Hubbard "Hub" Howe Memorial Scholarship

After the end of World War II, Hubbard “Hub” Howe had a vision for starting a college in coastal Orange County on the site of the abandoned Santa Ana Army Air Base. Howe was the president of the South Coast Company of Newport Beach – a highly successful company that built large yachts prior to World War II and mine sweepers for the U.S. Navy during the war. He envisioned a technical college that would provide vocational training for students from Newport to Huntington Beach with his company hiring many of OCC’s first graduates.

In January of 1947, the Orange Coast Junior College District was established. Hub Howe was elected to the college board of trustees in May and was named the first president of the district board of trustees in June. The board selected Dr. Basil Peterson as the college’s first president in July. Sensitive negotiations regarding the base were carried out throughout the fall of 1947 with the War Assets Administration (WAA). Finally, after numerous trips to Washington, D.C. by Howe and others, the WAA deeded 243 acres to the college in January of 1948. The college opened with 533 students on September 13, 1948. Hubbard Howe delivered the first convocation to the initial class of OCC students.

Sadly, less than two months later Hub Howe died of an embolism. He was a young man who was burned out from wartime and community responsibilities and worries. However, his legacy lives on in Orange Coast College.

On the occasion of Orange Coast College’s 50 Anniversary, Hub Howe’s son Hubbard “Bard” Howe, Jr., made a gift of $100,000 to the Orange Coast College Scholarship endowment in memory of his father. The Hubbard “Hub” Howe Scholarship Endowment provides support for Orange Coast College students studying in technical and career-oriented programs.