History of the OACC
Since the doors of the first community college in Ohio opened, the number of two-year colleges in the Buckeye State has grown to include 23 innovative institutions that have become an important part of the state’s higher education system. Serving more than 300,000 students today, Ohio’s community colleges play a key role in educating and training the workforce our state needs to revitalize the economy and attract new businesses.
With membership from all 23 community colleges, the Ohio Association of Community Colleges (OACC) is dedicated to advancing the mission of Ohio’s community colleges through advocacy, policy, and professional development. To that end, the OACC works closely with state and federal policy makers to educate and inform them on the issues that have a direct impact on community colleges, as well with college trustees, presidents, and other leadership groups to support policy development and student success reforms.
Prior to the establishment of the OACC, Ohio’s community college presidents and trustees were represented by several different groups.
Ohio’s first organization, the Ohio Organization of Technical Colleges (OOTC) represented 16 technical college presidents whose agenda items included: funding, legislative monitoring, and promotion of technical education. Later the OOTC…
… approved a constitution creating the Ohio Technical and Community College Association (OTCCA), which the OOTC later joined. Then…
… the trustees from 21 of the 23 community colleges in Ohio decided to form an organization and established the Ohio Technical and Community College Association Directory of Trustees. This eventually became…
… the Ohio Association of Two Year College Trustees (OATYCT). A couple of years later, the OATYCT decided to merge with…
… the Ohio Association of Community Colleges (OACC) after recognizing the value and benefit of bringing both the trustees and presidents together as part of the same organization, officially establishing the OACC on May 15, 1993.
Today, the OACC is a robust organization that is fully committed to ensuring the continued prosperity and success of Ohio’s community colleges and their students.