Houston Community College

Updated on Dec 23, 2023

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Established 1971 Administrative staff 1,465 Nickname HCCS (or HCC) Number of students 69,293 Type of business Community College System		Chancellor Dr. Cesar Maldonado Campus 23 Commuter Campuses Mascot Eagle Founded 1971 Academic staff 2,535

Address 3100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77004, Houston, Texas, U.S.A. Headquarters Houston, Texas, United States

Houston Community College (HCC), also known as Houston Community College System (HCCS) is a community college system that operates community colleges in Houston, Missouri City, Katy, and Stafford in Texas. It is notable for actively recruiting internationally and for the large number of international students enrolled, over 5,700 in 2015. Its open enrollment policies, which do not require proficiency in English, are backed by a full-time 18-month English proficiency program and remedial courses.

As defined by the Texas Legislature, the official service area of HCCS includes the following school districts:

the Houston Independent School District,

the Stafford Municipal School District,

the Spring Branch Independent School District (included in service area by state law, but is not part of the tax base),

the Alief Independent School District,

the North Forest Independent School District,

the portion of the Fort Bend Independent School District located within the territory of Missouri City.

History

In 1927, the Houston Independent School District founded its first community colleges, Houston Junior College (for whites), which later evolved into the University of Houston and the Houston College for African American students (now Texas Southern University). In 1971, the district founded HCCS after HJC's and HCN's evolutions into the University of Houston and Texas Southern University respectively. In its early days, HCCS once used HISD school campuses for teaching facilities with classes during evenings and weekends like its founders. Around 1997, HCCS began to transfer operations to community college district-operated campuses throughout the HCCS service area.

Jim Murphy, a member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 133 in Houston, was a HCCD trustee for two terms from 1997 until 2006.

HCC Police

HCC operates its own police department.

As peace officers, state law grants HCC Police the power to arrest without warrant for any felony, breach of the peace, disorderly conduct or intoxication offense that is committed in their presence or view while in Texas. They may make an arrest pursuant to a warrant anywhere in Texas. The HCC Police Department is divided into six divisions: Administrative, Criminal Investigations, Patrol, Bike Patrol, Training, Communications.

HCC Television

HCCS operates Houston Community College Television (HCCTV). aired on Comcast Channel 19, TV Max Channel 97, Phonoscope Channel 77 and Cebridge Channel 20. Content is also streamed over the internet. The studio complex, which has one large studio unit, five editing suites, and a digital master control system, is located at the HCC District Campus.

HCCTV was initiated in 1994.

HCC Athletics

HCC offers several sports activities to its students throughout its campuses; the sports offered include:

Soccer (Men & Women)

Basketball (Men & Women)

Volleyball (Women)

Flag Football (Men)

Golf (Men & Women)

Tennis (Men & Women)

Fitness (Men & Women)

Central Campus (Houston)

HCC Central Campus in Midtown Houston is served by a METRORail station, Ensemble/HCC Station. Houston Academy for International Studies of Houston ISD opened on HCC's Central Campus in Fall 2006.

Willie Lee Gay Hall (South Campus) (Houston)

Coleman College of Health Sciences

Coleman College of Health Sciences (Houston) (located in the Texas Medical Center district)

Codwell Hall Campus (Houston)

Northline Campus (Houston)

The HCC Northline Campus is the site of HISD's North Houston Early College High School.

Pinemont Campus (Houston)

Alief Campus (Houston)

The Alief Campus is the site of Alief ISD's Alief Early College High School.

Alief Continuing Education Center (unincorporated Harris County)

Katy Campus

Spring Branch Campus

Southeast College

Southeast College is home to two separate campuses in different parts of the HCC Southeast service area.

Felix Fraga Academic Campus (Houston)

The Felix Fraga Academic Campus is located a mile and a quarter east of Downtown Houston at 301 N. Drennan St.

The campus opened in January, 2010 and was named for Felix Fraga by the HCC Board of Trustees in honor of his dedication to the educational, social, and economic success of the young people of Houston’s southeast community and his devotion to improving their neighborhood. Fraga served as an HISD trustee and as a member of the Houston City Council. Today he is the Vice President of External Affairs for the Neighborhood Centers, Inc.

The Felix Fraga Campus hosts classes to over 1,500 students every semester. Its flagship offerings include Maritime Logistics, Pre-Engineering, and other STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) classes. Most core courses are also available.

In partnership with HISD, the Felix Fraga Campus is also the host location of HISD's East Early College High School.

Qatar (Middle East)

The country of Qatar operates an area called Education City. Its purpose is to bring U.S. universities to the Middle East. Houston Community College ran a satellite campus in Education City. However, as of March 2016, HCC “is massively scaling back operations,” according to Gulf News Journal.

Over a five-year period, Qatar’s government paid HCC approximately $30.5 million to subsidize the Education City campus. In a news interview, the HCC Board of Trustees Treasurer said he did not support continuing the campus. “We’re a community college to educate kids in our district,” he said.

When HCC first sent teachers to its Qatar campus, the Qatari government made some of them return back to the United States because they were Jewish.