Orange Coast College (OCC) , founded in 1947, with its first classes opening in the fall of 1948, is a community college providing two-year associate of art and science degrees, certificates of achievement, and lower-division classes transferable to other colleges and universities. This college is a large population type campus. The school enrolls 24,424 undergraduate students which is more than neighboring local university such as Chapman University and University of California, Irvine. It is located in Costa Mesa, California, about 40 miles (63 km) south of Los Angeles. It is about 2 miles away from both the 55 freeway and 405 freeway as well as State Route 73. It is about 10 miles from Corona del Mar State Beach. It is 20 minutes from Disneyland, and from two hours to a half day from the mountains and ski regions of Southern California.
History
Orange Coast College was formed after local voters passed a measure in the January 1947 election to establish a new junior college on a 243-acre site, secured from the War Assets Administration in Washington, D.C, carved from the 1,300-acre deactivated Santa Ana Army Air Base.
The first official District board of trustees hired the college's founding president and district superintendent, Basil Hyrum Peterson, on July 28, 1947. Construction of campus classrooms and facilities began when Dr. Peterson hired Fran Albers as the college's carpenter in February 1948. Albers' crew of 35 workers (mostly Coast football players paid 60 cents an hour) turned an Army movie theatre into an auditorium and concert hall; a service club into a 500-seat gymnasium; an Army chapel into a facility for theatre productions and student/staff weddings; a military storage building into a library; an Army PX into a student center; a battalion headquarters building into an administration building; and several cadet barracks into student dormitories and married student and faculty housing.
The first campus building phase occurred in the early 1950s, when renowned architect Richard Neutra was brought in to re-design the campus. Leaving many of the original buildings intact, Neutra added several modernist structures including the strikingly minimalist Campus Theater and two large lecture halls. These were laid out on a 45-degree angle to the city street grid, in much the same manner as The Parkinsons' layout of USC. The second and largest building phase occurred in the 1970s, when local architect William Blurock was hired to replace many of the original Army buildings with structures more suitable for educational purposes.
A plan is currently in effect to remove the early Neutra buildings in the center of the campus, which have long since become out-dated, and open up a large central park around which both the outlying 1970s buildings and several newer buildings will be clustered.
Organization and admissions
The college is one of three of the Coast Community College District, a regional organization providing administrative services and funding for post-secondary education. The district is chartered by the state of California to provide community college services.
The mission of OCC is to provide inexpensive education in the trades, licensed trades and skilled professions, as well as remedial and transferable lower-division courses for students who plan to transfer to either a California State University or University of California campus.
Orange Coast College is one of the top transfer institutions in the country. OCC is currently the top California Community College for California State University transfer and is the fifth in transfers to the University of California. It ranks 65th out of more than 5,000 community colleges in the United States in awarding associates degrees.
For California residents, costs are about $20 (recently reduced from $26, mandated by the state) per unit. For non-residents, costs are about $150 per unit. A typical two-year program has 60 units. All students who are over 18 years of age and can benefit from the services at OCC, qualify for admission.
Students who are under 18 years of age must show any one of the following,
- A high school diploma
- The California High School Certificate of Proficiency or equivalent
- Completion of the 10th grade and the Early Start Petition form.
Academic profile
OCC offers associate of arts (2 year) degrees in:
- Accounting
- Agriculture (OCC has agricultural fields)
- Aircraft Maintenance Technician School (FAA-certified programs for airframe/powerplant licenses and avionics)
- Architecture
- Business
- Business Data Processing (OCC maintains an IBM i-series mainframe)
- Child Development (OCC has a child-center with an intern program)
- Construction (OCC Students actually construct structures)
- Electronics
- Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning
- Machining
- Photography
- Welding
OCC also has complete, transferable lower-division undergraduate programs in:
- Acting
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Dance
- Economics
- English (an emphasis on literature and critical theory is available)
- French
- German
- History
- Latin and Classics
- Marine Science - OCC Marine Science Department maintains - with student help - a 2000 gallon recirculating, chilled seawater aquarium and tropical marine aquariums as well. The Marine Science Department sponsors the Coastal Dolphin Survey Project - a long-term research project dedicated to the understanding of the population biology and ecology of Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) that utilize the coast of Orange County. Nine different classes in marine science are offered at OCC and all have as a prerequisite the beginning oceanography class - Marine Science 100 (lecture) and Marine Science 100L (laboratory).
- Mathematics
- Music (Opera training is available)
- Painting
- Philosophy
- Physical Education, including athletic teams
- Physics
- Political Science
- Sailing (OCC maintains a sail base in Newport Beach, and teaches a wide range of classes for all levels of sailing, including weather and navigation)
- Sculpting
In December 2002, Rabbit Island, a 38-acre (150,000 m 2 ) island located in the North Gulf Islands of the Georgia Strait 50 miles west of the City of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada, was donated to the Orange Coast College Foundation. Since then the OCC Foundation, using funds designated for the Orange Coast College School of Sailing & Seamanship has refurbished the facilities on the island, made significant capital improvements and has helped fund the use of the island as a field station to teach summer classes in Island Ecology, Biological Diversity, Vertebrate Biology, Intertidal Ecology, kayaking, and photography. Now referred to as "Wheeler Station" at Rabbit Island (in honor of the donor - Henry Wheeler). OCC marine science and biology instructors have used the island to conduct research on species diversity, standing stock, species distribution, and oceanography. Plans were underway to find separate funding for the island outside of OCC. Possible funding sources included the National Science Foundation, rental of the island facilities to Canadians, funding from the Associated Students of OCC (ASOCC), and through other foundation grants and private donations. In March 2007, the Orange Coast College Foundation Board of Directors voted to sell the island after determining that keeping and maintaining it was unfeasible. As of July 2007, the island was in talks to be sold to a private party for 2.41 million dollars. However, the sale did not materialize and the island was sold in March 2008 to a privately-held Canadian corporation for 2.19 million dollars.
OCC is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. It also has specialized accreditation by American Dental Association (Commission on Dental Accreditation), the American Dietetic Association (Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education), and the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology.
Student life
OCC has active clubs, competitive sport teams, and an involved Associated Student Body. However, the campus community is less social than a four-year institution because it is primarily a commuter college serving local people.
On-campus housing is not available, and local housing is expensive, approximately $1100 per month for a small single-bedroom
Apartments For Rent in Orange County, CA | Orange County Apartments ...
While searching for Orange County apartments for rent, you can ... for living and loving your apartment life at your local Orange County apartments living guide. Popular California ...
Locate Orange County, CA Apartments for Rent | Search California ...
Find an Apartment in Orange County, California on Apartments.com. View floorplans, photos and 360-degree views. Send listings to your phone and get driving directions.
Orange Apartments for Rent - House Rentals in Orange, CA
Free search for Orange apartment homes & house rentals on Rent.com®, by bedrooms, area, & price. View property photos in Orange, California.
North Orange County California Apartments for Rent | Search Orange ...
Find an Apartment in Orange County, California on Apartments.com. View floorplans, photos and 360-degree views. Send listings to your phone and get driving directions.
Fontainebleau Apartments in Orange, CA
Fontainebleau Apartments, Orange, CA 92868: 1300 square feet All on one level dining room 2 walk-in closets! Private patio Pool on premises, surrounded by...
UDR Orange County OC California Beach Area Apartments For Rent, OC ...
UDR Pet Friendly beach area apartments for rent in Orange County.
Apartments in Orange County, California Apartments for rent Orange ...
Orange County apartment rentals, sublets, Orange County temporary housing. Apartments for rent sublets, roommates Orange County
California (CA) Apartments for Rent - Rent Apartments in Los Angeles ...
California Apartments, Search for Apartments in Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, California Roommates, Roommates in California
Orange County, California apartments rentals rent Orange County ...
Orange County apartments rentals rent Orange County apartment rent. House rental apartments to rent rental Orange County home apartment renting apartments finder search guide ...
Search California Orange County apartments for rent, houses, sublets ...
Search California Orange County apartments for rent, houses, roommates and sublets. Find apartment rentals, houses, sublets and rooms for rent in California Orange County