Superintendent Jeff Gregorich visited the new central Arizona College Aravaipa Campus on Aug. 27.
“I am very impressed with the state-of-the-art facility and the investment Central Arizona College has made to ensure the success of this program. It was a collaborative effort which came together last year, and it is exciting to see the students engaged in welding in high tech facility,” stated Gregorich.
“I would like to thank the leadership at CAC, and especially recognize Dr. James Busch for his hard work and support for industrial technology programs at Aravaipa Campus and the vision of creating a partnership with the local school districts. Without his leadership the program would not have been possible,” added Gregorich.
Professor Sam Colton said, “CAC is in process of investing more money into welding program which currently has more students than expected for the first year.”
Currently there are 24 high school welding students and 27 adults enrolled in the night classes three days a week.
“This exceeds our expectations and I know we will continue growing and add more classes, which may include industrial arts and diesel mechanics,” added Colton.
Cobre Valley Institute of Technology Superintendent Pete Guzman stated, “I am very blessed to see the CTE welding program successfully off and running with more than expected enrollment numbers. Our next goal is to add more CTE program opportunities at the Aravaipa Campus. The more choices we have the more students we can reach and offer college and career classes. We know CTE programs and classes make a difference in ability of students being career ready and increase the likelihood of them continuing their education.”
College and Career Readiness Programs offer students the opportunity to explore careers while in high school and receive college credits to encourage them to continue their education after high school as well.