Prop 417 Information

Dear Citizens:

I have been a part of the Coconino Community College family for over ten years now. Our relationship began when I became a member of the Foundation Scholarship Committee where I served seven years. While serving on this committee, I was awe struck at the assistance of these scholarships as many students who might have needed to take a semester off due to lack of funding could now continue their journey.

My son attends the CCC2NAU program where he is working to receive his bachelor’s in Information Technology. The relationship with CCC has been exceptional, starting with the communication on enrollment, the ongoing support of their advisors, and the quality teachers and classes offered. My son was able to leave high school and jump into college without feeling overwhelmed. He receives hands-on attention, learns something new every day, and attends for an affordable price. 

CCC has a wide range of students from all ethnicities and age groups and has something for everyone. They continue to create a workforce for tomorrow right here in Flagstaff. I urge everyone to see that CCC gets the funding they need to continue to educate the masses.

Sincerely,

Heidi Hansen

County Resident and mother of a CCC Student

(928) 606-6562

As life-long residents of Coconino County, we ask you to join us and VOTE YES on Proposition 417.

YES on Prop 417 maintains the current tax and allows the College to redirect funds from capital projects to meet educational needs.  PROP 417 IS NOT A NEW TAX and will sunset in seven years.  Coconino Community College will use this existing bond revenue to invest in classroom programs that directly benefit our students. 

Coconino Community College provides an affordable and accessible pathway to post-secondary education, valuable training to our community to ensure access to higher paying jobs and increased quality of life.  Prop 417 will make sure that the College continues to help local communities by providing education for veterans, training unemployed and under employed adults, and educating students of all ages.  A vibrant education system, like the Community College’s, is essential for the economic health of our residents and the well-being of our entire community.

Please join us in supporting Proposition 417 to keep Coconino Community College strong and vibrant.

Elizabeth Archuleta Coral Evans

Dear Citizens,

I strongly support Proposition 417 for Coconino Community College.  Please vote YES! Quality education, workforce training, and development are crucial pillars to a sustainable and resilient economy.  Proposition 417 would result in no increase to the current secondary property tax rate.  A yes vote will fund critical programs in career and technical education as we face the uncertain future of the Navajo Generating Station.

As you remember, in 2014 the Page Campus was almost closed.  With the outpouring of community support, the CCC Board kept it open.  It’s our turn to provide support for the critical mission of the College.

Adequate resources are a crucial component that ensures our College is equipped to provide our rural county residents access to affordable, quality education.  The College is a critical partner in building the foundation for new business opportunities by ensuring that our citizens are well educated and prepared for emerging careers.

State aid to the College has declined from 37% of the College’s General Fund revenues in 1999 to 9% in fiscal year 2017-2018.  Coconino County has the lowest property tax rate in the state.  Please join me in support Proposition 417 which will immensely benefit our county.

Best regards,

Lena Fowler

County Supervisor District 5

Coconino County Board of Supervisors

I am a 22-year-old student at Coconino Community College.  I have been attending CCC for the last three years.  My time at CCC has been wonderful.  I never thought I could go to college, almost like I was not smart enough to attend.  At age 14, I started construction and I quickly learned that my body was not strong enough to do this for long, but the best and most important thing I learned in construction is that some people cannot go to college because of their past decisions.  A man one day said, “Paul, you should go to college for all of us who cannot.” This was going through my mind the first day I pulled into the parking lot.  I quickly found out that the very thing I never thought I could do, I am now doing really well.  College is not easy by any means, but the teachers at CCC are some of the best people I know. They actually try to help me succeed in career goals.  CCC has inspired me to go further than I ever imagined.  So, just think how many people CCC can help if you say Yes?

Paul Bearchell

Dear Voters,

Please vote YES on Proposition 417 to maintain the small, current, secondary property tax for seven years.

Coconino Community College, our college, provides the way for high school students and recent graduates to take the next step in life. For friends and neighbors at all stages of their working careers, CCC provides the affordable opportunity to change career directions or add new skills and refresh current skills, or just to pursue an interest from art to construction. Voting yes for Proposition 417 is a vote for new and needed programs in career and technical education.

Doney Park, Timberline and Fernwood Estates, Kachina and Mountainaire, don’t forget Winona, Fort Valley, Bellemont, Parks, Williams, Grand Canyon/Tusayan, and the areas centered on Page, Tuba City, and Leupp, as well as Flagstaff, are all part of Coconino Community College’s community.

If you need more information please visit https://www.coconino.edu/prop-417 the CCC site or www.thrivingccc.com the citizens supporting Proposition 417 site.

Thanks you for your sincere consideration,

Nat White

Coconino Community College Governing Board, District 1

Today we are at a crossroads regarding providing long-term training and education for many in our community.  It is VITAL that we, as citizens of Coconino County, Vote YES on Proposition #417 to repurpose a secondary tax bond for capital funding into much needed funding for the programs that make CCC unique in our community – an educational institution committeed to training students for employment and providing classes to develop our interests and skills.  It is important to understand that this is not a new tax in competition with other school initiatives, but rather intended to provide greater flexibility in use of funds to address needs requested by our citizens.

We have been moved to action by being part of the CCC Champions group, a gathering of community members interested in enhancing the educational outreach of Coconino Community College.  We do this because we understand and support increasing Coconino Community College’s improvement and expansion into our communities.  We have facilities to support programs, but not sufficient resources to meet the clear needs in our County.

Please vote YES on Prop #417 to continue (not a tax increase) our secondary property tax to keep CCC strong and growing in our communities!

Carl Taylor & Holly Taylor

CCC trains people to save lives.

Twenty-nine years ago, we had to make a 911 call in a life-threatening medical emergency.  The skill and preparedness of the emergency responders saved Karen’s life.

Here in Northern Arizona, our emergency personnel use Coconino Community College for training that saves lives, whether we live in Flagstaff or Tuba City, Grand Canyon or Williams, Sedona or Page.  CCC also trains nurses and helps local residents improve their job skills.

We support this bond because:

1. It doesn’t add new tax or increase an existing tax rate.
2. Revenue will bring back programs to underserved parts of our county and expand technical training.
3. The tax expires in seven years, so we can verify that funds are being used effectively.

Through its CCC to NAU program, CCC also provides higher education, with smaller classes and lower tuition available to all students.

As residents and real estate investors, we know that we benefit from living in a community that provides essential emergency services and encourages continuous development of job skills.

Please join us in supporting this continuation of CCC’s funding by voting YES on PROP 417.

Sincerely,

Maury Herman and Karen Kinne-Herman

During the past half century, we have watched the impressive development of institutions that greatly benefit our region today.  Examples include NAU and FMC.  Another, we believe, is Coconino Community College.

CCC is a tremendous asset that provides a cost-effective pathway to a university education and that educates many nurses, EMTs, and other medical support staff who care for us when we are sick or injured.  Similarly, CCC offers programs for firefighters and police officers and training for workers needed by local businesses.

Unfortunately, CCC has for years experienced a growing financial squeeze.  Causes include the college’s wholly inadequate primary property tax rate (the lowest of any Arizona community college), a steady decrease in State funding, and the lack of success in two recent override elections.  CCC has responded to the resulting financial shortfall in the only ways available: raising tuition, cutting programs, and shuttering some facilities.

Prop 417, at last, offers Coconino County voters an opportunity to provide CCC the wherewithal to begin to restore and expand programs important to our young people and business community AND to do so without raising anybody’s taxes.  We urge you to join us in voting “YES” on Prop 417.

Bob and Julie Millis

As longtime residents of Coconino County, members of Supporters for a Thriving CCC (a political action committee) urge you to SUPPORT Proposition 417.

Coconino Community College will use this bond revenue to invest in classroom programs that directly benefit students.  YES on Prop 417 maintains the current tax and allows the College to redirect funds from capital projects to meet educational needs. PROP 417 IS NOT A NEW TAX, and it will sunset in seven years.

Coconino Community College graduates fill essential roles across our community, including public safety and medical professionals who keep our communities safe and our families healthy. 

By expanding programs, the College will reinvigorate technical and professional training and will reach into communities that faced service reductions during the Great Recession.  This will help local communities by providing education for veterans, training unemployed and under employed adults, and educating students of all ages.  A vibrant educational system, which Coconino Community College provides, is essential for the economic health of our residents and the well-being of our communities.

Please join us in VOTING YES for Proposition #417 to keep Coconino Community College strong and our communities healthy and competitive.

Mandy Metzger, Co-Chair

Susie Garretson, Co-Chair

Gail D. Lowe, Treasurer

Nat White

Steve Peru

Kerry Blume

Maury Herman

Paul Kulpinski

Fee to include this letter of support paid for by Citizens for a Thriving CCC, a political action committee.

Continue Support for Community College Prop 417

I encourage everyone to research information concerning the different election propositions, so that you can make an informed decision on what is in the best interests of our County, State, Nation and, in particular, our children and those not yet born.  We need educated voters with the critical thinking skills to set the course for our County and Country.

To that end, I strongly support and encourage your vote for Prop 417 and other pro-education propositions. As Thomas Jefferson said (1787) “An enlightened citizenry is indispensable for the proper functioning of a republic. Self-government is not possible unless the citizens are educated sufficiently to enable them to exercise oversight. It is therefore imperative that the nation see to it that a suitable education be provided for all its citizens.”

Coconino Community College provides those services to fulfill Jefferson’s vision, not only in the Liberal Arts and Sciences, but evermore so in the career skills and technical competencies needed for service employment and communication competency.  CCC President Colleen Smith is returning to the original mandate of the college to provide for career and technical training.

Please note that your support for Prop 417 will NOT increase your taxes.  As the lowest funded public college in Arizona, Prop 417 continues the current rate of funding necessary for our Community College to serve our region. Citizens will not pay anything more but will reap the rewards of a better educated citizenry, a better prepared career and technical workforce, and better enable a voting public with the critical thinking skills necessary for understanding historic and current events.

Please join me in voting YES on PROP 417.

Bryan Bates

CCC Emeritus Science Instructor

Dear Friends:

Many of the people who serve you each day and many of your neighbors got their start at CCC.

CCC is a vital community partner that has served not only as the first step for thousands of Coconino County students in starting their higher education journey, they also provide the quality career and technical education and training programs that prepare Coconino County residents of all ages for jobs in Coconino County.

Higher education is the path for our community’s students to achieve their highest potential, get quality jobs, give back to their communities, and become the highly credentialed work force that our businesses need so badly to compete in the future.

For thousands of Coconino County residents, higher education that began at Coconino Community College was the key to their success as they went on to become teachers, doctors, engineers, business owners, contractors, computer scientists, social workers, foresters, and many other great professions.

This proposition will ensure that the students and residents of Coconino County will receive the best education possible that provides the life-long foundation for success.  I urge the voters of Coconino County to support the future of our students, residents, and businesses by voting YES.

Rich Bowen

Citizen

Residents of Coconino County,

A community college plays a valuable role in the advancement of the citizens, which it serves. Similarly, the citizens play a valuable role in the advancement of the communities in which they reside.

Education is the foundation - and Coconino Community College (CCC) provides that educational opportunity.

CCC is a viable educational institution for those seeking to improve themselves and better provide for their families. As an HR professional in Page, AZ 1 am fortunate enough to interact with current or former CCC students on a regular basis. What this indicates is the fact that those individuals who are educated at CCC are in essence reinvesting themselves back into the communities in which they reside.

Proposition 417 is being presented because the continued lack of funding is a real threat to the sustainability of Coconino Community College. So when considering Prop 4 17, consider it an investment in education, an investment in your community, and an investment in Coconino

County.

Vote YES on Prop 417!

Joey Smith