nnu003c!DOCTYPE htmlu003enu003chtml lang=u0022enu0022u003enu003cheadu003en u003cmeta charset=u0022UTF-8u0022u003en u003cmeta name=u0022viewportu0022 content=u0022width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0u0022u003en u003ctitleu003eThree Generations, One Stage – CSU Pueblou003c/titleu003en u003cstyleu003en *, *::before, *::after { box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0; padding: 0; }nn body {n font-family: var(u002du002dwpu002du002dpresetu002du002dfont-familyu002du002dproxima-nova), Arial, sans-serif;n background: #f5f4f0;n color: #1a1a1a;n line-height: 1.75;n }nn .site-header {n background: #1F3864;n padding: 14px 40px;n display: flex;n align-items: center;n gap: 14px;n }n .site-header span {n color: #fff;n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 15px;n font-weight: 700;n letter-spacing: 0.04em;n text-transform: uppercase;n }n .site-header .divider { color: #C8A951; font-size: 18px; }nn .hero {n position: relative;n overflow: hidden;n max-height: 560px;n }n .hero img {n width: 100%;n height: 560px;n object-fit: cover;n object-position: center 20%;n display: block;n filter: brightness(0.72);n }n .hero-text {n position: absolute;n inset: 0;n display: flex;n flex-direction: column;n align-items: center;n justify-content: center;n padding: 32px 24px;n text-align: center;n }n .hero .label {n display: inline-block;n background: #C8A951;n color: #1F3864;n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 11px;n font-weight: 800;n letter-spacing: 0.12em;n text-transform: uppercase;n padding: 5px 14px;n border-radius: 2px;n margin-bottom: 20px;n }n .hero h1 {n font-family: Georgia, serif;n font-size: clamp(24px, 3.8vw, 42px);n font-weight: 700;n color: #fff;n line-height: 1.2;n max-width: 780px;n margin: 0 auto 18px;n text-shadow: 0 2px 12px rgba(0,0,0,0.4);n }n .hero .byline {n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 13px;n color: rgba(255,255,255,0.78);n letter-spacing: 0.06em;n text-transform: uppercase;n }nn .article-wrap {n max-width: 1100px;n margin: 0 auto;n padding: 52px 24px 80px;n }nn .drop-cap::first-letter {n float: left;n font-family: Georgia, serif;n font-size: 72px;n line-height: 0.78;n font-weight: 700;n color: #1F3864;n margin-right: 8px;n margin-top: 6px;n }nn p {n font-size: 18px;n margin-bottom: 1.4em;n text-align: justify;n hyphens: auto;n }nn .section-rule {n border: none;n border-top: 1px solid #d0cfc8;n margin: 44px 0 32px;n }nn h2 {n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 11px;n font-weight: 800;n letter-spacing: 0.14em;n text-transform: uppercase;n color: #1F3864;n margin-bottom: 18px;n padding-bottom: 10px;n border-bottom: 2px solid #1F3864;n }nn blockquote {n margin: 36px 0;n padding: 22px 30px;n border-left: 4px solid #C8A951;n background: #fff;n box-shadow: 0 2px 12px rgba(0,0,0,0.06);n border-radius: 0 4px 4px 0;n }n blockquote p {n font-size: 21px;n font-style: italic;n color: #1F3864;n margin-bottom: 0;n line-height: 1.5;n text-align: left;n }nn /* Photo float styles */n .photo-right {n float: right;n margin: 0 0 24px 32px;n width: 340px;n max-width: 44%;n }n .photo-left {n float: left;n margin: 0 32px 24px 0;n width: 300px;n max-width: 40%;n }n .photo-right img,n .photo-left img {n width: 100%;n display: block;n border-radius: 3px;n box-shadow: 0 4px 20px rgba(0,0,0,0.18);n }n .photo-right figcaption,n .photo-left figcaption {n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 12px;n color: #666;n margin-top: 8px;n line-height: 1.4;n font-style: italic;n }nn .clearfix::after {n content: u0022u0022;n display: table;n clear: both;n }nn .photo-full {n margin: 44px 0;n }n .photo-full img {n width: 100%;n display: block;n border-radius: 3px;n box-shadow: 0 4px 20px rgba(0,0,0,0.18);n }n .photo-full figcaption {n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 12px;n color: #666;n margin-top: 10px;n line-height: 1.4;n font-style: italic;n text-align: center;n }nn .kicker {n text-align: center;n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 13px;n font-style: italic;n color: #666;n margin-top: 52px;n padding-top: 24px;n border-top: 1px solid #d0cfc8;n }nn .site-footer {n background: #1F3864;n color: rgba(255,255,255,0.55);n font-family: Arial, sans-serif;n font-size: 12px;n text-align: center;n padding: 20px 40px;n }nn @media (max-width: 600px) {n .photo-right, .photo-left {n float: none;n width: 100%;n max-width: 100%;n margin: 0 0 24px 0;n }n }n u003c/styleu003enu003c/headu003enu003cbodyu003ennu003cdiv style=u0022background:#00205B; color:#ffffff; padding:58px 42px 48px; border-bottom:4px solid #F1C845; text-align:center;u0022u003enn u003cdiv style=u0022font-size:0.78rem; letter-spacing:0.16em; text-transform:uppercase; opacity:0.82; margin-bottom:16px; font-family: var(u002du002dwpu002du002dpresetu002du002dfont-familyu002du002dproxima-nova), Arial, sans-serif;u0022u003en Feature Story • Spring Commencement 2026n u003c/divu003enn u003ch1 style=u0022font-size:clamp(2rem,4vw,3.5rem); line-height:1.12; margin:0 0 18px; font-weight:800; color:#ffffff; font-family: var(u002du002dwpu002du002dpresetu002du002dfont-familyu002du002dproxima-nova), Arial, sans-serif;u0022u003en Three Generations, One Stage: The Blanchard Family’s Shared Journey to Graduationn u003c/h1u003enn u003cdiv style=u0022margin-top:20px; font-size:0.84rem; letter-spacing:0.06em; text-transform:uppercase; color:rgba(255,255,255,0.72); font-family: var(u002du002dwpu002du002dpresetu002du002dfont-familyu002du002dproxima-nova), Arial, sans-serif;u0022u003en Colorado State University Pueblon u003c/divu003ennu003c/divu003ennn u003cdiv class=u0022article-wrapu0022u003enn u003cp class=u0022drop-capu0022u003eWhen the class of 2026 crosses the commencement stage at Colorado State University Pueblo on Saturday, May 16, most graduates will scan the crowd for the faces of the people who helped get them there. For the Blanchard family, those faces will be right there in line with them.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eBrandon, Lisa and Abigail Blanchard u0026#8212; husband, wife and daughter u0026#8212; will walk across the graduation stage together, each earning a degree they fought long and hard to claim. It is the kind of story that might sound like a movie pitch. Brandon laughed when it came up.u003c/pu003enn u003cblockquoteu003eu003cpu003eu0026#8220;We could make a couple movies out of our story.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003eu003c/blockquoteu003enn u003cpu003eThey would need more than one.u003c/pu003enn u003chr class=u0022section-ruleu0022u003en u003ch2u003eA Family That Moves Togetheru003c/h2u003enn u003cpu003eThe Blanchards are originally from the St. Louis area u0026#8212; Lisa born and raised in Missouri, Brandon a self-described military brat who spent his first twelve years moving between countries and states before his mother settled in Missouri when he was in middle school. That is where the two met, on a school bus in middle school. They started dating two years after high school graduation, married four years after that, and have built a life defined less by a fixed address than by a shared willingness to keep moving forward.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eIn 2010, Brandon finally convinced Lisa u0026#8212; who had barely left Missouri u0026#8212; to drive out to Colorado just to see the mountains. They visited in April and moved in May. u0026#8220;She fell in love,u0026#8221; Brandon said.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eBut life kept calling them back. Lisau0026#8217;s grandmother developed dementia and was given months to live; they returned to Missouri to be with her. She lived another two years. Then Brandonu0026#8217;s mother was diagnosed with cancer, pulling them back again. It was not until COVID hit u0026#8212; and Brandon was laid off with a stipend u0026#8212; that the family made the decision to return to Colorado for good.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eu0026#8220;We said, u0026#8216;Weu0026#8217;re going back to Colorado,u0026#8217;u0026#8221; Brandon recalled. They landed in Pueblo, and it is here that everything changed.u003c/pu003enn u003chr class=u0022section-ruleu0022u003en u003ch2u003eThe First Enrollmentu003c/h2u003en u003cdiv class=u0022clearfixu0022u003en u003cfigure class=u0022photo-rightu0022u003en u003cimg src=u0022https://newscsupueblo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/embedded-4977-1.jpgu0022 alt=u0022Brandon Blanchard on the CSU Pueblo campusu0022u003en u003cfigcaptionu003eBrandon Blanchard will graduate Saturday with a masteru0026#8217;s degree in Cannabis Biology and Chemistry.u003c/figcaptionu003en u003c/figureu003enn u003cpu003eBrandon was the first to enroll at CSU Pueblo, drawn by the Cannabis Biology and Chemistry program u0026#8212; one of the first of its kind in the country u0026#8212; shortly after it launched. His interest was personal. As a high-achieving student in high school, he had internalized stress until his body rebelled: an untreated hiatal hernia led to severe acid reflux and daily vomiting, and doctors grew concerned about esophageal cancer. Traditional medicine offered little relief. A college roommate from Oregon introduced him to cannabis, and the result, in his words, u0026#8220;saved my life.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eThat experience shaped everything that followed. Brandon worked as greenhouse manager for CSU Pueblou0026#8217;s Institute of Cannabis Research, growing all cannabis used for on-site research. He also completed the universityu0026#8217;s 3+2 accelerated program, earning his undergraduate degree before moving directly into a masteru0026#8217;s program in Cannabis Biology and Chemistry u0026#8212; from which he will graduate Saturday.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eHis masteru0026#8217;s thesis focuses on neurobiological pathways, specifically identifying the mechanisms through which cannabis interacts with the nervous system. His long-term goal is a PhD u0026#8212; potentially at the University of British Columbia, which offers an interdisciplinary doctoral program he hopes to design around cannabis botany, neurobiology and sustainability. No cannabis-specific PhD program currently exists in the United States.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eDuring his time at CSU Pueblo, Brandon also participated in the NSFu0026#8217;s iCorps innovation program and earned recognition for research into creating biofuel and new barbecue flavor profiles from hemp u0026#8212; work that won a $1,000 award at a competition in Fort Collins. He was also named a McNair Scholar.u003c/pu003en u003c/divu003enn u003cblockquoteu003eu003cpu003eu0026#8220;Cannabis all around u0026#8212; not just medicinal, but the plant as a whole.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003eu003c/blockquoteu003enn u003chr class=u0022section-ruleu0022u003en u003ch2u003eThe Research That Runs in the Familyu003c/h2u003en u003cdiv class=u0022clearfixu0022u003en u003cfigure class=u0022photo-leftu0022u003en u003cimg src=u0022https://newscsupueblo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/embedded-4977-2.jpgu0022 alt=u0022Lisa Blanchard on the CSU Pueblo campusu0022u003en u003cfigcaptionu003eLisa Blanchard graduates Saturday with a bacheloru0026#8217;s in Sociology and has been accepted to the University of Colorado Denveru0026#8217;s masteru0026#8217;s program.u003c/figcaptionu003en u003c/figureu003enn u003cpu003eLisa Blanchard spent fifteen years as a cosmetologist before a genetic connective tissue condition u0026#8212; Ehlers-Danlos syndrome u0026#8212; made that work increasingly untenable. What followed was a decade-long personal odyssey through medical journals and specialist appointments as she worked to understand what was happening to her own body, and to her children, who began showing similar symptoms.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eu0026#8220;I was basically in school before I was in school,u0026#8221; she said, u0026#8220;doing something I never wanted to do.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eWhen her previous student loans were forgiven through a disability discharge u0026#8212; a process that took four years u0026#8212; she enrolled at Pueblo Community College and then transferred to CSU Pueblo, where she pursued a degree in sociology. She will walk the stage Saturday with her bacheloru0026#8217;s degree in hand and a letter of acceptance to the University of Colorado Denveru0026#8217;s masteru0026#8217;s program already secured.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eHer research focus u0026#8212; and her long-term mission u0026#8212; is the intersection of cannabis and neurodivergence: a field she found to be nearly vacant of first-person perspectives. u0026#8220;It was people speaking for neurodivergent people u0026#8212; parents and caregivers and doctors,u0026#8221; Lisa said. u0026#8220;I want to know from a neurodivergent perspective.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eHer goal is to eventually open a nonprofit creating educational pathways for marginalized and intersectional communities. She is also a McNair Scholar. The convergence of her work and Brandonu0026#8217;s is not a coincidence. u0026#8220;Weu0026#8217;re both doing studies that are going to combine later,u0026#8221; she said.u003c/pu003en u003c/divu003enn u003chr class=u0022section-ruleu0022u003en u003ch2u003eThe Youngest Voiceu003c/h2u003en u003cdiv class=u0022clearfixu0022u003en u003cfigure class=u0022photo-rightu0022u003en u003cimg src=u0022https://newscsupueblo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/embedded-4977-3.jpgu0022 alt=u0022Abigail Blanchard on the CSU Pueblo campusu0022u003en u003cfigcaptionu003eAbigail Blanchard graduates with a bacheloru0026#8217;s in English and minors in leadership studies and Italian.u003c/figcaptionu003en u003c/figureu003enn u003cpu003eAbigail Blanchard is 21, the youngest of the three Blanchards on stage Saturday and the only one graduating with a bacheloru0026#8217;s degree in English, along with minors in leadership studies and Italian. She is also, her parents will tell you quickly, the one who held the familyu0026#8217;s finances together in the hardest moments u0026#8212; carefully saving her Reister Scholarship funds and stepping in when the bills got tightest.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eShe came to CSU Pueblo after her parents were already enrolled u0026#8212; still in high school when they started u0026#8212; and originally planned to follow her father into the Cannabis Biology program. A serious illness, later diagnosed as lupus, interrupted that path. u0026#8220;I was sick for a month,u0026#8221; she recalled. u0026#8220;I just started reading again.u0026#8221; Her professors in the leadership program encouraged her to follow the passion that had carried her through u0026#8212; writing.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eAbigail has since published creative work in u003cemu003eTempered Steelu003c/emu003e, CSU Pueblou0026#8217;s literary journal, and has travelled to Italy twice through her studies. She has applied to Colorado State University Fort Collins for a masteru0026#8217;s program in Writing, Rhetoric and Social Change, with an eye toward a career in grant writing u0026#8212; work that might one day help fund the very kinds of nonprofits her mother and father hope to build.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eAsked how it felt to cross the stage alongside her parents, she was characteristically understated. u0026#8220;It just feels typical for our family, to be honest. We havenu0026#8217;t really been the norm throughout my whole life.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003en u003c/divu003enn u003chr class=u0022section-ruleu0022u003en u003ch2u003eStill at the Pack on the Hilltopu003c/h2u003enn u003cpu003eThe Blanchard commitment to CSU Pueblo does not end with Saturdayu0026#8217;s ceremony. The familyu0026#8217;s middle son, Michael, is currently enrolled as an undergraduate studying mechatronic engineering u0026#8212; having transferred from Pueblo Community College u0026#8212; and continues to work toward his own degree. At any given time in recent years, the Blanchard household has had as many as three or four people simultaneously enrolled in higher education.u003c/pu003enn u003cpu003eu0026#8220;Weu0026#8217;re all supporting each other,u0026#8221; Brandon said. u0026#8220;With her scholarship, she kind of bailed us out in the rough moments.u0026#8221; Lisa put it more simply: u0026#8220;Weu0026#8217;re used to struggling. We viewed it as broke college student stuff and just got through it.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003enn u003chr class=u0022section-ruleu0022u003en u003ch2u003eThe Goal, Simplyu003c/h2u003enn u003cpu003eAcross more than thirty years together, the Blanchards have lived in a 250-square-foot tiny home with four people, spent time in a hotel between relocations, moved between Colorado and Missouri multiple times for family crises, and navigated chronic illness, financial strain and the demands of a household where almost everyone was in school at once. Through it all, Abigail said, the familyu0026#8217;s direction has stayed the same.u003c/pu003enn u003cblockquoteu003eu003cpu003eu0026#8220;The goal is just to help people.u0026#8221;u003c/pu003eu003c/blockquoteu003enn u003cpu003eBrandon and Lisa nodded. That, more than any degree, may be the truest thing the Blanchards are taking with them off the stage Saturday.u003c/pu003enn u003cp class=u0022kickeru0022u003eCSU Pueblou0026#8217;s Spring 2026 Commencement ceremony takes place Saturday, May 16.u003c/pu003enn u003c/divu003enn u003cfooter class=u0022site-footeru0022u003en u0026copy; 2026 Colorado State University Pueblo u0026nbsp;u0026middot;u0026nbsp; Communications u0026amp; Marketingn u003c/footeru003ennu003c/bodyu003enu003c/htmlu003e