Vernon College Started With a County Vote and 608 Students

Vernon College began at the ballot box. On January 20, 1970, a majority of Wilbarger County voters created the Wilbarger County Junior College District. On April 9, its new trustees appointed Dr. David L. Norton as the opening president.

Campus construction started in May 1971. The initial group included an Academic Science Center, an Administration-Fine Arts Center, an Applied Arts Center, a library, and a student center.

Classes began on the Vernon campus on September 5, 1972, with an enrollment of 608 students. By the 1975-76 school year, the college had also opened a learning center at Sheppard Air Force Base.

The original name was Vernon Regional Junior College. It became Vernon College on May 23, 2001. The shorter name came later; the county vote and those 608 opening students are still the beginning.