Auraria Higher Education Center

The Auraria Campus represents a truly unique higher education community in the dynamic downtown urban environment of Denver, Colorado. The 150-acre campus is home to three distinct public institutions of higher learning: 

• Community College of Denver 
• Metropolitan State University of Denver 
• University of Colorado Denver 

The Auraria Higher Education Center (AHEC), governed by the Auraria Board of Directors, is a separate state entity providing the facilities, land, and shared services in support of these prominent academic institutions. 

The collective student population is nearly 42,000, with approximately 5,000 faculty and staff.

Auraria Campus Master Plan – 2007-2017

AHEC is committed to providing an effective, efficient, and supportive environment, which facilitates the missions of the three institutions. Toward that end, an extensive planning process was led beginning with the 2007 Campus Master Plan where the concept of institutional neighborhoods was introduced. A notable change came with the 2012 Campus Master Plan, which further embraced those neighborhoods, expanding them along the primary roadways into Denver, and developing a central core with shared facilities built upon specific disciplines, such as the sciences, performing arts, visual arts, library, and common student union. 

The Auraria Campus Master Plan also now reflects the three institutional neighborhood concept plans and associated academic data that have been developed to accurately appreciate their individual growth and program needs.