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TAYLORSVILLE — Seventy-five years ago, Salt Lake Community College opened its doors to 246 students to help them open their own doors to bright futures.
On Thursday, the college celebrated its 75th anniversary by taking a look into the past and how the college came to be. In 1948, the college's inaugural year, most of its students were veterans returning from World War II and were using the GI Bill to learn a trade at what was known at the time as the Salt Lake Area Vocational School.
"While the first year was, by all accounts, a resounding success with the student body growing to nearly 1,400 students in that year, (the) school almost did not make it through the second and third years," said Deneece Huftalin, Salt Lake Community College president.
An economic recession was in full swing and funding was restricted. Before it was even able to get its feet off the ground, the college was forced to cut programs and lay off staff and faculty.
"Eventually, those who controlled the funding recognized the value this institution brought to the community," Huftalin said.
Following the financial crisis, the college rebranded, changing its name to Salt Lake Trade Technical Institute before morphing into the Utah Technical College at Salt Lake in 1967. Twenty years later, the college found its forever name as Salt Lake Community College when former Utah Gov. Norm Bangerter signed a bill transforming the college into the state's only comprehensive community college.
"Salt Lake Community College and its forerunners have always been a reflection of the evolving community that we serve. An example of this is SLCC's interesting role in reconciling Salt Lake County's historic east-west divide," Huftalin said. "SLCC opens doors to all students so that they can ultimately find success and create a more prosperous future for themselves and an equal society from which everyone benefits."
Now, SLCC is Utah's largest two-year college with nine locations and over 40,000 students enrolled annually. It's also affordable, with 80% of students graduating with little to no student debt.
In August, Salt Lake Community College expanded access to higher education through the opening of a new building at its Herriman Campus that will allow students to earn an associate's degree at SLCC and transfer their credits to the University of Utah, where they can earn a bachelor's degree, all under one roof.
SLCC is officially 75 years old! It is an honor to serve at an institution that honors our founding-- to provide access to higher education for all students. And thank you Chair Southwick, Lt Gov @DeidreHenderson, @TvilleUt Mayor Kristie Overson for joining us today! #UTEdpic.twitter.com/BfbzELrOLT
— Deneece (@SLCCHuftalin) September 14, 2023
Joining SLCC on its anniversary was Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, a former nontraditional student herself who dropped out of college during her first year at Brigham Young University. Decades later, while serving as lieutenant governor, she returned to college and earned a bachelor's degree in history from BYU.
"This institution began as a place for opportunity for returning World War II veterans. From the greatest generation through Gen Z today, this is our fifth generation of students who are benefitting from this incredible institution — who are benefiting from the opportunity that this institution represents," Henderson said.
To commemorate the anniversary, Michael Atkinson, the first student body president at the then-newly named SLCC, and Joyce Wambuyi, current student body president at SLCC, opened a 40-year-old time capsule that included an old newspaper from SLCC's student newspaper, then known as The Horizon but now known as The Globe, a student handbook from the 1987-1988 school year, two IDs of former students and more interesting trinkets.
Looking ahead to the future of SLCC, Huftalin said that starting next month and running through January, the college will be collecting items for a new time capsule that will be placed in the Gail Miller School of Business and opened on the college's 150th anniversary, 75 years from Thursday.
"Just think, 75 years from now you might get invited back to a party to see what was your time capsule contribution," Huftalin said. "Our goal is to continue this legacy by always being a force of good in our community. As we lift one, we lift all."
