College of the Canyons

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**College of the Canyons**

Motto	Start here. Go anywhere.
Established	1969
Type	Public, Community College
President	Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook
Students	16,504 (as of Fall '05)
Location	Santa Clarita, CA,, USA
Address	26455 Rockwell Canyon Road Santa Clarita, CA 91355
Telephone	(661) 259-7800
Campus	Suburban - 153.4 acres
Colors	Blue and Gold
Nickname	Cougars
Affiliations	Santa Clarita Community College District; Western State Conference
Website	www.canyons.edu

College of the Canyons is a public two-year community college that operates within the Santa Clarita Community College District. The college is located on 153 acres (619,000 m²) of rolling, tree-dotted hills in the incorporated city of Santa Clarita in northern Los Angeles County, California. The college’s address is: 26455 Rockwell Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, CA 91355. Its superintendent-president is Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook, who has served in this capacity since 1988.

College of the Canyons is one of the fastest-growing community colleges in the state. Its fall 2005 enrollment of 17,089 students is projected to grow to an estimated 21,000 by 2015. With 171 full-time and 423 part-time faculty members (as of fall 2005), the college offers AA and AS degrees in 58 academic programs, as well as credentials in 39 certificate programs. Programs include Audio/Radio Production, Biotechnology, Child Development, Dance, Film/Video Production, Fire Control Technology, Industrial Manufacturing, Music, Nursing, Paralegal Studies, Television Production, Theatre Arts and Video Game Animation.

1 College Formation
2 College of the Canyons Today
3 Outside Partnerships
4 External link

[edit] College Formation

Local voters approved the formation of the college in 1967. It officially opened in 1969, operating in temporary quarters on the campus of Wm. S. Hart High School in Newhall. In 1970, the college purchased a permanent campus site along the east side of Interstate 5, south of Valencia Boulevard and north of McBean Parkway. The college relocated to a collection of modular buildings on the site in 1970 as permanent facilities were being built. Over the years, educational facilities have been built to ensure that they "blend with the natural attributes of the location, creating a relaxed and comfortable physical environment."

[edit] College of the Canyons Today

Recent additions to the campus include a 926-seat performing arts center, built in partnership with the city of Santa Clarita, that offers academic, community and professional productions. The facility, which also holds a smaller experimental theater, opened in late 2004. A new Music/Dance Building opened adjacent to the performing arts center in 2005. As of early 2006, construction was under way on a new High-Tech Classroom Building (34,000 square feet) and a major expansion of the Laboratory Building. Also under way was site preparation for the Canyon Country Educational Center, a full-service educational facility that the college plans to open in the eastern Santa Clarita Valley in the 2006-07 academic year. The college competes in the Western States Conferance in twelve sports: football, soccer (men's and women's) women's volleyball, cross country, golf (men's and women's), softball, baseball, swimming, track and field and men's and women's basketball. The College's football team won the national championship in 2004 and the men's golf team has won 3 state championships since 2000 (2000, 2002, 2006) Women's golf won the state championship in fall of 2001.

[edit] Outside Partnerships

The college also is a participant in several innovative partnerships that have redefined the traditional role of community colleges. Academy of the Canyons, a middle college high school operated by the William S. Hart Union High School District, opened on the College of the Canyons campus in 2002. The concept allows promising high school students to attend high school and college concurrently. The college also oversees the University Center, a collection of public and private universities that offer advanced degree programs on the college’s campus, eliminating the need for residents to commute long distances to earn their degrees. Also operating at the college are the Center for Applied Competitive Technology and the Employee Training Institute, both of which have helped local businesses become more efficient and train employees in the latest emerging fields.