1971
May 18: Residents vote to establish Houston Community College as a component of the Houston Independent School District. Dr. Joseph Champagne is chosen as the first president.
1971
2011
Timeline
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Enrollment
15,812
1971
August: 5,711 students register for vocational and technical courses.
Enrollment
17,438
1973
May: First issue of the student newspaper, The Egalitarian, is published.
1973
July: The HISD-HCC Trustees approve a proposal separating HCC from HISD. J. Don Boney becomes HCC’s second president.
Enrollment
18,313
1974
Tuition at HCC is $39 for three semester hours, $48 for six hours and $89 for 12 hours. The college has a Central Administration Building, located on Cummins Drive, and teaches classes at Houston Technical Institute and eight high schools.
Enrollment
19,231
1975
J. B. Whiteley becomes HCC’s third leader. HISD holds first election of Trustees by geographical district.
Enrollment
20,195
1976
May 18: The HCC Foundation is incorporated as a non-profit organization; HCC Trustee Erwin Heinen is the first Foundation president.
Enrollment
21,208
1977
HCC receives accreditation from the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges.
Enrollment
22,272
1978
Ground is broken in the Texas Medical Center for a joint facility to house an HISD medical careers high school and HCC’s Health Professions programs.
Enrollment
24,562
1980
1980: HCC begins renovation of the buildings on its Central Campus, with HISD dedicating $5 million to remodeling the Houston Technical Institute, the former San Jacinto High School, which HISD transferred to the college.
1980
HCC begins an EMS training program with the City of Houston Fire and Health Departments and the Harris County Medical Society.
Enrollment
25,793
1981
1981: A student survey reports that most HCC students are enrolled in career or job related educational programs, with 31 percent in business careers and 12 percent in health careers. The Texas Legislature votes to expand the HCC Board from seven to nine members.
Enrollment
27,087
1982
April 1982: Faculty Senate President Charles Cook urges the HCC board to seek a separate tax base for HCC or to designate a specific portion of HISD’s tax revenues to HCC. HCC receives a 10-year accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).
Enrollment
28,445
1983
April 1983: HCC moves into its new arts facility, formerly a Jewish synagogue that had also housed HISD’s School of Performing and Visual Arts.
1983
May 13: The Texas House of Representatives approves a bill to permit HISD to dedicate a portion of its property tax levy to HCC to be used for facilities, equipment, and operating expenses.
Enrollment
31,370
1985
1985: HCC now offers over 112 vocational and technical programs; the most popular program majors at HCC are business and data processing.
Enrollment
32,943
1986
1986: HCC purchases the Central Campus complex and Student Services Building from HISD, including the San Jacinto High School building for $12 million.
Enrollment
36,708
1987
May 30: Texas governor approves a bill to establish an HCC Board of Trustees, separate from HISD. The nine-member board is to be appointed by the HISD Board, and afterward to be elected. Through passage of another bill, HCC is allowed to collect a tax equal to its current share of the HISD tax for two years.
Enrollment
48,554
1988
HISD trustees approve the separation and appoint nine new trustees for the college: Roland W. Smith, Bruce A. Austin, Herlinda Garcia, Gene L. Locke, M. James Henderson, A.J. Lynch, William Russell, Frank Medina and Pretta L. Vandible. After holding classes in the Stafford School District in Fort Bend County since 1982, HCC annexes the district. HCC now has 37 instructional sites.
Enrollment
52,101
1990
Dr. Charles Green is named the fourth president of HCC.
Enrollment
52,362
1991
1991: HCC begins an extensive restructuring plan, creating a system of five regional colleges and the College Without Walls. Dr. Green selects six new Presidents for each of the colleges, and becomes the HCC System Chancellor.
Enrollment
52,234
1993
HCC expands its operations at Northline Mall to a full-service campus that enrolls over 1,000 students.
Enrollment
53,530
1995
March 1995: The City of Stafford approves $7.5 million in bonds to construct a building to house Southwest College programs. It is a first-of-a-kind partnership between a community college and a city government. Long time HCC administrator, James Harding, becomes Interim Chancellor upon the resignation of Dr. Green. HCC is now the largest provider of technical training in the state.
Enrollment
51,351
1996
1996: Dr. Ruth Burgoss-Sasser becomes HCC’s fifth leader and the first female Hispanic to head a major Houston institution of higher education.
Enrollment
50,349
1997
HCC begins a second physical expansion project. The 10-year master plan calls for comprehensive campus sites.
Enrollment
50,898
1998
1998: Financed by the $7.5 million in bonds issued by the city of Stafford, HCC opens a permanent campus facility in Stafford, part of the Southwest College. HCC begins construction on a second building on the Eastside campus, and purchases a site for a Southwest College campus. HCC is now the nation’s 10th largest, singularly accredited higher education institution.
Enrollment
49,860
1999
1999: New Northeast College campus and West Loop Center open. In December, Southeast College opens state-of-the art facilities for its healthcare programs in the John B. Coleman Building, making HCC the first and only community college to have a physical presence in the Texas Medical Center.
Enrollment
53,565
2001
The Trustees appoint Dr. Bruce Leslie as HCC’s sixth Chancellor.
Enrollment
54,758
2002
2002: HCC opens the Alief Center, a component of the Southwest College.
Enrollment
53,682
2003
2003: HCC successfully passes a $150.8 million bond issue to begin a Capital Improvement Plan to renovate and build facilities.
Enrollment
55,090
2004
HCC is recognized among the nation’s top 10 large community colleges that are bridging the digital divide. HCC also receives a grant through the “Achieving the Dream” program to improve the access and achievement of low-income and minority students.
Enrollment
52,443
2005
Plans are completed for new and renovated buildings as part of the Capital Improvement Plan. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) awards “exemplary” rating status to 25 workforce programs at HCC, which is the most ever awarded.
Enrollment
57,364
2006
HCC presents former Mayor Bob Lanier with its First Annual Crystal Eagle Award. The Award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to education and to the role education, and more specifically, Houston Community College, plays in transforming the greater community. Public Safety Institute (PSI) groundbreaking occurs.
Enrollment
57,457
2007
Dr. Mary Spangler joined HCC as the college’s seventh chancellor in March, 2007.
Enrollment
69,755
2010
From occupying HISD classrooms in the evening to six full-service colleges, HCC continues to grow. Today HCC serves an area that spans 623 square miles and has 22 instructional sites throughout the area. In 2008 the Alief Community voted four to one for annexation into the HCC District. In 2009 North Forest residents voted to join the HCC District. For Alief and North Forest, this means 50 percent reduction in tuition costs to students to attend classes at HCC, and more jobs will be created for the community. In the Spring of 2010, HCC exceeded the 72,000 student enrollment mark, the largest enrollment in the history of the college.
Enrollment
74,299
2011
Houston Community College celebrates 40 Years Strong.