Merced College is a public

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...

Merced, California Merced (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Mercy") is a city in, and the county seat of, Merced County, California, Merced County, California, United States, in the San Joaquin Valley. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 86,333, up ...

History

In 1961, the Merced High and Le Grand High School Districts petitioned the State Board of Education for permission to set an election to approve the establishment of a junior college district in

Merced County Merced County ( ), is a county located in the northern San Joaquin Valley section of the Central Valley, in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 281,202. The county seat is Merced. The county is named after ...

. The State Board of Education approved the proposal for the Merced County Junior College on November 10, 1961. The County Superintendent of Schools set February 27, 1962, as the date for the election. Before the election, Robert Clemo, Chief of the Bureau of School District Organization, along with Loren Wann, conducted a survey to determine if Merced County had a sufficient number of students at the time and in the future, if the tax base was high enough to support a community college, and whether a need for a separate junior college (separate from Modesto Junior College) existed. The answer to all three questions was yes.The Inferno Redux, Merced College 1962-2012 by Delores Cabezut-Ortiz The vote in the election was 3996 in favor and 1494 opposed. The initial governing board was elected and sworn into office in 1962. It was composed of the following individuals: Buddy Iwata, George Clark, Byron Cunningham, John Hann, and Donald Robinson. Buddy Iwata was the first board chairman, George Clark was the vice-chairman, and Byron Cunningham was the secretary. Merced Union High School District Superintendent Clair Hopkins acted as the interim junior college superintendent as well as continuing his duties as high school superintendent with the permission of the high school board. One of the first orders of business for the new junior college board was to select a name for the college. While many potential names were considered, Merced Junior College was chosen by a unanimous vote of the college board.

Campuses

The college's service district is composed of Merced County, the Chowchilla Union High School District in Madera County, and the Dos Palos Joint Union Elementary School District. A single-college district, the main campus is located in the City of Merced on 269 acres. The new Los Banos Campus, an educational center completed in 2007, is located on 120 acres in the City of Los Banos. Merced College also has classes available at other locations outside of its two main locations for residents in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

Dos Palos Dos Palos (Spanish for "Two Timbers") is a city in Merced County, California, United States. Dos Palos is located south-southwest of Merced, the county seat, at an elevation of . The population was 5,798 at the 2020 census, up from 4,950 at the ...

, and Mariposa. It has also offered classes for employees of the Valley State Prison for Women and the

Central California Women's Facility Central California Women's Facility (CCWF) is a female-only California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison located in Chowchilla, California. It is across the road from Valley State Prison. CCWF is the largest female cor ...

Notable alumni

Jerry Garvin Theodore Jared Garvin (born October 21, 1955) is an American former professional baseball player who pitched a total of six seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Toronto Blue Jays from 1977 to 1982. He was named by Topps as their left- ...

, MLB pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays *

Adam Gray Adam C. Gray is an American politician who served in the California State Assembly. He is a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who represented the California's 21st State Assembly district, 21st Assembly district, encompassing all of Mer ...

- California State Assemblyman, District 21 * Benjamin T. Duran - former Merced College President, President & CEO of the Great Valley Center, Modesto, California * Brian McCabe - Judge, Superior Court of Merced County, California * Michael Gallo - Co-Owner

Joseph Gallo Farms Joseph Gallo Farms is a large family-owned dairy operation, and is prominent in California’s dairy industry. It is based in Livingston, California. History Joseph Gallo Farms was founded in 1946 in the northern San Joaquin Valley by Joseph Edw ...

* Hubert (Hub) Walsh, Jr. - former Mayor of Merced, Merced County District 2 Supervisor *

Marvin Eastman Marvin Lee Eastman (born June 8, 1971) is a retired American professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer. A professional MMA competitor from 2000 until 2013, he competed in K-1, the UFC, World Fighting Alliance, Maximum Fighting Championshi ...

- two-time

NJCAA The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), founded in 1938, is the governing association of community college, state college and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 separate regions ...

All-American wrestler;

Mixed Martial Artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

Duke Fergerson Duke Fergerson (born April 21, 1954) is a former professional American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks and Buffalo Bills. He was drafted in the third round of the 1976 NFL Draft out ...

- former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

player *

Lavar Johnson Lavar F. Johnson (born June 11, 1977) is an American bare-knuckle boxer and former Heavyweight mixed martial artist. A professional from 2004 until 2014, he competed for the UFC, the WEC, Strikeforce and Bellator MMA. Background Johnson is from ...

- football player; current

MMA Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

fighter for

Bellator Bellator, warrior in Latin, may refer to: * Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States * Bishop Bellator of Archaeological site of Sbeitla, Sufetula (5th century) Taxonomy * Bellator (fish), ''Bellator'' (fish), a fis ...

Fighting Championship *

Reuben Droughns Reuben Droughns (; born August 21, 1978) is a retired American football running back. After playing college football at the University of Oregon, he was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the third round of the 2000 NFL Draft. During his nine years ...

- former

player *

Bill Mooneyham William Craig Mooneyham (August 16, 1960) was an American professional baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics of the Major League Baseball (MLB). Mooneyham attended Merced College. He was originally drafted in 1980 Major League Baseball draft ...

- former pitcher for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control California Community Colleges Educational institutions established in 1962 1962 establishments in California Schools accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Universities and colleges in Merced County, California

History

Campuses

Notable alumni

See also

References

External links