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Valencia College

Valencia College
Seal of Valencia College.svg
Former names
Valencia Junior College
Valencia Community College
Motto We Say You Can.
Type Public
Established 1967
Endowment $68 million
President Sanford Shugart
Academic staff
396
Administrative staff
2,557
Students 68,351 (2015)
Location United States Orlando, Florida, USA
Campus Urban
Colors          Red and Gold
Mascot Matador
Affiliations Florida College System
Association of Florida Colleges
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Website www.valenciacollege.edu
Logo of Valencia College, Color.svg

Valencia College is a public state college in Orlando, Florida, United States. In 2011, it was named the top community college in the United States by the Aspen Institute.

The college was founded in 1967 as "Valencia Junior College," taking the name "Valencia Community College" in 1971. In December 2010, Valencia's Board of Trustees voted to change the name to "Valencia College," because the academic scope of the school had expanded to include bachelor's degrees. Valencia has several campus locations in Orlando with additional campus locations in Winter Park and Kissimmee. Valencia is ranked first in the United States for the number of associate's degrees.

The Aspen Institute awarded Valencia the first Aspen Prize for College Excellence after a year-long effort to recognize extraordinary accomplishments in individual institutions of the nation’s 1,200 community colleges. The Aspen award was granted based on "a rigorous, yearlong effort to... assemble and review an unprecedented collection of data on community colleges and the critical elements of student success: student learning, degree completion, equity, and employment after graduation."

The official seal of the college includes the coat of arms of Valencia, Spain, in the middle and the entire diamond design stems from it. However, the college is not named for the city in Spain, but rather for the Valencia oranges which abound in Central Florida.

The mascot of Valencia College is a Matador.

College-wide Headcount was 68,351 for 2015.

51.6% AA 48.6% AS/AAS/Certificate

Race/Ethnicity Diversity Enrollment: 17.9% African American, 4.9% Asian/Pacific Islander, 32.5% Caucasian, 32.5% Hispanic, 0.3% Native American, 11.5% Other

The Valencia Foundation's $68 million endowment is about 12 times the average community college endowment, which reflects an abnormally large commitment of local business, organizations, and individuals, including the foundation's board of directors.

Valencia College operates a total of five campuses and three sites in its service area, which encompasses Orange County and Osceola County.


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