Welcome to Barstow Community College, “the Best Rural College in California.” Our faculty, staff, and administration are committed to helping you achieve your educational goals. Whether you are taking classes that will prepare you to transfer to a four-year college or university, enrolling in one of our many career and technical education program options that will enable you to enter the workforce with a satisfying career, seeking to enhance your academic skills, or pursuing personal enrichment, BCC has something for you.

We offer students flexible course scheduling, with full-semester length courses as well as short-term classes. Our course start dates are staggered so that students have the option of enrolling at different times during the semester. Recognizing that students have varying learning styles, have preferences for particular learning formats, or have extremely tight schedules, students at BCC can enroll in online classes, traditional “live” classes, or hybrid classes, which is a combination of online and live formats.

I encourage you to visit and talk with our professional staff located in the newly-remodeled Norman Smith Center Student Services building. They will be glad to help you identify your educational goals, assess your needs, and make recommendations that will help you be successful. While attendance at a California community college is the best educational value in the country, we are aware that financial considerations can be a detriment to students pursuing their educational and career goals, especially in these difficult economic times. Student Services staff can advise you of the many state and federal programs that exist and can help provide you with tuition waivers, financial aid, textbook purchase assistance, and child care, should you qualify.

As a student at BCC, I also encourage you to explore the many opportunities that exist to become involved in student activities, such as clubs, organizations and athletics. Participation in extra-curricular activities enables you to get to know other students, and enhances your overall educational experience at the college.

During the next two years at BCC, you will witness a transformation of the campus as the college undertakes major construction projects. These include a Lifelong Learning Center that will help to promote basic skills instruction, workforce and economic development, and expanding non-credit and community education programs; the Performing Arts Center that will establish Barstow Community College as the cultural center of the greater Barstow area; and the Fitness and Wellness Center that will enable greater opportunities for members of the community to be able to engage in activities that promote health and fitness. As the college constructs new buildings and remodels existing ones, the Board of Trustees is committed to moving the college in the direction of low-impact “green” technology and construction. BCC is situated in a region of the country that positions it to become a leader in green technology and alternative energy. We will be moving forward to identify and put in place various alternative energy technology training programs to meet the needs of society in this area, as well as to provide viable career options for students.

I welcome you to Barstow Community College, your community college. I wish you much success as you pursue your educational journey.

Thom M. Armstrong, Ph.D.
President/Superintendent