In 2021, Arizona became the 25th state to allow community colleges to confer bachelor’s degrees. As of today, 15 such programs are on their way to launching in the Grand Canyon State.

Most will be housed in large, urban community colleges, but rural-serving colleges are also building bachelor’s programs tailored to their community’s needs. In this interview, two leaders of rural community colleges in Arizona discuss what the process has been like for them and what’s on the horizon.

Etelin Tapi, who was born in Mexico and brought to the United States as a baby, is now an undocumented student at Colorado College. Her academic journey has not been easy. Today, she is most concerned about the ongoing assault to immigration rights.

Tapi exemplifies the persistence and determination that leaders of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities say define students who are working every day to earn a college education, often at Hispanic Serving Institutions.

The benefits of a new income-driven repayment plan for federal student loans are largest for those who used the loans to pay for undergraduate degrees, especially certificates and associate degrees, according to a recent report by the Urban Institute.

The report uses College Scorecard data to model how the Saving on a Valuable Education  (SAVE) program would affect loan repayment patterns for more than 25,000 postsecondary programs.