New Fort Lewis College board of trustees appointee Paul Major wants to bring his knowledge of foundations to the college to create more opportunity for students.
“I’m super excited to be part of the Fort Lewis College board of trustees,” he said. “I think Fort Lewis can take advantage of a lot of opportunities out there from different foundations that fund specific programs.”
Major has been CEO of the Telluride Foundation for 21 years, and said that his experience with foundations is one of the things he brings to table as a trustee.
“I’ve been in that foundation world for many years, and I have a lot of deep relationships,” he said. “I think the unique thing about Fort Lewis is that it’s undersold itself, and I think there are a lot of foundations out there that would be excited about what Fort Lewis has to offer.”
Major was invited to apply to be a trustee at FLC, and was appointed by Gov. Jared Polis in late 2021. His term will be from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2025.
Part of the process of the governor’s appointment is that it needs to be confirmed by the state Legislature, which usually happens in early spring, said FLC spokeswoman Lauren Pope.
Even though his appointment has yet to be confirmed, Major will begin attending board of trustee meetings. However, he will not be able to vote at meetings until after the appointment confirmation.
Although Major comes to the board from Telluride, he spent time as a student at FLC in the late 1970s.
“I went to Fort Lewis for one year as a freshmen on a ski scholarship, and I did ski for Fort Lewis the last year they had an NCAA program,” he said. “I love the community and Fort Lewis as a college.”
He finished his college career at the University of Colorado, and went on to be a ski coach for the university. After coaching the Alpine ski team at CU, he was invited to coach the U.S. ski team.
“I coached the U.S ski team between 1984 and 1997 including two Olympics,” he said.
Major coached Olympic gold medalists Picabo Street and Tommy Moe.
After coaching, he went to work for a resort company. At the time, the resort company was trying to acquire Telluride Ski Resort, but ultimately didn’t.
While in Telluride, Major found himself talking with a group that was working on forming the Telluride Foundation, and he became the foundation’s first employee. The Telluride Foundation raises money and resources for local organizations and initiatives in the Telluride area, he said.
“We’re a community foundation that basically raises resources in our regional area and gives those resources back out,” he said.
Major said he’s excited to begin working with the other trustees, and feels that FLC is a unique institution.
“Fort Lewis is really well positioned to deliver higher education in the 21st century,” he said. “It’s a super-interesting institution partly because of the location, with Southwest Colorado being such a robust and vibrant area that’s deeply connected to the tribal nations.”
njohnson@durangoherald.com
