Over 24,000 degrees have been awarded by Polk Community College (PCC) and an even larger number of people have taken college courses for transfer or to obtain job entry skills. That's thousands and thousands of success stories that PCC has made happen, since 1964 - the College's first year.

For the first four years, the College operated out of temporary quarters at the Bartow Municipal Air Base. The first academic year started with 1,107 students and 34 faculty members. Today, under the leadership of Dr. Larry Durrence, nearly 100 full-time faculty members serve the higher educational needs of some 9,600 credit and 11,700 non-credit students on two campuses.

In 1968, PCC opened its Winter Haven Campus aerial photoed its Winter Haven campus on a 100-acre site on the shores of Lake Elbert. The original campus consisted of four permanent buildings: Learning Resources (WLR), Science (WSC) Multi-Services (WMS), a shower/locker room and six portables. In 1969, a snack bar was opened. It eventually was expanded into the Student Center (WST). Over the years, a Health Center/Gym (WHC), Administration (WAD) and Fine Arts (WFA) buildings have been added. In 1999, the eighth building on the Winter Haven campus opened. It is a 6,000 square foot Rehabilitative Health building, which houses the Physical Therapist Assistant and Occupational Therapy Assistant programs. In 2001, the Student Center was renovated and expanded. The facility nearly doubled in size to 22,000 square feet. The $2.4 million remodeled building houses several meeting/banquet rooms, expanded food service and a new Bookstore. In 2002, a $2 million renovation of the auditoriums in WLR was completed outfitting the first floor of the building with the latest in technology. In 2004, a $5-million renovation of the WAD building was completed. As part of the project, the building's infrastructure (i.e. network wiring, phone lines, bathrooms and security systems) were updated and the center open area was enclosed and air conditioned to create a "One-Stop Center" for students.

In 1978, the College acquired a 130-acre citrus grove, adjacent to Traviss Technical Center, as the site of a campus that would serve the growing population in the Lakeland and Bartow area. Ten years later, PCC, in conjunction with the University of South Florida, opened the first of eight buildings (LAC) at the Lakeland campus. In August 1991, a second academic building (LLC) was completed on the Lakeland campus, relocating 25 full-time faculty and equipping the new library, classrooms and learning labs with over 125 PCs and associated hardware and software.

Approximately 90% of the credit and non-credit students taking classes on the PCC/USF campus are PCC students. More than half (54%) of PCC's credit students attend classes in Lakeland and 84% of the non-credit courses are conducted on the the Lakeland campus.

In 2004, construction began on a third academic building. The $28.7 million structure will be a unique two-story educational building. When complete in 2006 it will include a large state-of-the-art teaching auditorium, classrooms, labs, offices and ancillary student support facilities. It will also be the tallest structure on the Lakeland Campus.

In 2004, the Florida State Board of Education unanimously approved PCC's proposal to establish a center in Northeastern Polk County. This gives PCC the authority to develop a campus, tentatively called the North Ridge Center, in the rapidly growing Four Corners section of Polk County. Establishing a campus in Polk near Lake, Osceola and Orange counties has been among PCC's goals. The State Board action "is a major step toward one of our dreams becoming a reality," said PCC President J. Larry Durrence. "We can now go to major landowners in the area [along US 27 around I-4] and seek the donation of 100-acres as a site for PCC's third academic campus." Students on PCC's campuses have access to modern equipment and labs, such as:

• libraries with more than 80,000 volumes;
• Teaching, Learning, Computing Centers complete with numerous personal computers, tutors and study aids;
• multi-media computer classrooms;
• auditoriums equipped to show slides, films and videos;
• distance education TV classrooms on both campuses; and
• a state-of-the-art foreign language lab on the Winter Haven campus.

Polk Community College's Associate in Arts (AA) programs are parallel and equal to those offered in the state university system. Approximately 65% of PCC's graduates earn AA degrees and are guaranteed admission as juniors to Florida's universities and private colleges. The College also has Associate in Science (AS) degrees and Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degrees leading directly to employment. In addition, several certificate programs and continuing education classes are offered by PCC.