By J.D. Rottweiler, Ph.D.
This year, I was asked by my colleagues around the state to chair the Arizona Community College Coordinating Council (AC4). AC4, formed in 2013, represents all 10 community college districts in Arizona. Together, we collaborate to ensure all Arizonans have access to high-quality education and training opportunities so that students can achieve their educational goals, complete a degree or certificate, and/or transfer to a university.
Arizona has established a goal that by 2030, 60 percent of adults ages 25 to 64 will hold a postsecondary credential. AC4 works to coordinate efforts in achieving that goal. Currently, Arizona sits at 46 percent attainment, which demonstrates growth of four percentage points since 2016. A lot of work remains over the next 10 years, but Arizona’s community colleges, serving nearly 300,000 credit students each year, are well positioned to provide more than 70 percent of tomorrow’s workforce with an education combined with applied technical skills, industry-driven credentials, and specific preparation for employment.
Community colleges offer a gateway to the American dream that for many would otherwise be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. With open admission policies, low tuition and geographic proximity to home, Arizona’s community colleges provide a critical pathway to postsecondary education for many first-generation and low-income students, as well as adults retraining for a new career. By partnering with business and industry, we prepare students to meet labor market demands in healthcare, law enforcement, cybersecurity and information technology, welding and pipe-fitting, construction and mining, transportation and agriculture.
A handful of industry and community college representatives recently appeared with me on “Morning Scoop,” a virtual program hosted by “Arizona Capitol Times.” The topic was Reskilling and Recovery. The panel discussed ways that the pandemic has changed the world of work and sped the need for short-term training opportunities. I was honored to be joined by Mr. Jeff Jennings, deputy to the commanding general, Intelligence Center of Excellence and Fort Huachuca. Jeff shared details about our partnerships to the statewide audience. Together, we are working to improve educational opportunities for soldiers and civilians working on Fort Huachuca. One new partnership is in virtual reality. The virtual world allows a soldier/student to take apart, repair, troubleshoot, and fix equipment, 30 or 40 times, instead of four soldiers taking turns around one piece of equipment over a predefined period of time. Virtual reality allows the Army to reduce its need for multiple pieces of very expensive equipment and to do most of the teaching and practicing in a virtual world; learners are not limited to the amount of time they have in a classroom. If a mistake happens in training, the risk of it costing taxpayers is reduced.
Because of examples like this, Arizona was recently accepted to be one of 20 states joining the Reskilling and Recovery Network, sponsored by the National Governors Association and the American Association of Community Colleges. The network brings together state and community college leaders with workforce and industry partners to collaboratively identify and scale strategies that give workers the skills necessary to succeed in an economy reshaped by the pandemic.
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We look forward to sharing Arizona’s best practices and learning from other participants so that we can implement new practices that benefit our students and our state’s employers. The future of higher education in Arizona is here, and I can’t wait to keep you posted on how we adapt.
J.D. ROTTWEILER, Ph.D., is president of Cochise College. Contact him at jdr@cochise.edu.