AT 50 YEARS OLD, SDCCD IS A DYNAMIC LOCAL INSTITUTION

Fifty years ago, San Diego’s population was barely half of what it is today. Interstate 805 was not yet completed, San Diegans were dealing with an energy crisis, and the Padres finished 39 games behind the Cincinnati Reds in the National League West. A short distance from San Diego Stadium, the first employees of the San Diego Community College District were settling in at what was then called Stadium Plaza. Few knew at the time that the district would serve millions of students, pump tens of billions into the regional economy and help to change the face of California’s community colleges forever.

As the San Diego Community College District observes the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1973, there is much to celebrate. An annual economic impact of $4.5 billion, an amount equivalent to the total gross regional product of San Diego County and enough to support 42,121 jobs. A San Diego Promise program providing a tuition-free college education that has grown from an initial cohort of 185 students in 2016 to nearly 3,000 students this fall. Being on the forefront of the California community college baccalaureate initiative that in 2015 yielded an accessible, low-cost baccalaureate program at San Diego Mesa College with additional bachelor’s degrees soon to come at San Diego City and Miramar colleges.

Critical to San Diego Community College District’s impact has been overwhelming support from the community — support resulting in a $685 million, voter-approved bond measure in 2002 and an additional $870 million, voterapproved bond measure in 2006 that transformed our campuses by funding construction of 36 new academic and career training facilities and modernizing 20 others at City, Mesa, Miramar and Continuing Education colleges.

As our region’s demographics have evolved, we’ve also doubled down on our support of underserved and historically marginalized communities, placing equity and student support

Since its founding in 1973, the San Diego Community College District has become an invaluable resource for the community, especially to those in underserved and historically marginalized groups.

at the forefront of a districtwide focus. What has been constant over the past five decades is our mission of service and a commitment to student success, all of which has played a pivotal role in building and strengthening the San Diego economy.

Look no further than Oaxaca, Mexico, native Beatriz Cruz, who was a single mother and struggling farm worker and housekeeper before enrolling at the San Diego College of Continuing Education’s César Chávez Campus, where she earned her GED certificate, learned English and computer basics, and was encouraged to continue her studies at City College. At the East Village campus, Beatriz again found herself enveloped by a plethora of support and encouragement to transfer to San Diego State University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in child development and Spanish. Today, she works in the Student Services department helping a new generation of students at College of Continuing Education’s North City Campus in Serra Mesa.

Beatriz embodies the success that millions of San Diego Community College District students have achieved since November 1973 when voters elected Gene French, Daniel Grady, Richard Johnston, Charles Reid and Lou Ridgway as the first members of San Diego Community College District’s governing board. Up to that point, City, Mesa and Miramar colleges and Continuing Education fell under the auspices of the San Diego Unified School District. In the years that followed, San Diego Community College District’s Board of Trustees took the lead in expanding the role of community colleges; addressing equity gaps; creating critical partnerships with industry and labor to develop relevant job-training programs leading to good-paying careers; strengthening pathways for students in K-12 schools; easing the transition to four-year colleges and universities; and building comprehensive, wraparound student support services. It also oversaw construction of College of Continuing Education’s historic Educational Cultural Complex in the southeast San Diego neighborhood of Mountain View, which opened in 1976 to offer free courses from auto mechanics to welding in an area of town long neglected by city leaders.

The San Diego Community College District leaves nobody behind.

Half of the approximately 80,000 San Diego Community College District students enrolled last year were 30 years old or older, and nearly one-fourth were over 40. Nearly one-third are first-generation students, and 15 percent are active military, military veterans, or a military spouse or dependent. Almost 1 in 5 are homeless. More than 4,600 students, as part of a regular high school day, are taking dual enrollment courses that count for both college and high school credit, saving untold thousands of dollars in future higher education costs.

The San Diego Community College District is committed to our community, committed to our military veterans, committed to all who are seeking to improve their lives and the future of their families. Committed to you.

Happy anniversary, San Diego Community College District!