彩民宝典

New England Patriots offensive tackle Nate Solder has many achievements, including first-team 2010 All-American (he was a University of Colorado Buff between 2007 and 鈥�10) and Outland Trophy finalist.

Now a CU donor, he has something else to be proud of.

Solder, who earned a CU-Boulder biology degree, directed his gift toward a required introductory lab course, which Solder credits with setting a positive tone for his academic experience.

鈥淢y hope was that the donation I made could begin improving the old lab equipment, instead of merely maintaining it,鈥� Solder says.

鈥淚t was my first introduction to giving back and I wanted to choose an area that had positively affected my life in hopes that it could continue to help others in the same way.鈥�

Recalls John Basey, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology senior instructor, 鈥淣ate had a good grasp of the nature of science as well as science-process skills. I was proud that Nate was a product of our department, in that his understanding of science was so well-grounded.鈥�

Basey considers Solder鈥檚 gift a program highlight. 鈥淥ur equipment gets heavily used, and it is hard to keep it all in tip- top shape,鈥� he explains.

鈥淪older鈥檚 donation really helps out the workings of the classroom and goes directly toward improving the education of the students.鈥�

This article originally appeared in Creating Futures, a magazine published by the CU Foundation.