CONCORD — Cabarrus College of Health Sciences will host a fall festival for the community on Saturday, Oct. 1, as the culminating event in a yearlong celebration of its 80th anniversary. The festival will be held from 9 a.m. to noon at the college, 401 Medical Park Drive in Concord, on the campus of Atrium Health Cabarrus. The event is free.

“We have spent the last year celebrating a remarkable milestone,” said Cabarrus College President Cam Cruickshank in a news release. “We have been developing healthcare leaders, educating future medical professionals and caring for our community for 80 years. This fall festival is our way of thanking and celebrating with everyone who has helped make that possible: our community, our students and staff, Atrium Health and of course our incredible Cabarrus College alumni.”

The Cabarrus College Fall Festival will offer activities for everyone, including alumni group photos, a 1-mile campus stroll, bounce house, doughnuts and cider, bingo, caricatures, face painting, music, photo booth, outdoor games, tours of the college and health screenings.

“We are so excited to invite the community onto our campus to share our anniversary celebration with us,” said Cruickshank. “It will be a wonderful opportunity for our alumni to connect with one another, for students and staff and their children to enjoy a beautiful fall day together, and for the community to have an opportunity to see our campus and learn about our college and its history.”

Cabarrus College of Health Sciences evolved from the Cabarrus County General Hospital School of Nursing, founded by Louise Harkey in 1942 to meet the demand for registered nurses after many local nurses were recruited for service during World War ll. Since then, the college has expanded its program offerings to include 16 degrees in 10 health science disciplines, added a number of bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and has become a part of Atrium Health, one of the nation’s largest healthcare systems. The college also recently partnered with the Cabarrus County School system and Atrium Health to launch the Cabarrus Health Sciences Institute (CHSI) in August. CHSI is a tuition-free, early college high school designed to help local students get a head start in their healthcare careers.

“Cabarrus College is fully invested in this community,” said Cruickshank. “For the last 80 years we’ve educated nurses and other healthcare professionals who’ve cared for generations of Cabarrus County residents. We are continuing to grow and add new programs that will enable us to keep doing that for the next 80 years. Our future is bright, and we look forward to sharing a day of celebration with the community.”

For more information about Cabarrus College’s 80th anniversary Fall Fest, visit CabarrusCollege.edu/FallFest.