Washington County Community College

Washington County Community College ("WCCC"), founded in 1969, is located in Calais, a small city and rural community on the international border between the United States and New Brunswick, Canada. The college has modern classrooms, labs, and residential buildings situated on a hillside overlooking the St. Croix River, a tidal river. It is within walking distance of Calais, about a mile from the center of town and shopping. The college is located on a 400-acre campus of woods, fields, and outdoor adventures. Housing on campus is apartment-style with accommodations for up to 5 students per unit. Residential students are required to purchase a meal plan that provides one balanced dinner per day. A snack bar provides breakfast as well. Apartments have small kitchens for students who wish to prepare the remaining meals, and residential life staff provides cooking classes. St. Croix Hall house an auditorium for concerts, presentations, and other community activites as well as a gymnasium with basketball, volleyball, and a state of the art rock climbing wall. One of Maine's best snow mobile trails is located behind the residence halls, providing miles of outstanding winter recreation opportunities including snowshoeing and x-country skiing. the Outdoor Adventure Center located in the residential complex has a range of equipment available for student use, from kayaks to canoes and camping gear to mountain bikes for spring, summer and fall.

The college currently offers 28 programs of study at the associate degree, diploma, and certificate levels. Certificates are "stackable", students have the option to gain skills in a specific technical area and return for a subsequent year to obtain another technical certificate in order to maximize employment opportunities by becoming multi-skilled technicians. Technical and career programs provide both in-class instruction and practical skill development taught in laboratories and clinical/training sites. Application-based learning in real life situations is the hallmark of this instruction. For example, Heavy Equipment Operations students develop skills in equipment operations by working in the Moosehorn Wildlife Refuge adjacent to the college; and construction trades students train on actual projects for non-profit organizations in the community.

A wide range of credit and non-credit courses are also offered in the evening, during the summer term, and through various electronic delivery methods such as the internet. Programs are designed to provide the technical knowledge and skills as well as the essential general education with which to pursue a career after graduation. The Liberal Studies program offers students the opportunity to obtain the first two years of a baccalaureate credential at WCCC before transferring to another college or university. WCCC has a number of program transfer agreements with four-year institutions throughout Maine to assist students to transfer upon meeting the necessary course requirements.

WCCC is one of seven community colleges that operate under the authority of the Maine Community College System and the State of Maine. WCCC is a non-profit, residential, post-secondary institution supported, in part, by appropriations from the Maine State Legislature. Members of the college community are proud of the education provided at WCCC and look forward to many more years of providing quality post-secondary education at Washington County Community College.