Rock Valley College

Rock Valley College was founded in 1964 to allow students from the region in and around Rockford Public School District No. 205 the opportunity to receive post-secondary education similar to university curriculum. RVC's district comprises all of Winnebago and Boone County and parts of Stephenson, Ogle, McHenry and DeKalb counties. [ 2 ] [ 7 ] Authorized by the Illinois General Assembly and signed by Illinois Governor Otto Kerner, Jr. in 1961, legislation was enacted that created the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) . The IBHE was tasked by statute with formulating a Master Plan for Higher Education in the state of Illinois. [ 7 ] [ 8 ] In July 1964 the higher education master plan was published by the IBHE, which led to the Junior College Act of 1965. [ 7 ] [ 8 ] Soon thereafter, a district-wide referendum was approved that authorized the founding of RVC. [ 2 ] It received accreditation via the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools in 1971. [ 9 ] In April 1965, Clifford G. Erickson was chosen by the first Board of Trustees to be the first President of Rock Valley College, and classes began on September 29, 1965, for 1,054 students. However, the main campus was not ready for classes. Instead, during the first year, classes were held in various locations throughout Rockford, including Harlem High School , the Rockford YWCA, the National Guard Armory, and the Naval Reserve Armory. By Fall 1966, classes moved to three small wooden buildings at the current main campus location . The buildings, referred to as "temp building" on campus, remained active in a variety of capacities for 37 years. In October 1967, the groundbreaking for six permanent buildings occurred. It took five years to complete Classrooms I and II, a Boiler House, Educational Resource Center (ERC), Student Center (SC) and the Physical Education Center (PEC).

In 1968 the college began an aviation maintenance program at the Rockford Airport (now the Chicago Rockford International Airport ) and an automotive service tech program in the neighboring town of Belvidere . Both programs are still active. [ 10 ] [ 11 ] In January 1969, Karl Jacobs became the second RVC President. During his 28-year tenure, the college expanded both programs and locations. [ 10 ] In 1970, the American Dental Association's Council of Education approved the RVC Dental Assisting Program. [ 12 ] The next year, the college took over the Adult and Continuing Education program from the Rockford School District, offering personal enrichment and professional development classes to the public. [ 13 ] A Tool and Die Apprenticeship program was added in 1974. [ 14 ] In 1978, the college began offering college credit to high school students taking classes through the High School Connections program. In 1981 the college purchased an unused school building, Bell School, which is used for many of the community education classes. [ 15 ] Dr. Jacobs also spearheaded the building of the Technology Center (now Woodward Tech Center or WTC) and the implementation of numerous technology programs. [ 10 ] The Tech Center opened in 1987, [ 16 ] helping with a cooperative education agreement reached the previous year with Chrysler Motor Corporation that allowed workers to take technology courses that went toward job training for the Belvidere plant as well as college credit. [ 17 ] It also became the first testing location for robotics classroom software developed by the University of Michigan . [ 18 ] Upon Jacobs' retirement, Roland Chapdelaine became the college's third president in 1997. He continued expansion of the college and its facilities. Under his leadership, the Student Center was remodeled, the Support Services Building (SSB) was built, and the state of the art Bengt Sjostrom Theatre with its retractable roof was unveiled.

[ 10 ] Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen , Illinois Senator Dave Syverson , Larry Young , author Kimberla Lawson Roby , illustrator Tom Lichtenheld, and chancellor Susan Sciame-Giesecke , are members of the college alumni. [ 19 ] [ 20 ] [ 21 ] [ 22 ]

Rock Valley College is located on a 217-acre (0.88 km 2 ) tract of land at N. Mulford and Spring Brook roads in northeast Rockford . In addition to the main campus, RVC operates programs at owned facilities at the Stenstrom Center for Career Education on Samuelson Road, home to several health and technical programs, the Aviation Center at the Chicago Rockford International Airport in Rockford, and the Bell School Road Center, which houses the college's Center for Learning in Retirement. Rock Valley College holds continuing education classes at more than 50 sites throughout its district, and operates employment and training programs at the Illinois Employment Training Center at 303 North Main Street in Rockford.