Cochise Newsroom

Cochise College has been named an "Opportunity College" by Carnegie, placing it among a distinguished group of colleges nationwide for helping students succeed through access to higher education and strong graduation rates.  

 

The Opportunity Colleges and Universities designation is part of a newly developed Student Access and Earnings Classification introduced by the Carnegie Foundation and the American Council on Education. The system evaluates how well institutions support students by:

 

1. Measuring whether institutions are enrolling students reflective of the communities they serve and

2. How student earnings compare to peers in their region

 

In 2025, only 479 institutions, about 16% of all U.S. colleges and universities included in the Student Access and Earnings Classification, earned the Opportunity College designation. Cochise College is one of them. Within the Professions-focused Associate Large/Medium category, Cochise College is one of just 193 recognized institutions. That's only 5% of colleges and universities in the Institutional Classification. 

 

"Cochise College is committed to making college more accessible and meeting the needs of our students, communities and region," said Dr. James Perey, college president. "This recognition affirms our mission in providing inclusive and accessible educational opportunities that support social responsibility, community engagement, meaningful careers and lifelong learning."

 

The methodology for the new Student Access and Earnings Classification uses multidimensional groupings of the 2025 Institutional Classification to evaluate student access and earnings between similar colleges and universities. 

 

More information about 2025 Student Earnings and Access Classifications, including the methodology, can be found here.