History of Fresno City College
The
year was 1910. The old Fresno Traction Company had just
added two new trolley lines in downtown Fresno. J. C. Forkner
was just beginning to plant the first trees in Fig Garden.
And it hadn’t been too long since Theodore Kearney
had escorted Lilly Langtree to her performance at the city’s
old Barton Opera House.
1910 was also the year Fresno City College, California’s
first community college, was established, ultimately changing
education in California.
The college’s history began in 1907 when C. L. McLane,
then superintendent of schools for the city of Fresno, recognized
the need for college instruction for San Joaquin Valley
students. Largely through McLane’s efforts, Fresno
Junior College was established. The first class consisted
of 20 students and three instructors.
The campus was originally located at the former Fresno High
School campus on “O” Street. In 1921 Fresno
Junior College combined with the then Fresno Normal School,
later Fresno State College and currently California State
University, Fresno, to operate the junior college on the
same campus as the four-year school. Fresno Junior College
continued to grant associate degrees and offer a two-year
curriculum, but its campus and staff were identical with
those of the normal school. In 1948 new laws permitted
local school districts to operate junior colleges, and Fresno
City College returned to the “O” Street campus,
which it shared with Fresno Technical High School. By 1950
the technical high school program had been phased out and
the district began looking for another campus. The junior
college district completed negotiations for the purchase
of the University Avenue site from Fresno State College.
By 1956 Fresno City College had moved to University Avenue.
The California Community College system has now grown
to 109 campuses, enrolling approximately 1.5 million students.
Fresno City College has built upon its rich history and
gone on to pioneer many new developments in community college
education. Thou-sands of local people have worked through
the years to make Fresno City College a viable and strong
educational institution.
Old Administration Building
It is the original classroom
building on the former Fresno State College which is now called
California State University, Fresno. The building was part of
the FSC campus which consisted of this classroom building, the
library, McLane Hall, and several technical shop buildings.
This building and the Library building are on the Federal List
of Historical Buildings.
When the California State University
system added FSC to its rolls in 1946 and acquired the land for
its current location on Shaw Avenue and Cedar Street, the "old
campus" was given to the newly re-organized community college
system. Fresno Junior College moved onto this campus in 1947
from the downtown Fresno site which it occupied since 1910. The
name was changed to Fresno City College on May 11, 1958.
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