Polk State College (PSC) is a

public college A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant funding from a government. Whether a national university is considered public varies from o ...

based in

Winter Haven, Florida Winter Haven is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. It is located about east of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and about southwest of Orlando, Florida, Orlando, with neighboring Lakeland, Florida, Lakeland located to its west. The city's popul ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and is part of the

Florida College System The Florida College System, previously the Florida Community College System, is a system of 28 public community colleges and state colleges in the U.S. state of Florida. In 2020–2021, enrollment consisted of 640,183 students. Together with th ...

. Established in 1964, PSC operates its main campuses in Winter Haven and Lakeland, with additional education centers in Bartow and Lake Wales. The college offers both associate and bachelor’s degrees. PSC also operates three charter high schools on its Winter Haven and Lakeland campuses, allowing high school students to earn an

Associate in Arts An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree. ...

degree while completing their

high school diploma A high school diploma (sometimes referred to as a high school degree) is a diploma awarded upon graduation of high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary s ...

. The college also participates in the

Suncoast Conference The Suncoast Conference (SCC), hosted by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), is one of four conferences within Region 8 of the NJCAA. It is composed of four state colleges within the state of Florida, and is administered by ...

of the

NJCAA Region 8 Region 8 of the National Junior College Athletic Association comprises at least 26 community and state colleges from the Florida college system. All members of the NJCAA Region 8 are Division I, excluding Pasco–Hernando State College, which is ...

, offering athletic programs in men's basketball, baseball, and women's cheerleading, soccer, softball, and volleyball. The men’s basketball team has won several conference and regional championships.

Notable people

* Alec Asher, professional baseball player * Mark Brisker, American-Israeli professional basketball player * Robert Gilchrist, professional basketball player * Denise Grimsley, member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...

Maryly Van Leer Peck Maryly Van Leer Peck (June 29, 1930 – November 3, 2011) was an American academic and college administrator. She founded numerous programs in Guam, one of them being the Community Career College at the University of Guam (which merged into ...

, academic * Dean Pelman, Israeli-American baseball pitcher for the

Israel national baseball team The Israel National Baseball Team () represents Israel in international competitions. It is managed by Ian Kinsler. At the 2017 WBC, Team Israel came in 6th. In 2022, Israel was ranked 20th in the world. The Israel national baseball team compete ...

* Lawrence Scarpa, architect * Lorenzo Williams, professional basketball player

References

External links

* {{Coord, 27.9906672, -81.8900359, display=title Universities and colleges established in 1964 Florida College System Two-year colleges in the United States Universities and colleges in Lakeland, Florida Universities and colleges in Polk County, Florida Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Buildings and structures in Winter Haven, Florida 1964 establishments in Florida NJCAA schools