By Matthew Holloway |
Pima Community College (PCC) approved a restricted $5.9 million workforce-development gift agreement with Beale Infrastructure Group while later confirming that its Sustainability Director position will be eliminated as part of an organizational realignment.
According to PCC Governing Board records, trustees approved a Restricted Gift Agreement with Beale Infrastructure Group, LLC during the board’s May 13 meeting by a 4–0 vote, with board member Kristen Randall abstaining. The Board’s approved-items agenda lists the agreement but does not include its value or terms.
Beale Infrastructure is the project developer for the proposed “Project Blue” data center complex under construction on 290 acres outside of Tucson near the Pima County Fairgrounds.
The company is also pursuing construction of the “Luckett Road Data Center,” a 600-acre data center development in Marana, where it became embroiled in a legal battle with the town over two rejected referendums related to the project, according to AZPM News.
Board Chair Theresa Riel Taylor introduced the item as a five-year restricted gift agreement beginning June 1, 2026, with the possibility of extension and additional funding.
Amanda Evans, PCC Assistant Vice Chancellor for Workforce Development and Strategic Partnerships, described the agreement as “a significant philanthropic investment in Pima Community College.”
During the presentation, Evans confirmed the Beale donation totals $5,912,992 and is structured as a restricted workforce-development gift.
“The funds are specifically designed for areas of need for Pima to support student access and success,” Evans told the board.
According to Evans, the funding will support expansion in information technology and cybersecurity, including three full-time faculty positions, along with scholarships for several workforce programs.
“Those areas include supporting expansion in IT and cybersecurity by funding three full-time faculty members,” Evans said, adding that scholarships will support “Pima Fast Track Electrical, our building and construction technology programs, IT and cyber programs, and our computer aided drafting… and welding as well.”
Evans said the gift also provides support for transportation, housing, and childcare assistance, along with funding for veterans services, high-school transition programs, and career-placement efforts.
“The gift also provides additional funds to help remove barriers for students — things like transportation, housing and childcare,” Evans said.
Evans told trustees the agreement carries a five-year term beginning June 1 and includes the possibility of additional future funding. “The initial term does begin on June 1st. It does go for five years, with a subsequent gift of approximately $6.8 million,” Evans said. “That could be something that Beale Infrastructure chooses to enter into an agreement with us.”
The board agenda identified the item only as a “Restricted Gift Agreement” and did not publicly list the donation amount or program details in its approved-items summary.
Calling for a vote to approve the agreement, Taylor addressed the public controversy surrounding Project Blue:
“I just want to acknowledge that I understand the environment of controversy in which this happens in terms of the data center development and… and what Beale is involved with. But, you know, tonight we’re facing a choice between a philosophical statement about data centers and a tangible investment in our students. And so I want to be clear that whether this board accepts this gift or rejects it, the development of that data center project continues. It has absolutely nothing to do with the development of that project.
“All that voting ‘no’ tonight does will… Voting no tonight wouldn’t stop a single brick from being laid, or a single drop of water from being used in that data center project. It only stops those resources from reaching our classrooms. And I don’t think I can, in good conscience, tell our students, who have now faced nearly two decades of disinvestment from the state and now millions in federal disinvestment over the last year, that we turned away millions of dollars for their success to make a symbolic gesture that will have zero impact on the project in question. So it’s definitely something I’ll be voting in favor of tonight. And I think it’s something that fits within the core of our mission and our purpose to help students achieve their educational outcomes.”
Board member Kristen Randall praised PCC’s sustainability efforts during her trustee report. Randall highlighted the college’s Climate Community Day and cited sustainability programming as an area of growth.
“Climate and sustainability aren’t just subjects,” Randall said while discussing the event. “They are lenses for seeing the world.”
Later in the meeting, Randall abstained from the vote on the Beale gift while the remaining trustees voted in favor of the agreement.
PCC Provides Confirmation: Sustainability Director Position Eliminated
AZ Free News contacted PCC administration, the Office of Sustainability, and Governing Board members to seek clarification on the future of the sustainability office, whether staffing or budget changes have been approved, and whether any connection exists between those decisions and the Beale gift agreement.
Justin Kree, Director of Media Relations for Pima Community College, responded on the college’s behalf. Kree confirmed PCC approved the agreement May 13 and said the $5.9 million gift will support workforce-development programs in IT, cybersecurity, electrical training, and skilled trades, with the Pima Foundation serving as fiscal agent.
Kree also addressed questions regarding the future of PCC’s sustainability programs, the Sustainability Director position, and the Climate Action and Sustainability Plan.
AZFN: Has PCC eliminated or otherwise dissolved the Office of Sustainability/Director position? Has PCC eliminated or reduced the sustainability program budget for FY2027? If so, please provide details regarding funding levels and changes.
PCC: The College remains fully committed to sustainability, climate action, and environmental responsibility. As part of an organizational realignment, the College decided to eliminate the Sustainability Director position, effective June 30, 2026. Sustainability remains an institutional priority reflected in the College’s strategic principles, and Climate Action and Sustainability courses, faculty-led initiatives, and operational efforts, including energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives, remain ongoing. The College’s sustainability initiatives and academic offerings continue to receive institutional support.
Students continue to have access to Climate Action & Sustainability (CAS) courses focused on environmental challenges, sustainable futures, and practical solutions. CAS course offerings and student enrollment are, in fact, growing. Summer and Fall 2026 offerings include CAS 110: Food, People and the Planet and CAS 120: Systems, Logic & Sustainability. Enrollment in this area has doubled over the past year, with the program serving more than 340 enrolled students during the most recent academic year.
AZFN: Has PCC formally concluded or discontinued implementation of its Climate Action and Sustainability Plan, or is the June 2026 conclusion part of a previously scheduled planning cycle?
PCC: The College’s Climate Action and Sustainability Plan (CASP) will reach the end of its planned cycle in June 2026. The conclusion of this plan is part of its established timeline and does not represent a discontinuation of the College’s sustainability efforts. PCC is currently developing the next CASP to guide sustainability initiatives in the upcoming academic year. Sustainability remains an institutional priority and is reflected in the strategic principles approved by the Governing Board in May 2026.
PCC remains committed to the goals established in the CASP, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions, expanding climate and sustainability education, pursuing sustainability certification, and advancing long-term climate action planning. In 2026, the College will reaffirm its commitment to the Second Nature Presidents’ Climate Commitment, further demonstrating PCC’s continued focus on sustainability and environmental stewardship.
AZFN: Does PCC’s proposed FY2027 budget or pending bond proposal contain sustainability-related capital, infrastructure, or operational funding? If so, please identify those allocations.
PCC: Yes. Both the proposed FY2027 budget and the pending bond proposal include funding that supports PCC’s broader sustainability efforts through personnel, facilities, infrastructure, and operational investments.
While sustainability-related funding is not always identified as separate, standalone line items, sustainability practices and goals are integrated throughout the College’s planning and operations. This includes support for personnel, facility improvements, infrastructure modernization, energy efficiency considerations, curriculum integration, and capital projects designed to improve long-term environmental performance and resource stewardship across the College.
In addition, bond-funded facilities projects are being planned and evaluated with sustainability principles in mind, including opportunities for efficient building systems, modernization, and responsible campus development.
Later in the meeting, faculty and students urged PCC leadership to reconsider reported changes involving the college’s sustainability programs, including reports that the Office of Sustainability could be dissolved or substantially restructured.
Katie Brown, a faculty member who said she has taught at PCC for more than 25 years and now teaches climate action and sustainability courses, told the board she learned the Office of Sustainability faced elimination.
“I was astounded and dismayed… to hear that the Office of Sustainability is planned to be eliminated, along with much of that program,” Brown said. “That is horrifying to me.”
Brown praised PCC’s Climate Action and Sustainability Plan and said the college had developed a national reputation for climate and sustainability programming. “The Climate Action Sustainability plan that you have is amazing,” Brown said. “It is an example to many other places.”
Brown also read a statement from Dr. Crystal McKenna, whom she identified as a faculty member and the Department Chair in Climate Action and Sustainability at PCC.
“I’m here today to respectfully request a pause and reconsideration of the decision to dissolve the Office of Sustainability,” Brown read from McKenna’s statement.
McKenna’s statement argued that the office played a central role in implementing the college’s sustainability initiatives and coordinating environmental planning. “The Office of Sustainability has been the structure that made that work possible,” the statement said.
McKenna further argued that dissolving the office would raise concerns about institutional consistency and credibility. “This request is not simply about a single office,” Brown read. “It is about institutional alignment, accountability, and our credibility as a college.”
Student speaker Mary Jane Blanton, who said she is enrolled in climate and sustainability coursework, also urged the board to preserve the program. “The sustainability department has changed that for me,” Blanton told trustees, describing herself as previously disengaged and “nihilistic” before taking climate coursework at PCC.
PCC’s public sustainability webpage currently states that the Office of Sustainability oversees implementation of the college’s Climate Action and Sustainability Plan. The college’s published Climate Action and Sustainability Plan states the current planning cycle was already scheduled to conclude in June 2026, following a previously approved extension.
At the time of publication, AZ Free News received no direct responses from the Governing Board Members.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
