A fourth Western Maricopa Education Center (West-MEC) campus recently earned initial approval for its for its adult education programs.

The Council on Occupational Education (COE) is a national institutional 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.

COE granted approval for West-MEC’s Northwest Campus, located at 13201 W. Grand Ave., Surprise.

West-MEC is a career and technical education public school district. There is also a Northeast Campus in Phoenix, Southwest Campus in Buckeye, and a Central Campus in Glendale.

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,” West-MEC Adult Education Director Lizeth Fils-Aime shared in a press release. “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.

Contact the West-MEC’s Adult Education department at 623-738-0046 or by emailing adulted@west-mec.edu.

The West-MEC campus is located at 13201 W. Grand Ave., in Surprise.

(Photo provided by West-MEC)