Gila Community College (GCC) held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Gila Pueblo Campus in Globe on August 15 to celebrate its independence as a standalone institution after ending a contract with Eastern Arizona College (EAC) June 30.
For 20 years, the college operated as a provisional community college district and was dependent on EAC – GCC was paying EAC for accredited courses, and decisions regarding GCC were being made in Graham County.
The separation from EAC allows GCC autonomy, and decisions regarding GCC can now be made in Gila County.
“We’re independent, we’re charting our own course, we’re moving in our own direction,” Mickie Nye, Governing Board Vice President of Gila County Community College District, told attendees during the ceremony. “We’re going to be far more responsive to the needs of our communities.”
With autonomy, the school has the ability to expand career and technical education (CTE) programs, increase dual enrollment opportunities, and offer more enrichment courses.
Notably, the school’s nursing and cosmetology programs have been state-certified. The school is also working on a Fixed Plant Maintenance program to offer in fall 2026.
“We are just getting our feet on the ground, and have admitted and enrolled approximately 1,500 students for the fall,” says Dr. Janice Lawhorn, Gila Community College President.
GCC is also working with the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) to gain institutional accreditation–having previously relied on EAC for academic accreditation–and gained candidacy from the commission in January.
“We are confident that we will have our initial accreditation no later than January of 2027,” Lawhorn says.
“We’re excited about being in control of our own future,” Nye concluded. “We’d like to have dorms on both campuses. We’d like to build new buildings down here. So the board has some big plans, and this group gets things done.”
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