Founded in 1957 as Central Florida Junior College,[4] CF has grown to span three counties and include the Appleton Museum of Art and Vintage Farm.

[6] The college started offering bachelor degree programs in Business and Organizational Management in 2010, followed by Early Childhood Education in 2011, and Nursing in 2014.

CF's Hampton Center, which offers health occupation courses and community outreach programs, opened in 1996 on the site of the former Florida State Fire College in West Ocala.

[4] The college maintained a partnership interest in the Appleton Museum of Art for more than a decade before accepting full responsibility for operations in 2004.

Its prominent athletic alumni include former Major League Baseball players Brian Buscher, Mike Figga, and Bill Hurst.

Clinton Hart, a seven-year veteran of the National Football League, began his collegiate athletic career as an outfielder for the Patriots baseball team.

[20] In the spring of 2010, men's basketball standout Ricardo Ratliffe capped an historic two-year career at CF by winning the 2010 NJCAA Male Student-Athlete of the Year Award.

In June 2010, the CF District Board of Trustees voted to add women's volleyball to the school's athletics program, with its inaugural season scheduled for the fall of 2011.