cache and Weber)

Call or Email

(719)389-7082
innovation@coloradocollege.edu
Report an issue - Last updated: 09/01/2025

Happening This Block

cSpace:

  • Open Daily! In cSpace, we take a process-based approach to creativity. All members of the CC community can come here to experiment, prototype, and play. 
  • Drop-ins on different creative techniques happen every second Monday. Join us on September 29 from 3-4 pm!
  • Tours that grant individual Gold Card access to cSpace are offered every Monday from 4-4:30 pm. 

For faculty and staff:

For students: 

  • Come play with ideas through creativity sprints-short, messy, and fun ways to build creative thinking and problem solving skills. Introducing the new Creative Courage Community, every second Friday of the Block! Sign up to reserve your spot for Block 2 today! Open to students from all disciplines.   

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