Catalog - History 

Danville Area Community College is an accredited public two-year community college providing higher education opportunities for youth and adults in East Central Illinois. Established initially as an extension center of the University of Illinois in 1946, DACC became a public junior college named Danville Community College under Danville Public Schools in 1949. In 1951, the name was changed to Danville Junior College. In June of 1966, the College separated from Danville School District No. 118 under provisions of the Public Junior College Act and became an independent two-year area college under the control of the Board of Trustees of Junior College District No. 507. The name Danville Junior College was changed to Danville Area Community College on July 1, 1979, to be more reflective of the services rendered. The College district encompasses high school districts in Vermilion, Edgar, Iroquois, Ford, and Champaign counties with an estimated population 112,000.

The College, housed until 1965 at Danville High School, is now located on an attractive seventy-five acre campus at the east edge of Danville. The heart of the campus utilizes sixty-one acres and several buildings acquired from the Veterans Administration which have been renovated for educational purposes. Classrooms, student services, administrative services, a college center, and a conference center/theatre are presently housed in these buildings. Partial funding for renovation was provided by generous public support of the Danville Junior College Foundation Drive in 1965. Also, a Campus Master Plan for buildings and renovations has been in place since 1990.

Buildings constructed since 1965 include an ornamental horticulture building, a physical plant, a technology center, the Mary Miller Center, the Child Development Center, and Lincoln Hall. In addition, an Industrial Training Center was added to the Technology Center and the theater was renovated.

The college aided Downtown Danville revitalization efforts in February 2002 with the opening of the DACC Downtown Education Center at 27 North Vermilion Street. Classrooms, a computer lab, and meeting rooms are housed at this facility which was made possible through a generous donation from the First National Bank of Danville and Westville. The open access computer lab, funded through a joint effort of the Job Training Partnership and a grant from SBC Ameritech, is available for use by any community member during regular operational hours.

Today, Danville Area Community College enjoys a long history of providing accessible and affordable educational opportunities and services to the people of District 507 and surrounding communities. Preservation and renovation of the 100-year-old brick buildings purchased from the VA, including the Clock Tower Center and Library, has been an ongoing project committed to maintaining the historic beauty and technological advancement of the campus. In October 2002 the College celebrated significant progress on the Campus Master Plan with the dedication of newly renovated Vermilion, Prairie, and Cannon Halls, thus insuring quality educational facilities for future generations of DACC students.

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