Union County College Adopts New Name

Union County College with campuses in Cranford, Elizabeth, Plainfield, and Scotch Plains, New Jersey will be changing its name to Union College.

The institution was founded in 1933 as Union County Junior College. It merged with Union County Technical Institute in Scotch Plains and was renamed Union County College in 1983.

You can click on the Index to Institutions by State that have closed, merged, or changed their names link at the right to find a file with a list of institutional changes for New Jersey or other states.

Montgomery College Celebrates 75th Anniversary

Montgomery College in Maryland has been celebrating its 75th anniversary during the current academic year.

It was founded in 1946 as Montgomery Junior College and now operates from multiple sites. The first classes held at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and the former Bliss Electrical School served as the first campus.  Accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools was gained in 1950. The Takoma Park/Silver Springs Campus also opened in 1950, followed by the Rockville Campus in 1965 and the Germantown Campus in 1978.

Howard College Celebrates 75th Anniversary

Howard College is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its founding in 1946 as Howard County Junior College. 

Classes were initially housed in the hospital unit of the former Big Spring, TX Army Air Force Bombardier School. The institution moved to its current location in Big Spring in 1951. Courses were offered in San Angelo, TX after 1978 and also now in Lamesa, TX.

The SouthWest Collegiate Institute for the Deaf (SWCID) was created and began offering classes in 1980. On May 14, 1981, the Texas Legislature recognized SWCID for funding purposes and placed it under the management of Howard College. In 2019, the name was officially changed to the SouthWest College for the Deaf.

You can visit the 75th Anniversary web page for upcoming activities or historical information.

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.

Allan Hancock College Celebrates Centennial

 KEYT-TV posted "Allan Hancock College kicks off Centennial Celebration" this past week.  

The institution was founded in 1920 as part of the Santa Maria, California public school district and was known as Santa Maria Junior College. It then became G. Allan Hancock Community College in 1954 with purchase of the Allan Hancock airport site.

The institution's centennial web pages include a brief history, upcoming centennial events, a number of historic photographs, and other resources.

Georgia Highlands College Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Georgia Highlands College with locations in Rome, Cartersville, Marietta, Dallas, and Douglasville, Georgia is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1970 as Floyd Junior College. The name changed to Georgia Highlands College in 2005. 

You can visit the 50th anniversary web pages for a timeline of key dates and a variety of events. The Coosa Valley News also posted "GHC Celebrates 50th Anniversary year this Fall" with more details of activities planned during the remainder of 2020.

A College History Garden post from September 2015 links to an article in the Rome (GA) News-Tribune on September 10, 2015 features a presentation by four founding faculty members reflecting on the history of the institution.

Illinois Community College Preserves Its History

The Commercial-News of Danville, IL posted an interesting article "DACC records stories of its history on video," on an initiative at Danville Area Community College to preserve the memories of community members who played a significant role in the college’s history. 

Video interviews were edited to create the DACC Legends series, offering an opportunity for the entire community, DACC alums, and retirees to enjoy the history of the college and the area.

Several videos are available either by searching with a web search engine using,  “DACC Legends YouTube”  or via the college website at https://www.dacc.edu/legends.



DACC initially opened as an extension center of the University of Illinois with classes in the high school. When the center closed in 1949, courses continued with support of the public school system. The junior college separated and was reorganized as Danville Junior College in 1966. The name then changed to Danville Area Community College in 1979.

Rose State College Preparing for Anniversary in 2020

Rose State College is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1970. The institution is located in Midwest City, OK and was initially called Mid-Del Junior College.

It was renamed Oscar Rose Junior College in memory of the Midwest City-Del City Superintendent of Schools and became Rose State College in 1983.

You can visit the college website to view a brief video of Dr. Jeanie Webb meeting with Oklahoman reporter, Dave Morris, to highlight some of the events taking place on campus this year. 

There is also another "Celebrating 50 Years" video where Dr. Webb reflects on the anniversary in the context of where Rose State is aiming to become in the future.

An earlier College History Garden post on December 12, 2013, featured a video history of Rose State College that is available on YouTube.

Historical Sketch of the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith

The Southwest Times Record published an interesting historical sketch of what is now the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith, founded in 1928 at Fort Smith Junior College. The article, "We Are the River Valley: University of Arkansas at Fort Smith," includes comments of Billy Higgins, associate professor of history at UAFS and draws from a history of the institution, The First 85 Years: 1928-2012, co-written by Higgins, Stephen Husarik and Henry Rinne.

Fort Smith Junior College became Westark Junior College in 1966. The name then changed to Westark Community College in 1972 and to Westark College in 1998.  The institution was absorbed by University of Arkansas system and known as University of Arkansas - Fort Smith after 2002.

90th Anniversary for Amarillo College

KAMR/KCIT-TV in Amarillo, TX posted a short news video, "Amarillo College to celebrate 90th Anniversary throughout year," on September 16, 2019. 

You can also read more about anniversary plans in a college press release.

The institution was founded in 1929 as Amarillo Junior College. It served as the first Texas Junior College district established independent of a public school district. The classes were held on September 16, 1929 with seven faculty members and eighty-six students. In 1995, the state legislature transferred Texas State Technical College–Amarillo to Amarillo College.

Gavilan College Celebrates Centennial in 2019 Academic Year

Gavilan College in Gilroy, CA is preparing for the centennial celebration of its founding in 1919 and the centennial year will begin with a gala event on September 7, 2019.

The college was originally established as San Benito County Junior College and operated under this name until 1963, when a new community college district was drawn that included both San Benito and southern Santa Clara counties. The present campus was built after 1966 and serves 5,995 students.

The college website includes more centennial information including links to a photo archive and other resources.

Centennials for both Fort Scott and Garden City Community Colleges

 

Fort Scott Community College in Fort Scott, KS and Garden City Community College in Garden City, KS were both founded in 1919. The institutions initially were affiliated with their respective public schools and were known as junior colleges. They became independent after passage of the Community College Act in 1965 by the Kansas Legislature.

Garden City Community College kicked off its centennial celebration this week and you can read "GCCC begins centennial celebration" by Amber Friend in The Garden City Telegram.

You can read more on the history of each institution by visiting their respective web sites.

Weatherford College Celebrating 150th Anniversary

Madelyn Edwards reports for the Weatherford (TX) Democrat in "Weatherford College remembers its history" that faculty, staff, students and alumni will start celebrating the 150th anniversary of the institution's founding in 1869.

The institution was founded by the Phoenix Lodge of the Masonic Order in Weatherford, TX and was chartered as the Masonic Institute. The name was changed to Cleveland College in 1884 to honor U.S. President Grover Cleveland. Then five years later the Central Texas Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, moved Granbury College, which had originally opened in 1873 and had been under the conference's authority since 1880, to Weatherford and combined the two institutions as Weatherford College.

David S. Switzer guided the institution through the 1890s with average yearly enrollment of approximately 300 students and the school offered classes from grade school through the senior year of college. Switzer left in 1902 to establish his own college and from 1903 to 1921 the school operated intermittently.

In 1921 the institution was reorganized as a junior college and was known as Weatherford Junior College. Southwestern University took over operation in 1944 as a branch institution. Five years later in 1949 Southwestern transferred the college to the county and the school officially became Weatherford College of the Parker County Junior College District.

You can visit the 150th Anniversary webpage for a timeline of Weatherford College history, events planned for 2019, and a centennial issue of The Hiltop, an alumni magazine with more information.

50th Anniversary for East Central College

East Central College in Union, MO is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1968 with the first classes in fall 1969.  It opened as East Central Junior College and changed its name to East Central College in 1979.

The 50th anniversary web page includes an event calendar and an historical timeline.

Normandale Community College Marks 50th Anniversary

Normandale Community College in Bloomington, MN is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1968.  The anniversary web pages include events scheduled to mark the milestone and a time line of key historical events.  

The institution opened as Normandale State Junior College and changed its name to Normandale Community College in 1973.

Henry Ford College Featured for 80th Anniversary of Founding

Craig Huchison of Michigan's Press & Guide provides an interesting historical sketch in "Henry Ford College celebrates 80 years and a rich legacy."  Huchison reports that the main campus of the college comprises 75 acres that used to be the deer park of Henry Ford’s Fair Lane Estate and the Ford home lies on a short path behind the campus.  The article is accompanied by a number of historical photographs.

The institution in Dearborn, MI was founded in 1928 as Fordson Junior College.  It closed briefly from 1943-1946 and reopened as Dearborn Junior College.  The name changed to Henry Ford Community College in 1952 and then to Henry Ford College after 2014.

A March 2014 College History Garden post, "Henry Ford Community College Considers Change in Name (MI),"  provides information on the last name change and links to other historical information.

Focusing on Yakima Valley College History and Future through Lens of Campus Buildings

The Yakima Herald published an interesting article, "YVC past and future: College to expand to west campus," with reporting by Tammy Ayer.

Ayer interviewed a number of people associated with Yakima Valley College and provides an historical sketch of the institution through a focus on several campus buildings:  Prior Hall, Raymond Library, Kendall Hall, Kendall Auditorium, Larson Museum and Gallery, and the more recent West campus expansion.

Yakima Valley College was initially founded in 1928 as a private two-year college. In 1948 it became a public junior college under the auspices of the Yakima School District and was known as Yakima Valley Junior College. In 1967 the Washington State legislature passed the Community College Act and YVC became a state community college under the jurisdiction of the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges.

York College of Pennsylvania Recognized for Passing Milestone

The York (PA) Daily Record published a brief historical sketch, "First freshman class seeking four-year degrees entered York College of Pa. 50 years ago," on August 8, 2018.  The article coincides with the fiftieth anniversary of baccalaureate programs at the institution and highlights the impact on the community.

York College of Pennsylvania traces its roots to the York County Academy founded in 1787 and York Collegiate Institute founded in 1870.  The name of York Junior College was adopted in 1941 and then changed to York College of Pennsylvania in 1968.

The webpage of the college Archives and Special Collections offers links to many historical photographs, college catalogs from 1856 to the present, yearbooks from 1901-2005, and other interesting resources.

Santa Rosa Junior College Celebrates Centennial

Santa Rosa Junior College in Santa Rosa, CA is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its founding in 1918.  You can visit an anniversary web page with links to activities and other resources.

The Santa Rosa Junior College archives page describes various historical resources and services offered and includes a link to view historical images in the college digital archives.

Readers with Facebook access can consider liking and following the Historical Society of SRJC - Santa Rosa Junior College.

Remembering St. Genevieve-of-the-Pines College in Asheville, NC

The Asheville (NC) Citizen-Times published an article in early January that coincided with the anniversary of the opening St. Genevieve-of-the-Pines in 1908.  The institution was operated by the Religious of Christian Education and served boarding and day students.  Collegiate programs were added after 1912 through St. Genevieve-of-the-Pines College.  The name changed to St. Genevieve Junior College which operated from 1930 until 1955.  A School for Secretaries then continued until 1980 and the campus was sold to be used by Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College.

Rob Neufeld's blog post, "Memories of St. Genevieve's inhabit Ivy Building," from several years ago includes more insights into the institution's history.  He also offers a link to an interest short video of former students sharing their memories.

St. Genevieve's ultimately merged with Carolina Day School that maintains several web pages devoted to the history of St. Genevieve College.