It’s no secret that over the years the relationship between Yavapai College and the residents of Sedona — or for that matter the Verde Valley — hasn’t always been the best. But the college’s new president is hoping to change that.
Dr. Lisa Rhine appeared before the Sedona City Council on Tuesday, July 23, to introduce herself and to give an update on the proposed skilled trade center on the Clarkdale campus.
Since accepting the job in February, she said she’s spent a lot of time getting to know the communities she serves to get a better understanding of the needs.
“At a board message in the spring I heard a message loud of clear from the east side of the mountain and that was a need for a skilled trade center,” she said.
“I followed up that meeting with a convening of the elected officials on the east side of Yavapai County to announce that we’re beginning the planning phase of a skilled trade center on the Verde Valley campus.” From there, she said the officials identified potential industry partners that the college could begin to work with to help plan the facility. A project committee will be formed and meet in August for the first time to help determine what the center will offer. The plan is to build the facility in 2021 with classes offered that fall.
Rhine said the college will need assistance from the various communities in the region by way of recruiting students to take classes at the center.
“Importantly, I ask that you give me as the new president, a chance to work collaboratively with you to meet the needs of this community,” she said. “My intentions are pure and I have the best interest of our communities at heart. I’d like to build the strongest working relationship, as possible, with you.”
Councilman Scott Jablow said he had heard the new center may be built along State Route 260 between Cottonwood and Camp Verde. Rhine said the Clarkdale campus was chosen as the location because it already has the land, infrastructure, student services and personnel in place.
At this point school officials are not sure of how many students will be needed to make the center feasible or what classes will be offered. They are hoping to answer those questions based on the findings of the committee. But it was said that anticipated classes will center on areas like plumbing, carpentry and electrical work.
“We’re open to whatever it is that comes out of this planning session,” she said. “We’re going to use all the information that’s available to us and not just this planning group’s ideas, and the industry partners’ ideas but also there are economic development groups who have looked into this and analyzed the need on the east side.
“We want to build the space so that it’s flexible enough so that if we need to change course and offer different programming to support whatever is emerging at that time and be responsive to industry needs, we can do so.”
