Science and Health Care Educational Opportunities Expanding
Music, multicultural dance, education booths, displays, dignitaries and cake are among the activities being planned to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Mesa Community College’s Red Mountain Campus. Events are scheduled throughout November, kicked off by the Grand Opening Festival, 4 p.m., Nov. 2 on the campus located at 7110 E. McKellips Road, Mesa.
“We are so excited to be able to welcome students back for on-campus learning and invite the public to join us in celebrating 20 years of providing opportunities on the MCC Red Mountain Campus to pursue educational and career goals,” said Kris Bliss, interim associate dean. “The festival will be a fun celebration with plans underway for a native blessing, astronomy happenings, information booths about classes, a multiculturalism focus, a spotlight on the environment, and a chance to meet some of our fabulous desert critters.”
Officially serving students and the community since Oct. 3, 2001, the Red Mountain Campus, located on 98 acres of Sonoran Desert in East Mesa, quickly became renowned for its outdoor laboratory and teaching spaces that encourages the integration of desert plants and animals into college classes. Among its many accolades, the campus received the North American Native Plant Society’s 2014 Founders Conservation Award. Red Mountain’s Cienega wetlands, created as a refuge for endangered plants and animals, fosters partnerships with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Phoenix Zoo and the Desert Botanical Garden.
These partnerships allow the campus to be a dynamic learning environment where students are engaged in conservation and habitat preservation research while networking with professionals in wildlife and science-related careers. The science focus on the Red Mountain Campus continues to grow with expanded course offerings in allied health care, including nurse assisting, phlebotomy, paramedicine, EMT, and dental hygienist. Fall 2021 classes begin Aug. 21.
Enroll in classes now — mesacc.edu/enroll — to secure the classes you want at the times and days most convenient for you. Admission, tutoring, and a wealth of other free services are available on campus as well as via web, chat, and phone. A great place to begin your educational journey, seniors also take advantage of opportunities to earn credits, achieve certifications, and take interesting classes with a 50 percent discount (mesacc.edu/senior-discount). And, MCC’s partnership with New Frontiers offers hiking, cycling, travel, cultural events and other activities for active adults (newfrontiers.mesacc.edu).
Visit mesacc.edu for more information