James Pritchett sees success for Colorado State University as being a trusted partner and leader, the one people call first for solutions to concerns or answers to important questions. Pritchett has led the College of Agricultural Sciences with the goal of making CSU that trusted partner, and he now brings his service mindset to his new role as vice president of the Office of Engagement and Extension. 

As a land-grant institution, CSU serves the state by sharing knowledge generated at the university with residents and supporting them in finding solutions to problems. The Office of Engagement and Extension has a presence in every county and a commitment to helping Colorado communities thrive. 

“There’s a social contract between a land-grant university and the public,” Pritchett said. “We co-create knowledge and share the bounty of that knowledge for everybody’s prosperity.” 

As VP, Pritchett will be focused on what matters for a healthy and prosperous Colorado.  

“We’ll be supporting Colorado as it grapples with its most pressing challenges,” he said.  

Pritchett expects top areas of concern for the state will include health, workforce development, rural housing and prosperity, access to nutritious food and climate change resilience. Engagement and Extension will work to identify gaps and find ways to help people, as CSU has done since its founding in 1870. 

“The questions that CSU was answering 154 years ago were different than the questions we’re answering now, but the idea behind our mission and the impact that we want to have, that’s unchanged,” Pritchett said. 

“The best work often starts with a good question from somebody in our community, outside of CSU,” he continued. “Our professionals start with the question and integrate discovery, engagement and instruction. Integration is the secret sauce. They aren’t satisfied until it benefits many.” 

Service centered

Pritchett oversees teams responsible for CSU Extension, Colorado State 4-H, CSU Online, the Colorado Water Center, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, CSU Professional Education and the operations team. 

Engagement and Extension personnel span the breadth of disciplines at CSU and are stationed across the state, but they all have one thing in common, Pritchett said. 

“They all center their lives around serving, and they come at it from a foundation of their values. My role is helping our folks fulfill that promise and positioning them best to do that.” 

Service drew Pritchett to his role, and he expressed gratitude for all the service-oriented people who have helped him along the way. “Now is my chance to pay that forward.” 

Full-circle journey

Pritchett grew up in Bent County in southeastern Colorado. He showed livestock in 4-H, then joined FFA in high school and served as state FFA president. In FFA, he visited CSU for career development events.  

Pritchett’s love of agriculture and CSU’s reputation for ag led to his enrollment at the university. While earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural economics, he worked on economic development research projects with Extension agents. Pritchett developed this research skill set from CSU into a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota and took a faculty and extension position at Purdue University.   

Since returning to CSU in 2001 as an agricultural and resource economics faculty member and Extension economist, Pritchett has served as assistant vice president for Engagement, director of the Agricultural Experiment Station and dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences, a role he will maintain until a new dean is selected.  

Pritchett began his tenure as vice president of Engagement and Extension Jan. 1, replacing interim VP Kathay Rennels, who returned to the CSU System as a special advisor to the chancellor for rural-urban initiatives. 

“The Office of Engagement and Extension is essential to carrying out our university’s land-grant mission, and given CSU’s desire to further invest in this critical work, we need strong permanent leadership to continue our forward momentum,” President Amy Parsons said in a message to the campus community in September. “As a proven leader with extensive expertise and a strong network of internal and external relationships across the state, James is exactly the person we need to move this priority area forward for CSU and Colorado.”