College of the Sequoias

Named for the Giant Sequoia trees that are native to the surrounding Sierra Nevada mountain range in California's San Joaquin Valley, the College of the Sequoias is a comprehensive two-year public community college based on a 62-acre main campus in the suburban setting of Visalia in Tulare County. Offering educational and enrichment programs to more than 13,000 students each semester, COS serves the academic needs of local residents in Corcoran, Dinuba, Exeter, Farmersville, Hanford, Ivanhoe, Lemoore, Lindsay, Orosi, Porterville, Strathmore, Three Rivers, Tulare, and Woodlake.

Originally established as Visalia Junior College as a department of the city's high school in 1926, the college was initially created to provide affordable lower-division college education to local high school graduates who intended to transfer to four-year California universities. By 1938, growing enrollments forced the college to relocate to its current grounds and expand further to form the College of the Sequoias Community College District. To this day, the College of the Sequoias maintains its mission for being a community college focused on student learning that leads to productive work, community involvement, and lifelong learning.

Although the College of the Sequoias is regionally accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), the accrediting body has recently announced that the college would not have its accreditation renewed if deficiencies were not addressed within one calendar year. At this time, COS offers 158 certificate and associate degree programs focused on vocational training. Students can pursue studies in agriculture, consumer family studies, industry technology, physical education, engineering, mathematics, science, business, fine arts, language arts, aviation, allied health, and social sciences.

Since involvement in on-campus activities is a fundamental part of the college's educational mission, the College of the Sequoias has over 35 student recognized organizations and offers students the opportunity to create their own. Nicknamed the Giants, COS also sponsors 17 intercollegiate varsity teams for basketball, baseball, football, cross country, soccer, track and field, swimming, volleyball, tennis, equestrian, cheerleading, and softball in the Central Valley Conference of the CCCAA. Some of the most notable former Giants include Congressman David Valadao, singer Steve Perry, basketball player DeeAndre Hulett, animator J.G. Quintel, and actor Creed Bratton.