Community College of Denver’s educational programs are designed to enrich the social, civic and economic fabric of our community, nation and the world. Ideas, innovation and the preparation of a well-trained workforce are essential to a vibrant economy. CCD provides access and opportunity for nontraditional students, workforce development and training resources for local organizations, and community partnerships that are improving high school graduation, college enrollment and career success.
Creating opportunities for individuals, business and our community.
Through innovation, open exploration of ideas, and preparation of a well-trained workforce, Community College of Denver enriches our democracy and supports a vibrant local economy.
Programs and strategies that promote access, and academic and personal success for underserved students are the foundation of CCD operations. CCD creates:
- access and opportunities for non-traditional students
- workforce development and training resources for economic growth
- strategic partnerships with the community, K-12 and higher education to ensure high school graduation and college success.
Community College of Denver continues to draw national attention for its innovation and success. In 2006, the entire nation learned about CCD via several publications and television programs.
CCD is the leading point of entry to higher education for the City and County of Denver. CCD can count more than 200 business/education partnerships that are strengthening the workforce and stimulating the economy. For more details, see the CCD 2008 Annual Report [pdf].
- Open admissions
- Guarantees of job competency
- Academic and student support services to ensure success
- Member of the American Association of Community Colleges and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities
- CCD does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age or disability in admission or access to, or treatment or employment in its educational programs or activities.
Latino students make up more than a quarter of CCD’s population and more than a third of those are 19 and under, providing the college with federal recognition as the only Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in the Denver-metro area.
CCD’s broad array of learners includes:
- High school students taking CCD classes in the Postsecondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) program
- Students from the Career Education Center Middle College of Denver or Southwest Early College who are earning dual high school and college credit for the CCD classes they take
- Recent high school graduates or GED recipients
- Adults who are or have been in the workforce, but have come to CCD for retraining or a career change
- First-generation, low-income, minority students of all ages who never saw college as a possibility
- Adult employees whose companies have partnered with CCD to provide training for their career advancement
- Adults with a degree who are in search of a new career
CCD’s 2008-09 enrollment included
- 13,406 students (unduplicated headcount)
- 5,443 full-time equivalent enrollment
- 46 percent of CCD students are minority
CCD’s Class of 2008
- 432 associate’s degrees
- 506 certificates
- 60% of graduates were people of color
- 83% women
- 17% men
Corporate Training
- 1,100 employees participated in workforce training programs
- CCD launched 91 projects or classes through strategic partnerships with 29 Denver employers
Student Ethnicity
- White (42.2%)
- Latino/Hispanic (26.1%)
- African-American (13.2%)
- International Students (5.9%)
- Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%)
- American Indian/Alaskan Native (1.2%)
Student Gender
Student Age
42 percent of CCD students are over the age of 24, with an average age of 26.
- 19 and under (27.6%)
- 20 to 24 (30.8%)
- 25 to 29 (16.3%)
- 30 to 34 (9.1%)
- 35 to 39 (5.6%)
- 40 and over (10.7%)
CCD is dedicated to expanding access, particularly for underserved, first-generation and minority students. Nearly 60 percent of CCD students are first-generation and 50 percent qualify for financial aid. At CCD, students have the opportunity to become the person they aspire to be – to reach, strive and make dreams a reality.
Strategic partnerships with the community, K-12 and higher education help to ensure high school graduation and college success.
CCD strategic partnerships are addressing high school dropout issues, providing school reform initiatives and creating innovative, new high schools.
In April 2004, the Denver Comission on Secondary School Reform recommended numerous guiding principles with emphasis on academic rigor, educational relevance and positive relationships.
High School Partnership Initiatives
In an effort to close the achievement gap for low-income, minority students, CCD works closely with Denver Public Schools and metro-area school districts toward the shared goals of:
- Increasing high school retention;
- Increasing high school graduation; and
- Increasing college-going and persistence with a focus on under-prepared, underserved urban students.
CCD’s high school and early college partnerships provided a college experience for nearly 500 teens.
Postsecondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) – Colorado’s Postsecondary Enrollment Options Act allows all high school students to take dual-enrollment classes that provide both high school and transcripted college credit. CCD offers college-level courses for high school juniors and seniors at their schools and on numerous CCD campuses. In FY05, 652 high school students (unduplicated count) took CCD classes, completing more than 1,000 credit hours of course work.
Participating high schools and the programs CCD offers on site include:
Abraham Lincoln — Public Security Management
Career Education Center — Photography, Public Security Management, Teacher Cadet, Computer Aided Drafting
East High School — Photography
Emily Griffith — Art
North High School — Medical Terminology
Manual High School — Computer Aided Drafting
Montbello High School — Paralegal
Bridge to College Labs – With private funding from individual donors and from The Piton Foundation, Janus Foundation, The Denver Foundation and the Office of Economic Development/Division of Workforce Development, CCD created academic momentum in three Denver high schools last year in an effort to ensure that underserved, low-income, first-generation DPS students graduate and are prepared to enter college. The Bridge-to-Achievement Labs at Abraham Lincoln High School, CEC Middle College of Denver and Emily Griffith High School provide college-readiness assessment tests, tutoring, career guidance and accelerated remedial classes that prepare students for college and give them a sense of their own potential for success.
Southwest Early College – In August of 2004, Southwest Early College, a DPS Charter School, opened to 110 freshmen and 25 sophomores – about 90 percent of whom are Latino. Seventy percent qualify for free or reduced lunch or for Title I funds. CCD and SEC are working together to encourage higher academic achievement in the junior and senior years of high school, provide individualized support and guidance to students in the early years of college and demonstrate new ways of integrating high school and college curricula. SEC students will graduate in five years or less with a high school diploma and an associate’s degree. SEC is co-located on the Teikyo Loretto Heights University campus with CCD Southwest community campus, where SEC students participate in Bridge-to-Achievement Lab activities. The SEC-CCD partnership is partially funded and supported by the Middle College National Consortium.
Career Education Center Middle College of Denver – Two years ago, in partnership with DPS, CCD launched the CEC Middle College of Denver, a School of Choice and the first middle college in the region. Junior and senior students take high school and college-level classes on CCD’s Auraria Campus. In 2004, office and classroom space was renovated and dedicated to the CCD-CEC Middle College partnership. CEC now is considered one of Denver’s four top-performing high schools.
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CCD supports local workforce/ economic development through an extensive network of partnerships and strategic initiatives that benefit the entire community.
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Extensive workforce development programs prepare low-income, underemployed workers for high-demand occupations.
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Business and industry benefit from affordable, high- quality customized training and consulting services.
Performance Solutions
The customized training and consulting services office of CCD, successes include:
In the period 2005-07, Performance Solutions assisted 43 Denver employers access over $2.3 million in Colorado First State Grant training funds. Thousands of local employees benefitted, gaining new transferable job skills in a range of growth industries.
Collaboration with metro Denver workforce offices resulted in a better trained applicant pool for RTD, allowing for light rail services expansion.
Development of an interactive, computer-based training program to improve safety for DIA tarmac operations.
Workplace Learning
CCD’s Office of Workplace Learning provides training and other workforce development resources for under-employed individuals requiring pre-college skills development.
The Essential Skills Program (ESP) is a fast-track certificate program that combines vocational training, work readiness, case management and internships in a sequence that prepares participants for entry-level positions in high-demand occupations with good wages.
In the fiscal year 2008, three Essential Skills certificate tracks were offered: Medical Clerical, Business Services and Financial Services. Program success saw over 70% of our students getting jobs in their field of study.
The Westside Learning Lab (LL) is housed on-site at Denver Human Services to assist clients to obtain thier GED or the basic skills needed for entry-level employment or training. For students whose preliminary tests indicate a capacity for GED success, small group GED instruction is provided and customized to connect learning to student lives. For students with more significant learning challenges, the Contextual Basic Skills track addresses specific basic skills competencies that will lead to the next step in the student's employment or training goal, rather than attainment of a GED.
In 2005, the U.S. Department of Labor recognized CCD with a national award for its innovative partnership with local health care providers. The program delivers accelerated developmental education to CNAs, moving them from sixth grade literacy levels to completion of the college’s LPN program. The program has graduated 50 new LPNs to date.
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