In 2002, the Sierra College Press was formed to publish Standing Guard: Telling our Stories as part of the Standing Guard Project’s examination of Japanese-American Internment during World War II. Subsequently, the Press produced the Sierra Foothills Nature Guide, a publication of the Sierra College Science Club, in 2004.
Building upon that foundation, the Sierra College Press is undergoing a transformation and expanding its role and function to provide a wide-ranging academic press and information outlet.
The Sierra College Press is the first complete academic press operated by a community college in the United States.
The mission of the Sierra College Press is to inform and inspire scholars, students, and general readers by disseminating ideas, knowledge, and academic scholarship of value concerning the Sierra Nevada region. The Sierra College Press endeavors to reach beyond the library, laboratory, and classroom to promote and examine this unique geography.
The Sierra College Press has three elements: first, the publication of trade books for the general public; second, the production of scholarly monographs and academic journals; and, finally, a website presence that provides a digital archive or additional information on the remarkable history, natural history, and culture of the Sierra Nevada region.
As the first trade publication of the new Sierra College Press, an anthology on the Sierra Nevada is under development. This sweeping investigation of the Range of Light includes literary descriptions of the Sierra Nevada from the earliest native cultures to the present. The selections also include contemporary accounts and descriptions from those who have recently visited and been inspired by the Sierra experience. And, in the final section, there are specially written essays describing visions of the Sierra Nevada future provided by experts in the field.