History OF Muskegon Community College
The fourth oldest community college in Michigan, Muskegon Junior College was established in 1926 by the Muskegon Board of Education.
Originally housed in Muskegon Senior High School, enrollment had grown beyond capacity by 1934. The Junior College moved into the former Hackley School in downtown Muskegon across from Hackley Park. The building was presented to Muskegon Public Schools by its namesake, local businessman and philanthropist Charles H. Hackley.
Post-World War II enrollment quickly climbed, and the campus had to grow accordingly. The Muskegon Board of Education, which still operated the College, utilized available space in many of its buildings and rented other community facilities when enrollment exceeded the capacities of those buildings.
Until June 1951, Muskegon Junior College was primarily geared to those students intending to complete at least four years of college. After an enabling act by the Michigan Legislature, the name and educational scope of the College changed. Muskegon Junior College was renamed Muskegon Community College to reflect the expanded nature of the College’s programs.
The College now served a larger number of students with a wider variety of interests. Courses were added in retailing, vocations, technical fields, public health, and the trades. These courses enabled young men and women to prepare themselves for a specific field of employment with their two years of training beyond high school.
By the early 1960s, enrollment had topped 2,000. The College was operating full-time at Hackley, Vanderlaan, and Wilson schools and part-time at eight other locations. The Board of Education formed a Special Citizens Committee to study the entire program and make recommendations. The Committee proposed that the College be separated from the public school system; that a county-wide community college district be created and a board of trustees be elected to plan, build, and operate the school; and that a millage be voted in sufficient amount and for enough years to build and operate the College.
In April 1963, Muskegon County overwhelmingly approved the recommendations of the committee and elected the first Board of Trustees, which went to work immediately and by September had purchased the tract of land upon which the College exists today.
Alden B. Dow and Associates was named as the architect. By the summer of 1965, drawings were completed, and construction had begun. The Vocational Technical Wing was finished and occupied in the fall of 1966. The following September the entire complex was placed in service. Formal dedication ceremonies were held on October 22, 1967.
The first addition to the new campus was the Frauenthal Foundation Fine Arts Center, which was completed in 1968 and named for A. Harold Frauenthal, the Muskegon industrialist whose gift made the Center possible. That same year, University Park Golf Course was opened and located across the street from the main campus. Bruce Matthews designed the nine-hole golf course featuring two different tee-off areas, driving range, and putting green.
When the new district was created, the name of the College was changed to Muskegon County Community College. In the spring of 1969, at the request of the Board of Trustees, the State Board of Education approved changing the name once again to Muskegon Community College.
In January 1995, a new era of educational opportunity opened with the completion of the Center for Higher Education addition to provide upper-level courses and programs offered by Ferris State, Grand Valley State, and Western Michigan universities. The 95,000 square foot facility, named in honor of former MCC President James L. Stevenson, is home to classrooms, a lecture hall, MCC-TV, Graphics and Printing.
In January 2006, the 40,000 square foot Hendrik Meijer Library Information Technology Center was added to the main building to offer students and the community the latest in communication capabilities, including wireless internet access, state-of-the-art library facilities/technologies and classrooms, and an internet café.
In 2012, MCC and the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District (MAISD) launched Early College of Muskegon County offering select high school students an intense five-year program leading to both a high school diploma and an associate degree. The concept was expanded and MCC offered Early College of Newaygo County, North Ottawa County Early College and South Ottawa Early College.
In November 2013, Muskegon voters approved $24 million to support four MCC facilities expansion projects outlined in the College’s 2010-2015 Master Plan. MCC signed a purchase agreement in September 2014 to acquire the former Muskegon Chronicle building and an adjacent parking lot for a downtown campus.
In June 2015, local developer Jonathan Rooks donated the former Masonic Temple to MCC for its Entrepreneurial Studies program and related business-generating activities. Nick Sarnicola, a West Michigan native and highly successful entrepreneur, created a $200,000 permanent endowment through his Next Gen Foundation to the Foundation for Muskegon Community College. The funds support an annual $10,000 cash award for the best business idea generated by an MCC entrepreneurial program graduate.
In August 2015, MCC opened its $9.6 million Science Center, home to the MCC Life Sciences Department and the College’s biology labs and research areas. The facility earned the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification – one of only four buildings in Muskegon to have received this high honor – for its sustainable strategies used in its design and construction.
The same year, MCC purchased the Muskegon Family YMCA’s West Western Avenue property on Muskegon Lake. The former YMCA facility was re-opened in 2016 as the MCC Lakeshore Fitness Center.
MCC was named the top-ranked Michigan community college in 2017 by BestColleges.com for its gainful employment, graduation rates, and earnings outcomes.
In December 2017, the Peter and Carolyn I. Sturrus Technology Center opened as the new home to MCC’s Applied Technology programs as well as to MCC’s Experiential Learning Program.
In November 2018, the 52,000 square foot MCC Health and Wellness Center opened on the main campus. The facility houses the College’s Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department; the Medical Assistant Program; the Athletic Department Office; a state-of-the-art Health Simulation Lab; the Ron Gaffner Multipurpose Room; a gymnasium; a running track; and a fitness center.
The Rooks-Sarnicola Entrepreneur Institute opened in June 2018 and is home to the Lakeshore Fab Lab.
In August 2019, the $9 million renovation project that transformed the vacated Applied Technology Building into a state-of-the-art Art and Music Building was completed.
Building upon its more than two decades of offering classes in Grand Haven, MCC opened its Ottawa Center there in 2019. The College also offers courses in Ottawa County in Holland and Coopersville, and in Newaygo County at NCRESA.
MCC earned acclaim as a national trailblazer in student success as an Achieving the Dream (ATD) Leader College from 2015 to 2021.
In February 2021, the Boys & Girls Club of the Muskegon Lakeshore Board of Directors voted unanimously to approve the purchase of the Lakeshore Fitness Center as the new home for its youth and teen Clubhouse.
In the same year, MCC was ranked as the 19th best community college in the United States and best choice nationally for community college nursing programs by Intelligent.com.
In 2023, MCC was recertified as an ATD Leader College. MCC is also consistently recognized as a Veteran-Friendly School by the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency and for its Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) program.
In 2024, MCC outranked all other colleges in Michigan for the rate of students who received federal financial aid and then transferred to continue their education at a four-year institution. The college’s 34% transfer-out rate was the highest in Michigan, 7 percentage points above the state average, and outpaced the average transfer rate across the nation.
That same year, in response to the pressing demand for healthcare professionals in Muskegon County, MCC signed an agreement with Grand Valley State University to offer a new associate degree in nursing (ADN) to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program to serve Trinity Health Muskegon right here on the Muskegon Community College campus.
College Timeline
1926: Muskegon Junior College was established
1934: College moved into the former Hackley School in downtown Muskegon
1951: Muskegon Junior College renamed to Muskegon Community College
1963: MCC left Muskegon Board of Education
1st Board of Trustees was elected
Land was purchased for dedicated college building
Alden B. Dow and Associates was named architect
1965: Construction began on new (current) college building
1966: Vocational Technical Wing was completed and occupied
1967: Dedication ceremony on October 22, rest of the college was occupied
1968: Frauenthal Find Arts Center was completed and occupied
1968: University Park Golf Course opened
1995: Center for Higher Education/Stevenson Center was opened. Housed programs and courses offered by Ferris State University, Grand Valley State University, and Western Michigan University
2006: Hendrik Meijer Library Information Technology Center was completed and occupied
2014: Purchased the Muskegon Chronicle Building for the Sturrus Technology Center
2015: Masonic Temple donated to MCC by Nick Sarnicola.
Science Center opened and is home to the Life Science Department
MCC Purchased Muskegon Family YMCA West Western Ave property
2016: MCC Lakeshore Fitness Center opened
2017: Peter & Carolyn I. Sturrus Technology Center opened and houses Applied Technology Programs and Experiential Learning Program
2018: Rooks-Sarnicola Entrepreneur Institute opened and houses the Lakeshore Fab Lab
Health and Wellness Center opened on main campus
2019: MCC Art & Music Building re-opened after remodel
MCC Ottawa Center opened
2021: Boys & Girls Club of the Muskegon Lakeshore Board of Directors purchases the Lakeshore Fitness Center
2025: University Park Golf Course renamed to Muskegon Community College Golf Course
