Tunxis Community College was chartered by the State of Connecticut in 1969 to serve the Bristol-New Britain and Farmington Valley areas. It first opened for classes in October 1970 with 494 students; today approximately 7,000 full and part-time students attend the college each semester enrolled in credit and continuing education classes. Yet Tunxis is still small enough to offer students individual attention. Since the first graduation in 1972, approximately 8,000 persons have received an associate's degree or certificate from the College. As a publicly-supported learning center, Tunxis provides an array of educational services designed to meet the training, occupational, intellectual and cultural needs of the people of the region.