Vision and Mission
Vision – THRIVE 2035
THRIVE: 35,000 by 2035 is Lorain County Community College’s bold new vision to deliver 35,000 more degrees and credentials of value by 2035 that will advance economic mobility for individuals and families and create a thriving economy and community.
- Transform Lives through Career-Connected Learning
- Harness Opportunity for Working Adults
- Raise Educational Attainment and Economic Mobility
- Ignite Economic Growth
- Value Community Partnerships
- Empower Future-Ready Learners
THRIVE 2035 builds on Lorain County Community College’s powerful legacy of impact. Since its founding, LCCC has awarded 58,000 degrees and certificates to nearly 50,000 graduates, impacting over half of all Lorain County households. This deep community connection provides a strong foundation for what comes next. The goal to award 35,000 additional credentials of value by 2035 represents a bold, measurable commitment to fueling economic mobility and workforce readiness. It reflects nearly doubling LCCC’s modern averages — stretching our sights while remaining achievable through expanded access and student success. More than a number, this goal reflects LCCC’s mission in motion: lifting lives, advancing careers and helping our region bend the curve toward greater prosperity and opportunity for all.
Lorain County Community College enters this pivotal era with clarity of purpose and bold ambition. For more than 60 years, our institution has been deeply woven into the fabric of our community — opening doors, advancing opportunity and meeting our community’s greatest needs and highest aspirations.
Today, our community stands at a defining moment where the right investments in education, innovation and partnerships can accelerate economic mobility and growth for generations to come. Research shows that the greater Lorain County region is positioned to chart a new path toward expanded prosperity, opportunity and community vibrancy for all.
Every initiative and focus area outlined in THRIVE 2035 is rooted in our unwavering commitment to student access, academic excellence, and launching career and life success. The six focus areas of THRIVE 2035 represent an important step forward — doubling down on key priorities that build on our legacy and respond to the evolving needs of the students and communities we serve. These priorities are designed not only to advance educational attainment and workforce readiness but to unlock the full potential of our region.
This plan marks the first phase of a 10-year journey toward our 2035 vision, with a commitment to continuously apply strategic foresight to monitor trends, adapt to change, and refine our path forward.
TRANSFORM Lives through Career- Connected Learning
LCCC will deepen partnerships with K-12 schools, industry and community organizations to make career-connected learning accessible to every student.
Discover: Careers of Interest, Strength and Opportunity
Scale opportunities for high school students to explore careers aligned with their passions, skills and future job demand. Students will understand job outlooks, earning potential, and the education, training and experience needed to reach their goals.
Launch: An Early Start Through Education, Training and Work Experiences
Increase the number of high school students earning college credits, industry credentials and real-world experiences through dual enrollment, Early College, career-tech programs, internships and earn-and-learn models.
Plan: Construct a Clear Path Forward
Ensure every high school graduate has a personalized plan — whether it’s college, career, or military —and the support, resources and affordable options to move forward.
HARNESS Opportunity for Working Adults
LCCC will strengthen our commitment to working-age learners by delivering education that fits their lives, fuels their goals and prepares them for a dynamic economy.
Start: On-Ramps to New Careers
Expand accelerated career pathways modeled on LCCC’s Fast Track program, designed to help individuals quickly gain in-demand skills and credentials. These programs will offer guided support, wrap-around services and direct connections into high-growth industries, removing barriers and fast-tracking entry into the workforce.
Adapt: Flexible and Innovative Learning and Student Support Models
Enhance course delivery to fit students’ complex lives — whether through hybrid, weekend, short-term or modular class formats. Emphasize stackable credentials, credit for prior learning, competency-based education and digital tools that support flexible learning, all while ensuring strong support systems that lead to
student success.
Earn: Expand Earn-and-Learn Programs
Grow access to earn-and-learn opportunities that integrate work experience with learning, such as apprenticeships, internships and industry partnerships. These models will provide immediate income potential while building long-term career pathways.
RAISE Educational Attainment and Economic Mobility
LCCC is committed to developing every learner into a confident, adaptable and future-ready individual equipped with the mindset, skills and tools to succeed in a world defined by change.
Drive: Educational Attainment
Increase the number of residents earning credentials of value—from short-term certificates to associate and bachelor’s degrees—by removing barriers and expanding access to postsecondary education. Thrive 2035 supports national and statewide attainment goals. By connecting more individuals to meaningful learning opportunities, LCCC will drive economic mobility and strengthen the regional talent pipeline.
IGNITE Economic Growth
LCCC will lead boldly in fueling economic and community vibrancy by scaling high-impact programs aligned to the region’s strongest job growth sectors, driving innovation and entrepreneurship and serving as a catalyst for long-term community prosperity.
Fuel: A Skilled Workforce for a Growing Economy
Rapidly scale high opportunity programs by working closely with employers and economic leaders, including exponentially expanding Industry 4.0, healthcare and information technology pathways to meet urgent talent needs. From short-term credentials to advanced degrees, stackable programs will equip learners for success in STEM and other high-demand sectors that fuel our economy and build our community.
Ignite: Serve as the Engine for Innovation and Economic Growth
Strengthen regional economic resilience by fostering entrepreneurship, supporting business and industry start-up and scale-up efforts and attracting high growth industries to the region.
VALUE Community Partnerships
LCCC will fortify its role as a trusted community partner, co-creating solutions that strengthen systems of support and advance opportunity for all individuals.
Amplify: Community-Rooted Partnerships and Solutions
Engage directly with community partners to address shared challenges – ranging from health and housing to transportation and food insecurity. As a microcosm of the community, LCCC will help co-create solutions that uplift students and strengthen community systems so all can thrive.
EMPOWER Future-Ready Learners
LCCC is committed to developing every learner into a confident, adaptable and future-ready individual equipped with the mindset, skills and tools to succeed in a world defined by change.
Grow: Skills for the Future
Cultivate core capacities like adaptability, critical thinking, problem-solving, communication and resiliency. Empower all students to embrace lifelong learning as the foundation for continuous growth in both work and life.
Build: Digital and AI Fluency
Expand opportunities for students and community members to deepen digital fluency and keep pace with emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence. Align learning methods with evolving employer expectations and foster responsible, confident use of digital tools.
A Vision Realized
When we collectively achieve THRIVE 2035, our community will stand among Ohio’s most rapidly advancing regions – recognized for driving economic mobility, economic growth, and vibrant communities.
- Economic Mobility: Educational attainment will unlock real opportunities – leading to high- quality careers, rising wages, and intergenerational transformation.
- Economic Growth: Our community will become a hub for business innovation and expansion, chosen for its skilled workforce, strategic partnerships, and entrepreneurial energy.
- Community Vibrancy: We will cultivate a place where residents enjoy affordable access to quality education and training, strong economic outcomes, and thriving, connected neighborhoods and community services.
When LCCC’s THRIVE 2035 vision becomes reality, every community in Lorain County will be part of a shared success—where at least half of all residents hold a degree or credential of value and are building a future through careers that offer the income and support needed to thrive by age 35.
This isn’t just a vision – it’s a measurable shift. THRIVE 2035 is phase one of a road-map to realize this future – where we bend the curve toward opportunity, build prosperity for all, and model what a vibrant, forward-leaning, and resilient region can look like.
Mission
Provide opportunities for…
- Individuals to succeed through quality education
- Economies to grow through innovation
- Communities to thrive through rich cultural experiences
As required by Ohio Revised Code section 3345.0216, Lorain County Community College will: educate students by means of free, open and rigorous intellectual inquiry to seek the truth; equip students with the opportunity to develop intellectual skills to reach their own, informed conclusions; not require, favor, disfavor or prohibit speech or lawful assembly; create a community dedicated to an ethic of civil and free inquiry, which respects the autonomy of each member, supports individual capacities for growth and tolerates differences in opinion; treat all faculty, staff and students as individuals, hold them to equal standards and provide equality of opportunity with regard to race, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.