History

Shasta College was founded in 1948 as part of the Shasta Union High School District. In the Centennial year of California and Shasta County (1950), Shasta College opened its doors on Eureka Way in the Fall with 256 day students. As part of the state’s Centennial celebration, President Harry S. Truman spoke at the college’s Thompson Field. There were 26 original faculty members.

Shasta College grew so rapidly that, in 1964, voters approved a bond issue for construction of a 337-acre campus at the current main campus location. The present Shasta College main campus was originally a fur and trading center of the Wintu Indians, later occupied by a soldier and his family after the Mexican-American War.

Today, Shasta College extends its educational, cultural, and recreational facilities and services to all people in Shasta, Tehama, and Trinity Counties, including parts of Lassen, Modoc, and Humboldt Counties, an area that is more than 10,000 square miles, which is larger than the State of Massachusetts. A seven-member Board of Trustees, plus a non-voting Student Trustee, represents the Shasta-Tehama-Trinity Joint Community College District.

The Shasta College mascot is the Knight. In 1955 the Shasta College Motor Knights Club built a knight with a suit of armor and lance. His name is “Oakey Doaks” (named for a popular comic strip character of the time). In 2012, a serious storm destroyed the original Oakey Doaks. Shasta College Welding Club students fabricated a replacement for the original Knight, and one additional Knight. The new Oakey Doaks Knights are mounted in front of the gym and at the football stadium entrance.

Between 2004 and 2009, the Intermountain, Trinity, and Tehama Campuses were established, with permanent buildings and high-tech classrooms. A state-of-the-art $1.5 million Early Childhood Education child care center and instructional facility opened on the Redding Campus in the fall of 2005.  In the fall of 2007, a  44,000 square foot Health Sciences and University Center opened in the heart of downtown Redding, which houses the college’s Dental Hygiene and Nursing Programs. It also serves as host to baccalaureate degree programs offered by both public and private universities. In Spring 2018, Shasta College awarded its first Bachelor’s degrees in Health Information Management.

Shasta College is part of the California Community College system, which is the largest system of higher education in the world, with 116 colleges organized into 72 districts. The college has articulation agreements to facilitate transfer to the University of California and California State University systems, and many private college campuses.

Because of the diversified goals and needs of its students, Shasta College offers a wide range of programs and services, including counseling, tutoring, financial aid, performing arts and athletic events, student activities, veterans’ services, cultural events, lecture series, workshops, and art exhibits. Shasta College has extensive offerings through both in-person and online classes.  Shasta College also offers instruction and student services at the Downtown Campus, Intermountain Campus, Tehama Campus, and Trinity Campus and each location utilizes computer-assisted learning to supplement on-site courses.

Fall 2020 marked the 70th Anniversary of Shasta College, serving the north state with pride and distinction.