Local Opinion: PCC an essential community and economic partner

Of all the governments, nonprofits and community organizations Pima County partners with to provide public services and programs to 1 million county residents, Pima Community College is among the most essential.

The strong and steady leadership of Chancellor Lee Lambert and Board Members Demion Clinco, Meredith Hay, and Catherine Ripley have made PCC into a center of educational excellence. Their willingness to work with community partners like Pima County to improve the lives and livelihoods of county residents is commendable and demonstrates a deep understanding of how communities grow stronger through collaboration. The high-quality education and training available at PCC are indispensable for the growth and prosperity of our community.

Pima County and PCC have a long and trusted history of partnership and cooperation. PCC and County cooperative programs include recreational facilities and programs, early childhood education, and public health programs and services. But where PCC really shines with the County is workforce development, education and training.

A look at the news headlines or national labor trends makes a crystal-clear case — talent development and the ability of businesses to obtain and retain an educated workforce is more important now than ever. Pima Community College’s mission of educational accessibility to all Pima County residents and its success in providing an educated workforce for Pima County’s economy is fundamental to our region’s economic fortunes.

PCC raises incomes and quality of life for our citizens, increases our competitiveness with other regions, and allows our Pima County businesses to thrive.

Workforce is the key to economic development in Pima County and a vitally important pathway to expanding our economy is the programming and educated workforce offered by Pima Community College. PCC’s foresight in the development of the college’s Centers of Excellence has direct benefits to Pima County’s prosperity. The focus of these Centers in areas such as advanced manufacturing, applied technology, aviation technology, health professions, cybersecurity and other disciplines provide direct benefit to not only students, but our current and future employers who require a highly skilled workforce to succeed and prosper.

A high level of collaboration between our two governments has existed for decades and ranges from monthly meetings to discuss economic development issues and strategy; to college staff being at the table with Pima County’s economic developers as they meet with companies considering expanding or relocating in the county. PCC is truly an economic development incentive for growing our economy.

America’s community colleges are where most young people start their college careers. They are where most adults go back to school to learn new skills and new trades for better and higher paying jobs. Education is the key to all doors, and PCC is vital for the economic wellbeing of Pima County.

We all in Pima County must foster and support our community’s college and help PCC as it strives to become one of the best and most innovative community colleges in the nation. I am thankful such an important institution has exceptional leaders like Chancellor Lambert and Board Members Clinco, Hay, and Ripley.