AWC President Dr. Daniel Corr Earns 2026 National Pacesetter Award

Enrollment in Arizona Western College's early college and dual-enrollment programs grew 1,026% during the past decade. That number alone, measuring full-time student equivalents of Yuma County high schoolers earning college credit before graduation, frames what the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations recognized on April 2 when it named AWC President Dr. Daniel Corr the recipient of its 2026 National Pacesetter Award.

The NCMPR Pacesetter distinction goes to community college leaders who have made sustained contributions to institutional profile and student access. Corr, AWC's ninth president since 2016, is also weeks away from the end of his tenure; he announced last October he would retire by July 2026, and the governing board has named Dr. Reetika Dhawan as his successor.

The numbers Corr leaves behind are the story worth examining alongside the award. Overall enrollment at AWC climbed roughly 16% over his ten years, reaching more than 13,500 students in 2024-2025, a record for the institution, while community colleges nationally struggled to hold their numbers. Graduates grew by 20%. In the transfer pipeline that connects Yuma County students to four-year degrees without uprooting their families, AWC led Arizona in transfer growth and recorded a 24% increase over five years in graduates who went on to earn a baccalaureate. The college's standing goal: double the baccalaureate attainment rate across Yuma and La Paz counties by 2035.

The early college pipeline is where the growth is most visible at the local high school level. AWC reports that in a recent five-year period, local high school students collectively earned more than 95,000 college credits through dual-enrollment courses. Last year alone, 102 of those students graduated high school having already completed an associate degree.

Dr. Kristina Diaz, president of Onvida Health Medical Group and a community partner who moderated AWC's March "Decade of Transformation" event at the Schoening Conference Center, attended as a healthcare employer who directly draws from that pipeline. AWC Student Government President Onyeka Udodi also addressed the public gathering, representing a student body whose success rate, the share completing key momentum milestones, grew five percentage points over the decade to 82%.

Corr, reflecting on the enrollment growth trends this year, credited the county as much as the college. "There's a little bit of magic happening here in Yuma and La Paz counties," he said. "These increases are a result of the hard work of our staff, our high school partners, and an overall communitywide effort to create a college-going culture."

The Pacesetter award, which recognizes C-suite leadership alongside the communications and marketing work that shapes recruitment and institutional reputation, is the capstone recognition of a tenure ending this summer. When Dhawan takes over, the practical test will be whether the enrollment culture and workforce pipeline Corr built hold their trajectory without him.