 | |
| Type | Public community college |
|---|---|
| Established | August 15, 1989 |
| President | Dr. Dennis C. Rittle |
| Students | 9,475 (Fall 2022) |
| Location | , , United States 36°21′30″N94°10′21″W / 36.35824°N 94.17249°W |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Mascot | Eagles |
| Website | www.nwacc.edu |
NorthWest Arkansas Community College (NWACC) is a public community college with its main campus in Bentonville, Arkansas. Total enrollment for the fall semester of 2018 was 8,308. [1]
NWACC was founded by voters in the Bentonville and Rogers Public School Districts on August 15, 1989, when they passed by a 65-percent margin a 3-mill property tax to support the new institution. NWACC opened its doors to 1,200 students in August 1990 and has in excess of 8,300 college credit students (Fall 2018), making it one of the largest and fastest growing two-year colleges in Arkansas. An additional 7,000 students are served by non-credit courses throughout the service area. [2] [3] [1]
In the early days, NWACC was known as the "College without walls" because it solved the problem of not having enough "bricks and mortar" funding to build classrooms by conducting classes in a variety of buildings throughout the community. [4]
Faculty often had to transport learning materials, equipment, and even laboratory specimen in their personal vehicles from one location to another to meet with students.
Northwest Arkansas Community College offers many areas of study leading to associate degrees. [5] and also provides the option to take online classes. NWACC is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. [6] As of 2019 NWACC operates a Transition Academic Program with the University of Arkansas to allow students to enroll, take courses and share credits at both schools, while simultaneously pursuing an associate degree at NWACC and a bachelor's degree at the University of Arkansas. [7]
The main campus of Northwest Arkansas Community College is located directly off of highway I-49. The main campus includes ShewMaker Center for Global Business Development, [8] Center for Health Professions, [9] and a nature preserve.
After beginning as the culinary program within NWACC, Brightwater was officially launched in early 2017 as separate operational entity, while still being a part of NWACC. The college is known for its emphasis on local food culture and the development of the "High South Cuisine" concept, which focuses on local, farm to table approach. [10]
Brightwater officially opened in the 8th Street Market district of Bentonville within a former Tyson Foods chicken processing plant, allowing the enrollment to grow from a few dozen students to a maximum of 350. [11]
The Brightwater facility and the 8th Street Market won the American Institute of Architects Central Excellence in Design award for 2017. [12]
The Washington County Center in Springdale opened in 2019, consolidating operations from other sites in Springdale and Farmington at the new building near Arvest Ballpark and Arkansas Children's Hospital Northwest. The Washington County Center site in west Springdale was selected to improve access for the 36% of NWACC students residing in Washington County, as well as Siloam Springs students. The new building contains 14 classrooms, three labs, and an event space. A nursing simulation lab will increase the size of the nursing program. [13]
There are 23 registered student organizations on campus including honor societies, business, special interest, religious, international and cultural organizations, and many more. The Student Government Association (SGA) is the student body leadership organization which aims to represent both NWACC and NWACC students. Members host several student events each year, are student advocates, and also work with NWACC staff, faculty, administration to help make the student experience better.
Washington County is a regional economic, educational, and cultural hub in the Northwest Arkansas region. Created as Arkansas's 17th county on November 30, 1848, Washington County has 13 incorporated municipalities, including Fayetteville, the county seat, and Springdale. The county is also the site of small towns, bedroom communities, and unincorporated places. The county is named for George Washington, the first President of the United States.
Bentonville is the 9th most populous city in Arkansas, United States and the county seat of Benton County. The city is centrally located in the county with Rogers adjacent to the east. The city is the birthplace of and world headquarters location of Walmart, the world's largest retailer. It is one of the four main cities in the three-county Northwest Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ranked 105th in terms of population in the United States with 546,725 residents in 2020, according to the United States Census Bureau. The city itself had a population of 54,164 at the 2020 Census, an increase of 53% from the 2010 Census. Bentonville is considered to be one of the fastest growing cities in the state and consistently ranks amongst the safest cities in Arkansas. It is included in the Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Centerton is a city in Benton County, Arkansas, United States. Located west of Bentonville on Highway 102, Centerton has grown from a railroad stop and fruit orchard community in the early 20th century into a suburban bedroom community within the rapidly growing Northwest Arkansas (NWA) region. The city's population has grown from 491 in 1990 to 16,244 in 2019. Centerton is considered to be one of the fastest growing cities in Arkansas and consistently ranks amongst the most safest cities in the state.
Springdale is the 4th most populous city in Arkansas, United States. It is located in both Washington and Benton counties in Northwest Arkansas. Located on the Springfield Plateau deep in the Ozark Mountains, Springdale has long been an important industrial city for the region. In addition to several trucking companies, the city is home to the world headquarters of Tyson Foods, the world's largest meat producing company. Originally named Shiloh, the city changed its name to Springdale when applying for a post office in 1872. It is included in the four-county Northwest Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ranked 102nd in terms of population in the United States with 546,725 in 2020 according to the United States Census Bureau. The city had a population of 84,161 at the 2020 Census.
Fayetteville is the 2nd most populous city in Arkansas, the county seat of Washington County, and the most populous city in Northwest Arkansas. The city is on the outskirts of the Boston Mountains, deep within the Ozarks. Known as Washington until 1829, the city was named after Fayetteville, Tennessee, from which many of the settlers had come. It was incorporated on November 3, 1836, and was rechartered in 1867. Fayetteville is included in the three-county Northwest Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ranked 100th in terms of population in the United States with 576,403 in 2022 according to the United States Census Bureau. The city had a population of 99,285 in 2022.
Strayer University is a private for-profit university headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1892 as Strayer's Business College and later became Strayer College, before being granted university status in 1998.
Alice Louise Walton is an American heiress to the fortune of Walmart as daughter of founder Sam Walton. In September 2016, she owned over US$11 billion in Walmart shares. As of November 2023, Walton has a net worth of $71 billion, making her the 17th richest person and the second-richest woman in the world according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, after Françoise Bettencourt Meyers. In the spring of 2023, Forbes estimated her fortune at $56.7 billion and moved her to third on the list of the richest women.
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is a public health sciences university in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is part of the University of Arkansas System and consists of six colleges, seven institutes, several research centers, a statewide network of community education centers, and the UAMS Medical Center.
Marylhurst University was a private applied liberal arts and business university in Marylhurst, Oregon. It was among the oldest collegiate degree-granting institutions in Oregon, having awarded its first degree in 1897. Marylhurst was founded as St. Mary's College and run for many years by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. The former campus is located about nine miles south of Portland, Oregon on the Willamette River. Although Marylhurst University was a Roman Catholic school, it served students of all faiths and backgrounds.
Green River College is a public community college with its main campus in Auburn, Washington. It has a student body of approximately 10,000. The college primarily awards associates degrees but also offers 9 bachelor's degrees.
Bentonville High School (BHS) is a public high school in Bentonville, Arkansas, United States. Founded in 1910, the school provides education for students in grades nine through twelve. It is one of two high schools of the Bentonville School District.
Peninsula College is a public community college in Port Angeles, Washington, on the Olympic Peninsula. It is part of the Washington Community and Technical Colleges system and offers a Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Management degree, transfer Associate degree programs, professional-technical degrees and certificates, community education courses, and pre-college courses. It also has distance education and online learning options.
South Puget Sound Community College is a public community college in southwest Olympia, Washington. The college contains 125 acres (0.51 km2) and is serving about 5,300 full and part-time students as of the fall 2020 quarter.
Bentonville Schools is a comprehensive community school district serving students in kindergarten through 12th grade from Bentonville, Arkansas, in Benton County. Bentonville Schools encompasses 141.54 square miles (366.6 km2) of land, including most of Bentonville, and portions of Bella Vista, Cave Springs, Centerton, Gravette, Highfill, Little Flock, Rogers, and Springdale.
Oregon College of Art and Craft (OCAC) was a private art college in Portland, Oregon. It granted Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees as well as art-focused certificates. The college offered an Artist-in-Residence program and provided continuing education in the arts to the local community. It was founded by Julia Christiansen Hoffman, a photographer, painter, sculptor, metal worker and weaver, out of her desire to foster the Arts and Crafts movement through classes and exhibitions. The college closed at the end of the spring 2019 semester.
Har-Ber High School is a comprehensive public high school for grades ten through twelve serving the community of Springdale, Arkansas, United States. Har-Ber High School is the one of three high schools managed in Washington County by Springdale Public Schools; others being Springdale High School, and the Don Tyson School of Innovation. The school was established in 2005.
Northwest Arkansas (NWA) is a metropolitan area and region in Arkansas within the Ozark Mountains. It includes four of the ten largest cities in the state: Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers, and Bentonville, the surrounding towns of Benton and Washington counties, and adjacent rural Madison County, Arkansas. The United States Census Bureau-defined Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Statistical Area includes 3,213.01 square miles (8,321.7 km2) and 576,403 residents, ranking NWA as the 100th most-populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. and the 13th fastest growing in the United States.
Arkansas State University-Beebe is a public community college in Arkansas.
Megan Cardwell Godfrey is an American educator and politician who served in the Arkansas House of Representatives from the 89th district from 2019 to 2023. She is a member of the Democratic Party.
There is a population of Marshallese people in Northwest Arkansas, concentrated in Springdale.
