History
Voters in Pima County approved the creation of a junior college district in 1966 and the first classes were held in 1969 at a temporary campus in an airplane hangar at the Tucson airport, Tucson Medical Center, Villa Maria, and Marana. The college was originally named Pima College but the name was changed to Pima Community College in 1972 to better reflect the mission of the College.
In 2008, PCC's Board of Governors began receiving anonymous complaints of sexual harassment by PCC chancellor Roy Flores. The board took no formal action until 2011 and Flores resigned in 2012 citing health problems. The search for his replacement has been troubled. In February of 2013, PCC discovered that the search consultant failed to disclose an issue with a finalist for the job; the consultant was fired and the job search extended.
One month after the chancellor search was extended, the interim chancellor resigned in the wake of a scathing report issued by PCC's regional accreditor the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). The report documented not only the ignored complaints of sexual harassment but also a hostile work environment and numerous administrative and financial problems. The report also discussed problems with admissions standards that PCC changed in 2011, problems the college has admitted. As a result of the problems outlined in their report, HLC placed PCC on probation in April of 2013.
PCC also received media attention in early 2011 as the former school of 2011 Tucson Shooting perpetrator Jared Lee Loughner. While at PCC, some of his teachers complained to the administration about his disruptions and bizarre behavior, as they thought them a sign of mental illness and feared what he might do. The college decided to suspend Loughner.
Read more about this topic: Pima Community College
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