Ana Garcia. Photo by Michael Farrell
Regents play a very important role for a college or university. They create budgets that have daily effects on students and faculty. They also plan events for the community to enjoy. Ana Garcia is the newest regent to be appointed. She has some ideas for the future of Hispanic community. Her presence will also give more representation to the Hispanic community at OCCC.
Ana Garcia was appointed by Governor Stitt. In an interview with Ana Garcia she said, “something that was important for his administration. Is to have representation at OCCC. He knew one of OCCC’s core missions is to have more hispanic students.“ Oklahoma City is a community with a large hispanic population. Having representation for that community is important. It is crucial that the people representing a particular community have a personal understanding of it.
While it is important to have proper representation for a community . It is more important to have a plan that benefits the community. Also the experience to make whatever is planned a reality. In the same interview she mentioned the nursing program.” They’re wanting to expand the nursing program with the new money that is coming in from the federal government.” Expansion of a program like nursing would benefit a lot of students. It would also be helpful if there is someone who understands being a student and nursing in general. Garcia has an extensive background in nursing. She is a Family Nurse Practitioner at INTEGRIS Family Care Southwest in Oklahoma City. She has also received a Masters of Science in Nursing from the University of Oklahoma.
Something important for people to know is the state of healthcare in the hispanic community. According to Pew Research Center one in four hispanics lack health care throughout the country. Something like an expanded nursing program in a community such as ours. Would be very beneficial.
While having expanded nursing is beneficial it also needs to be affordable. The big appeal of a community college is how affordable it is relative to a university. Ana Garcia along with the Board of Regents has been discussing lowering tuition costs. During the interview Garcia said, “ In the plan for the next year, they were trying to increase the budget to lower tuition costs.” So, the plan the Regents have is to expand programs such as nursing and lower tuition costs. Something any student can support. Now it is up to the regents to come through with action.
There is also the part about having a strong sense of community. Which is important for any school to have. Social events can help create a sense of community. It also gives minority groups a chance to showcase their culture to others. Garcia also said that those are on the agenda as well, but she was unable to give specifics. Social events do more than just give students a place to hang out. There is also the cultural aspect to it as well. It gives students the chance to see how others live and think.
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