Miami Dade College
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Miami Dade College is one of Florida's public colleges, located in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It is run by the College's Board of Trustees, appointed by the governor of Florida, whose chair is Helen Aguirre Ferré, a bilingual journalist. The College is also run by its President, currently Dr. Eduardo J. Padrón, and by its various campus presidents throughout the county. The College has eight different campuses, each having various outreach centers: North, Kendall, Wolfson, Medical Center, Homestead, InterAmerican, Hialeah, and West. One of the largest outreach centers is located in Liberty City.
History
Miami Dade College was established in 1959 and opened in 1960 as Dade County Junior College. A facility was built on an old naval air station nearby Opa-Locka Airport, which would soon become the College's North Campus. The College enrolled black students, becoming Florida's first integrated junior college, and Cuban exiles who could not afford other schools. As the College grew, another campus was built in Kendall, and was named the South Campus. (It would later change its name again to the Kendall Campus.) The College was re-named Miami-Dade Junior College, and its two flagship campuses expanded and enrolled more students: in fact, it began enrolling more students than the University of Florida or Florida State University. After some time, college president Mitchell Wolfson Jr. envisioned a campus at the heart of Downtown Miami, and in 1973, the Wolfson Campus was built. The College changed its name to Miami-Dade Community College around the same time.
As the College kept enrolling students, some felt that its academic standards were too weak. Therefore, the College kept its open admissions policy while strengthening its academics. Around the same time, a Medical Center campus was built near Miami's Civic Center adjacent to the University of Miami Jackson Memorial Hospital to train students in Allied Health and nursing (RN) programs. With the Mariel exile community arriving in 1980, the College created an outreach center in Hialeah to help incoming refugees gain an education. Another outreach center, the InterAmerican center, was built to accommodate bilingual education. Because students in Homestead found it difficult to attend classes at the Kendall Campus, the Homestead Campus was built in 1990.
During the mid-1990s, the College began undergoing significant changes. The College made use of new media and technologies under the direction of College President Eduardo Padrón. As the Florida legislature spent less on education, the College began to rely heavily on its foundation. The College also had to figure out new ways of recruiting students, and the College began its "Successful Alumni" campaign in the late 1990s, marketing to Miami-Dade County residents about the College's alumni.
Beginning in 2000, the College implemented its Strategic Plan to revamp the College and its recruiting goals. In 2002, the College disbanded its Honors Program and created The Honors College for talented high school graduates. The Honors College represents Miami Dade College's most academically gifted students.
In 2003, the College was granted the right to award baccalaureate degrees in education to meet future education needs. Thus, the College changed its name from Miami-Dade Community College to Miami Dade College. However, the College's mission to serve its community has not changed.
Facilities
Miami Dade College operates eight campuses and various outreach centers dispersed within Miami-Dade County. The Honors College is currently located in three campuses, with another on the way: a new bilingual program at the recently-built West Campus). All campuses have different schools for various disciplines (Engineering, Business, etc.). Some campuses also operate dual-enrollment programs for high school students. Most campuses also have College Preparatory or English as a Second Language (ESL) courses that help students pass the Computerized Placement Test (CPT) that will allow them to take college-level Mathematics and English courses.
The North Campus has specialized programs that train future firefighters, police officers, and EMS personnel. It also has a School of Entertainment and Design Technology and has a partnership with the Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University (FAMU) for engineering programs. The North Campus also operates the Carrie Meek Entrepreneurial Education Center in Liberty City. Recently, the Campus gained the right, by Florida's Board of Governors, to offer a Bachelor in Applied Science degree in Public Safety, housed within the School of Justice.
The Kendall Campus serves as the College's Admissions Office and Disbursing Office. Kendall Campus also houses the College's athletic teams. The Sharks compete at the highest level of the National Junior College Athletic Association and its teams have won various district and state level awards.
The Wolfson Campus has strong business and legal assisting programs (accredited by the American Bar Association). It also has partnerships with the University of Florida and the Miami-Dade County public school systems in operating the New World School of the Arts for talented high school and undergraduate students. The College President's office is based here, as well as The Honors College and the Miami Dade College Foundation.
The Medical Center Campus, located near the County's main hospitals, trains students in the Nursing (RN) and Allied Health fields, completing the Associate in Applied Science degree that will allow them immediate entry into health professions.
The Homestead Campus contains the College's Aviation program, one of few accredited by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The InterAmerican Campus contains the School of Education, where baccalaureate in science degrees are awarded to future educators. The College's first Bachelor of Science (BS) degree recipients graduated in 2005.
The Hialeah Campus, a former extension of the North Campus, has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and can now award the same degrees as other campuses. Expansion may be under way for the Campus' small facilities.
The West Campus opened in March 2006 for students residing in or near Doral, for student and faculty convenience. In the past, Doral residents drove to North, Wolfson, or other campuses to attend classes. The Honors College may implement a bilingual program in English and Spanish as part of its course offerings.
Present and future
Miami Dade College opened another campus in Miami-Dade County's western region on March 1, 2006. It is located right off the Florida Turnpike and NW 41st Street. The Hialeah Center has become a full campus, which means that expansion may be necessary. The College is also looking for sources of funding so that it could fund current and perhaps future baccalaureate programs.
Miami Dade College enrolls approximately 160,000 students, and almost 6,000 go on to earn baccalaureate degrees, AA/AS/AAS degrees, vocational, technical and/or college credit certificates. Its student population is as diverse as Miami-Dade County. Associate in Arts transfer students from Miami Dade College go on to transfer primarily to schools within the State University System of Florida, though some do transfer to out-of-state institutions mainly through articulation agreements made between institutions. Students from its Honors College have been accepted at prestigious institutions such as Columbia University, Yale University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Georgetown University, and Cornell University.
The College, however, faces limited funding issues. Out of Florida's 28 community colleges, Miami Dade ranks among the lowest in receiving state aid. To offset this, Dr. Padrón and other College officials have pushed for legislation that would allow Miami-Dade County to put a referendum for a 0.5% increase in the sales tax. This measure, Dr. Padrón believes, would allow the College to set aside some money into an investment fund for long-term facility maintenance and scholarships for students. He also argues that tourists pay one-third of Miami-Dade's sales tax, and that the proposed tax increase would only be in effect for five years. Voters would decide on the tax in the November 2006 elections if they want this tax if the legislation passes. Florida's state tax is 6%; however, Miami-Dade County pays 7% sales tax: 0.5% on public health programs, and another 0.5% for its mass transit systems. This measure has, however, failed as the bill did not gain enough votes to pass in the Legislature.
Notable alumni
- Steven Bauer, film and television actor
- Frank J. Gonzalez, Libertarian politician and 2006 Congressional candidate
- Alex Fernandez, former Major League Baseball pitcher
- John Mica, U.S. Representative for Florida's 7th District
- Mireya Moscoso, president of Panama, 1999-2004
- Victoria Principal, principal
- Alex Sánchez, Major League Baseball center fielder
External links
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