Del Mar Junior College entered the 1970s at the end of a $5.3 million construction and land acquisition program that had transformed the main campus in the 1960s. In the summer of 1971, a new Administration Building was opened, allowing the conversion of the old Administration building into much-needed classroom space. The $494,000 used to construct the new building was the last money from the 1964 bond passed by voters. Del Mar desperately needed new funds for Del Mar Tech. Hundreds of students wanting to take technical and vocational classes were on waiting lists due to the lack of facilities on the Tech campus. A new Student Center was constructed on the campus in 1974, financed with the sale of $1.25 million in revenue bonds by the college, and portable buildings were moved onto the campus to provide additional classroom space.
Throughout the 1970s, Del Mar continued to add new courses of study, both academic and technical. In 1971, Del Mar Tech established one of the first Restaurant Management programs in the state. In 1973 a “Mid-Management” program was added to train clerks and salesmen for jobs as supervisors and managers in business. Students in the program would take half of their courses at Del Mar Tech and half at the main campus. Many new courses were being added in the Nursing and medical technology fields and in law enforcement and criminal justice training. Del Mar was also now partnering with the newly created Texas A&I-CC University which had taken over the old UCC campus. A&I-CC was an upper-level college, teaching junior, senior, and graduate-level courses. Courses at Del Mar were being tailored in such a way that students could earn credits toward a four year degree that would easily transfer to A&I-CC. Del Mar was also constantly adding non-credit, adult education classes. By 1975, one could take such courses as gourmet cooking, dressmaking, astrology, creative writing, jewelry making, and cake decorating. One could also take classes in beginning Spanish, French, German, and Russian, swimming, golf, yoga, and beginning guitar. The college even had a course for elderly students, teaching the basics of income taxes, wills, life insurance, probate, trusts, and health. By 1975, over 1,000 students were enrolled in Del Mar’s non-credit courses.
In 1979, a $2.4 million contract was signed with Lamphier Construction to add three additional stories to the Library that had been built in 1967. New construction and maintenance of existing structures on both the East and West campuses were financed by state and federal grants in the 1970’s. But, by the early 1980s, the explosive growth of the college required a new bond election to finance desperately needed renovations and construction of additional classroom space on both the East and West campuses. In May 1985, Del Mar’s new President, Ed Biggerstaff, called for a $20 million bond election. The money would be used to renovate existing buildings, construct new buildings, expand parking lots, and purchase land and properties surrounding the East campus. In the November 6 election, bonds for Del Mar narrowly passed.
Enrollment for academic courses on Del Mar’s East Campus had reached 8,525 students in the 1984-85 school year. By 1987, it had climbed to 9,517 and projects for improvements financed by the 1985 bond were well underway. Houses and old buildings south of the main campus to Edward’s Street had been moved or demolished, adding 15 acres of land to the campus. The streets of Price, Kosar, Carter, Thompkins, and Shely no longer existed with the expansion of the East Campus. Major renovations on 8 campus buildings had begun, and construction of a new business and computer classroom building and a new Fine Arts Center was underway. On the West Campus (Del Mar Tech), seven shop buildings were being renovated and construction had begun on a new Learning Resource Center and a new Small Appliance Repair building. Del Mar would end the 1980s with the purchase of the old HEB on Ayers, directly across from the main campus. The building and land was purchased for $400,000 and gave Del Mar adequate space for its Purchasing and Receiving Department and 200 additional parking spaces for students.
Controversy visited the college in 1987 when the Board of Regents voted 5-4 to terminate the contract of college President Edwin Biggerstaff for a variety of alleged improprieties. Biggerstaff was allowed to resign instead. Regents then immediately hired Buddy Venters, a 1956 graduate of Del Mar who had been with the college since 1957 as a financial officer. He had been Executive Vice President of Del Mar since 1985. He would serve Del Mar as President from 1987 to his retirement in 1995.
All talk about Del Mar eventually becoming a four-year university ended in 1994 when Texas A&M-CC admitted freshman and sophomore students for the first time. There was much apprehension about the future of Del Mar and its role as a junior college in a city with a four-year university. A&M-CC’s transition to a four-year university did have an immediate impact on Del Mar. Del Mar’s academic enrollment had reached a peak of 11,825 students in 1993 but dropped to 10,740 in 1994. In the beginning, Del Mar students wishing to transfer to A&M-CC discovered that some of their college credits were not being accepted by the University. A&M-CC had established a core curriculum that did not align with core courses taken by students at Del Mar. After much confusion and ill will, A&M-CC agreed to grandfather in Del Mar transfers while Del Mar aligned its core curriculum with that of the University.
By the end of the 1990’s, the two schools developed independent missions that complemented one another. Both schools would thrive under the arrangement. A&M-CC’s enrollment would reach 6,919 students by the year 2000, while Del Mar’s enrollment in academic courses was 9,941. And, Del Mar’s real strength was in its Vocational and Technical programs, Adult Education, and remedial education. Del Mar would enter the 2000’s on solid ground. That story coming in Part 4.
Robert Parks is a special contributor to KRIS 6 News. Parks was a history teacher at Carroll High School for 19 years and is now retired. His knowledge of Corpus Christi history makes him a unique expert in the subject.