SIERRA VISTA — Carla Boyd’s business is breaking down barriers.
Cochise College’s Director of Disability Services is an education advocate and leader in Arizona. In January, she was recognized as an outstanding educator in developmental education at the first Arizona Association of Developmental Education Conference, and she’s currently representing rural community colleges on the Arizona Department of Education committee in charge of rolling out the new Braille Code for Arizona by 2016. Boyd also recently represented Cochise College at various veteran symposiums, both at the University of Arizona and the Veterans Administration in Tucson.
Carla Boyd
“I like to impact change for access and success, make a difference in people’s lives for the better,” Boyd said. “It’s important to network and build relationships at the campus, local and state levels and partner with outside agencies. This allows our students to benefit from a variety of services and programs to make sure we are using resources well and not duplicating our efforts.”
Boyd started her professional career in banking and finance before going back to school to earn a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Northern Arizona University in 2001. She wrapped up her student teaching and went into management and corporate training for Wells Fargo in northern California, but she was soon drawn back to public education and moved to San Diego for a job as Palomar College’s Alternate Media Specialist for Disability Services. She then returned to Arizona and spent six years in the Yuma area, teaching for the Yuma and Wellton school districts while earning her master’s degree in educational technology from NAU.
“What I’ve found is, the skills and teaching strategies you learn in K-12 transfer over to higher education and the corporate training world quite well,” she said. “Good quality teaching, coaching and training go hand-in-hand. When you know your content and you understand the process of teaching, together those make a dynamic educator, whether in developmental education or in any level course or training. It’s about active engagement and making learning relevant to the student.”
Since 2003, Boyd has worked as an independent consultant and success coach in her spare time. Prior to joining the staff at Cochise College, she was the Advanced Program Coordinator for the Center for Training Development for five years at Pima Community College, while also teaching reading as an adjunct faculty member.
“Carla has a firm belief in the mission of the community college, focusing on access and student success,” said Mary Shelor, who teaches reading at Pima. “She is highly regarded as a Certified Success Coach and is often requested as a presenter to speak with students on strategies for managing change and well-being to increase student retention and success. She believes that all students can learn when given the individual support structures, guidance and freedom to become competent college students.”
Boyd is eager to get further involved with Arizona’s recently-established chapter of the National Association of Developmental Education, an organization that was founded in 1976. She was one of about 300 community college faculty, staff and administrators to attend the state’s first conference hosted by the Maricopa Community College District in January.
“Many community college students across the country take one or two developmental education courses when they begin college,” Boyd said. “It’s critical that we’re all on the same page and have an opportunity to share best practices to help students succeed.”
Currently, Boyd is paying close attention to the Braille Authority of North America’s change from the English Braille American Edition (EBAE) to the Unified English Braille (UEB) as the official code in the United States. Arizona is one of many states making plans for the targeted national implementation for January of 2016, and Boyd’s voice for the rural districts has already proved vital in explaining the types of resources that are and are not available in the outlying areas. Her experience in this system goes back to her days at Palomar College, where she worked with faculty and students while translating all types of course instructional material to braille and other formats.