(ABC/Lou Rocco)
MICHELLE COLLINS " data-credit="ABC" data-credit-link-back="undefined" src="http://o.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dims3/GLOB/crop/773x409+0+49/resize/660x350!/format/jpg/quality/85/http://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/1a8d5dc201ea0349689bdd4294c174d9/202287274/michelle+collins+the+view.jpg" data-mep="882130" />After popping up periodically on the program over the past few months, comedian The View."

ABC and the show announced on Monday that Collins was officially named the 15th co-host in the show's history, and will join the cast as a permanent member beginning during "The View"'s 19th season, which starts in September. Collins will still appear on the program for the rest of its summer run, before "The View" starts its hiatus in August.

"We've had so much fun hanging out with this young lady," Whoopi Goldberg said on Monday's show, calling Collins "amazing and very, very funny." Collins, who was greeted with a shower of confetti and thunderous applause from the crowd, said she was "so excited" for the opportunity, and praised her co-hosts Goldberg, Nicolle Wallace, Rosie Perez, and Raven-Symoné.

"I feel so lucky that I get to come here and spend this time with you," Collins told her tablemates, adding that everyone involved with the show, from the cast to the crew, was "unbelievable" and "so welcoming and wonderful and kind to me."

In a press release, "The View" creator and executive producer Barbara Walters praised the comedienne, noting that Collins "brings a fantastic energy and keen sense of humor to the program."

"Michelle can be both outrageous and thoughtful," Walters continued. "She is a welcome addition to 'The View' panel with her intelligence, quick wit and vast knowledge of pop culture."

Collins has been a television staple over the years, most recently hosting VH1's "Walk of Shame Shuttle," as well as appearing on "The Gossip Queens," "Big Morning Buzz Live," "Chelsea Lately," "Today," "The Wendy Williams Show," "The Tyra Banks Show," and "Kathy." She previously spent six years as managing editor of VH1's Best Week Ever (full disclosure: I absolutely adored that blog, and everything Michelle did on it; she's also hilarious on Twitter).

It remains to be seen what other changes "The View" has in store. Co-host Perez is leaving the show soon; Wallace's future on the syndicated series is also up in the air.

Comedian Michelle Collins officially joins us as a co-host—the 15th co-host in the history of 'The View'! Welcome, Michelle!

Posted by The View on Monday, July 13, 2015

[via: The View, ABC News, Deadline]

Photo credit: ABC/Lou Rocco