The college began with 70 students and 18 faculty members on September 15, 1947. Originally known as the Clarence W. Pierce School of Agriculture, the institution's initial focus was crop cultivation and animal husbandry. Nine years later, in 1956, the school was renamed to Los Angeles Pierce Junior College, retaining the name of its founder, Dr. Pierce, as well as his commitment to agricultural and veterinary study. (Pierce still maintains a 225-acre (91 ha) working farm for hands-on training.)
Academics
Pierce College offers courses on more than 100 subjects in 92 academic disciplines, and has transfer alliances with most of the universities in the state. Students at the school successfully transfer to UC and CSU schools.
Students can pursue any of the 44 associate's degrees or 78 Certificates of Achievement the school offers directly.
The western rural Farm Area, at Los Angeles Pierce College in Woodland Hills.
Pierce College comprises 426 acres (172 ha) amidst a dense metropolis, an area larger than many university campuses, including that of UCLA. The grounds are landscaped with more than 2,200 trees, thousands of roses and a 1.9-acre (0.77 ha) botanical garden. The Pierce College farm houses small herds of cattle, sheep, goats, and a small poultry flock for its students to learn from.
In June 2017, the Los Angeles Community College District Board Of Trustees voted to grant San Francisco Bay Area-based Pacific Dining[2] a concession for dining services, replacing several small vendors at the five LACCD colleges including Pierce. Pacific Dining has not offered food at Pierce since 2020, resulting in few food options on campus. [3]
Besides hosting the Brahmas' football and women's soccer teams, John Shepard Stadium (current capacity 5,500)[6] also has hosted many outdoor professional sporting events in San Fernando Valley history.
From 1976 to 1979, the San Fernando Valley's first professional sports team, the Los Angeles Skyhawks of the American Soccer League, played their home games at the Pierce College stadium.
The Los Angeles Express of the USFL played their last home game here on June 15, 1985.[7] The stadium was expanded to 16,000-person capacity for the game.
Shepard Stadium hosts Nuts for Mutts, an annual dog show and pet fair that raises funds for the New Leash on Life Animal Rescue.
The campus is home to Old Trapper's Lodge, California Historical Landmark No. 939.5, an outsider art environment that pays homage to the pioneer upbringing of its creator John Ehn. It represents the life work of John Ehn (1897–1981), a self-taught artist who wished to pass on a sense of the Old West, derived from personal experiences, myths, and tall tales. From 1951 to 1981, using his family as models, and incorporating memorabilia, the 'Old Trapper' followed his dreams and visions to create the Lodge and its 'Boot Hill.' The artwork was moved from the original site in Sun Valley, CA, and relocated to the college.[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]
Pierce College Farm and Farm Center
South Gym
The Pierce College Farm covers 226 acres (91 ha) of the college with several units for their animals. The farm has a $13 million equestrian center used for agricultural students' education that offers UC transferable courses for important animal and veterinary science programs.[21]
In April of every year, the Foundation for Pierce College hosts Farmwalk, an outdoor festival including animals, activities, displays, games and music. The Farmwalk also includes face-painting, a petting-zoo and hayrides for children, all to benefit the Pierce College farm.
The Farm Center on the corner of Victory and De Soto is a 32-acre (13 ha) parcel that was partnered between the Foundation for Pierce College and the McBroom family. The McBroom family have invested nearly $3.5 million to operate the Farm Center which covered utility, labor, insurance, and other operational costs.[21] In October the Foundation sponsored an annual Harvest Festival, featuring pumpkins grown on the Pierce farm, a 5-mile (8.0 km) corn maze, rock climbing, games and rides for the children, a petting zoo, live music and Halloween frights for the whole family. In late December 2014, the Farm Center was evicted from Pierce College, and closed to the public.[22]
The college also serves as a Los Angeles County large animal emergency evacuation center. During a slew of fires in Southern California in 2007, Pierce College sheltered and fed more than 150 horses under the direction of the L.A. County Volunteer Equine Response team. The horses were taken in for free at Pierce, and a veterinarian was onsite. Trained volunteers from Pierce's equestrian program assisted the county rescue effort.
Weather station
The Pierce College weather station was one of the first to cooperate with the government to provide archived data online as well as being one of the oldest operational cooperative weather stations in the country. It was founded under the direction of Professor A. Lee Haines on July 1, 1949, two years after the college was founded. In 2009, the Pierce College Weather Station was awarded $85,000 used to provide the station with new sensors that are rare for co-op stations in the U.S.[23][24] The Weather Station organizes tours showing their equipment and their functions upon request.[25]
Athletics
The college athletic teams are nicknamed the Brahmas and currently fields six men's and six women's varsity teams. Pierce competes as a member of the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) in the Western State Conference (WSC) for all sports except football, which competes in Southern California Football Association (SCFA).[26] In 2009 the Pierce Brahmas won the American Pacific Conference, losing in the first round of bowl playoffs to the National Champs Mt. San Antonio College.
Student government
The students of Pierce College have established a student body association named Los Angeles Pierce College Associated Student Organization (ASO).[27] The association is required by law to "encourage students to participate in the governance of the college".[28]
The ASO periodically participates in meetings sponsored by a statewide community college student organization named Student Senate for California Community Colleges. The statewide Student Senate is authorized by law "to advocate before the Legislature and other state and local governmental entities".[29]
^"2019-20 CCCAA Directory"(PDF). California Community College Athletic Association. Archived(PDF) from the original on 2020-09-18. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
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