Red Rocks Receives $1M Grant to Expand Arvada Campus
Lakewood-based Red Rocks Community College has landed a $1-million grant to expand its Arvada campus. The grant was made by Community First Foundation, a 40-year-old foundation that aims to improve the quality of life and create positive change.
The money will go toward building the Arvada Health Professions and Science Building. It is the largest private gift in the college’s $22.5-million campaign to triple the size of the Arvada campus. It is also one of the largest grants in the foundation’s history.
Once completed, the Arvada Health Professions and Science Building will cluster all of the college’s health-professionals programs into one place. The project is part of the largest building campaign in RRCC history.
The Arvada Health Professions and Science Building will also expand community access to high-demand degree and certificate programs. The college houses one of only two physician’s assistant training programs in Colorado and the only one dedicated to primary care for the underserved. Physician’s assistants are an increasingly important component of health care teams and one of the fastest-growing health care occupations in Colorado.
The expanded campus will also serve as a regional triage center for crisis response and as a community resource for continuing education for incumbent health professionals. Once complete, the Arvada campus will provide Jefferson County with an educational training center that supports a collaborative learning environment dedicated to the future health and wellness of Jefferson County and the surrounding areas.
“We are grateful to Community First Foundation for helping us move closer to our goal of producing highly qualified primary care health professionals to meet the growing needs of Jefferson County’s largest industry—health and wellness,” said Michele Haney, president, Red Rocks Community College.
“We are pleased to be a part of a Jefferson County project that is focused on training the health professionals of the future, those who are able to treat the whole patient—mind and body,” said Marla J. Williams, president and CEO, Community First Foundation.
“We are always looking for ways to honor our heritage in Jefferson County. Red Rocks Community College is a great place to demonstrate our commitment to the community.”
