History of New River Community and Technical College

New River Community and Technical College is West Virginia's newest independently accredited institution of higher education. Founded July 1, 2003, by enactment of the WV Legislature, the college was independently accredited February 8, 2005, by the Higher Learning Commission of North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Although newly founded and named, the College's origins span more than one hundred thirty years of service to West Virginia through its two parent institutions, Bluefield State College and Glenville State College.

New River was created by combining the community and technical college components of Bluefield State College and Glenville State College, as mandated by HB 2224 and later refined by SB 448. Consequently, New River serves a nine-county area including Fayette, Greenbrier, Mercer, Monroe, Nicholas, Pocahontas, Raleigh, Summers, and Webster Counties.

Dedicated to improving the quality of life among citizens in southeastern and south-central West Virginia, New River provides comprehensive, quality higher education and workforce training programs and services that are financially, geographically, or electronically accessible and that meet the individual, business, and community needs of the diverse population in the College's nine county region of responsibility.

New River offers ten Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree programs; thirteen Associate in Science (A.S.) degree programs; one Associate in Arts (A.A.) degree; Collegiate Certificates; and Collegiate Skill Set Certificates. A number of the A.S. degree programs articulated with and transfer to four-year baccalaureate programs at Bluefield State and Glenville State Colleges, as well as other state-supported institutions. The A.A.S. degree programs, often considered the terminal degree for immediate employment, are offered in the areas of laboratory science, child care practitioner, paraprofessional in education, banking, emergency management, environmental science, and networking operating systems administration. Customized training and workforce development programs are offered as Collegiate Skill Set Certificates and include areas of phlebotomy, medical/dental front office specialist, medical transcriptionist, and industrial maintenance.

A multi-campus entity, headquartered at Beckley, West Virginia, New River combines tradition with innovation to meet the needs of its diverse service area. Combining a talented faculty with the latest in technological advances, the college provides a broad range of instructional methods, including distance learning and web-based courses. The College's four campus facilities bridge the latest in Inter-Active Network (IVN) technologies through its distance learning labs and through web-based instruction. In addition to the Beckley Campus, a full range of community college programs and services are offered at the Bluefield Campus (co-located on the campus of Bluefield State College), at the Greenbrier Valley Campus (located in Lewisburg), and at the Nicholas County Campus (located in Summersville).

New River's Center for Workforce and Business Development offers a variety of customized training and workforce development programs that address the training needs of employers within the College's designated service district. During the past decade, programs and training have been provided that impact more than 7,000 employees from more than sixty companies. Additionally, in partnership with local vocational centers, the Region 1 Workforce Investment Board, and other educational partners, New River designs customized certificate programs that emphasize industries and skills in which participants can obtain employment quickly and help to alleviate workforce shortages in critical industries that are targeted for growth and economic impact. These programs are designed specifically for adults with little or no postsecondary education, thus increasing adult access to higher education while providing training that is immediately relevant to the adult's employment goal.