At the southern gateway of Auraria Campus, construction is underway on a facility where future MSU Denver nursing and social work students will train. One member of the crew is River Jackson, a senior studying construction project management who starts work at 6:30 a.m. every day. By 11:30, he trades his hard hat for a backpack and heads to class or the ball field.
The Site's Only Intern
Jackson, a senior studying construction project management at MSU Denver, is the lone intern on the build, according to Denver7. Project superintendent Garrett Vidal told the station that Jackson's work ethic has helped him succeed on site, noting that Jackson was given many tasks and performed well whenever he was challenged. Jackson himself credited his background on the baseball diamond — he plays second base for MSU Denver's team — for the habits that carry over to the job site, saying the sport's work ethic transfers directly and that mistakes become learning opportunities rather than setbacks.
The site is a 10-minute walk from Jackson’s campus residence, according to Denver7, making it possible for him to move between work and class. Over the summer, he took charge of scheduling inspections, guiding inspectors through the site and confirming what needed review.
A Building With Personal Stakes
The project is the Gina and Frank Day Health Institute Tower, a five-story facility of more than 70,000 square feet at the Auraria Campus’s southern gateway, according to MSU Denver. The university describes the tower as a hub for academic programs, clinical training, advising and faculty collaboration. Jackson told Denver7 that helping build it would be a lasting legacy.
The completed building is expected to house 10 health-related academic departments, preparing students for careers in nursing, nutrition, behavioral health, speech-language pathology, exercise science and social work, according to Auraria Campus. The project is intended to help the university accept more students in those fields; nursing and social work programs currently turn away between 45% and 50% of qualified applicants, the same source says. The first level is slated to include nursing skills labs, classrooms and a hospitality demonstration kitchen, Denver7 reports.
Timeline And Campus Disruptions
Construction on the tower was estimated to wrap in summer 2027, with the building opening to students that fall, Auraria Campus notes. In the meantime, Champa Street between Boulder Creek and West Classroom remains closed to pedestrians and vehicles until December, a disruption that's become part of daily life for students navigating that corner of campus.
The health institute isn't the only project reshaping Auraria. The campus is also home to the 12-story Summit House, planned as roughly 550 beds of student housing that would mark MSU Denver's first on-campus housing project, according to msudenver.edu, alongside a second 12-story building called the Living and Learning Hub, per MSU Denver's RED news site.
Why Construction Careers Are In Demand
The campus build also offers students a chance to pair coursework with paid work. Carolyn McGary, program director for MSU Denver’s construction project management program, told Denver7 that demand for campus projects is high, while office construction remains subdued and affordable housing work is increasing. She described construction as cyclical but said demand would persist, and noted that the campus internship setup can let students move between classes and part-time work.
Apprenticeships and internships
For students considering construction careers, Colorado also has a formal apprenticeship route: CareerWise Colorado describes a separate, U.S. Department of Labor-registered program offering one-, two- and three-year placements statewide. That program is distinct from Jackson’s reported site internship, which lets him combine construction work with his studies.
The numbers back up her read on the industry. Colorado added about 1,900 construction jobs in September, the second-largest increase in the nation that month, per AGC of America, as cited by Denver7. MSU Denver's own reporting has noted that the state's construction sector is expected to grow 26% between 2020 and 2030, and that roughly 46,800 new construction manager openings are projected nationally each year over the decade, with median pay around $106,980.
Jackson still has a semester or two left before he graduates into that market. For now, his résumé already includes something most construction-management students won't get: a building he helped put up, standing on the campus where he'll pick up his diploma.
