Crowder College


Crowder College is a public community college in Neosho, Missouri. It serves the Community College District of Newton and McDonald counties in southwestern Missouri and other outlying areas. Established in 1963 on the grounds of the former Fort Crowder, the college grants certificates, diplomas, and associate degrees. Its name honors General Enoch Crowder, a prominent Missourian, soldier, and statesman, as well as the veterans of World War I, who received their training at Fort Crowder. The Longwell Museum, located in the Crowder College Elsie Plaster Community Center, has many displays and artifacts from the Fort Crowder days, when over 50,000 soldiers were stationed there. The school enrolled 4,398 in 2019.

Recognition

Crowder has achieved worldwide recognition for its innovative alternative energy program, under the direction of department chair Art Boyt. Crowder's solar team designed and built the first solar powered vehicle to successfully complete a coast to coast journey across the United States in 1984. Since then Crowder has continued to distinguish itself in world and national solar energy competitions, most recently the Solar Decathlon in Washington, D.C., where the solar house entry from Crowder was selected as the “People’s Choice” and placed 6th overall in the competition. Crowder was the only community college in the competition, and competed against some of the most prestigious universities in the world, including Carnegie Mellon University, Cornell University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, & Technische Universität Darmstadt. This award-winning house is now located on the Crowder campus. The Crowder campus includes a wind powered turbine supplying energy to the MARET Center.
Crowder College is accredited by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Coordinating Board for Higher Education. The College is also fully accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, a member of the North Central Association, and utilizes the Academic Quality Improvement Project as its accreditation approach. Program accreditations are in the Missouri State Board of Nursing, Teacher Education Certification, through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and the National Institute for Automotive Excellence.
Graduates of the Associate of Arts programs are admitted without examination to junior standing in all public universities and colleges in Missouri and many outside the state of Missouri. Crowder is an active member of the Missouri Community College Association and the American Association of Community Colleges.