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CU Engineering has one overarching goal when it comes to educational partnerships: Empowering students to earn a degree in a way that best suits their needs when it comes to location, finances or learning environment.

Kellisha Ostler (CivEngr’22) attributes her early career success to two of those partnerships. She was a student in the Colorado Mesa University-CU Boulder Engineering Partnership Program, as well as a Kiewit Design-Build Scholar.

“I wouldn’t have made it to where I am today without these two incredible programs,” said Ostler, who graduated with the CMU-CU program’s third spring class. “The partnership allowed me to attend school in a beautiful community at a lower cost of tuition and housing and still graduate from a highly accredited engineering program.”

‘A huge benefit’

The CMU-CU partnership allows students to earn a civil, mechanical or electrical and computer engineering degree, entirely from the .

Ostler said she appreciated the small class sizes at CMU. With just seven civil engineers in her cohort, class sizes ranged from five to 12 during her junior and senior years, and a close-knit group of students formed. It also allowed faculty to be more flexible with exams and project deadlines.

“Being able to have one-on-one experiences with my professors and having more confidence to ask questions during the lectures, as well as having professors focused on the success of their students, was a huge benefit of the partnership,” she said.

One of those professors helped Ostler secure her first internship. During her sophomore year, she landed an internship with the city of Fruita, Colorado, where she designed a half-mile road and sidewalk that led to a new elementary school.

“They didn’t have much put together for the project, so I was able to make it my own,” Ostler said. “At the end they constructed the sidewalks, and elementary kids in nearby neighborhoods could walk to school. It was really satisfying to see it come to fruition.”

Connecting with Kiewit

Ostler was heavily involved in CMU’s Civil Engineering Club as activities coordinator and, later, as club president. She connected with a employee who spoke at a club meeting, who then invited her to an interview. Kiewit subsequently hired her as a summer intern for the Connect Four Project in Grapevine, Texas.

Although Grand Junction is about a four-hour drive from the Front Range, participating in the Kiewit program kept Ostler connected to the CU Boulder campus, where she attended in-person events and joined CU Boulder students and faculty for site visits. It also led to a second civil engineering internship, and then to her current position with Kiewit.

Life as an engineer

Ostler’s full-time role has her working on a redesign of several highways to improve traffic capacity, as well as pedestrian walkways. Through her work, 5-foot sidewalks have been transformed to 12-foot shared paths for bicyclists, walkers and joggers.

“I like transportation because it’s so impactful to communities,” she said. “The shared paths inspire people to get out, take bike rides and go on walks. It connects people, as now they can easily get from place to place.”

Ostler’s goal is to eventually move into a professional leadership role. She’s also involved with the Women’s Transportation Seminar and Women in Kiewit, through which she hopes to get more women involved in STEM careers — another one of her passions.

“When I started college, I didn’t know much about civil engineering, and now I can’t imagine my life without it.”