El Paso Community College (EPCC) president William Serrata is committed to creating a “college-going culture.” He wants high school students in the El Paso area to know that “college is within reach and that EPCC can put them on the path to their best lives—achieving career goals in a world where the majority of jobs will require a degree or certificate.”
Serrata has been president of EPCC since August 1, 2012, spanning nearly a decade. His background underscores that he is immersed in Texas culture. He was raised in Brownsville, near the Mexican border, and is of Mexican and Portuguese heritage. He received his bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University, his master’s degree from the University of Texas at Brownsville, and his doctorate in Educational Human Resources from Texas A&M University.
Reflecting on the results of his decade’s stewardship at EPCC, Serrata points out that “we’ve tripled the graduation rate over 10 years, and in the last five we’ve doubled it”. That stems from the college’s “focusing on the student, partnering with the high schools and getting more students to take advantage of dual credits, and giving them confidence. Confidence is half the battle.”
Serrata cites that 95% of the growth in college enrollment in Texas stems from students of color, including Hispanics. He points out that these students are the “most underserved in regard to the academy.” Reaching out to them at an early stage and designating a parental advisement specialist for one of every ten of El Paso’s public school districts are measures that have encouraged parents and students to think about and consider college.
EPCC also works with local high schools and encourages students to take dual credit programs, which earn them three college credits and reduce their college costs. These include Advanced Placement courses and other courses where the teacher has a master’s degree in a specific subject area.
EPCC’s student body consists of 24,559 students, with 27% attending full-time and 73% part-time. The vast majority of students who attend EPCC are Hispanic. In fact, 85% of them are Latino, while 6% are White, 2% are African American and 1% are Asians.
About 70% of the students at EPCC are first-generation college students, so they need extra guidance on navigating college and obtaining necessary financial aid. Serrata emphasizes that helping these students obtain financial aid is critical to attracting and retaining them. Indeed, 87% of first-generation students receives some kind of financial aid. Most aid stems from Pell grants or scholarships; very few undergraduates, he says, take out loans, to keep debt in check. The Biden administration, he notes, increased the value of Pell grants. Once students start attending EPCC, they are offered faculty advisement to steer them through taking the right courses. “We focus on ensuring student success, through counseling and tutoring,” Serrata states.
Many of these students “see college as a means to an end. They want to get credentials that will provide them with a living wage either by transferring into a four-year college or attending workforce programs (like nursing and nurse’s aides),” Serrata explains.
To meet its growing needs, EPCC launched a $125 million Master Planning Process or expansion program, starting in 2015. It includes six new construction projects that will lead to more labs, classroom space and encourage more career opportunities. Many programs will be in career technological areas as well as auto body repair and logistics, which have proven popular. “These programs have grown even during the pandemic,” he says.
EPCC has done a commendable job of helping its students attain associate degrees, which is no easy task when so many students hold part-time jobs. From fall 2018 to summer 2021, 81% of students who were awarded degrees earned associate degrees, while 19% of them earned certificates. Besides nursing certificates, EPCC students also received certificates in areas such as Law Enforcement, Welding, Massage Therapy and Culinary Arts.
And yet, 76% of students don’t graduate with a degree within three years. Many transfer before they graduate, and a variety of other factors contribute to this low graduation rate, including financial concerns as the most common stumbling block. Others are work responsibilities and family issues.
The pandemic reduced EPCC’s student enrollment, which dropped 6% in 2020. Serrata explains that “we continue to close the gap”: more students are realizing that emergency funding is available, as well as obtaining funding for support services such as childcare. Students can take advantage of funding from the Federal CARES Act, including the Texas Reskills Support Fund Grant, which allocated $175 million in funding.
To contend with the long-lasting effects of the pandemic, EPCC offered both online and in-person classes for nearly all courses in fall 2021, providing students with options. So far, about 50% of students opted for online courses and 50% for in-person courses.
The college’s four most popular majors are: Multidisciplinary Studies, Business, Criminal Justice and Biology. Those who focus on Multidisciplinary Studies can transfer into four-year programs, which leads to majors in the humanities, social and behavioral science, mathematics and natural and physical sciences.
Serrata also cites several innovative programs, such as an online architecture program conducted in collaboration with Texas Teach where students earn their associate degree and can transfer seamlessly to earn a bachelor’s or master’s degree from Texas Tech. The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) mentors EPCC students to strengthen ties between the two universities and encourage transferring to a four-year degree.
It’s critical for Hispanics and other working-class students to obtain degrees, Serrata emphasizes, “because we live in a knowledge society. The lifetime earnings for college graduates are significantly higher than for those who don’t obtain degrees. It’s the difference between being middle-class and not.”
When Serrata thinks about future goals, he says, “My first goal is to get enrollment back to the level it was pre-pandemic. And the second thing is to continue to increase our success rate.”
Serrata derives considerable satisfaction from his work as president of EPCC and its effect on the El Paso community. “We’re a mechanism to help these students improve their lives. We want them to be successful. Obtaining a degree is a pathway to prosperity and the middle-class,” he says.
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