Patrick & Henry Community College is the New Name for PHCC

WFXR-TV reported this past week that a new name for Patrick Henry Community College was approved by the Virginia’s State Board of Community Colleges. PHCC will now be known as Patrick & Henry Community College, recognizing the two Virginia counties it serves. The name change will also hopefully reduce confusion with a well known Revolutionary War figure or a small private institution founded in 2000 as Patrick Henry College.

P&HCC was founded as a two-year branch of the University of Virginia's School of General Studies in 1962. It became an autonomous two-year college of the university two years later as Patrick Henry Community College. Classes were initially offered in the old Northside Elementary School in Martinsville and it moved to its present campus in the fall of 1969. The institution became part of the Virginia Community College System on July 1, 1971.

Odessa College Prepares to Celebrate 75th Anniversary

Odessa College in Odessa, Texas is preparing to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its founding in 1946. The institution was initially known as Odessa Junior College and offered courses in the evenings. After 1968 it became known as Odessa College.

You can find out more information on the 75th Anniversary Celebration web page.

Saint Leo University and Marymount California Announce Merger

Update:  Scott Jaschik reports in "Saint Leo and Marymount California Won’t Merge," posted April 22, 2022 by Inside Higher Ed.

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Inside Higher Ed posted "Saint Leo University to Merge With Marymount California" on July 30, 2021 with reporting by Emma Whitford. 

You can read more in "Saint Leo University Announces Merger With Marymount California University" posted on Saint Leo's website July 29, 2021 or "Marymount California University to Merge with Saint Leo University" posted on Marymount California's website.

If you are interested in recent trends for closures, mergers, and acquisitions access College Closures since 2009 in the index at the right of any College History Garden page. There are separate tabs for non-profit closures, for-profit closures, and one for mergers and acquisitions. Each tab includes basic information for the institutions, i.e., Carnegie Classification, sector, accrediting agency, and the IPEDS unitid.

Chatfield College in Ohio Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Chatfield College is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding. A group of women arrived in central Ohio in 1845 with an educational mission and started a convent at St. Martin, OH. An Ursuline Teacher Training Institute was created in 1958 to provide a liberal arts education to women joining the Ursuline Order. Later in 1971, the public was admitted and the school was renamed Chatfield College.

Chatfield currently offers three degrees the Associate of Arts in Liberal Arts, an Associate of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education, and the Associate of Applied Science in Human Services. 

The academic programs are offered both in St. Martin, OH and the Over-the-Rhine section of Cincinnati.

The college posted a short YouTube video, "Chatfield History", with slides on institutional history including information on presidents and faculty.

The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Celebrates Its Sesquicentennial Anniversary

The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh is beginning its sesquicentennial celebration. Shane Nyman summarized key activities planned for this fall in "UWO at 150: It’s time to celebrate a century and a half of success."

OWU was founded as Oshkosh Normal School in 1871. The name changed to Oshkosh Teachers College in 1925, Wisconsin State College-Oshkosh in 1949, Wisconsin State University-Oshkosh in 1964, and then to the current University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in 1971.

You can learn more about UWO's history by visiting the 150th Anniversary web pages. There are links to a timeline with key dates, a schedule of sesquicentennial activities, and a short Youtube sesquicentennial preview.

 

Central Ohio Technical College 50th Anniversary

Central Ohio Technical College is beginning a 50th anniversary celebration after receiving its charter from the Ohio Board of Regents in 1971.  

Classes were initially offered after 1957 at the old Newark, OH high school building through Ohio State University. 

COTC gained full accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Universities in 1975.

Visit the 50th anniversary web pages for scheduled activities or to learn more about the institution.

Stockton University Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Stockton University in Galloway, NJ is beginning a 50th anniversary celebration of its founding as Richard Stockton State College. Classes were initially offered using the Mayflower Hotel in Atlantic City as a temporary location while a campus was constructed.

The name was changed to The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in 1993 and then to Stockton University in 2015.

The 50th Anniversary web pages offer a calendar of events, an opportunity to share stories, view videos, or scroll an interactive timeline.

Bluefield College Prepares to Celebrate Centennial

WVNS-TV reported on June 20, 2021 that "Bluefield College prepares to celebrate centennial anniversary." Festivities begin on August 18, 2021 and the institution is currently asking alumni and friends to share memorabilia and stories. 

Bluefield College is located in Bluefield, VA and opened in 1922 to meet the needs for higher education in southwestern Virginia by the Baptist General Association of Virginia. 

An institutional history, Lighthouse on the Hills: The Bluefield College Story, can be viewed on the college's web site. A brief historical sketch and information on presidents of the institution can be found on the "History" web page.