Paul C. Johnson, Mines president, and Kray Luxbacher, executive director at the School of Mining Engineering & Mineral Resources, shared the table with President Trump at the announcement of new funding for mining education.

Paul C. Johnson, Mines president, told President Trump that the country's expertise has atrophied over time, particularly in the critical minerals processing space.

Paul C. Johnson, Mines president, spoke at the Washington D.C. meeting on August 7, 2026 where President Trump announced the new funding.

Mines is expected to receive $32.7 million for a new critical minerals hub and additional funds focused on mining education.

Aaron Malone, research assistant professor in mining engineering, published a case study on Eagle’s reception by locals last year. He said that over the 12 years it has operated, most local have come to accept the Eagle Mine.

Mines is one of 14 mining-focused universities nationally that expects to receive a portion of the $100 million targeted for mining education.

Colorado School of Mines will receive $32.7 million to establish a critical minerals technology development hub.

Morgan Bazilian, director of the Payne Institute for Public Policy, said energy infrastructure has become a much more common target, particularly as conflicts drag on in regions temptingly full of power plants and pipelines.

A new hub at Mines will test and scale new technologies for mineral processing, recovery, refining, recycling and advanced materials— and ultimately move those technologies into the domestic supply chain.

Mines was one of the mining schools nationally that received funding to boost mining education.

Stephen Enders, professor emeritus of practice in mining engineering, said "the cool kids study mining now." He noted that students majoring in mining engineering has more than doubled at Mines.

Xinxin Sui, a post-doctoral researcher at Mines, and her colleagues painstakingly separated and classified individual storms from 23 years’ worth of high-resolution radar data.