The College Celebrates its 100th Year
Gavilan
Through
the Decades
Written By Jordan Rosenfeld
A Humble History
The college that most South County residents know as
Gavilan College in Gilroy began in 1919 as San Benito Junior
College in Hollister. Rose called it “a very soft launch” as
only the seventh community college in the state of California
under a newly formed system.
“The whole idea of community colleges was a new thing
in California,” Rose said. “They were originally put into place
to relieve the impact on four-year colleges and to provide
technical and trade opportunities for community members.”
Dr. Rose pointed to the work of a Gavilan history
professor, Lea Halper, who recently finished writing a paper,
“To Dream on Your Behalf: A History of Gavilan College,”
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GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
while on sabbatical. In her paper, Halper explained that
when the college was first formed in 1919, the community,
like much of the country, was still recovering from two major
events: WWI and a flu epidemic that took as many as 50
million lives worldwide. Communities were adapting to the
loss of young men to war and illness. Newly-minted veterans
had returned home and wanted to refocus their attention
away from war and toward their futures.
Halper wrote, “1919 is a year historians refer to as a
turning point in a changing world.”
Historically, local students did not have many options,
and thus community colleges became a focal point for small-
town education.
“There was an opportunity for towns to reinvent them-
selves in our area,” Rose said.
At the Forefront tor Women
Among those reinventing themselves were women. As
only the second woman to be President of the college in
its 100 years, Rose is especially proud of the fact that the
first graduating class of San Benito Junior College in 1921
included eight women out of nine total students.
“Some people thought educating daughters made very
little sense and that it was an anomaly that women were
having ambitions,” Rose said. “Gavilan was at the forefront to
bring about a revolutionary change in education for women
and I’m extremely proud of that.”
Rose explained that over time, enrollment increased
because the community saw the college as a place to get
workplace development, where students could stay local
and receive training instead of moving away. The college
managed to offer this curriculum within a very modest
amount of space at the San Benito airport for almost
forty years.
april/may 2019
gmhtoday.com
COMMUNITY
T
his year, Gavilan College celebrates
100 years of history. To ring in this
huge milestone year, Gavilan is
hosting a gala event on September 7th, “Gavilan Through
the Decades: 1919-2019.”
Gavilan College President, Dr. Kathleen Rose, said,
“It will be a magical evening.”
Attendees will find Sycamore Lane lighted and stations
on the Gilroy campus teeming with art, music, live and
silent auctions, upscale food and wine, guest speakers, and
opportunities to learn about how the college has changed.
Students will discuss future programs, and alumni will
speak about its past.
“The gala will be the big cornerstone event for the
centennial year,” Rose said.
There will also be birthday parties throughout Gavilan’s
2700-mile district at each of its five locations, with
opportunities to highlight art and history, and a portable
wall of historical photos covering each decade that will be
moved from location to location.