
Ben Suddendorf/Courtesy photo
Recycled and refurbished sewing machines from the Colorado Mountain College (CMC) Rifle campus, dating back to the mid-2000s, are now central to CMC Aspen’s new soft-goods manufacturing program.
Maureen Stepp is CMC assistant dean of instruction for Glenwood Springs, Spring Valley, Carbondale, and Aspen. She explained: “We had industrial sewing equipment in storage from a program in Rifle that is no longer running, and Steve Skadron (Dean for Aspen and Carbondale dean) said he wanted all of it for an idea.”
Skadron was concerned that “85% of used textiles end up in the landfill while the pre-owned gear market is exploding. An outdoor-industry, sewn-goods program puts CMC students at the forefront of small-scale…