What we’re celebrating at St. Petersburg College

Ninety-six years ago this week, a promise was fulfilled when St. Petersburg Junior College opened its doors to 102 students in the then new St. Petersburg High School building on Fifth Avenue North.

It was 1927 and the population was booming, consumerism was soaring and advancements in industrialization were changing the workforce at a rapid pace. But many people were being left behind — impoverished and lacking opportunities. Local civic and business leaders recognized the importance of providing access to higher education to residents who didn’t have the means or resources to attend state universities. SPJC — Florida’s first community college — was born from a promise of providing endless possibilities for advancement.

While some junior colleges focused on liberal arts studies to prepare students to transfer to universities, many, like SPJC, also offered terminal degrees that would train residents for immediate employment. In addition to giving students routes to sustainable wages, this supported businesses that desperately needed a thriving workforce.

Your community college has always been a leader in higher education. In 1965, SPJC merged with our African American sister college, Gibbs Junior College, years before comprehensive desegregation of public schools. And in 2001, SPJC blazed yet another trail when it evolved into St. Petersburg College and became the first college in the state to offer four-year degrees.

While industries have changed in ways that many could never have imagined in the 1920s, our mission has not. We are still here to offer pathways to prosperity for our community. Through transfer plans that prepare students for university studies, and workforce-centered associate degrees and short-term credentials, SPC has been building the workforce in Pinellas County and beyond for nearly 100 years.

Today, we serve more than 36,000 students annually as the largest higher education institution in Pinellas County. Chances are you or someone you know has gone to SPC. Maybe it’s your favorite elementary school teacher or a compassionate nurse who has cared for a family member. It might be the person who runs the lighting and sound production at your local church or the person who supports your small business through manufacturing or accounting. In Pinellas County and across Tampa Bay, our workforce is chock full of St. Petersburg College graduates — real people making meaningful differences in our communities.

In fact, the contributions of SPC alumni are so great that they generate approximately $2.2 billion annually in added income for our regional economy — the equivalent of supporting more than 29,000 jobs. And that is what we strive for at SPC: getting people into jobs. Through career readiness services for students and hundreds of partnerships, we are making connections between employees and employers. Our placement rates exceed 80% — with many programs boasting a 100% rate — of students who start a career, join the military or transfer to a university after graduating. Our students learn in order to earn, which changes the entire trajectory of their lives. The win-win is that these graduates fill voids in the talent pipeline and provide area business with the skilled labor they need to continue to fuel our economy.

Today, we continue to build on the promise of our founding. Just a few weeks ago we welcomed our first Promise Scholars. More than 450 students from five area high schools with high poverty rates are enrolled this fall term — for free. These students can earn an associate degree or a certificate that will give them a leg up in the job market without worrying about going into debt. This is just one of the many ways we continue to invest in our residents who are shaping bright futures in their own lives, for their families and for our communities.

This Tuesday, we’ll celebrate the college’s opening at SPC Day on our Clearwater campus. I hope you’ll join us and see how you can partner with us to keep St. Petersburg College going strong for another century.

Tonjua Williams is the president of St. Petersburg College. A St. Petersburg native, she serves on the Board of the American Association of Community Colleges and is an alumna of the inaugural class of the Aspen Presidential Fellows. Most recently, she served as the 2022-2023 Chair of the Florida College System’s Council of Presidents.

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