Maricopa Community Colleges’ Changes Signal Progress

Wednesday, March 14, 2018
Exterior image of the Maricopa County Community College District office building

Maricopa Community Colleges (MCCCD) has a bright future with its one-two punch of savvy budgeting and strategic investments in future programs. The Governing Board’s recent decision to eliminate some programs while bolstering others will guarantee sustained affordable tuition and a world-class education.

“Our obligation is to the students and communities in which we live. We are committed to excellence and life-long learning and providing access to higher education to our diverse population,” said MCCCD’s Chancellor, Maria Harper-Marinick. “We are proud of the progress we have made in the past year and our sustained success in the future requires a long-term commitment to innovation.

MCCCD’s offers affordable tuition for in-county residents. And they want to see that value-trend continue. In-state tuition and fees at four-year national universities have grown at an alarming rate over the past 20 years, increasing at almost 240 percent.

“Just like today’s students must stretch their dollars,” said Governing Board President Laurin Hendrix, “We too are motivated to maximize each dollar to deliver an exceptional education at a competitive rate. We must lead courageously to change programs and streamline processes that we’ve grown accustomed to but are no longer serving the needs of the student body or the broader community.”

The District’s focus to offer innovative programs for tomorrow’s jobs continues to accelerate. That’s why the schools are supporting programs such as cybersecurity and surgical technology programs, as well as a new lab for learning cloud computing and the construction of a new drone flight lab facility.

MCCCD boasts some of the nation’s largest and best community colleges, and it doesn’t look like their successes will be slowing down anytime soon.