COD to Celebrate Largest Graduating Class for Fourth Year

PALM DESERT — For the fourth  consecutive year, College of the Desert (COD) will break the record for the largest graduating class in its history, with 1,486 credentials – up 22 percent compared to last year.

As COD  continues to commemorate its 60th Anniversary, it has a great deal to celebrate this week, with its record-breaking Commencement Ceremony on Friday, a Public Safety Academy Graduation on Tuesday evening, May 22, and a Registered Nurse Pinning Ceremony on Friday afternoon.

The festivities, which begin at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 25 .

At this point, nearly 600 students are expected to walk the stage during the Commencement Ceremony. College Superintendent/President Joel L. Kinnamon, Ed.D., and Desert Community College District Board of Trustees Chairwoman Becky Broughton will hand the graduating students their degrees and certificates.

Here are some statistics from the record-breaking years for comparison.

2018: 1,486 credentials

2017: 1,220 credentials

2016: 1,137 credentials

2015: 1,067 credentials

Growth in graduating classes at the college has spiked since Kinnamon became president July 9, 2012. He came to COD from Chabot-Las Positas Community College District where he was serving as Chancellor of this two-college district.

Kinnamon is the seventh president of COD.

Following graduation, hundreds of the students will transfer to other colleges, including 16 campuses within the California State University system, seven University of California campuses, and other colleges as far as New York.

COD also will celebrate its Public Safety Academy graduation (6 p.m. Tuesday, May 22) and its Registered Nurse Pinning (2 p.m. Friday, May 25). Both will be held in the McCallum Theatre.

Established in 1958, College of the Desert (COD), located in Palm Desert, is an accredited community college serving eastern Riverside County, California. The College leads the region in providing quality, higher education, technical training and lifelong learning opportunities, in response to the dynamic needs of our diverse community. The College serves more than 15,000 students each year and is the number one source of transfer students to California State University, San Bernardino Palm Desert Campus. For more information, visit here.