Rio Salado College is a public

community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...

headquartered in

Tempe, Arizona Tempe ( ; ''Oidbaḍ'' in O'odham language, O'odham) is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2020 population of 180,587. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in t ...

United States. It is part of the

Maricopa County Community College District The Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD), also known as Maricopa Community Colleges, is a Public college, public community college district in Maricopa County, Arizona. Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, Tempe, MCCCD is among the la ...

and accredited by

The Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

. It offers associate degree and certificate programs in online, in-person, and hybrid formats.

History

Rio Salado College was founded on March 14, 1978 as one of 10 Maricopa Community Colleges. At the time, the college offered remote classrooms in 180 facilities throughout the Valley of the Sun. Rio Salado College offered its first online classes in 1996 and by 2006 had converted a majority of its course offerings to an online format. The school is recognized as a leader in higher education innovation, specializing in online education and distance learning.

Accreditation

Rio Salado College is accredited by

Campuses

Tempe Headquarters

The administrative headquarters of Rio Salado College are in Tempe, Arizona. Rio Salado relocated from its original location in Phoenix to Tempe in 1996. The Tempe location houses three main buildings: The Conference Center at Rio, the Tower at Rio, and the Rio at Hohokam administrative building.

Satellite Locations

Rio Salado College is affiliated with 15 physical locations across Maricopa County, including 14 RSC locations and the SPOT 127 Youth Media Center. Services and hours of operation vary by location. The college also provides educational services through its incarcerated re-entry program at ASPC-Lewis and ASPC-Perryville. In addition to College Bridge Pathways programming that includes: Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, Adults Achieving a College Education, High School Equivalency preparation, English Language Acquisition for Adults and STAR-Path Model options at Avondale, RSC Lifelong Learning Center, and RSC Thomas.

School of Dental Hygiene

The Rio Salado College School of Dental Hygiene offers an accredited

dental hygiene Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one's oral cavity clean and free of disease and other problems (e.g. bad breath) by regular brushing of the teeth (dental hygiene) and adopting good hygiene habits. It is important that oral hygiene be carr ...

program. The school has been training students since 1998. It is a partnership between Rio Salado College, The Arizona Dental Association and Delta Dental Insurance. The School of Dental Hygiene moved from the West Valley to its current location at the Tempe HQ in 2012.

Notable alumni

* Jessica Jaymes, pornographic actress

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Maricopa County Community College District Distance education institutions based in the United States Education in Tempe, Arizona Universities and colleges established in 1978 Community colleges in Arizona Universities and colleges in Maricopa County, Arizona Two-year colleges in the United States