Western Maricopa Education Center (West-MEC) is a career and technical education public school district focused on preparing students for tomorrow’s careers. West-MEC is accredited for its Adult Education programs by the Council on Occupational Education (COE) for three of its campuses and was recently granted initial approval for its fourth campus, the Northwest Campus.

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COE is a national institutional accrediting agency for the accreditation of non-degree-granting and applied associate degree-granting postsecondary occupational education institutions. West-MEC has been accredited by COE as a district since 2015.

West-MEC is launching two new Adult Education programs, IT Security and Dental Assisting, at its Northwest Campus on Oct. 23. COE will send a team to review the programs and visit the campus in December. After its review period to ensure West-MEC is in compliance and has met its standards for accreditation, COE will grant full approval in March 2024 at its commission meeting.

“We are ecstatic to begin offering post-secondary programs at the Northwest Campus,” said West-MEC Adult Education Director, Lizeth Fils-Aime. “We have had a plethora of inquiries about this campus since it opened. We look forward to supporting both the community and industry partners with the opportunity for gainful employment and a skilled workforce. We are most grateful for the full support from the City of Surprise.”

With the initial approval in place, West-MEC is also requesting the Northwest Campus to be an approved eligible training provider location with Arizona@Work and to be approved for veteran education benefits. In addition, West-MEC is seeking Federal Student Aid approval for the Northwest Campus for Dental Assisting and IT Security programs. 

The Adult Education Dental Assisting and IT Security programs provide affordable, hands-on Career and Technical Education to those interested in obtaining in-demand employment in the field. Subsequently, the programs support the industry’s need for a skilled, certified workforce.

For more information, please call or email West-MEC’s Adult Education department at: 623-738-0046 or adulted@west-mec.edu

Or visit online here.