About SJECCD

Mission

As a leading educational institution, the mission of SJECCD is to meet the diverse educational and workforce needs of our community by empowering our students to become agents of socio-economic change.

Vision

SJECCD is the premier post-secondary education institution in our region for advancing opportunity, equity, and social justice through educational excellence.

Our Values

Opportunity · Equity · Social Justice

Our District's core values are opportunity, equity and social justice. Each one of these values is incorporated into our strategic planning and is a part of the foundational commitments we make to our communities.

Our Policy on Student Success
Our Civility Statement

Accreditation

"Accreditation as a system of voluntary, non-governmental self regulation and peer review is unique to American educational institutions. It is a system by which an institution evaluates itself in accordance with standards of good practice regarding goals and objectives; the appropriateness, sufficiency, and utilization of resources; the usefulness, integrity, and effectiveness of its processes; and the extent to which it is achieving its intended outcomes. It is a process by which accreditors provide students, the public, and each other with assurances of institutional integrity, quality, and effectiveness. Accreditation is intended to encourage institutions to plan for institutional improvement in quality and effectiveness." WASC Guide to Evaluating Institutions Using the ACCJC 2004 Standards

Resources

History

History of San José - Evergreen Community College District

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, San José – Evergreen Community College District encompasses more than 300 square miles, including most of the city of San José and all of the city of Milpitas. The District includes the areas served by Milpitas Unified School District, San José Unified School District, and East Side Union High School District. SJECCD is comprised of San José City College (SJCC), which was the first community college in Santa Clara County, established in 1921; Evergreen Valley College (EVC), established in 1975; the Community College Center for Economic Mobility (CEM), formerly the Workforce Institute, established in 1988; and the San José – Evergreen Community College Extension at Milpitas, established in 2016.

Known at first as San José Junior College, SJCC was located in downtown San José, and was overseen by San José State College until 1953, at which time it was moved to the present Moorpark Avenue location and managed directly by San José Unified School District. The College's name was changed in 1958 to San José City College.

A faculty-led effort resulted in a special election that established the independent San José Junior College District in 1963. After a Citizens' Advisory Committee study, the District's second campus, Evergreen Valley College, was opened near the eastern foothills in 1975 with an enrollment of 3,000 students. In 1986, the District was renamed as San José – Evergreen Community College District.

The CEM began operation as the contract education division of the San José – Evergreen Community College District in 1988, and now occupies the fifth floor of the District Office building on South Market St. in downtown San José.

In 1998 the voters of the San José – Evergreen Community College District passed a bond initiative (Measure I) to secure funding for building and remodeling facilities on both campuses. This was followed by the passing of a second bond (Measure G) in 2004, a third bond (Measure G) in 2010, and the most recent bond (Measure X) in 2016. These bonds, coupled with state funds and private donations, have revitalized the infrastructure of both Colleges, District Office, and the College Extension. Among other amenities, students now enjoy new, state-of-the art libraries with learning resource labs and technology centers, innovative student services facilities and programs, new classrooms and science labs on both campuses, career and technical education labs and equipment, refurbished athletic and physical education facilities, modern student centers with bookstores, dining areas, collaborative work and study space, and more.

San José – Evergreen Community College District currently serves approximately 20,000 students each semester.