Public community college in Western North Carolina offering career and transfer programs since 1965.
Haywood Community College offers associate degree programs and certificates across 33+ programs of study organized into career clusters: Automotive & Manufacturing, Business Administration & Finance, Education & Human Services, Health Sciences, Natural Resources & Agriculture, Public Administration & Public Safety, and Creative Arts. Notable programs include Nursing, Fish and Wildlife Management Technology, Forestry Management Technology, Professional Crafts (clay, fiber, jewelry, wood), Criminal Justice Technology, and Computer-Integrated Machining. The college also operates the Joseph H. Nanney Regional High Technology Center with the Golden LEAF Advanced Machining Center for CAD/CAM training.
The 120-acre suburban campus in Clyde features an arboretum with over 1,000 trees, rhododendron and dahlia gardens, nature trails (expanded to 3+ miles in 2023), a working gristmill built by students, disc golf course, and a Moon Tree (seeds orbited the moon on Apollo 14). The college maintains 315,000+ square feet of buildings and 700 acres of instructional forest properties. Campus amenities include a library, bookstore, childcare center, small business center, and career services center. Trails are open 6am–11pm weekdays and 8am–7pm weekends.
The college participates in the NextNC Scholarship program, which covers tuition and fees for North Carolina residents from households earning $80,000 or less. HCC offers transfer pathways and operates Haywood Early College High School, a partnership enabling students to earn both a high school diploma and associate degree in four to five years. Career Services provides free support including resume writing, interview preparation, job search assistance, and career assessments for students and alumni.
Established in August 1965 with 39 nursing students, the college was initially housed in Patton School in Canton before moving to Clyde Elementary in 1966. Industrialist A.L. Freedlander donated seed money for the new campus with stipulations that it become beautifully landscaped and include a dahlia collection. The arboretum was formally established in 1977. In 2024, the Aspen Institute named HCC as one of 200 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence.