San Diego Community College District
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The San Diego Community College District (SDCCD) is a
public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...
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 ...
district in
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. The SDCCD is one of the five community college districts in
San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...
and part of the
California Community Colleges The California Community Colleges is a postsecondary education system in the U.S. state of California.California Education CodSection 70900(added to the Education Code by Chapter 973 of the California Statutes of 1988Assembly Bill No. 1725 sectio ...
system. Under the
California Master Plan for Higher Education The California Master Plan for Higher Education of 1960 was developed by a survey team appointed by the Regents of the University of California and the California State Board of Education during the administration of Governor Pat Brown. UC President ...
, the California Community Colleges system is a part of the state's three-tier public
higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
system, which also includes the
University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...
system and
California State University The California State University (Cal State or CSU) is a public university system in California. With 23 campuses and eight off-campus centers enrolling 485,550 students with 55,909 faculty and staff, CSU is the largest four-year public univers ...
system. The San Diego Community College District consists of three two-year,
associate degree An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree. The fi ...
-awarding campuses:
San Diego City College San Diego City College (City College or City) is a public community college in San Diego, California. It is part of the San Diego Community College District and the California Community College System. San Diego City College is accredited by t ...
,
San Diego Mesa College San Diego Mesa College (Mesa College or Mesa) is a public community college in Clairemont Mesa in San Diego, California. It is part of the California Community Colleges and the San Diego Community College District. It is the largest community ...
, and
San Diego Miramar College San Diego Miramar College (Miramar) is a public community college in San Diego, California. It is part of the San Diego Community College District and the California Community Colleges System. Notable alumni * Brian Awadis (FaZe Rug): YouTube ...
; and seven
San Diego Continuing Education San Diego College of Continuing Education (SDCCE) is a public, noncredit educational institution in San Diego, California. It is part of the San Diego Community College District along with three two-year community colleges: San Diego City, San ...
campuses: César Chávez, CE at Mesa College, CE at Miramar College, Educational Cultural Complex (ECC), Mid-City, North City, and West City.
San Diego Mesa College San Diego Mesa College (Mesa College or Mesa) is a public community college in Clairemont Mesa in San Diego, California. It is part of the California Community Colleges and the San Diego Community College District. It is the largest community ...
also offers a bachelor's degree in health information management. SDCCD is one of the 73 districts containing the 112 public
community colleges 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 ...
in the state of California. The three two-year,
associate degree An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree. The fi ...
-awarding community colleges are accredited by the
Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) is an accrediting organization in the United States. It accredits private and public colleges that provide students two-year education programs and confer the associate deg ...
(ACCJC). Serving more than 102,000 students, it is one of the largest community college districts in the state of California and in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. City College became the third community college in the state and Mesa College is one of the largest in the state today.


History

Community college
education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...
in San Diego can be traced to 1914 when the
Board of Education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...
of the
San Diego City Schools San Diego Unified School District (formerly known as San Diego City Schools) is the school district based in San Diego, California, San Diego, California, United States. It was founded in 1854. As of 2005 it represents over 200 institutions and h ...
authorized
postsecondary Tertiary education, also referred to as third-level, third-stage or post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank, for example, defines tertiary education as including univers ...
classes for the youth of San Diego. Classes opened that fall at
San Diego High School San Diego High School (SDHS) is an urban public high school located on the southern edge of Balboa Park, in San Diego, California, United States. It is the oldest high school in the San Diego Unified School District, one of the oldest public sch ...
with four faculty members and 35 students, establishing San Diego City College. In 1921, City College moved from the high school to share facilities with the State Normal School, the four-year teachers' college which, in 1898, became
San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...
. For 25 years, the
Junior College A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...
program remained at San Diego State University. During this period, in 1938, the San Diego Vocational Junior College was established to offer training in technical-vocational skills to post high school students. The following year, the San Diego Evening Junior College was set up to provide college classes in the evening for adults who were unable to attend classes during the day. In 1946, City College moved back to San Diego High School and reorganized into three branches: San Diego Vocational High School, San Diego College Arts and Sciences, and San Diego Evening Junior College. City College continued to grow during the 1950s and 60s as land was acquired to allow expansion through various blocks of today's northeast Downtown San Diego. In 1964, San Diego Mesa College was opened to 1,800 students. Five years later, in 1969, San Diego Miramar College opened on 140 acres in what was then undeveloped land north of the
Miramar Naval Air Station Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (MCAS Miramar) , formerly Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Miramar and Naval Air Station (NAS) Miramar, is a United States Marine Corps installation that is home to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, which is the av ...
, now known as
Mira Mesa Mira Mesa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Mesa, Table View") is a community and neighborhood in the city of San Diego, California. The city-recognized Mira Mesa Community Plan Area is roughly bounded by Interstate 15 on the east, Interstate 805 o ...
. Unlike City and Mesa Colleges which offered a wide range of general education classes, Miramar College began by concentrating on
law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term en ...
and fire science training. It has since broadened its curriculum to include the general education college courses needed by students in the rapidly growing northern area of the city, as well as new transfer and vocational programs. In November 1972, the voters approved separating the San Diego Community College District from the
San Diego Unified School District San Diego Unified School District (formerly known as San Diego City Schools) is the school district based in San Diego, California, United States. It was founded in 1854. As of 2005 it represents over 200 institutions and has over 15,800 employee ...
. The first election of community college district trustees was held in November 1973. The year 1976 brought the opening of a unique district campus, the Educational Cultural Complex, dedicated to offering both college and
continuing education Continuing education (similar to further education in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, Ireland) is an all-encompassing term within a broad list of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United ...
classes to the multicultural population surrounding its Ocean View Boulevard site. In 1979-80 the administration of the Evening College program was merged with those of the day college programs at San Diego City, San Diego Mesa, and San Diego Miramar Colleges. With both college and Continuing Education programs, as well as extensive educational programs at military bases across the nation, the San Diego Community College District became second-largest community college district in California.


Recent times

All campuses have receive extensive expansion and renovations in the last 20 years: At City College, Propositions S and N-funded projects for the 60-acre City College have included six new instructional and career training facilities, eight major renovations, and new parking, public safety, and infrastructure projects. Construction for a new Child Development Center is underway with an estimated completion date of Summer 2020. The building consists of new spaces for child care from infant, toddler and pre-K with unique play areas for the different age groups, along with observation rooms for students in the child development program. Recently, a major renovation was completed for the A and T buildings on campus, providing a complete interior transformation of both buildings, new technology, new finishes, extensive new hardscape to create, for the first time in the campus’ history, pathways and gathering areas in between the two previously unconnected buildings. At Mesa College, Propositions S & N-funded projects for Mesa have included six new academic and career training facilities, two campus support facilities, five major renovation projects, and numerous infrastructure, parking, and public safety projects. Recently, the campus’ new Center for Business Technology (BT) building opened, expanding upon the east campus gateway projects. San Diego Continuing Education is made up of seven unique campuses located throughout San Diego. Propositions S & N-funded projects for Continuing Education included the construction of six new campus facilities - Mid-City Campus, North City Campus, West City Campus, Continuing Education Mesa College Campus, Continuing Education Miramar College Campus, César E. Chávez Campus, and the new Skills Center at the Educational Cultural Complex (ECC). An 18,000 square foot wing was added to the ECC as well, creating a permanent home for programs previously housed in bungalows and modular classrooms. The bond program also provided for a complete seismic retrofit for the Centre City Campus. No major construction projects are currently planned for the 2019–20 school year.


Governance

The San Diego Community College District is governed by a five-member, locally elected
Board of Trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...
and three student members serving on a rotating basis, representing each of the three colleges. The sitting student trustee has an advisory vote on the Board. Shared governance activities involve faculty, students and staff in the development of solutions to key policy and budget issues. The five trustees are elected in even-numbered years to four-year terms by the voters of San Diego. Trustee candidates first run in district-only elections. The top two vote-getters in each district run citywide in the general election. Each college of the SDCCD, including Continuing Education, is headed by a president and three vice presidents overseeing instruction, administrative services, and student services, respectively. Each academic school department is headed by a dean.


Administration

The San Diego Community College District has five major operational components: City College, Mesa College, Miramar College, Continuing Education, and the District administrative departments that support campus and overall operations. The administrative departments include Business Services, Facilities Management,
Human Resources Human resources (HR) is the set of people who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, industry, or economy. A narrower concept is human capital, the knowledge and skills which the individuals command. Similar terms include m ...
, Instructional Services and Student Services. Functions that are the responsibility of the District administrative departments are intended to provide for efficiency and continuity of services and programs. Compliance and functions that are statutorily required are also the responsibility of various District operations. The provision of educational programs, student support services, staff development, direct campus operations, and various ancillary functions are the responsibility of each College and Continuing Education. All administrative departments and operations in the District Office are under the final authority of the Chancellor and the College/Continuing Education operations are under the final authority of the
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
, who reports to the
Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
. The Board of Trustees is the final level of authority for all functions within the District.


Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees is responsible for establishing policies that govern all activities related to conducting the business of the District, the Colleges, and Continuing Education. Development and review of policies and procedures are collegial efforts involving a variety of participatory governance groups. For policies and regulations that affect academic and professional matters, the Board relies primarily on the Academic Senates; on matters defined as within the scope of bargaining interests, the Board follows the requirements of negotiations. For administrative matters, the Board relies primarily on the recommendations of staff with input from various constituencies in the development and review process. The general public may comment at public Board meetings on any policy consideration before the Board.


District Chancellor

The Chancellor is the District's
Chief Executive Officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
and is responsible for carrying out the policies approved by the Board of Trustees and for providing overall leadership for the District. The Chancellor maintains a
Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...
composed by the Presidents of the Colleges/Continuing Education, five Vice Chancellors overseeing the District's departments of Business and Technology Services, Student Services, Human Resources and Administrative Services, Facilities Management, and Instructional Services; and the Director of
Communications Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...
and Public Relations.


College Presidents

The President is the institutional Chief Executive Officer of the College/Continuing Education. The President reports to the Chancellor. The President is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the total College/Continuing Education program and provides leadership and coordination for the College/Continuing Education community. The Presidents and Chancellor provide overall leadership and authority on all of the functional areas. Each President maintains a Cabinet composed of three Vice Presidents overseeing Instruction, Administrative Services and Student Services and the Dean of each School of each College including the Dean of Student Affairs and the Dean of Student Development and
Matriculation Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now ...
.


Campuses

The San Diego Community College District consists of three two-year community colleges and seven Continuing Education campuses. For the 2018–19 school year, all institutions were serving approximately 102,000 students. The three colleges offer associate degrees and certificates in occupational programs that prepare students for
entry-level An entry-level job is a job that is normally designed or designated for recent graduates of a given discipline and typically does not require prior experience in the field or profession. These roles may require some on-site training. Many entry ...
jobs, and arts and sciences programs that transfer to four-year colleges and universities. Mesa College offers a bachelor's degree in health information management. Continuing Education's Educational Cultural Complex (ECC) also offers classes leading to associate degrees and certificates. The Continuing Education campuses offer adults noncredit vocational, basic skills, life skills, and enrichment classes at sites throughout the city. A number of special programs are unique to the city, including KSDS-FM all-jazz radio, the Center for Competitive and Applied Technologies, and the Workplace Learning Resource Center.


San Diego City College

Located in
downtown San Diego Downtown San Diego is the city center of San Diego, California, the eighth largest city in the United States. In 2010, the Centre City area had a population of more than 28,000. Downtown San Diego serves as the cultural and financial center and ...
as the first community college in the city and the third in California, City College sits on 60 acres and offers over 100 majors to more than 20,000 students. Besides general education, transfer and AA/AS degree programs, some of the disciplines available at City are:


San Diego Mesa College

As one of the largest and most successful of California's 112 community colleges, and as the largest college in the San Diego Community College District, Mesa College opened in 1964 and it now serves over 24,000 students on a campus of 104 acres offering more than 150 programs of instruction. Among its unique programs available on campus are:


San Diego Miramar College

Located on 120 acres in the
Mira Mesa Mira Mesa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Mesa, Table View") is a community and neighborhood in the city of San Diego, California. The city-recognized Mira Mesa Community Plan Area is roughly bounded by Interstate 15 on the east, Interstate 805 o ...
/
Scripps Ranch Scripps Ranch is a community of San Diego, California in the northeastern part of that city. Its ZIP code is 92131. It is located east of Interstate 15, north of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, and south of Poway. Scripps Ranch is a coastal/i ...
suburban area of San Diego along the
I-15 I15 may refer to: * Interstate 15, a north–south Interstate Highway in the United States of America * Polikarpov I-15, a Soviet fighter aircraft * I15 (band) "Soulja Girl" is the second single from American rapper Soulja Boy's studio album '' ...
corridor, Miramar opened as a training facility for San Diego's law enforcement personnel and firefighters in 1969. Today, Miramar College offers over 120 certificates, associate degrees, and comprehensive 4-year university transfer programs and is home to the Southern California Biotechnology Center, the Advanced Transportation and Energy Center, and the San Diego Regional Public Safety Institute which provides training for nearly all law enforcement officers and firefighters within San Diego County and also trains EMTs and offers the only open water lifeguard degree in the world. Miramar has the only entry-level biotechnology program in San Diego County. Miramar boasts unique career training in the following:


San Diego Continuing Education

San Diego Continuing Education San Diego College of Continuing Education (SDCCE) is a public, noncredit educational institution in San Diego, California. It is part of the San Diego Community College District along with three two-year community colleges: San Diego City, San ...
was the first and remains the only community college continuing education institution in California to meet the standards for independent accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Continuing Education was also one of the first in California to establish a Joint High School Diploma partnership with the local school district, and was also among the first continuing education programs in California to serve 100,000 students per academic year. Today, the Continuing Education system consists of seven campuses and 56 partnered locations throughout the city where instruction may be offered in collaboration with schools, community service providers, and other institutions. Instruction offered at Continuing Education includes: *Computer information technology *Career training *Disability support programs *English as a second language (ESL) *GED/high school diploma *Parenting education *U.S. Citizenship preparation


Admissions

The San Diego Community College District conducts open enrollment in all of its three community colleges and seven Continuing Education campuses.


Academics

City College, Mesa College, and Miramar College as public two-year community colleges administered by the San Diego Community College District offer credit programs leading to degrees, transfer,
employment Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any othe ...
, and skills improvement along with the District's Continuing Education division of seven major campuses throughout San Diego. As required by the voters of San Diego in 1972, the San Diego Community College District is to provide education for all high school graduates and adults 18 years of age and older in the service region. This charge includes providing
adult basic education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained self-educating activities in order to gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralp ...
, including GED/High School Diploma, through sophomore-level college degree programs, with both academic and vocational
curricula In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...
. San Diego Community Colleges offer over 130 individual disciplines with over 300 academic programs that lead to associate degrees or Certificates of Performance. Academics are held within individual schools at each college which in turn are divided into separate departments holding their areas of study and instruction.


References


External links

* {{authority control California Community Colleges School districts in San Diego County, California Universities and colleges in San Diego Schools accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges 1972 establishments in California Educational institutions established in 1972