It is our hope of hopes that vaccinations are doing their job and we can all, once again, celebrate our graduates’ achievements in person next year.
Here at Coconino Community College, we have celebrated our 512 recent graduates with a commencement ceremony held virtually in order to keep everybody healthy and safe during the pandemic. It is our hope of hopes that vaccinations are doing their job and we can all, once again, celebrate our graduates’ achievements in person next year.
As the vaccination effort progresses and as numbers of COVID-19 infections decline, CCC has begun the process, with the health and safety of our students, faculty and staff as priority, of scheduling more in-person course offerings this summer. This fall, if all trends continue, CCC will increase in-person courses to help our students find instructional delivery that fits their needs as they get busy recovering from the effects of this global pandemic.
To that end, CCC has joined community colleges throughout the state in a reskill and recover push designed to offer unemployed and underemployed residents of our state timely, affordable education and training to help prepare them quickly for stable, well-paying jobs.
At CCC, our faculty and staff have been busy creating and fine-tuning programs designed for that. Among our offerings are: Google IT Support Professional, Commercial Driver’s License (as of June 1); Certified Maintenance Technician; Medical Assistant; Emergency Medical Technician; Caregiver; Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration; and many more. CCC also offers affordable general education paths for students who plan to transfer to a university to attain four-year degrees. For the lifelong learner in our residents, CCC has a fascinating line-up of presentations, courses and talks as part of our Community Education mission.
To help students afford their new educational goals, CCC is excited to offer graduating high school seniors in Coconino County, with the help of federal COVID relief funds, free tuition for summer courses so they can get a jump on their fall semesters. All other qualifying students will receive reduced rates on their tuition this summer and fall with the help of these funds.
Recently, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey announced more than $7 million in funding for community college scholarships for currently unemployed workers who are eligible for Return-to-Work funding. The governor is also making an additional $6 million available for workers who don’t have high school diplomas to prepare for and take General Education Development (GED) tests.
The coming 2021-22 school year contains so much promise. On Aug. 26, CCC will be celebrating 30 years of service to the residents of Coconino County. We’re already in the process of planning events to celebrate our milestone all year long with the communities served by the college. This summer, look for CCC to participate in the Flagstaff, Williams and Page Fourth of July parades, and I have it on good authority that the CCC Ride Along band will be getting back together to entertain the crowds during the parades in Flagstaff and Williams.
On top of our anniversary celebration, CCC is deep in the process of having its accreditation status continued with the Higher Learning Commission. HLC is the governing body in charge of ensuring that CCC offers quality education to our students. The accreditation also enables our students to apply for financial assistance with the federal government and it allows the credits they receive at CCC to transfer to other accredited institutions. We have received valuable input from the community, our staff and faculty, and students in order to best ensure a successful process with the HLC committee.
Finally, CCC now has a coach to head the cross-country running program, which was announced in February last year. The pandemic put the program on hold, but now we are moving forward with Coach Craig Hunt to field a team. The program, which is fully supported by outside donations, can always use help. Visit the Cross Country Comets page at coconino.edu/cross-country-comets to help support the team.
As always, I wish everybody a safe and healthy summer, and if you’re looking to start that next chapter of your life as the pandemic starts to fade, I believe CCC can help. It’s not too late to register for summer classes, which begin June 7, and registration for fall classes has already begun as well. Give us a visit at coconino.edu to learn more.
Onward! FBN
By Colleen Smith, Ph.D.
Colleen A. Smith, Ph.D., is the president of Coconino Community College.