Vote Yes 8–Yes for Your Community’s College — Strengthening Miami Dade College ~ Empowering Our Community
MIAMI – This November, Voters in Miami Dade County will have the opportunity to vote on Amendment 8, which impacts community colleges.
What is Amendment 8?
Amendment 8 offers communities the opportunity to demonstrate support for their community colleges. It places language in the Florida Constitution that would allow counties, if they so choose at a future date, to present a local option referendum that offers voters the choice to support their community college.
Why is passage of Amendment 8 so important to the future of our community and the state?
Florida’s community college system is among the largest in the nation, enrolling close to one million students each year. Miami Dade College (MDC) is the largest college or university in the nation, welcoming more than 160,000 students yearly. MDC is our community’s open door to affordable higher education, providing our residents the tools for success in a demanding workforce environment. From fire and police professionals to new technologies to law, engineering and medicine, MDC responds to the demands of every sector of Miami-Dade County’s emerging economy.
How essential has MDC become for our community?
The U.S. Secretary of Education recently stated that 90% of newly created jobs require college level learning. For many in our community, MDC is the only affordable option to gain a high quality college education. MDC’s programs stretch from English and basic skills development to highly specialized workforce preparation, a challenging Ivy league caliber Honors College, and new bachelor’s degree programs.
MDC’s distinguished record of achievement
– MDC offers more than 200 major areas of study via traditional arts and sciences and 12 professional schools, including Nursing, Entertainment and Design Technology, Architecture, Business, Computer and Engineering Technologies, Fire and Environmental Science, Aviation and more.
– MDC’s cultural programs extend the classroom beyond the campus via the Florida Center for the Performing Arts and Miami Book Fair International, Miami International Film Festival, Cultura del Lobo performance series, MDC’s world-class art galleries, and ongoing campus-based programs.
– MDC is a major employer in the community. Ethnic minorities account for 72% of MDC full-time employees.
– MDC has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, the nation’s largest Service Learning Program.
MDC students are changing our community for the better
– Nearly 2 million students have enrolled at MDC since 1960, in a community with a population of 2.4 million.
– More Hispanic and African-American students attend – and graduate from MDC – than any other college or university in the nation.
– MDC graduates transfer to universities in 30 states through transfer agreements with more than 60 institutions nationwide. MDC’s Honors College graduates have continued their studies at Yale, Columbia, Georgetown, Stanford and other prestigious schools.
– 51% of MDC students are the first in their families to attend college; 35% live in poverty and 57% are low-income.
– More than one-third of MDC students are starting college later in life. Students’ average age is 26, and flexible class scheduling supports 80% of students who work and two-thirds who attend part-time.
For more information: www.voteyes8fl.org
