The 2021-22 academic year marked the 50th anniversary of Colorado College’s Block Plan, which was first introduced during the 1970-71 academic year. To celebrate 50 years of the Block Plan, CC filmmakers created a documentary to reflect on the college’s “radical idea that students learned more effectively when they took one — and only one — class at a time.” The film looks back on the past and founding of the Block Plan, as well as its present, what it has become, and what it means to the faculty, students, and staff who live it every day. The film can now add “best in show” to its resume, after being selected as Best Film at Helsinki Education Film Festival International 2022.
“The idea of making a documentary about the Block Plan, of trying to tell the story of how the college arrived at the idea and adopted it in the fall of 1970, as well as the way it exists today as a lived reality for the faculty, staff, and students at CC, came about a few years ago, just as we were approaching the plan's 50th anniversary,” says Steve Hayward, filmmaker and professor of English at CC, who co-directed the film with Bryan Beasley and attended the film’s screening at the festival.
“It was an incredible experience — as the lights went down on the first screening, I realized that because it came out during the pandemic, I had never seen it either on the big screen or with an audience,” says Hayward. “The audience’s response caught me off guard, real enthusiasm for the idea of the Block Plan — most were hearing about it for the first time — as well as deeply emotional responses to the part of the film dealing with the death of Bill Hochman, with students getting to the end of the block and their completed projects, as well as the graduation sequence at the end.”
Hochman, professor emeritus of history, died in 2019 at the age of 97.
Inasmuch Foundation generously funded the project. Hayward and Beasley completed the documentary, despite the challenges of the pandemic, with the help of a “talented, dedicated, and brilliant crew” of alums, including Jaime Roman ’13 (producer), Meredith Mantik ’11 (editor), Chance Crail ’17 (director of photography), Wes Braver ’14 (score), and Skye Mahaffie ’15 (visual effects).
Helsinki Education Film Festival International is a platform for filmmakers and educators that was established for the purpose of improving education and learning experiences through films.
HEFFI’s objective is to provide a channel for educators and filmmakers around the world to show, share, and exchange ideas and methods that will expand opportunities for collaboration for the further development of education through films and videos.
Check out the film and the many ways Colorado College celebrated 50 years on the Block Plan.