DELANO, Calif. (KERO) — The Delano Campus of Bakersfield College celebrated its 50th anniversary on Monday. The milestone was commemorated at a luncheon on the campus where guest speakers Rudy Salas, members of the Kern Community College District Board of Trustees, and KCCD Chancellor Sonya Christian talked about the importance of the college to the community.
“It was 1972 that this campus came to be,” said Christian. “It that time, it was just a few students and one class. That’s how the Delano campus started.”
From an unused high school district building in 1972, to the Randolph Campus constructed in the late 70’s, to its current location on Timmons Avenue, the Delano campus has grown steadily over the last half century. The growth continues, as earlier this year, the college broke ground on a second building at its current location. Current Delano enrollment is around 4,500 students.
Romeo Agbalog, president of the KCCD Board of Trustees, extended credit to the forward-thinking of the people who started the Delano campus, calling the college a critical resource, providing the kind of opportunities that will improve the futures of the rural communities of northern Kern County.
“I know firsthand the value of this campus because i was a student there myself,” said Agbalog. “I learned from educators who not only challenged me to focus on my future but gave me the skills and the confidence to dream big and dare to achieve goals that I otherwise would have never believed could be possible.”
After being open for half a century, the Bakersfield College Delano campus continues to provide higher education opportunities to residents in Delano and the surrounding communities.
Chancellor Christian believes that the reason the campus has grown so much is because it brings college closer to home for local students.
“If you think about transportation, that is a big issue, so when you look at the distance between Bakersfield and Delano, many students don’t go to college because of the distance,” said Christian.
The campus continues to grow. The new building the college recently broke ground on is intended to be a science building.
“The new building, 40,000 square feet of space,” said Christian. “We’re going to have science labs, we’re going to have CTE labs, and eventually, bring a bachelor’s degree right here to Delano.”
Visit the Bakersfield College website for more information about both the history and future of the Delano Campus.
