Broward Community College provides higher education and technical and occupational training for the citizens of Broward County, its district by law. As the first public higher education institution in the county, Broward Community College functions as the principal provider of undergraduate higher education for the residents of Broward County: As one of the twenty eight community colleges in the Florida system, Broward Community College is designed to be a community-based institution that offers a comprehensive range of programs responsive to changes in the community and in technology. Where appropriate, these programs are articulated with the public school system, area vocational schools, and upper-level institutions to insure that students can move smoothly from one system to another.

Through this wide variety of degree and certificate programs and continuing education courses, the College attracts a great diversity of students, including individuals planning to complete a bachelor's degree program, people seeking to acquire job-entry skills, employees desiring to upgrade skills for promotion or career change, and individuals seeking education for their personal enrichment. From high school students who enroll in a course to accelerate their college education, to retirees who return to education after decades devoted to other pursuits, a multitude of age groups is represented at Broward Community College. These culturally diverse students span the learning spectrum from developmental to gifted. The College's programs and services are designed to serve the community by meeting the higher education needs of all these individuals.

Serving as the principal entry level institution for higher education in its district, the College is also a source of cultural enrichment; a resource for community development, business, and industry; and an avenue for continued skill upgrading and enhancement and retraining. As a public comprehensive community college, the College serves well its role as a significant segment of America's higher education effort.

The College District Board of Trustees, the legal governing body for the operation of the College, serves as a corporate body with all powers necessary and proper for governance and operation. Trustees are appointed by the Governor, approved by the State Board of Education, and confirmed by the Florida State Senate. The College operates under statutory authority and rules of the State Board of Education. The State Board of Community Colleges, which is subject to the overall supervision of the State Board of Education, is responsible for state- wide leadership in overseeing and coordinating the individually governed public community colleges. Operational funding for college programs is provided by state appropriation and student fees. Construction and building maintenance funds are provided through state-wide capital outlay bonds, not through local property taxes.

As it fulfills its mission, the College is committed to responding to the cultural diversity of Broward County as the area expands. In support of its open-door policy, the College provides a variety of delivery systems and instructional modes to enable students to prepare for the future in accordance with their own individual abilities, needs, and interests. The College is also committed to providing special academic support services to the disabled. In its role as an institution of higher education and in its efforts to be a premiere teaching institution, Broward Community College is dedicated to fulfilling the following major functions:

• To serve as an entry-point for baccalaureate degree programs by providing the first two years of a four year curriculum through a program of general education that stresses historical, social, ethical, and global perspectives; communication and computation skills, the sciences, an appreciation of the humanities, and physical fitness.
  
• To prepare individuals for employment through a variety of specific programs in the general areas of business and management, the health sciences, the engineering and industrial technologies, and public service.
  
• To provide economic development and continuing education activities to meet the needs of business, industry, the professions, and government. To enhance employee skills while also serving individuals seeking to maintain their competencies, upgrade their skills, change occupations, or enrich their lives through lifelong learning programs.
  
• To provide college-preparatory instruction for those students who need to enhance their basic academic skills prior to attempting college-level work.
  
• To serve as a cultural center for Broward County by providing a wide variety of quality visual and performing arts programs and activities which educate, entertain, enrich lives, and elevate the human sprint.
  
• To provide international and intercultural educational experiences to help students develop perspectives that will enable them to function effectively in a multicultural environment and in an interdependent world. To pursue linkages with educational institutions and agencies in other countries in order to provide for an academic interchange and to assist each other in achieving educational objectives for the improvement of higher education on a global scale.
  
• To provide current students a full range of student development and academic support services which are proactively available both on the College campuses and in the Broward County community.To provide the opportunity for students to contribute to the well-being of others through student service learning programs that are part of their higher education experience.
  
• To engage in programs and activities that will expand the opportunity for higher education to prospective students throughout the entire Broward County community. Such programs may be offered in conjunction with the School Board of Broward County, the State University System, the city/county government, and various community agencies.

As an institution committed to the ideal of the worth and dignity of the individual, Broward Community College recognizes the religious, racial, and cultural diversity of its students and staff and endeavors to provide equal educational opportunity for all students. Furthermore, the College fosters the value of lifelong learning as it strives through teaching excellence to enable students to appreciate knowledge and to acquire an education which will assist them in assuming positive roles in a changing society. Believing that educated people should be guided in their behavior by decency and civility, the College values honesty, integrity, and social responsibility among both its staff and its students. Furthermore, it aspires to empower students with the critical thinking and problem-solving skills, global perspective, clarified values, and creativity that will enable them to make moral choices and ethical decisions in all aspects of their lives. In addition, the College embraces a commitment to American democratic values and culture, the principles of responsible citizenship, life enrichment, and self-awareness.

Equal Opportunity Policy
Broward Community College as an institution of higher learning is dedicated to the inculcation of the highest ideals of citizenship in a free society. The College seeks to set a proper example by complying with all relevant laws enacted at every level of government. Consistent with the American ideals of equality of citizens and the dignity and worth of each person, the College hereby states that equal employment opportunity and advancement and equal educational opportunity, as well as participation in programs and activities, are guaranteed consonant with appropriate laws without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, handicap, veteran status, or any other such factor. All members of the faculty, staff, and student body are expected to assist in making this policy a practical reality. The President of the College is empowered to implement this policy through appropriate personnel and by use of effective guidelines.

Broward Community College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award Associate Degrees. The College is also authorized by the Florida Department of Education.

Broward Community College Staff Development provides professional development and training opportunities to all BCC employees through in-house workshops, presentations and computer classes, as well as tuition reimbursement for formal education in outside colleges and universities.

Benefits offered by Broward Community College include:

• Health/Dental/Life Insurance
  
• Generous vacation and sick time
  
• Two weeks winter break
  
• One week spring break
  
• Free Staff Development workshops
  
• Tuition assistance for employees/spouse/dependents to attend BCC
  
• Tuition reimbursement to four year FL state institutions