Tag: Catherine Ripley

Catherine Ripley: The Newest Member on PCC’s Board of Governors
Features, Politics

Catherine Ripley: The Newest Member on PCC’s Board of Governors

Pima Community College Governing Board member Catherine Ripley By Kyler Van Vliet Catherine Ripley has spent her life traversing the world working as a U.S. diplomat, counter-terrorism strategist, professor and – for a few months – as a bassist. This January, Ripley started her new career as a member of the Pima Community College Board of Governors, representing District 1 in Arizona.  She won the general election last November in 2020 against Ethan Orr with a campaign focused on increasing enrollment through formal partnerships with local High Schools, the JTED Program and the Earn to Learn Programs.   Like most universities and colleges, Pima’s enrollment rate is down. According to The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, college enrollment declined...
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On the issues: Pima Governing Board candidates Ethan Orr and Catherine Ripley

 By Kyle Kersey With sitting board member Mark Hanna retiring at the end of his term, the election for a seat on Pima Community College’s Board of Governors is a race between former Arizona state legislator Ethan Orr and retired naval officer Catherine Ripley.  Background Governing Board members are elected in a non-partisan election, which means that you won’t see a “D” or an “R” next to the candidates’ name on the ballot. However, the two have represented opposite sides of the political spectrum in the past. Orr served as a Republican representative from district 9 in the Arizona state legislature from 2013 through 2015. During his tenure, he said he worked across the aisle to secure $50 million in education funding to the Tucson community, and managed to sneak in $8 million to finish...