Bakersfield College

Bakersfield College (BC) is a public community college in Bakersfield, California. BC serves about 27,800 students each semester or 31,000 annually, and offers associate degrees, certificate programs, and is one of fifteen California Community Colleges offering a baccalaureate degree. It is part of the Kern Community College District (KCCD), which is itself part of the California Community Colleges system.

History
Founded in 1913 as Bakersfield Junior College, the school was initially housed on the campus of Bakersfield High School (then Kern County Union High School). In 1947, the school dropped "Junior" from its name. In 1956, Bakersfield College moved to its current location "on the hill" in northeast Bakersfield on the "Panorama Bluffs" that overlook the prolific Kern River oil field.

Campus
The main campus is located on a 153 acre plot in Northeast Bakersfield, and it also operates three satellite campuses: the Weill Institute in downtown Bakersfield, shared by the Kern Community College District, the SouthWest Campus also located in Bakersfield, and the Delano Campus in Delano, California, approximately 35 mi north of Bakersfield.

Organization and administration
BC is part of the Kern Community College District (KCCD).

Academics
BC serves about 25,000 students each semester.

Newspaper
The Renegade Rip is the student-run newspaper within the journalism department at BC. Published biweekly, The Rip currently has a circulation of approximately 4,000. An online edition is also available. The Rip is a regular contender and recipient of JACC (Journalism Association of Community Colleges) awards at both the state and regional levels and in 2003-2004 won the Associated Collegiate Press National Pacemaker Award. They are a member of the Journalism Association of Community Colleges and compete in the Southern California region.

Rip reporters and photographers cover the campus. The students cover topics ranging from crime on campus, to student profiles, sports and local entertainment. The tradition of The Renegade Rip has always been to chase news stories and focus on what affects the student body at BC and the community of Bakersfield as a whole.

Performing arts
The Renegade Pep Band supports the college's athletic teams.

Golden Empire Performing Arts is a non-profit 501(c)(3) account of the Bakersfield College Foundation that supports the Bakersfield College Drumline and the Golden Empire Drum and Bugle Corps.

Athletics
The college's athletic teams are known as the Renegades ('Gades). The team competes as a member of the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) in the Western State Conference (WSC) for all sports except football and wrestling, which compete in Southern California Football Association (SCFA) and Southern California Wrestling Association (SCWA). The college has an extensive athletics program with 20 varsity teams, including men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, football, soccer, volleyball, wrestling, baseball, softball, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track and field, and men's and women's swimming.

Renegades football has a long tradition of success in Junior College-level competition, and plays out of the 20,000-seat, on-campus Memorial Stadium.

Notable people

 * Brandon Banks, CFL wide receiver for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
 * Robert Beltran, film and television actor, best known for playing Chakotay on Star Trek: Voyager
 * Vern Burke, NFL tight end, Oregon Sports Hall of Famer
 * Tyrone Crawford, NFL defensive end
 * Chris DeFrance, CFL wide receiver
 * Ric Drasin, professional wrestler, designer of the original Gold's Gym logo and the World Gym gorilla logo.
 * Phil Dumatrait, MLB pitcher
 * David Dunn, NFL wide receiver
 * Jean Fuller, politician serving in the California State Senate
 * Frank Gifford, Pro Football Hall of Fame and sports commentator
 * Dallas Grider, high school and college football coach
 * Liz Gorman, football player in the Lingerie Football League
 * Gerald Haslam, News and book author
 * Joe Hernandez, NFL and CFL wide receiver
 * George Jones (American football), NFL running back.
 * Junior Kennedy, 1968-1975 MLB second baseman with the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs
 * Colby Lewis, MLB pitcher
 * Guy Madison, film and television actor
 * Billy Mamaril, Filipino professional basketball player
 * Rishard Matthews, NFL wide receiver
 * Kevin McCarthy, 55th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
 * Richard Miles, ambassador
 * Spain Musgrove, NFL defensive tackle
 * Brennan Newberry, NASCAR driver
 * Mark Nichols, NFL wide receiver
 * Charles Noland, professional actor
 * Rocky Rasley, NFL guard
 * Greg Robinson, head coach, Syracuse University football; two-time Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator of Denver Broncos
 * Michael Rubio, politician
 * Carl Smith, offensive coordinator of the Jacksonville Jaguars
 * Taj Smith, CFL wide receiver for the Saskatchewan Roughriders
 * Andre Spencer, NBA player
 * Jeremy Staat, NFL defensive end
 * Walter W. Stiern, California State Senator
 * Jim Stiger, NFL running back
 * John Tarver, running back for the New England Patriots
 * Mike Waufle, NFL defensive line coach
 * Dick Witcher, NFL wide receiver
 * Jake Woods, MLB pitcher
 * Delbert E. Wong, first Chinese-American judge in the continental United States
 * Louis Wright, NFL cornerback