(Santa Ana, CA) On January 14th, Santa Ana College held the grand reopening of the new Main Campus Entrance on 17th Street sponsored by the Santa Ana College Foundation. The reopening restored access directly from the campus to 17th Street.
"This marks a significant moment for our campus as we will now have an official campus entrance to greet all visitors, faculty, staff, and students to our campus. This also creates an official space that is designated for student drop off and pickup, making coming to and leaving campus easier for our students," said Santa Ana College President Dr. Annebelle Nery.
The ceremony featured statements from Dr. Nery and Board Vice President Dr. Tina Arias Miller who presented a Certificate of Recognition from California State Assemblymember Avellino Valencia. A representative for Orange County Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento of the Orange County Board of Supervisors also presented a Certificate of Recognition to Santa Ana College.
A special coordinated classic car display from the Classic Lady's Car Club was on site at the entrance, thanks to the efforts from SAC Foundation Board Member Mark McLoughlin and SAC Adjunct Faculty Saul Garcia.
“It was an honor to underwrite and support the Grand Reopening of Santa Ana College’s 17th St. Main Campus Entrance," said SAC Foundation Board of Directors President David Valentin. "During this critical juncture in sending messaging to our community, simply put, SAC is a welcoming environment that is ready to change the lives of students.”
The 17th Street Main Campus Entrance project was delivered through the coordinated efforts of Assistant Vice Chancellor of Facilities Carri Matsumoto, Director of Facilities Joe Melendez, Facilities Project Manager Hugo Curiel, and our partners at Golden Gate Construction, SVA Architects, VCA Engineers, RJM Design Group, Goss Engineering, Linik Corporation, and BPI Inspection Service. The new entrance greets incoming traffic with a statue of the college's name in the center divider that is surrounded by a roundabout road facing the Johnson Student Center where students can get picked up and dropped off. Bordering the roundabout are permanent shades and benches for students to sit and wait to get picked up.
Groundbreaking on the new entrance began on March 1, 2024 when the prior entrance was closed off for the demolition of the former Russell Hall and the construction of the new road and infrastructure.
"Even though Santa Ana College has been part of this community for over 100 years, we continue to evolve, meeting the needs of our students and growing community – this new Campus Entrance is one facet of that growth."
About Santa Ana College:
Santa Ana College (SAC), founded in 1915, serves more than 70,000 students yearly for credit and noncredit classes. At present, SAC students can work toward completing an associate degree, university transfer, career/workforce training or a bachelor's degree in occupational studies. In 2025, the college will offer a second bachelor's degree in Paralegal Studies. As part of Santa Ana College, the School of Continuing Education located at Centennial Education Center offers free classes throughout the community for adults of all ages and academic backgrounds. Santa Ana College is an award-winning college and was recently ranked as one of the nation's top two-year colleges awarding associate degrees to Latino and Asian students and named one of the best community colleges in California by Intelligent.com for a 2nd consecutive year. The college is also recognized throughout the state for its comprehensive workforce training programs for nurses, firefighters, law enforcement and medical personnel.
