Over fifty years ago, the Greater Victoria School Board held a plebiscite to establish a regional college in Victoria. On Oct. 28, 1970, the B.C. Government gave authority for the establishment of “Juan de Fuca College.”
Honouring the past, inspiring the future
In January 1971, the college’s councillors voted instead to adopt the name “Camosun,” pronounced “Cam-O-sun,” a Lekwungen name for an area of Victoria meaning “where different waters meet and are transformed.”
Camosun College officially celebrated opening its doors as a post-secondary institution offering university transfer, vocational and upgrading courses to 980 registered students on Sept. 16, 1971.
Today, the college’s Lansdowne and Interurban campuses, along with five community partner learning sites, offer over 160 innovative, life-transforming academic and applied learning programs to 20,000 students each year.
Explore Camosun’s five decades
Travel through time
50 Years of stories
from faculty, staff, students and alumni
Camosun College archives
