By Melanie Slone
Thanks to funds approved by local voters, both Palomar and MiraCosta College have modernized their infrastructure to serve students better. In 2006, Palomar district voters approved Proposition M, which granted $694 million to modernize the San Marcos Campus and create new educational opportunities in underserved areas of the district. Then, in 2016, MiraCosta district voters approved Measure MM, a $455-million general obligation bond to modernize aging facilities and upgrade instructional technology.
MiraCosta College Measure MM
MiraCosta College boasts the main Oceanside Campus, the San Elijo Campus, the Community Learning Center, and the Technology Career Institute in Carlsbad. Besides the associate’s degrees, it offers a bachelor’s degree in manufacturing that students can start while still in high school, transfer programs to four-year universities, and many certificate programs.
Thanks to Measure MM, students today are treated to a beautiful new Welcome Center that serves as a hub for student services such as the Career and Transfer Centers; Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS); health services and food pantry; veteran’s, financial aid, and outreach spaces; the international office, and much more.
“The first thing you see is a Welcome Center,” says Kristen J. Gonzales, Executive Director, Public & Governmental Relations at MiraCosta College. “The murals on the wall were strategically done to represent the communities in which we serve, so people can see themselves…in an environment where folks feel welcome.”
Students with disabilities are seeing expanded access, and those needing food, diaper, or other services can get resources they need to continue to thrive.
At the same time, new facilities provide students with a hands-on environment that mirrors the real-world experience, including bioscience labs and a true-to-life hospital setting. The goal is “to make sure that the technology is reflecting what’s in industry so when students leave, they’re able to go right into the workforce,” says Gonzales.
Other Measure MM improvements include the Veteran’s Center, job-placement training facilities, engineering and skilled-trades departments, the Library and Learning Center, and the gymnasium, among others.
Palomar College Measure M
Palomar College serves students at its main campus in San Marcos and three education centers in Escondido, Rancho Bernardo and Fallbrook, where general education classes and pathways to associate degrees and certificates are available.
“To say that Proposition M has been transformational for the Palomar Community College District is an understatement,” says Dr. Star Rivera-Lacey, Superintendent/President of the Palomar Community College District. “With the confidence and trust of our taxpayers, we have been able to expand our reach to our students in the most southern and northern portions of the district, through the development of two education centers, one in Rancho Bernardo and another in Fallbrook.”
The institution has also completed or is near completion on 21 other projects, including complete design and construction of state-of-the-art buildings that house classrooms, labs, study areas, and faculty and staff workspaces, not to mention the first-ever football stadium at the San Marcos campus, she adds.
There are plans to open a permanent building at the Fallbrook Education Center and the athletics complex in 2027. A student services center is currently in the discussion phase for design.
“All of the Prop M projects have significantly improved the student experience and elevated their ability to succeed in their educational pathways,” says Dr. Rivera-Lacey.
Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs)
Both MiraCosta College and Palomar College have been designated as Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), which means a significant portion of their students are Hispanic or Latino.
Even though the federal government has cut funding for HSIs, MiraCosta plans to fight for resources for these students. “We are working with the institution to figure out ways to institutionalize efforts and make sure that we continue to do the work, whether we have a grant or not,” says María Isabel Rocha Duarte, HSI Grant Project Director at MiraCosta College, “It’s finding ways to continue to serve our students to make sure they’re successful in any of the journeys that they choose with us.”
Cultural events are also organized “for Latino students to make sure they feel like they belong, that this space is meant for them,” says Rocha Duarte.
