The expanded Madras campus will include educations in early learning and a child care center.

Looking up the road from Madras High School, Julie Mitchell can already envision the changes taking shape on the near horizon. For the early education teacher, COCC’s pending campus expansion nearby — expected to break ground this winter and be fully open by spring of 2025 — will bring some incredible opportunities to her hometown.



“This is going to give my students the opportunity to further their careers in Madras and remove some of the barriers of traveling out of town,” said Mitchell, who teaches dual-credit classes to high schoolers that prime her students for entry into both college and careers working with little ones. Mitchell herself earned an Early Childhood Education associate degree at COCC, driving to Bend and Redmond or taking classes online for most of her schooling.



The addition of a 24,000-square-foot new facility at COCC Madras, on 26 acres of land bestowed by the community-focused Bean Foundation, will house a second dedicated program presence for Early Childhood Education — and eliminate lengthy commutes to Bend. On COCC’s Madras campus (which first opened in 2011), students will soon be able to attain every available Education certificate and degree, with options for learning in both English and Spanish. Part of the applied learning will take place at an on-site child care center, managed by The Children’s Learning Center of Madras, which will bring 100 new child care openings to families of Jefferson County.



In another area of the planned building, health care educations will be the focus. Classrooms and labs will be an extension of COCC’s highly successful Nursing, Medical Assistant and Certified Nursing Assistant programs, with simulated clinical settings that provide top-notch training. Students can undertake a two-year Nursing degree or a one-year Medical Assistant certificate without the added time and trouble of a 50-minute trip each way to Bend.


Culver resident Johana Miranda Chacon worked full time while attending COCC’s Bend-based Medical Assistant program over the last year. It was a demanding schedule of waking early, making long commutes, constantly spending money on gas, and always being in a rush. Chacon, who graduated in May, is ready for her future — and ready to impact the well-being of others.

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As a Latina with immigrant parents, I have experienced the worry that most immigrant families have about seeking help when it comes to their health. I can advocate for those who can’t advocate for themselves,” she shared. And she’s happy to hear that those following in her footsteps from Jefferson County will have a more accessible, attainable path. “So that those who aren’t able to commute all the way to Bend will be able to have the opportunity to achieve their career goals.”

Adding health care training will invigorate the area’s workforce. “Working in rural health care is all about heart — caring for our neighbors, our friends, our families,” said Shannon Edgar, St. Charles Health System’s chief nursing officer for Madras and Prineville. “But recruiting and retention in rural areas is an ongoing challenge. COCC’s new health care trainings being offered locally in Madras are going to create a larger resource of trained professionals who are more likely to stay and serve in the community.”

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“While this expansion is geared specifically toward health careers and Early Childhood Education, the campus, as the student base grows, will continue to bring in added services and courses to Madras and the surrounding communities of COCC’s northern district.”

Along with addressing urgent workforce gaps that are central to the county — and the greater area — the expansion advances a range of opportunities for students of COCC Madras.

“While this expansion is geared specifically toward health careers and Early Childhood Education, the campus, as the student base grows, will continue to bring in added services and courses to Madras and the surrounding communities of COCC’s northern district,” said Jeremy Green, Madras campus director and branch campus capital projects manager. “From financial aid and advising to library services and science labs for transfer students, all COCC students in Jefferson County and Warm Springs will benefit.”



Funding for the project, an estimated $16 million, is coming from a combination of state, federal, grant-basedand private philanthropic involvement. Investment in this visionary plan is being administered by the COCC Foundation’s “Growing Together” capital campaign.



For information on becoming part of the “Growing Together” campaign, or to see the future of COCC Madras — and the greater region — in more detail, visit cocc.edu/growingtogether.