Frequently Asked Questions

Can I collect rock and mineral specimens?
How can I make up a missed day?
How many days do I have to arrange daycare for my children?
Can I leave early during the course to pick up my kids?
When are all the trips?
Do we come back every night on the three-day field trip?
I have a physical disability – can I still participate in the course?
Where do I stay in Golden?
How can one person lecture on all those subjects?
Will stiff hiking boots work instead of steel toes?
Can I drive my own car on field trips?
Can I get my credit hours early from SPACE?
How do I get a letter of completion for my school principal?
I've had a college geology course -- can I skip the first day of lectures and the first field trip?
Why did you say we would be done by 1:30 when now it's 1:35?
Is there financial aid available?
Can I get a refund of my registration fee if I cancel?
What is the Colorado Mining Association Education Foundation (CMAEF)?

Can I collect rock and mineral specimens during the nine days of field trips that include visits to mining and processing operations?

Yes, teachers can collect as many samples (including gold ore!) as they can carry.

How can I make up a missed day?

Missed course sessions cannot be made up by attending subsequent offerings of the same or related classes or by completing additional assignments. 

It depends upon your individual home schedule. In general, classes are held from 8 am to early afternoon, Monday through Friday except for nine field trip days. There are no breaks for lunches except on full days. Although every effort is made to stay on schedule, adjournment and break times are approximate and subject to change. Transportation, accommodations, and meals are provided for the participants on the three-day trip. One day field trips typically begin from 6:00 to 7:30 am and often end at 5:30 pm.

Full credit hours are granted only if all the full contact-hour requirements have been met, including arriving on time and staying until dismissal. 

Nine days of field trips are scheduled throughout the course. The days of the trips are noted on the matrix of the course schedule. 

The three-day trip involves three days and two nights. Transportation, accommodations, and meals are provided for the participants on the three-day trip.

I have a physical disability – can I still participate in the course?

It depends on the disability and the severity.  The classroom on the CSM campus is ADA-accessible; however, attendance on the several field trips to study geologic formations, surface and underground mining operations, and mineral processing facilities is an integral part of the class.  Many of these field trips require walking and climbing at high elevations; touring facilities that are dusty, noisy, or damp; and some involve going underground in a somewhat confined, muddy and uneven-ground environment.  If your disability may impair your ability to participate in these activities or fully communicate with or follow immediate directions from the tour guide(s) in an emergency situation, please contact the Course Coordinator well in advance of signing up for the course to discuss your situation and the options which may be available.

Where do I stay in Golden?

Students enrolled in A Total Concept of the Mining Industry who require accommodations must provide their own room and board in the Golden area for the period of the course. The Colorado School of Mines offers a limited number of nominally priced, residence hall rooms to course attendees. Room reservations in campus residence halls are not accepted until after teachers have submitted a registration application with the tuition fee. Residence hall room reservations are accepted on a space-available basis. For room rates/information or to reserve a room, contact the Teacher Enhancement Office at 303/273-3995. Students bringing children cannot be accommodated in a residence hall and must make off-campus arrange­ments for housing.

One person does not lecture on all of the subjects. Approximately 80 authorities from industry, academia, private groups, and government lecture on their respective fields of expertise which include geology, geophysics, exploration, mining meth­ods, metallurgical operations, metal applications, research, marketing, careers, economics, recycling, and environmental responsibility.
 

Each Student must provide his or her own steel-toed shoes or boots or steel-toe shoe caps for visits to mines, mills, and other operations associated with the course.

Because of tour logistics and host company requirements on field trips, all course participants must ride in vehicles provided by the CMA Education Foundation. 

The Teacher Enhancement Office and the Colorado School of Mines are not responsible for meeting individual deadlines for credits toward teacher recertification and/or salary increases. Official transcripts for current course work will be available upon request approximately two weeks after the instructor submits course grades to the CSM Teacher Enhancement Office. Individual letters of completion are not available.

Individual letters of completion are not available.

I've had a college geology course -- can I skip the first day of lectures and the first field trip?

NO! 

Why did you say we would be done by 1:30 when now it's 1:35?

Every effort is made to meet the classroom and field schedule. However, all scheduled adjournment and break times are approximate and subject to change.

Limited financial assistance to help with the registration fee, travel, accommodations, and meals is available for teachers who meet certain requirements. 

If a registrant must cancel enrollment, the registration fee amount minus $25 will be refunded. No full or partial registration refunds will be granted after the close of business on the Thursday before the course begins. 

The CMAEF is a charitable organization incorporated in 1977 and intended to work with educators to acquaint them with the mineral industry.