About

In 1961, citizens of Cochise County recognized the need for higher education. They conducted a vigorous campaign to create a junior college district. The campaign was a success, and on October 17th, 1961, county residents voted to approve the formation of the district. The vote was carried by a margin of more than seven to one!

On August 21st, 1962, county residents came together again to vote on and pass a $1,600,000 bond issue to build Cochise College. Construction of Cochise College Douglas Campus officially began on September 23rd, 1963. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on the same day to mark the momentous occasion.

Nearly one year later, on September 21st, 1964, Cochise College officially opened its doors to students and began its first year of service. For the past 60 years, Cochise College Douglas Campus has served students from throughout the county, across the country, and all over the world!

The Douglas Campus underwent several changes to meet the needs of its students. Initially, the campus consisted of the following 12 buildings: Administration, Faculty Office, Fine Arts, Gymnasium, Liberal Arts, Library, Little Theater, Two Residence Halls, Science-Technology, Student Center, and Vocational. Now, the Douglas Campus boasts 20 buildings! The Douglas campus will continue to evolve and serve Cochise County.

Since the first year of classes, Cochise College has been dedicated to bringing college-level courses to communities throughout the county. One of the oldest partnerships between a community and Cochise College is with Fort Huachuca.

In 1964, Cochise College worked with Fort Huachuca officials to bring classes to the Sierra Vista-Fort Huachuca area. At this time, Cochise College signed its first contract with the Fort to offer lower division classes at the Army Education Center at Fort Huachuca. The University of Arizona would offer upper-division courses.

This agreement began a long partnership between Cochise and the Fort! Since then, Cochise College has collaborated with the Fort to offer courses under the U.S. Armed Forces Institute (USAFI), organize a STRATCOM program, offer Aviation courses, and more.

As the Fort and Sierra Vista grew, the area's education demand also increased. In 1972, Cochise College decided to build a secondary location to support the Sierra Vista-Fort Huachuca community. For a time, Cochise College even offered classes at the Smith Middle School at Fort Huachuca to meet demand.

60 years later, Cochise College still offers courses at the Army Education Center at Fort Huachuca!

When the demand for education increased in the Sierra Vista-Fort Huachuca area, Cochise College began searching for a secondary location to offer classes. The college has been offering classes at Buena High School upon request since 1964. This partnership prompted the College to approach Buena High School about opening a college center at Buena.

In 1972, Buena partnered with the College to establish the Cochise College Center on the Buena High School campus. The center would consist of two portable buildings with four classrooms and an office. A groundbreaking ceremony for the new center occurred on April 4th, 1972. A dedication and opening ceremony was held on August 13th, 1972, and a few days later, on August 28th, 1972, classes began at the center.

In 1974, Cochise College was gifted 40 acres by Andrea Cracchiolo. The land gift and continuing desire for education in the area led Cochise College to develop plans for a Sierra Vista Campus.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the current Sierra Vista Campus was held on February 19th, 1977. Less than a year later, a dedication ceremony occurred on January 8th, 1978. Finally, on August 28th, 1978, the Cochise College Sierra Vista Campus opened its doors to students for the first time.

Similarly to Sierra Vista, Willcox, and other communities throughout the county, Cochise College offered college courses in Benson as requested. The need and desire for a permanent college center steadily grew. In 1997, the possibility of a Benson Center began to blossom.

In March 1977, the Cochise College Foundation reported they received 40 acres for a Benson site from a developer. Shortly after, the Foundation started its first capital campaign to raise $300,000 for Benson and to support efforts to obtain legislative aid for a Benson Center.

In anticipation of a Benson Center, Cochise College signed a lease with Benson Executive Suites for a temporary Cochise College Benson Office in November 1997. This office helped organize Benson classes and start conversations with the Benson Community regarding the new Benson Center.

By June 1998, HB 2505, the Benson Bill, passed through the House and Senate. The new Benson Center would receive $1 million in funding from the Legislature. That same month, a sign was erected on Highway 90, noting the site for the new Benson Center.

On January 14th, 2000, Cochise College held a Groundbreaking ceremony for the new center. A few months later, an opening ceremony was held on August 15th, 2000, and the center opened for the first day of classes on August 21st, 2000.

Before the Willcox Center, there was the Community Campus. From the beginning, Cochise College wished to offer classes outside of the main campus to meet the education needs of the residents throughout the county. If potential students could not make it to daytime classes on the main campus, Cochise College offered to bring courses to them!

At first, the Community Campus was a county-wide program with no dedicated location. Then, in February of 1987, Cochise College signed an agreement with the Willcox School District to place two temporary buildings on the Willcox High School Campus.

The Community Campus program eventually moved to the new Willcox Center. The program maintained the Willcox Center and continued to organize classes at 14 different locations throughout the county, including Benson, Sierra Vista, Bisbee, Tombstone, St. David, and more.

In 2008, Cochise College wished to build a more permanent facility to serve the Willcox area. Cochise College worked with Willcox Unified School District to construct a new Willcox Center just south of the District Offices and the old temporary college buildings.

Groundbreaking for the new facility occurred on July 8th, 2009. The first day of classes in the new building occurred on August 23rd, 2010, and a belated Open House/Ribbon Cutting ceremony was held on October 12th, 2010.

In August 2014, Cochise College observed the need for a nursing and health sciences building. Discussions about designing and building a nursing and allied health facility on the Sierra Vista Campus started soon after.

In January 2015, Cochise College entered into a Letter of Intent with the Legacy Foundation of Southeast Arizona concerning the Sierra Vista Regional Health Center facility. The Legacy Foundation was willing to hand over the old hospital to Cochise College to support the development of a nursing and health building.

Cochise College officially gained possession of the facility on June 15th, 2015, and demolition and remodeling began the next month! A Ribbon Cutting and Open House took place on August 19th, 2016, and the first day of classes occurred on August 22nd, 2016.

The Downtown Center is home to Nursing and Allied Health, Culinary Arts, the Small Business Development Center, and the Center for Lifelong Learning. This center also houses community partners like DAV, ViCAP, and Arizona at Work.

Retired Cochise College instructor Jack Ziegler has authored two books about the history of Cochise College.

“A Brave Beginning (PDF)” tells the story of the establishment of Cochise College, paints a picture of 1960s Cochise County and provides interesting insights from many of those who made it happen.

“A Brave New World (PDF)” focuses on shifting county demographics and the population growth in the Sierra Vista/Fort Huachuca area that ultimately led to the opening of the Sierra Vista Campus.

Ziegler is originally from New Jersey. After being discharged from the Army at Fort Huachuca in 1972, he worked for Cochise College as an administrator and English and humanities teacher. He retired in 2004.

Cochise County is over 6,000 square miles, located in Southern Arizona. Nicknamed, the “Land of Legends,” the county is rich in history from the famed Buffalo Soldiers stationed at Fort Huachuca to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, AZ.

With its mild, high-desert climate the region is an excellent location for outdoor enthusiasts to go birding and hiking on the many mountain trails, visit mining towns like Bisbee, taste wine from local vineyards.

Cochise County has many other unique destinations like U-Picks farms in Willcox, the historic Gadsden Hotel in Douglas or Kartchner Caverns State Park recently voted “best cave” in the USA by USA Today.

Sierra Vista Chamber Welcome
City of Sierra Vista Website
City of Douglas Website
City of Tombstone Website
City of Benson Website
City of Willcox Website
Cochise County Website
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