FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Coconino Community College will add men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field as varsity sports beginning with the 2026-27 academic year, the college announced. Both programs will compete at the NJCAA Division I level.
The addition was made possible after the CCC District Governing Board approved the Fiscal Year 2027 budget on May 20, which included dedicated funding for the new programs. The move builds on a foundation laid in 2024, when CCC accepted a grant from the NJCAA Foundation specifically designated to support the addition of track and field.
“This reflects the commitment of President Dr. Heiser and Coconino Community College to building a strong and meaningful collegiate athletics experience for our students,” said Craig Hunt, Athletic Director and Head Cross Country Coach. “Track and field has been a goal for this program for some time, and now we have the institutional support and the funding to make it a reality.”
The addition of track and field is a natural next step for an athletics department that has already established itself as a national competitor in the sport of Cross Country. CCC’s cross country teams placed 13th and 14th, respectively, at the NJCAA Cross Country National Championships last fall, and the program regularly produces All-American athletes, as well as producing an individual National Champion.
Indoor and outdoor track and field will strengthen that foundation in several important ways. The expanded competitive calendar gives student-athletes the opportunity to train and race year-round at the varsity level. It not only broadens the program’s recruiting appeal, opening doors to athletes who may specialize in track events alongside distance running, it also it significantly enhances the overall student-athlete experience by giving CCC competitors a full slate of championship opportunities from fall through spring.
“This is going to change what we’re able to offer recruits,” Hunt said. “Right now we can tell a distance runner they’ll compete in cross country. Starting next year, we can offer them cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track. That is a completely different conversation, and it opens up a much bigger pool of athletes who want to be here.”
With NJCAA Division I membership, CCC student-athletes will be eligible to compete at two additional national championship meets this coming year. The NJCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field National Championships will be held March 5-6 at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. The NJCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field National Championships will follow May 13-15 at Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, Kansas.
For a program that has already sent athletes to the national cross country meet, the addition of two more championship opportunities represents a significant expansion of what CCC student-athletes can achieve during their time in Flagstaff.
