NSHE Joins #CCMonth Campaign to Improve Awareness, Support of Community Colleges

The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) announced it is joining #CCMonth in April, a month-long grassroots education campaign coordinated by the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT).

The primary goals of #CCMonth are to improve awareness of the economic, academic, and equity advantages of attending community colleges.

“The past year has proved beyond any doubt that our community colleges are absolutely vital to Nevada,” Chancellor Melody Rose said. “#CCMonth is an opportunity to reach out to demonstrate why Nevada’s four public community colleges are first-class institutions that are vital to our state and local economies.”

Public community colleges are a uniquely American educational model that was designed to guarantee access to affordable, high-quality higher education for all people. They are the primary educators of life-saving nurses and other healthcare professionals, among many others. They also serve as an on-ramp to bachelor’s, master’s, and higher-level degrees for many students, and particularly for the most demographically and socioeconomically diverse students. They guarantee fair admissions for all students. They offer supports for adult students who must work to support their families. And without community colleges, many American students would not be able to access higher education at all.

“Community colleges are engines of diversity, equity, and inclusion,” said ACCT President and CEO J. Noah Brown. “They give opportunities to all students, and they support all students throughout their educations, whether they attend to attain an associate degree or certificate, intend to transfer on for a bachelor’s or higher degree, or they take one or a few courses to learn a new skill or expand their horizons.”

Nevada’s public higher education system boasts four community colleges: The College of Southern Nevada, Great Basin College, Truckee Meadows Community College, and Western Nevada College. Annually, these institutions confer more than 6,000 degrees and certificates to in-demand workforce areas including skilled trades, applied sciences, and information technology. And many graduates move on to complete bachelor’s degrees at NSHE’s four-year institutions.

Board of Regents Community College Committee Chair Regent Cathy McAdoo said NSHE community colleges are an integral part of Nevada’s workforce.

“NSHE’s Community College graduates are everywhere in our state,” Regent McAdoo said. “They are nurses, small business owners, firefighters, auto technicians, scientists, managers, robotics technicians, and engineers, which are just some of the careers that begin at Nevada’s public comprehensive community colleges.”

Chancellor Rose is asking the Nevada public higher education community and its supporters to join this April in showing support for NSHE’s community colleges by using the hashtags #NSHECommunitycolleges and #CCMonth on social media.

“Let’s make sure our community colleges know how much we appreciate all they do for our state,” said Chancellor Rose.

How can you help support NSHE Community Colleges?

Join NSHE (@NSHE), CSN (@CSNCoyote), GBC (@GBCNevada), TMCC (@TMCCNevada), and WNC (@WNCNevada) on Twitter and Facebook and tell us your community college story.

Use the hashtags #NSHECommunityColleges and #CCMonth.

• How did your community college impact you as a student?
• How did your community college help you on your career path?
• How did a community college faculty or staff member help you on your journey?
• Don’t forget those photos!

About ACCT

The Association of Community College Trustees is a non-profit education organization of governing boards representing more than 6,500 elected and appointed trustees who govern over 1,200 community, technical, and junior colleges in the United States and beyond. NSHE Board of Regents Vice Chair Carol Del Carlo serves as a Board Member of the ACCT.