The Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) enrolls over 100,000 credit and noncredit students every semester, making DCCCD one of the largest higher education institutions in the State of Texas.

The DCCCD comprises of seven colleges located strategically throughout Dallas County. Anyone in Dallas County has only a short drive, bus or train ride to reach the nearest college. More than three decades of growth and progress are a credit to the vision of Dallas area citizens. In May 1965, Dallas County voters created the Dallas County Junior College District and approved a $41.5 million bond issue to finance it. The next year, El Centro College began serving students in downtown Dallas. Eastfield College in Mesquite and Mountain View College in southwest Dallas enrolled their first students in 1970. Richland College opened two years later in north Dallas.

An additional $85 million in bonds supported the DCCCD's expansion, and construction began on three more colleges. Cedar Valley College in Lancaster and North Lake College in Irving opened in 1977, followed by Brookhaven College in Farmers Branch in 1978.

In addition to the colleges, the DCCCD also operates the Bill Priest Institute and the R. Jan LeCroy Center for Educational Telecommunications, both named for former DCCCD chancellors. The Bill Priest Institute opened south of downtown Dallas in 1989, serving individuals and businesses of all sizes with training programs customized to meet their needs. The LeCroy Center is one of the largest producers of distance education products in the nation.

Most recently, on May 15, 2004 the Dallas County voters approved a $450 million bond package for the Dallas County Community College District to expand capacity and update classrooms and laboratories to meet students' needs, address safety issues at older facilities, ensure that the district can meet the educational development and training needs of this rapidly growing and diverse county. When the 2004 Bond Program is complete, DCCCD will have five new community centers and numerous construction projects at the seven colleges and the Bill Priest Institute.