San Luis Obispo County Community College District / Cuesta College

About Us

Cuesta College has a long history, which dates back to the late 1960s. It is a history of teaching at off-campus instructional sites. Through the years, Cuesta has taught in Cambria, Morro Bay, Atascadero, Shandon, Paso Robles, Templeton, Arroyo Grande, and Nipomo.
In fall 1998, the college opened the North County Campus on its 105-acre site in Paso Robles. The campus, built almost exclusively with private gift support, has grown from 1,200 students the first semester to 3,000 day and evening students in spring 2012. The site began with modular buildings to be used until permanent buildings were approved by the state. In the summer of 2005, the first permanent building opened to students: The Fox Family Building. This building houses Allied Health, Math, and Science. The college broke ground for a second permanent building in spring 2010: The North County Campus Learning Resource Center. The Learning Resource Center was completed in fall 2011 and began serving students in spring 2012. The building was named in honor of donors Dale and Mary Schwartz and dedicated May 24, 2012.
The South County Center is an off-campus evening instructional site at Arroyo Grande High School, provided in cooperation with the Lucia Mar Unified School District. During the spring 2012 semester, 600 evening students were served at this site.
Cuesta College now serves more than 11,000 students at all college locations. The college has become a center for community use by individuals, families, and community groups on an extended-day and year-round basis.