Norco College

Norco College is a public community college in Norco, California. Each year Norco College serves over 13,000 students from the cities of Norco, Corona, and Eastvale, as well as surrounding communities. Norco College is part of the Riverside Community College District (RCCD), which is part of the larger California Community Colleges System. It is also one of three colleges within The Riverside Community College District: Norco College, Moreno Valley College and Riverside City College (RCC).

Norco College
MottoToday's Students,
Tomorrow's Leaders
TypeCommunity College
Established1991
ChancellorWolde-AB Isaac, Ph.D.[1]
PresidentMonica Green (Interim) Ph.D.
Academic staff
100 full-time faculty
250 part-time faculty
Students14,000[2]
Location
Norco
,
California
,
United States
CampusUrban, 141 acres (57 ha)
ColorsBurgundy, white         
MascotMustang
Websitewww.norcocollege.edu

History
Norco College as seen from the balcony of the Applied Technology Building

Preparation for the establishment of Norco College began in the 1980s,[3] when the Riverside Community College District paid the U.S. government one dollar to acquire a 141-acre (57 ha) parcel of land.[4] (The college is on land once associated with The Hotel Norconian, a luxury resort that was acquired by the United States Navy in December, 1941; it was converted into a military hospital during World War II.[5] Today the original hotel property is listed on the National Register of Historic Places[6] and is currently home to the U.S. Navy’s Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona Division.[7])

RCCD opened the Norco Campus in April 1991, with an intent to meet the needs of students in the rapidly growing cities of Corona and Norco. The campus enrolled 3,088 students in its first semester—an opening scheduled to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the parent Riverside institution.[8]

The Norco Campus experienced rapid growth in enrollment. By fall 1994, student headcount was 3,782; by fall 2000, it was 6,681. By 2003, the Board of Trustees of Riverside Community College District had begun to implement changes that would enable the Norco campus to achieve full college accreditation.[9] Enrollment in fall 2008 exceeded 10,000 students.[10]

In January, 2010, Norco College received full accreditation[11] from Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC),[12] to become 112th accredited college in the state of California Community College System.[13]

2004 Measure C

In March 2004, voters in the Riverside Community College District approved a $350 million bond measure to support the acquisition and modernization of classroom buildings and other facilities on RCCD sites.[14]

A portion of the RCCD Measure C funds were allocated to Norco College, and to date have funded the installation of an artificial turf soccer field and the construction of two new buildings:[15]

  • Industrial Technology Building (June 2009)[16]
  • Norco College Center for Student Success (October 2010)[17][18]

Title V funding

Since 2009, Norco College has been awarded two separate multi-million U.S. Government Title V grants. The Title V program is designed to support Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) of higher education (such as Norco College) and help these institutions expand educational opportunities for Hispanic students.[19]

In October 2009, Norco College received a $2.8 million five-year grant to enable creation of a Game Art program with tracks for Game Design, Game Programming, and Game Audio.[20] A second component of the grant is the integration of games, simulations, and electronic portfolios into other transfer and career tech programs to increase student success and retention.[21]

In October, 2011, Norco College was awarded an additional five-year $3.8 million Title V grant to support development of new programs. Norco College is partnering with California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB), to create complementary academic programs in the fields of in commercial music, new media, game programming, and mobile application development—all structured to provide a seamless transition from the community college to baccalaureate level courses and degrees.[22]

Mascot

The mascot of Norco College is the Mustang,[23] an icon which reflects the "Horsetown USA" character of Norco.[24][25]

References
  1. http://rccd.edu/administration/chancellor/Pages/index.aspx
  2. http://datamart.cccco.edu/Students/Enrollment_Status.aspx
  3. Surman, Barry (15 December 1986). "College Campus Will Help Norco Make the Grade, Officials Say". Los Angeles Times.
  4. "RCCD History". Riverside Community College District (RCCD). Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  5. "Luxury meets the United States Navy". The Lake Norconian Club Foundation.
  6. "Actions taken on properties: 1/31/00 through 2/04/00". U.S. National Park Service, National Register Of Historic Places.
  7. "NSWC Corona Division: Base Facilities". Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona Division. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  8. "Institutional Self Study in Support of Initial Accreditation 2007" (PDF). RCCD Norco Campus. p. 3. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  9. "RCCD History". Riverside Community College District (RCCD). Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  10. "Institutional Self Study in Support of Initial Accreditation 2009" (PDF). RCCD Norco Campus. p. 7. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  11. The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. "ACCJC Letter Granting Initial Accreditation (PDF)" (PDF). Norco College Reports and Letters. Norco College. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  12. "ACCJC Directory of Accredited Institutions". The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). August 2011. p. 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011.
  13. Parrilla, Leslie (1 March 2010). "Norco and Moreno Valley campuses get recognition". The Press Enterprise. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  14. "Citizen's Bond Oversight Committee Frequently Asked Questions". Riverside Community College District. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  15. "Citizen's Bond Oversight Committee Completed Projects". Riverside Community College District. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  16. "Norco College Industrial Technology Building". RCCD Citizen's Bond Oversight Committee. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  17. "Norco College Center for Student Success". RCCD Citizen's Bond Oversight Committee. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  18. Ghori, Imran (27 August 2010). "Norco College opens Center for Student Success". The Press-Enterprise.
  19. "Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program -- Title V". U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  20. "NorTech: Portal to Norco Game Creation". Norco College. Retrieved 17 August 2011.
  21. "Game Simulation Program Ramps Up to Meet Demand" (PDF). Norco Campus Community Report. Norco College. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  22. "Norco College Wins $3.8 Million Grant". Riverside Community College District. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  23. Rokos, Brian (6 February 2011). "Norco College gets new image – and more". The Press Enterprise. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  24. Sullivan, Susan (26 January 2003). "Horse-centric Norco's a mix of trails and tails". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  25. "About Norco". City Of Norco. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
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