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A joint statement from Dr. Steven Gonzales, Interim Chancellor of the Maricopa Community Colleges, and Board President Marie Sullivan, celebrating the new investments in community colleges in the Fiscal Year 2023 State Budget.
“The Fiscal Year 2023 Budget includes a multitude of new investments in community colleges to support workforce and economic development, including the permanent restoration of the STEM formula for the Maricopa Community Colleges, funding to enhance community college adult education programs, and new investments in nursing and behavioral health workforce initiatives. As the state's largest community college system, we celebrate these new investments in community colleges to support our ability to build and expand programs in the highest need workforce areas and ensure our students have access to relevant equipment and high-quality faculty.
Since the Great Recession, the Maricopa Community Colleges have been significantly cut or completely zeroed out of the two main state funding formulas for community colleges: Operational and STEM aid. Today marks a huge win for our system and our students with the restoration of one of these two formulas. Thank you to the Legislature and the Governor, who also included the permanent restoration of STEM formula funding in his Executive Budget released this past January, for affirming the key role of workforce development that our system plays in this state by significantly investing in community colleges in this Fiscal Year 2023 Budget.”