Valley College to Take Its Time Celebrating

Valley College will kick off a yearlong series of events Saturday to celebrate its 50th anniversary.

A concert featuring the Valley Symphony Orchestra at the Little Theater at 8 p.m. Saturday will be the first of a dozen performances, talks and dinner engagements to mark the milestone.

More than 1.5 million students have attended classes at the community college, which opened in 1949. The current enrollment is 16,000.

“For years it has been known as a very fine academic two-year college,” said Dennis Reed, dean of community relations and the college’s foundation. “At one time we had more teachers with PhDs than any other two-year school in the country--our focus has been on the academics.”

The college’s origin was less than illustrious, said Shannon Stack, a college spokeswoman who has been associated with the school for 28 years.

“It started out as a sinkhole,” she said, describing a picture she has from the college’s earliest days that shows students wading through the parking lot in ankle-deep water. “It certainly wasn’t a glamorous site--we had temporary bungalows . . . well, actually we still have those temporary bungalows after 50 years.”

Still, Valley College, with its collection of green lawns and tree-lined walkways, is now among the most verdant and well-maintained campuses in the Los Angeles Community College District.

“I think we’re in really good shape,” Reed said. “We’ve gone through some tough times and face some challenges still, but I think we’ve been more carefully managed and we’ve kept a good solid academic reputation.”

To enhance that reputation, Valley College has invited actor Ed Begley Jr. and state Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sylmar) as co-chairmen of the anniversary celebration. Both are Valley College graduates and on Nov. 6 the college will honor 50 other alumni.

Other events include a concert by the Valley College Philharmonic Choir next month, a performance of “A Chorus Line” in May and a sock hop, also in May. The 50th anniversary celebration will end on Dec. 10 when administrators dedicate a commemorative marker and a time capsule.