Pima Community College advances innovation with modern Identity Security
Pima Community College is a public community college in Tucson, Arizona. It serves the Tucson metropolitan area with a community college district consisting of five campuses, four education centers, and several adult education learning centers. It is one of the largest multi-campus community colleges in the United States.
Challenge
Pima Community College’s main challenge was its reliance on a fragile, homegrown identity system that had become a significant liability. The system was a "black box," understood by only one individual, creating a single point of failure. Frequent database overloads, ERP instability, and a lack of visibility into provisioning processes further compounded the issues, making the system unsustainable and insecure.
Solution
In response to this, Pima Community College implemented SailPoint as a modern, scalable identity security solution, replacing its outdated homegrown system. By leveraging SailPoint’s API-first approach and integrating it with MuleSoft for real-time provisioning, the college simplified its processes, improved visibility, and enhanced security for 145,210 identities.
- Industry
- Education
- Company size
- 1,000 employees
- Products
- Identity Security Cloud
- Partner
- IDMEXPRESS
SailPoint has been a very good, solid solution for us. It fits perfectly into our digital transformation journey and has positioned us for long-term success.”
Isaac Abbs, Chief Information Officer and Assistant Vice Chancellor for IT
A house of cards
For over 15 years, Pima Community College (PCC) relied on a homegrown identity security system to manage access for its 145,210 users. Though it appeared to function well on the surface, the system had become a serious liability. Stepping in at a pivotal moment, Isaac Abbs, Chief Information Officer and Assistant Vice Chancellor for IT, led the charge for this critical transformation.
As Isaac explained, “The system was a black box. Only one person understood it, and when they left, it was like a house of cards collapsing.” The homegrown system caused frequent disruptions, including database overloads and ERP instability. The lack of visibility and reliance on a single individual for troubleshooting created a bottleneck that hindered operational efficiency and posed significant security risks.
Partnering with the Chief Technology Officer, Isaac spearheaded the initiative to replace the homegrown system, setting the stage for a more secure and efficient future.
Simplifying with SailPoint
Recognizing the need for a modern and scalable solution, Pima Community College evaluated several vendors before choosing SailPoint Identity Security Cloud. Finding a trusted and proven leader was a top priority. The identity implementation was also part of their broader digital transformation strategy, which emphasized SaaS solutions, including MuleSoft. PCC’s first step in implementation was migrating everything from their homegrown system into MuleSoft. In the second phase, they transitioned all identity-related components out of MuleSoft and into SailPoint. MuleSoft provides the connectivity layer, aggregating data from PCC’s ERP system, making API calls to SailPoint, and enabling real-time provisioning.
SailPoint’s ability to handle this real-time provisioning use case was another critical factor in its selection. With a real-time admissions model, PCC needed a platform capable of instantly provisioning identities. As soon as a student applies, they are admitted and can immediately enroll. Ensuring immediate access means a better experience for the end-user, while allowing PCC to convert those prospective students into enrollment as quickly as possible.
To kick off the implementation, PCC started by introducing password management features. This enabled end users provisioned through SailPoint to reset passwords on their own, reducing the number of calls to the help desk and overall workload. It also enhanced password security by enforcing stronger requirements, such as longer character counts, and utilizing a password dictionary to block commonly breached passwords. Shortly after implementing password reset, they successfully launched identity provisioning, further streamlining their identity management processes. This gave them full visibility and greater control over both provisioning and deprovisioning accounts. They felt their ability to deprovision became much cleaner and more accurate because of SailPoint.
The college also leveraged professional services to ensure a smooth transition, highlighting the value of having the right partners in place. “If you have the right partners, it can be less expensive. It is less expensive for me to have an expert on hand through a partner than hiring one or two full-time experts,” Isaac explains.
Empowering efficiency, security and savings
The transition to SailPoint has revolutionized Pima Community College’s approach to identity management, delivering impactful results across efficiency, security, and cost savings:
- Improved Operational Efficiency: SailPoint’s seamless integration into the college’s tech stack, powered by its API-first design, has streamlined data flow and provisioning. This shift has enabled a proactive "shift left" approach to incident response, empowering frontline support staff to resolve most identity-related issues—tasks that previously required escalation to a single individual managing the homegrown system. By distributing maintenance and daily management across the team, SailPoint has enhanced operational efficiency and elevated support capabilities.
- Enhanced Security: With SailPoint’s security-first design, the college has significantly reduced its attack surface, addressing vulnerabilities inherent in its previous homegrown system. “With SailPoint, we have confidence in a secure, purpose-built solution. It's a true security tool, not just an application. We're relying on a system and a vendor that we trust to protect our information,” said Isaac.
- Cost Savings: While transitioning from a homegrown system to a standard tool may seem costly upfront, the hidden expenses of maintaining a custom system—such as staff time, business disruptions, and reputational risks—quickly outweigh the initial investment. “In the end, it’s not just about hard dollars—it’s about the cumulative impact on personnel, time, reputation, and the ability to troubleshoot and resolve issues quickly. All of that adds up. For me, the peace of mind alone makes our investment in SailPoint well worth it,” Isaac explained.
SailPoint has not only modernized identity management at Pima Community College but also delivered measurable improvements in efficiency, security, and overall peace of mind.
A true partnership and a model for higher education
Beyond technology, the college values its relationship with SailPoint. "I see SailPoint not as a vendor, but as a true partner. This relationship goes beyond a transaction; it's a genuine collaboration," Isaac shared. From professional services to ongoing support, the collaborative partnership has been a key factor in the project’s success.
The college’s journey with SailPoint demonstrates the transformative impact of modern identity security solutions in higher education. By replacing a fragile, homegrown system with SailPoint, the institution has achieved greater stability, security, and scalability, setting up a new standard for identity management in the sector.
I see SailPoint not as a vendor, but as a true partner. This relationship goes beyond a transaction; it's a genuine collaboration."
Isaac Abbs, Chief Information Officer and Assistant Vice Chancellor for IT
Looking ahead, implementing Access Requests and Certifications will be PCC’s next major step, allowing users to request roles with scheduled entitlement attestation. They are also exploring the use of AI capabilities. As Isaac summarized, “SailPoint has been a very good, solid solution for us. It fits perfectly into our digital transformation journey and has positioned us for long-term success.”
