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The West Virginia Encyclopedia
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The West Virginia Encyclopedia
Mountwest Community and Technical College, now an independent member of the Community and Technical College System of West Virginia, was founded in 1975 as Marshall Community College, a division of Marshall University. The name was changed to Marshall Community and Technical College in 1991 to reflect the technical nature of several of the programs offered by the institution. Under legislation passed in 2000, Marshall Community and Technical College sought independent accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and was accredited in 2003. Subsequent acts of the legislature mandated that by July 1, 2009, community and technical colleges which were components of West Virginia colleges and universities would gradually become independent institutions. As part of the separation, legislation signed by the governor in March 2010 approved a new name, Mountwest Community and Technical College. In 2009, Mountwest enrolled 2,999 students. In May 2010, the institution announced it had purchased a building on 5th Street in Huntington and that it planned to move from the Marshall University campus by August 2011.