Dana Saar, a current member of the Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) Governing Board, announced that he is running for a second term on the board.

The vote for a seat on the seven-member board will be held Nov. 8, 2016.

Saar, a resident of Fountain Hills since 1982, will seek election to a four-year term representing District 2 of Maricopa County.

District 2 covers much of the northeast Valley, and includes all or parts of Scottsdale, Fountain Hills, Mesa, Cave Creek, and Carefree.

Prior to being elected to the College Board in 2010, Saar spent the previous 14 years as a member of the Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board.

For his service on the Fountain Hills Board, Saar was awarded the 2006 All Arizona School Board Award for Excellence in Boardsmanship by the Arizona School Boards Association.

His education experience includes five years in teaching and administrative positions at the East Valley Institute of Technology in Mesa and eight years as a member of the State Board of Education’s Professional Practices Advisory Committee.

Saar earned a Bachelor of Business Education degree from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a Masters in Career and Technical Education from Northern Arizona University.

During his first term on the MCCCD Board he held the offices of president and board chair as well as board secretary and currently chairs the board’s Governance Policy Subcommittee.

He was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) in 2013.

ACCT is a national association of over 1,200 community colleges. He currently serves on ACCT’s Governance and Bylaws and Trustee Advisory Committees.

Saar has long been active in other community activities besides his service to education. Beginning in 1991, he served five years on the Town of Fountain Hills Planning and Zoning Commission and currently serves as chair of the Town’s Strategic Plan Advisory Commission.

“Developing a qualified workforce is one of Arizona’s greatest challenges,” Saar said.

“My background in workforce education provides Maricopa County’s business and industry a voice on the Governing Board. The district must provide the resources that prepare students for their future – not our past.”

Saar said he supports the move toward a single accredited institution, making the student experience less cumbersome and reducing costs by consolidating administrative functions.

“I firmly believe and support the Chancellor’s ‘One Maricopa’ initiative,” Saar said.

“Life in Maricopa County has changed over the district’s 50 year history. Students commonly attend more than one campus before they complete their course of study. No longer do the colleges each serve only those within their limited geographic region.”