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The College Fit
Published 12:00 am Saturday, August 1, 2026
More than an education, the COCC experience means supportive, personalized paths with plenty to explore
By Lucas Alberg
Growing up in Las Vegas, Shelby Smith assumed college would eventually take her somewhere else. With extended family in Oregon — and three relatives who attended the University of Oregon — Eugene felt like her calling. She also considered Oregon State University and Everett Community College in Washington, weighing proximity to family, cost and academic pathways.
But when Smith took a closer look, Central Oregon Community College rose to the top. “COCC just made more sense for what I wanted,” she says. She became a criminal justice major and a community assistant in Wickiup Residence Hall.
Having graduated in June, Smith plans to continue her education at Oregon State University-Cascades. Looking back, she doesn’t describe her decision as a compromise. She describes it as intentional. “I would choose COCC again, 100%,” she says.
For students like Smith, choosing a college isn’t about prestige — it’s about fit. It’s about finding a school that aligns with real goals, real values and real lives. She wanted a place that offered a quality, affordable education while also allowing her to be outside year-round, explore new interests and experience something different from home.
“You get the college experience people want, but it’s more affordable — and it’s more personal,” she says. “Classes are small so you get to connect with faculty in a way that you can’t at a larger university.”
Smith describes faculty who treated her like an adult, advisers who took time to understand her goals and an environment where she felt known. “They don’t pressure you into one path,” she says. “They listen to what you want and help you figure out how to get there.”
That combination — belonging, rigor and intention — threads through many of the stories emerging from COCC today. It’s also central to a vision President Greg Pereira has articulated since arriving last summer: that COCC is a first-choice college.
“Historically, community colleges have been treated as a fallback,” Pereira says. “But that’s never really fit COCC. This college has always been a destination.”
The destination looks different depending on who you are. For Ashley Debiaso, a recent Nursing graduate and mother of four, it meant a two-hour daily commute from outside Warm Springs, carefully coordinated child care and a cohort that felt like family. Debiaso began working in caregiving nearly two decades ago. Over the years, she became a certified nursing assistant, then a medical assistant, gradually realizing she wanted a role with greater responsibility and advocacy. Nursing felt like the right next step — but choosing where to pursue it wasn’t simple.
“Cost was definitely a factor,” she says. “And location. I was a little leery of community college at first.” What changed her mind was COCC’s reputation. Geographically, she was nearly equidistant from Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, and she seriously considered both options before deciding where to apply. She spoke with nurses who had graduated from the COCC program and heard the same thing repeatedly: strong faculty, high expectations and real support.
“What I’ve noticed in my experience at COCC is there’s care,” Debiaso says. “We’re treated like people — not just numbers going through a program. The faculty would be enough reason for me to come back.”
“Everyone here is pulling in the same direction,” says Hal DeShow, a geology associate professor beginning his ninth year at COCC. “Everybody gets it — we’re here for student success. That’s real. It’s not just lip service. You see it every day.”
DeShow found something he hadn’t experienced at other institutions: the freedom and trust to teach in ways that put students first. Faculty aren’t handed a rigid script or boxed into a single approach, he says. Instead, they’re encouraged to teach creatively and responsive to the students in front of them, an approach that DeShow says makes all the difference.
“What makes this place special is that teaching is the focus,” DeShow says. “Faculty are here because they care about students and teaching.” He describes a culture where knowing students’ names, checking in after a class and creating inclusive environments are standard, not the exception.
For Shelby Smith, that sense of community shaped her experience on campus — especially as a community assistant, where she supported other students navigating college life. “Because the school is small, it kind of forces you to be a community,” she says. Beyond academics, COCC gave Smith space to explore leadership, music and the outdoors, experiences she says helped clarify her future. “COCC was the right choice for me because it gave me room to figure things out,” she says. “It gave me confidence in what comes next.”
Classes for COCC’s fall term begin Sept. 21; the application deadline is Sept. 11. Find your fit at cocc.edu.