LLCC History

The family of students, faculty and staff known as Lincoln Land Community College (LLCC) began as an idea from visionaries who founded the college in 1967 and opened the doors on Sept. 23, 1968. The founding members of the LLCC Board of Trustees, administrators and faculty, along with local citizens, built a legacy upon which we continue to grow today.

Those visionaries, who were primarily farmers, took advantage of the Public Community College Act of 1965 to provide high-quality, accessible and cost-effective educational opportunities in the central Illinois area. The founding president, two administrators and seven trustees recruited a team of fewer than 30 faculty and staff members to a temporary facility on the southern edge of Springfield. About 850 students registered for the college’s first class offerings. Those first students were offered a choice of 13 electronic data processing courses at a time when EDP was on the cutting edge of career choices. Students also were offered 115 courses under the umbrella of Arts and Sciences and an additional group of 103 subjects labeled Vocational and Technical courses.

By the time Lincoln Land Community College moved to its current main campus site at 5250 Shepherd Road in 1974, the college had truly earned the reputation of being the "community’s college" for District 526. The district comprises all or part of 15 counties in central and central southern Illinois and covers 4,115 square miles. Classes are offered during days, evenings and weekends on the main campus, at the LLCC Outreach Centers in Beardstown, Jacksonville, Litchfield/Hillsboro and Taylorville; the Levi, Ray and Shoup, Inc. Aviation Center at LLCC; LLCC-Medical District and HSHS St. John's Hospital in Springfield; and online.