 | |
Former names | Palm Beach Junior College, Palm Beach Community College |
|---|---|
| Motto | Your Pathway To Success |
| Type | Public college |
| Established | 1933; 92 years ago (1933) |
Parent institution | Florida College System |
| President | Ava L. Parker, J.D. |
Administrative staff | 1,099 |
| Students | 24,223 (all undergraduate)[1] |
| Location | ,, United States |
| Campus | Urban |
| Nickname | Panthers |
| Website | www |
 | |
Palm Beach State College is apublic college inLake Worth, Florida. It is part of theFlorida College System.[2] Palm Beach State College enrolls nearly 25,000 students in over 100 programs of study including bachelor of applied science, associate in arts and associate in science degree programs, and short-term certificates, as well as continuing education and avocational courses. In 2009, the college started its first baccalaureate program, a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Supervision & Management.
Palm Beach State College was founded in 1933 as Palm Beach Junior College and was the first public junior college in the state ofFlorida. TheOld Palm Beach Junior College Building is listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.
Thecollege's first classes were held at Palm Beach High School inWest Palm Beach. County school superintendent Joe Youngblood and Howell Watkins, principal of Palm Beach High School, who became the college's first dean, were instrumental in opening the college. The college's initial goal was to provide additional training to localhigh school graduates who were unable to find jobs during theGreat Depression.
In 1948, Palm Beach Junior College moved to Morrison Field, a deactivated Army Air Force base, which is nowPalm Beach International Airport. In 1951, the college relocated to theLake Park Town Hall. Due to the limited availability of space at the town hall, the college had to lay off faculty and staff and cut enrollment to 200 students. During this period, Palm Beach Junior College was known as "the little orphan college." In 1955, thePalm Beach County Commission gave the college 114 acres (46 ha) inLake Worth, and the statelegislature passed a bill providing over $1,000,000 for construction at this site. The college moved to this location, which remains its main campus, in the fall of 1956.
In 1965, Palm Beach Junior College merged withRoosevelt Junior College, which was established in 1958 under President Britton Sayles to serveAfrican American students. In 1968, control over the college passed from the Palm Beach Countyschool district to aboard of trustees. In 1978, the college opened itsBelle Glade campus. ThePalm Beach Gardens campus opened in 1982. In 1983, the college opened a campus adjacent toFlorida Atlantic University inBoca Raton. In 1988, the college's board of trustees changed the college's name to Palm Beach Community College.
The District Board of Trustees approved a resolution in June 2009 stating that the college's name should change in light of offering baccalaureate degrees. On September 8, 2009, the Board approved changing the name to Palm Beach State College. The new name officially took effect on January 12, 2010.
Palm Beach State College's main campus is located in Palm Beach County, Florida. In addition to the Lake Worth campus, the largest (114 acre/51 building complex) and longest established campus (1956), the college also serves students at full-service locations inBelle Glade (1978),Palm Beach Gardens (1982),Boca Raton (1983) andLoxahatchee Groves (2017).[3]
Palm Beach State College enrolls nearly 25,000 students in over 100 programs of study including bachelor of applied science, associate in arts and associate in science degree programs, and short-term certificates.
| Students | Florida | U.S. Census | |
|---|---|---|---|
| African American | 26.5% | 16.9% | 13.4% |
| Asian American | 3.5% | 2.9% | 5.8% |
| White | 35.7% | 54.1% | 60.7% |
| Hispanic American | 29.2% | 25.6% | 18.1% |
| Native American | 0.5% | 0.5% | 1.3% |
The college is accredited by theSouthern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Applied Science, Associate in Arts, Associate in Science and Associate in Applied Science degrees.
The Palm Beach State College truck technology program was ranked as the best in the United States in 2015.[5]
ThePalm Beach Panthers compete in theSouthern Conference of theFlorida State College Activities Association, a body of theNational Junior College Athletic AssociationRegion 8. In 2013, the Panthers baseball team were runners-up at the Alpine Bank Junior College World Series.[6]
Historical administrators and faculty of the college include names foundational to the history of education in Palm Beach County and Florida, as evident on buildings throughout the campus and on public schools across the county bearing their names.
In 1933, then-county school superintendent Joe A. Youngblood and then-Palm Beach High School principal Howell L. Watkins founded Palm Beach Junior College with volunteer teachers and 45 students.[7][8][9]
More names of that ilk include the college's first and second presidents, John I. Leonard (from 1936 to 1958) and Harold C. Manor (from 1958 to 1978) respectively, and Britton G. Sayles, president and founder of Roosevelt Junior College (from 1958 to 1965).[10][11][12] And the school's third and fourth presidents, Edward M. Eissey (from 1979 to 1997) andDennis P. Gallon (from 1997 to 2015).[13][14]
Notable faculty names includeWatson B Duncan III of whom it was written: "the man who taught myth was indeed mythological". In addition to inspiring students and seeing the new theater named for him, between 1948 and 1991, Duncan taught English and speech, and was chair of the communications department.[15][16]
Among the most notable alumni of Palm Beach State College are actorBurt Reynolds;Jesper Parnevik, who currently plays on thePGA Tour; soap opera actressDeidre Hall;Yolanda Griffith, an Olympic Gold Medalist and Professional Basketball Player with theWNBA; andJames L. Wattenbarger, who was the Architect of theFlorida Community College system.
26°50′37″N80°04′43″W / 26.8436°N 80.0787°W /26.8436; -80.0787
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
