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When London Irwin graduated from Fort Lewis College in 2023, she thought she had everything lined up. A job offer in hand and a degree in marketing with minors in economics and entrepreneurship, she felt ready to launch into post-college life. But when that job fell through unexpectedly, it was the skills and confidence she built through the Springboard Fellowship that helped her land on her feet. 

“I was a first-generation college student,” Irwin said. “I didn’t know anything about networking or even what getting a job after college looked like. Springboard taught me all of that.” 

Irwin, who was part of the inaugural Springboard cohort in 2022–23, credits the program with giving her the tools to navigate uncertainty. She built a strong LinkedIn presence, developed her resume, practiced public speaking, and forged a network of mentors and peers. “When the first opportunity didn’t work out, I had the tools to keep going. I ended up in a job I love now—as a marketing coordinator at Stored Energy Systems. It’s a perfect fit with my degree,” she said. 

Now in its fourth year, Springboard is a one-year fellowship for FLC students in their final year of college. Participants attend weekly workshops on financial literacy, professional skills, and networking. They’re matched with mentors, many of whom are FLC alumni, and receive a $3000 award to support their career launch. The program’s signature event is a trip to Denver, where Fellows meet state leaders, attend networking dinners, and conduct informational interviews with professionals in their field. 

The interviews aren’t optional. Fellows are tasked with cold-emailing industry professionals, arranging meetings, and navigating the city solo, often using public transportation for the first time. For students like Marisa Gutierrez, a computer science major from Española, New Mexico, the experience was transformative. 

“Having to reach out to people I didn’t know, set up my own meetings, and get there by myself—that was nerve-wracking,” Gutierrez said. “But it was also empowering. It made me feel like an adult. Like I could do this.” 

Her mentor, Kalisha Crossland, Psychology, ‘01, helped guide her through the year. “We didn’t have the same major, but we connected on a deeper level,” Gutierrez said. “She taught me how to lead with confidence, especially as a woman of color in tech. And she introduced me to her cybersecurity team, which was so helpful.” 

For Crossland, the experience was just as meaningful. “I honestly feel like she gave me more than I gave her,” she said. “Marisa reminded me of what it’s like to be just starting out, to have all this ambition and possibility. It brought me back to the basics of why mentorship matters.” 

Janae Hunderman, director of Fort Lewis College's Career and Workforce, said Springboard is now entirely housed in the Career Services Office and undergoing some strategic tweaks. “The heart of the program is unchanged. We focus on the hidden job market—those opportunities you access through relationships, not job boards,” Hunderman said. “We teach students how to walk into a room, hold a conversation, and make a lasting impression. That’s where doors start to open.” 

Springboard’s impact is tangible. Some students have walked away from their Denver interviews with job or internship offers. Others say the program gave them their first real taste of financial independence, thanks to the budgeting and financial planning components. 

“The thing I’ll remember most isn’t just professional skills,” Gutierrez said. “It’s the friendships. We were all in that same weird limbo of ‘what’s next?’ and Springboard gave us a space to figure it out together.” 

As for Irwin, she says the Fellowship gave her more than a job lead. “It was the most valuable part of my senior year,” she said. “It gave me the confidence to go after what I wanted—and the tools to actually get it.”