Since its origin, Delta has served to provide students with an alternate path toward education.
In February 1972, the SUNY Board of Trustees approved the creation of a separate, three-year degree program at SUNY Brockport. The program was to have its own leadership, faculty, and curriculum (existing as a “college-within-a-college”). This new entity was originally called “The Alternate College” and was funded with a large grant from the Carnegie Commission for Higher Education and the SUNY system.
In 1985, the name was changed to Delta College to avoid equating The Alternate College with many alternative remedial educational programs that had sprung up across the country. The Greek letter “delta” is used within the sciences to indicate change. The hope was that the new name would prove descriptive of the type of education offered through the revised program.
In 1994, the Delta College curriculum and broader program took on the contours of its current shape. Professional preparation courses combined with local, national, and international applied learning opportunities became regular features of a Delta education. The general education courses developed an interdisciplinary focus & thematic continuity, the size of the program and courses sections were adjusted to promote a more intimate learning community, and experiential learning became a core aspect of the program.
Today, Delta College remains a vibrant and exciting alternate means of earning a bachelor’s degree at the University. Throughout its changes over the years, the vision of an experiential, innovative, and interdisciplinary learning community remains alive and well within Delta College. As you consider joining our ranks, we invite you to become a part of this vision and history; to experience what we call “the Delta Difference.”