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The University of Colorado Boulder Rural Network (CUBRN)

At CU Boulder, undergraduate students from Colorado’s rural communities and small towns contribute a rich diversity of experiences, perspectives, and ideas to our campus. Their presence strengthens our university community and enriches learning for all.

According to data from CU Boulder’s Office of Data Analytics (Fall 2025), using the CDHE Rural Classification guidelines and the CCDC’s NCHS Urban–Rural Classification Scheme:

• Total rural undergraduate students: 1,615
   
• 4.8% of all full-time, undergraduate students
   
• 24.7% identify as students of color
   
• Students come from 47 U.S. states

The University of Colorado Boulder Rural Network Mission 

The CU Boulder Rural Network (CUBRN) exists to increase access and support for students from rural and small-town communities across the country enrolled at CU Boulder. We are committed to fostering student success, strengthening campus connections, and supporting CU Boulder’s mission to serve the entire state of Colorado.

The CU Boulder Rural Network is a cross-campus group of CU Boulder professionals who support access to and success through the University of Colorado Boulder for students from rural communities, as well as promote the University’s charge to serve the entire state.  CUBRN focuses on issues of access and recruitment, retention and student success, and advocacy and awareness of rurality across the CU Boulder community.

The goals of these engagement opportunities are to spread awareness of rural students as an important population at CU Boulder, amplify the unique perspectives and contributions of rural students, provide a space to engage and make connections with other rural students, and make students aware of the support offered through CUBRN and other university resources.

Our Commitment

CUBRN is a cross-campus coalition of faculty, staff, and campus leaders who:

• Advocate for equity and belonging for rural and small town students
   
• Build awareness of rural and small town identity as an underrepresented experience
   
• Focus on access and recruitment, retention and success, and campus advocacy

CUBRN launched in April 2020 following university-wide conversations that identified the need for a coordinated approach to supporting rural students and recognizing rurality as an important and often overlooked identity in higher education.

What We Offer

CUBRN provides a range of opportunities and resources, including:

• Support for CU Boulder students who self-identify as rural or small-town
   
• A campus network of students, faculty, staff, and allies with shared rural experiences or commitments
   
• Resources and programming for families, educators, and community supporters
   
• Events and engagement that foster community, visibility, and belonging

Shared Responsibility

CUBRN is grounded in Shared Equity Leadership (SEL), where responsibility for equity is distributed across students, staff, and faculty. Together, we work to build a university culture where:

• Everyone’s voice is valued
   
• Equity-deserving* communities receive intentional support
   
• All participants help shape the network’s vision and values

*"Equity-deserving" refers to communities that have historically faced and continue to face barriers to equal opportunities, access, and resources due to systemic disadvantage and discrimination.