Five feet of snow aside, my first few weeks as president of Coconino Community College have been filled with gratitude for the welcome I have received from faculty, staff, and the community. My family and I feel at home.

These first two months have been focused on meeting as many internal and external stakeholders at CCC as possible, taking lots of notes, and understanding the educational needs of our students and the communities we serve. increase. We then put together a report on “The First 100 Days” that focuses on medium- and long-term plans, highlighting what we heard, what we have planned, and how the university is moving forward. I’m so excited.

In addition to understanding the educational needs of students and the communities CCC serves, I have also been involved with the Arizona Community College Coordinating Council, which represents all 10 community college districts in the state. On Wednesday, January 25, CCC, along with all other community college districts, visited the State Capitol to meet with Governor Katie Hobbs and members of Congress to begin discussions on how best to fulfill our role in Arizona’s postsecondary education. I was. What you probably don’t realize is that the combined community colleges in Arizona ultimately serve about 297,000 students per academic year. That’s significantly more than the three state universities combined.

CCC, like many community colleges, focuses on three areas:

• University Transfer: Provides an affordable pathway to a four-year degree. Community college tuition is typically one-third of college tuition, so many CCC students come to us for his first two years of a four-year degree program.
• Employee training: Get employees on staff quickly. By providing career and technical education that helps train and retrain people for jobs relevant to today’s workforce, CCC plays a role in addressing that area of ​​need in Coconino County. .
• Lifelong Learning: Provides community residents interested in continued personal enrichment with continuing education and creditless courses aligned with a variety of artistic, academic and workforce interests.
• These three fundamental pillars align with CCC’s mission to provide accessible and affordable educational programs that prepare students for the future. We are deeply involved with our community and strive to foster student success through a welcoming and inclusive learning environment.

One of the priorities of the CCC District Steering Committee is not only to advocate for diversity and inclusion, but also to fully implement the Diversity Statement. To do so, student organizations and employees must represent their communities and implement the following key concepts: I belong to a university. In addition, CCC’s goal is to ensure that, wherever possible, all students receive the wraparound services they need to succeed in their educational journey. This will eventually lead to a new skill or profession, or a certificate for a degree.

A key guiding principle of CCC is to “put students first,” and using what I have learned in my first 100 days as president of CCC, I intend to do just that. As soon as we have finished compiling the report, we will publish it and share it for a broader and ongoing dialogue about how the CCC can better focus its efforts to adapt, improve and grow like the Coconino County community. start. I energize all communities with CCC’s vision of shaping the future of Coconino County by doing our part to empower individuals, inspire communities, and educate with purpose. I want to let you!

Mother Nature may have delayed the start of the semester, but the students are back and we are all confidently heading into the future.

For more information on what community colleges are doing statewide, visit: https://arizonacommunitycolleges.orgFor more information on CCC, please visit: www.coconino.edu.

To success! FBNMore

Eric Heiser

Dr. Eric Heiser is President of Coconino Community College.