By PARKER BROCK
The Pima Community College Downtown Campus is expanding the size and scope of its many different engineering based programs with help from grants and local business.
This expansion will help alleviate some of the issues the programs are currently facing.
Pima acquired two neighboring hotels, including the historic Motor Inn, to use for the expansion. It is intended to focus partially on automotive programs, as well as machine shop renovations. This is all funded by the $5 million dollar grant PCC received for this expansion.
The Downtown campus west parking lot is where the new building will be, which may be more than one building, that according to the chancellor, is set to finish late summer, but may be delayed until sometime in the fall semester.
The new expansion is exciting for the program. Automotive is fairly large and the many programs Pima offers share the same space.
For programs like building and construction, workstations, toolboxes and almost everything else are on casters because they have to constantly move everything to work with the lack of space.
The PCC Master build plan notes the importance of additional space, especially when pertaining to the trades and automotive programs, but current facilities are outdated and lacking space.
When it comes the space needed, PCC DTC is just under assignable square guidelines according to the master plan.
Currently, the program has 28,586 square feet at its disposal, but will need to meet near 150,000 square feet requirements by 2025, according to Pima master build plan estimates.
Along with more space, new equipment and technologies are also needed to ensure the success of the program.
Each of the programs offered is aligned with an industry standard so students know they are getting into programs that the industries themselves helped shape.
Students get trained through the program and are able to easily transition into an applicable job field with the certification they obtain.
Pima also partners with the U of A, similar to the CAT program where engineers didn’t have the experience with hands on applications.
“We get a lot of students from the engineering (program) at the university because there they expect you to know the software, or figure it out,” Wilson said, “where as you can come to Pima. University students use the space for their projects related to a capstone engineering 498 program, but it’s not just about sharing space.
“It’s also for our students and their students to work together and we can benefit and learn with each other,” Wilson said.
The bigger picture for the center of excellence is to serve as a community hub. This involves partners like JTED and Job Path.
Wilson sites the CATERPILLAR as a benefit to the programs, having moved their location to southern arizona from the midwest. This moved 400 to 500 engineering jobs, strengthening the local economy.
“Our focus is on producing students with these skill sets to draw more businesses to the area,” Wilson said.
Pima wants companies that are looking at relocation to notice the skilled labor force here in Southern Arizona, and motivate them to invest here.
Tucson currently has a shortage on middle income skilled workers, below bachelors degrees and above highschool educations. This correlates to Pima’s renewed focus of these specific industries.
“That’s the area we are targeting, when you talk about highschool students that are coming out, that population is flat, so the growth isn’t there,” Wilson said.
Wilson pointed to the success of their mechatronics program, which hoped to enroll 15 students at the end of the first year, but ended up enrolling 75-80 students before the years end. A majority of these students came from local employers desiring new skill sets.
It’s not only employees from the same field either; many come to retrain for other industries with similar applicable skills.
“Mechatronics is one example that applies to advanced manufacturing, the mines, food processing and health care. It’s a program that touches a lot of different business in town,” Wilson said.
Current projections show the need for space will only continue to grow as enrollment in the programs grow, according to stats on the PCC Master plan by 2025.
Pima already sees the fruits of its labor, with many companies requesting to come work with faculty and students in order to entice them into working for them.
“So for us, the big thing is our doors are open to employers. We want them to build relationships with our faculty and our students through job shadowing, internships, apprenticeships, cause students are gonna go to the companies where they see engagement and those that are investing,” Wilson said. “There is fierce competition for students coming out with these skills.”