History

Located in Panama City on Florida's Emerald Coast, Gulf Coast Community College was the first public two-year institution to open after the 1957 Florida Legislature established a statewide network of community colleges.  Gulf Coast is one of 28 public community colleges in the state, all located within commuting distance of 96 percent of the population.

From September 1957 through the spring of 1960, the college operated in temporary facilities at the Wainwright Shipyard (located across the street from the present location at 5230 West Highway 98).  The City of Panama City provided 40 acres for the permanent campus overlooking St. Andrew Bay; the college purchased the remaining 40 acres.  Construction of new buildings on the campus began in 1959, with the actual move to the new campus completed the next year.

The buildings that comprise the current campus and other college sites and their dates of first occupancy are Ken Sherman Science Center (1960), Administration Building (1960), Admissions and Records Building (1960), James R. Asbell Business Building (1960), Language Arts Building (1962), Billy Harrison Health Building (1965), Rosenwald Junior College Classroom Building (1965), Wellness Center (1965), Amelia G. Tapper Center for the Arts (1967), Social Sciences Building (1967), Technology Building (1969), Library (1976), WKGC Studios (1981), George G. Tapper Health Sciences Building (1983), Criminal Justice Training Academy (1990), Student Union (1991), Natatorium (1991), Facilities Management Building (1995), Gulf/Franklin Center (1998), and North Bay Center (2000).  For its first nine years, the college served primarily the residents of Bay County.  In the summer of 1966, Gulf County became part of the college's service district, and Franklin County was added in 1984.

Each semester, the college enrolls over 7,000 students in credit courses, with many thousands more registering in lifelong learning or continuing education programs.