Colorado College has incorporated a commitment to a living wage in our Compensation Philosophy.  We believe that people should be able to cover their basic needs, such as housing, food, water, healthcare and education. We believe that employees that are paid a livable wage are able to thrive at CC and contribute meaningfully to our mission.

In the last few years, we made significant investments in compensation to meet the minimum living wage of a single individual living in El Paso County.  In 2023, we used the MIT Living Wage Calculator to determine a “Colorado College Minimum” wage of $17.48 for all our benefits-eligible staff. This rate included the significant inflation experienced in 2021 and 2022. By July, 2023, we paid 100% of our benefits-eligible employees this wage. 

In 2024, the same calculator indicated that the minimum living wage would be $23.04. This is a 31% increase in one year, when the national inflation rate was 3.5% (and 2.5% in the mountain west). On its face, this number seems inaccurate. It has taken a decade for the national CPI rate to increase by that amount. It is possible that the methodology has changed, but there hasn’t been transparency about any such changes.

Professor Dan Johnson, a member of the Budget Committee has stated “Unfortunately, there is a large error in MIT’s living wage calculations this year, not only for all of Colorado but for several other states/cities nationwide. Those errors imply that inflation in Colorado has been more than 20% this year, which we know is dramatically overstated. We’re optimistic that MIT/Glasmeier will review and revise their data at our urging, but until then we will use our best knowledge to pursue the objective of equitable compensation for all employees.”

As we decide how to invest our staff compensation budget this year, we remain committed to meeting the needs of our least compensated employees. We will work to make an investment in this commitment that will be meaningful and sustainable.