History of Cleveland Community College

 

In 1963 the North Carolina General Assembly authorized a system of comprehensive community colleges which also included technical institutions, industrial education centers, and extension units to be established and placed under the jurisdiction of the State Board of Education.

 

As a result of this vision and tireless work of many, the "Cleveland" unit of Gaston College was established on July 1, 1965. During this process, The Shelby Chamber of Commerce and the Cleveland County Commissioners worked alongside the State Board of Education and Gaston College in establishing two units of the college. James B. Petty was elected Director of the Cleveland unit on July 11, 1965, and the former Porter Brothers and McBrayer Buildings located at 118 North Morgan Street in Uptown Shelby were rented to house the college. In September 1965, the "Cleveland" unit opened its doors to students and classes began. On October 3, 1967, a local Board of Trustees was officially appointed and the Cleveland extension unit of Gaston College was renamed Cleveland County Technical Institute and was officially an institute of the Department of Community Colleges of North Carolina

Growing Needs

Just after five years of opening it's doors, Cleveland County Technical Institute was looking for room to grow and in July 1969, the institute leased the county home property at 137 South Post Road for a campus and eventually moved to that location. A grant of $500,000 was secured from the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners and was matched by the State of North Carolina.  In 1972, architects were commissioned to plan a long-range building program on the present campus and the first two buildings for the new campus layout.  By Fall of 1974, two new buildings were welcoming students to their first day of class at Cleveland Technical Institute. Just five years laters the voters of Cleveland County approved a 5 million dollar bond referendum to construct the next two phases of the long-range development plan for the campus. This phase included over 100,000 additional square feet of permanent facilities. These included a Learning Resources Center, classrooms, vocational shops, laboratories, snack bar, college bookstore and offices. Once construction was complete a formal dedication of the Jack Hunt Campus Center was held on October 18, 1981. Prompted by a request from the Board of Trustees, the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners voted to change the name of Cleveland County Technical Institute to Cleveland Technical College. Eventually the college was authorized by the state legislature to once again change it's name. On July 1, 1987, the college became Cleveland Community College and began offering two-year college transfer degrees. The first college transfer students were enrolled in Fall of 1987. Additional buildings were added to the campus from 1987-1990 and included a field house, maintenance building and a new student activities center. Also added to the campus was The James Broughton Petty Amphitheater which was completed and dedicated in April of 1990. Later that same year, Cleveland Community College founding president, Dr. James Petty, retired as President Emeritus.

 

A New Vision

Current president Dr. L. Steve Thornburg assumed the presidency on August 1, 1990 and quickly began an extensive process of redesigning every course and program of study in an effort toward converting from a quarter hour system to a semester hour system. By the summer of 1997, Cleveland Community College was completely converted to a semester hour system and was right on target with current community college trends and student needs. On May 20, 1997, the voters of Cleveland County expressed their confidence in Cleveland Community College by approving a $3.1 million bond referendum to construct new building building for classrooms and an emergency training center. Just three years later the voters of North Carolina would approve a $3.1 billion bond referendum for the N.C Community College System and the University of N.C. System. CCC's share of this total was $5 million dollars with $3.8 million going toward new construction and $1.2 million to be used for repairs and renovations. Even more good news came in December 2001 when the the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools reaffirmed the College’s accreditation for the next 11 years. Finally, after four years of anticipation, the Emergency Training Center (ETC) was completed and dedicated on December 12, 2002. This facility is one of the most advanced in the Southeast and provides a higher quality and variety of training for volunteer and professional firefighters, rescue workers, EMS personnel and law enforcement officers. During 2003 The Cleveland Community College Foundation embarked on a Capital Campaign for new construction in hopes of growing Cleveland Community College into the finest community college in the N.C. Community College system.

 

40th Anniversary

The start of 2005-2006 academic year brought with it a time of excitement as CCC celebrated it's 40th Anniversary of building futures in Cleveland County. During the 40th Anniversary celebration several families and individuals were recognized for their contributions to the college and everyone celebrated in the renaming of several buildings on campus including the Mildred H. Keeter Auditorium, the Jim and Patsy Rose Library, the Paksoy Technology Center and the Brown Emergency Training Center, named by Doug Brown in honor of his family.

 

Capital Campaign

The newest addition to the CCC campus is the Bailey Allied Health and Science Center. This state of the art building houses CCC’s allied health programs including biotechnology, radiography and nursing programs. Also finding a new home in this center is the broadcasting studios of C19 TV as well as faculty offices and classrooms. Staying abreast of community needs, the Cleveland Community College Foundation has also started PHASE II of its Capital Campaign. The next facility is a partnership between Cleveland County, the Cleveland Early College High School, and Cleveland Community College.