Urdaneta City University (UCU) is a public university located in a 1.5-hectare land in San Vicente West, Urdaneta City, Philippines. It started as a rewarding concept of Dr. Pedro T. Orata, world-renowned educator and Ramon Magsaysay awardee to establish an educational complex that will provide basic education all the way through higher education in a single compound. Together with Mayor Amadeo R. Perez Jr., Dr. Orata founded UCU using the proceeds of the 1966 Town fiesta celebration. As an archetypal of the community colleges of the United States, the College started with an enrollment of one hundred 144 students, who came from the rural areas. The College, utilizing the facilities of Urdaneta City National High School (UCNHS) for its early years of operation, commenced with the provisional permit to open a two-year General Education course granted by the Secretary of Education on February 4, 1966. The Secretary further approved the program for Non-formal Education; hence, short-term courses in agriculture and retail business for adults were also offered to assist them in enhancing their earning capabilities.