Central California
Central California is generally thought of as the middle third of the U.S. state, of California, north of Southern California, which includes Los Angeles, and south of Northern California, which includes San Francisco. It includes the northern portion of the San Joaquin Valley (which itself is the southern portion of the Central Valley, beginning at the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta), part of the Central Coast, the central hills of the California Coast Ranges and the foothills and mountain areas of the central Sierra Nevada. Central California is considered to be west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada. East of the Sierra is Eastern California. The largest cities in the region (over 50,000 population), from most to least populous, are Fresno, Bakersfield, Stockton, Modesto, Salinas, Visalia, Clovis, Santa Maria, Merced, Turlock, Madera, Lodi, Tulare, Porterville, Hanford and Delano. Over time, droughts and wildfires have increased in frequency and become less seasonal and more year-round, further straining the region's water security. Geography Central California can have widely varying definitions depending on the context. Some divide the state by lines of latitude making northern, central and southern sections. Others divide by county lines or watershed boundaries. Some definitions include more of the San Joaquin Valley and even larger portions of the Central Valley. Some have less or none of Central Coast. Counties Central California as defined above includes the following 10 counties: Fresno Kings Madera Mariposa Merced Monterey San Benito Stanislaus Tulare Tuolumne The following counties are partially contained within central California: Calaveras Kern San Joaquin San Luis Obispo Santa Barbara Santa Cruz Cities Area cities and towns listed below are major regional centers or county seats. Bakersfield Delano Fresno Hanford Hollister Lemoore Lodi Lompoc Madera Mariposa Merced Modesto Monterey Pismo Beach Paso Robles Porterville Salinas San Luis Obispo Santa Maria Selma Sonora Stockton Tulare Turlock Visalia Watsonville Sub-regions The following regions are entirely contained within central California: Big Sur Kings Canyon National Park Metropolitan Fresno Pinnacles National Park Salinas Valley San Joaquin Valley Sequoia National Park Yosemite National Park The following regions are partially contained within central California: California Coast Ranges Central Coast Diablo Range Gold Country Santa Barbara County Santa Cruz County Sierra Nevada Mountains Tehachapi Mountains Education Central California has opened two new universities recently, one in each of the past two decades. The University of California has one campus in the region. University of California, Merced opened on a newly constructed site on the east side of Merced in 2005. The California State University system has four campuses in the region. California State University, Monterey Bay opened on the site of the former Fort Ord army base in 1994. California State University, Stanislaus in Turlock opened in 1957. California State University, Fresno opened in 1911. The Monterey Institute of International Studies is a graduate school that offers eleven master's degree programs in international policy, international management, language teaching, and translation and interpretation. The Monterey Institute of International Studies is a graduate school of Middlebury College. San Joaquin College