[4] In October 1970, the Board of Higher Education, breaking with CUNY's geographic naming convention, named the new college after Mayor LaGuardia, noting his "lifelong public service to the people of the City of New York and of the United States, and his ambitious and successful leadership of good government campaigns to provide decent living conditions and guarantee democratic processes for all...."[5] The college was officially opened on September 22, 1971, and received its first accreditation from the Middle States Association in December 1972 when the college graduated its first class.

[6] The college has supported numerous educational projects and conferences in collaboration with the Wikipedia community since 2012.

[17][18][19] The current campus including Shenker Hall is located at the east end of Long Island City near Sunnyside.

[20][21][22]: 160 [23]: 13 [24][25][excessive citations] The buildings of the campus consist of former Long Island City factories and warehouses converted for school use.

[24][25] At the far west end of the campus is the C Building or Center III, located between 29th and 30th Street near the Queensboro Bridge approach.

[35][36][37] A spur track from the nearby Long Island Rail Road fed into the rear of the building, allowing freight cars to load and unload inside the facility.

[43][44][45] In 1975, LaGuardia Community College began leasing 20,000 square feet (1,900 m2) of space on the third floor the Executone Building, including seven classrooms and a lecture hall.

[47][48][49] In 1985, the Executone Building became part of a four-building complex known as the International Design Center New York (IDCNY).

[27]: 10 [53] The entire Center III building was purchased by LaGuardia in 1998 for $52 million to create a West Campus.

[30][52] One of the projects completed circa 2010 renovated the interior of the building, creating new classrooms and office space.

[30][52] In 2013, LaGuardia announced a project to install a new facade on the C Building, designed by Mitchell Giurgola Architects.

[57][58][59][60][61][excessive citations] The building features a large rooftop billboard sign which is illuminated at night.

[29][32][33][41][62][51][63][excessive citations] As part of the modern renovations to the C Building, the sign was fitted with branding for LaGuardia Community College.

[64][65] In 1929, the American Knit Goods company leased space in the building, beginning its use as a clothing and textile factory.

[53] In 2006, LaGuardia Community College received $55 million allocated by the New York State Legislature for the purchase of new school buildings.

[74] Four of the eight floors of the building are occupied by the Queens High School Complex of the New York City Department of Education.

[20][76][77] The M Building was constructed in 1920 as the White Motor Company truck factory and service station, part of the Degnon Terminal.

[41][28]: 89, 196 [78][79][80][excessive citations] In 1941, the building was sold to the Ford Instrument Company, a subsidiary of Sperry Rand.

[78][81] The factory manufactured electronics for the United States Armed Forces' World War II efforts.

[10][88]: 6–8 (PDF p.14–16 [87][89]: 47  Additional "Phase II" renovations were completed in 1976, which added new classrooms and a theater, an atrium or mall referred to as an "interior street", and converted the Great Hall into a gymnasium.

[75]: 143 (PDF p.172) [77] In 1954, the company claimed to manufacture the largest paper bag in the world, measuring 14 feet (4.3 m) long.

[96] Prior to educational use, the building served as the factory for X-Acto hobby knives,[97] and as a depot for Pan American World Airways.

In addition, an Early Child Care Learning Center for the children of college students was created in the building.

[111][112][113] The College offers associate degrees and certificates in over 50 majors in Business and Technology, Liberal Arts, Health, Math, and Science.

[citation needed] As of the Fall of 2011, LaGuardia had an enrollment of 17,569 undergraduate students, 58% of them attending full-time, and 42% part-time.