About the College
Where Community Meets Opportunity
Mission, Vision, & Values
Mission
Dutchess Community College offers access to a broad range of learning opportunities and experiences to meet the educational needs of a diverse community.
Vision
We empower our community to achieve their intellectual, economic and creative capacities to contribute as informed and engaged members of our society.
Values
Excellence, Collaboration, Engagement, Equity, Innovation
About DCC
Dutchess Community College was founded in 1957 and enrolled its first class in 1958. The College is located in the Town of Poughkeepsie in Dutchess County on the east side of the Hudson River, approximately 70 miles north of New York City. It is part of the State University of New York system, one of 30 community colleges within SUNY. A beautiful suite-style residence hall opened in 2012 to meet the needs of students interested in enjoying an on-campus living experience.
The College offers a wide variety of university-parallel programs, as well as career programs in major technical, human service, and business areas. Students may study either part-time or full-time, online or on-campus, and have at their disposal an excellent library, science and computer laboratories, art studios, a field station for the study of environmental problems, and state-of-the-art facilities for a variety of other curricula.
Most important to a college’s learning environment is its faculty. Dutchess Community College’s excellent academic reputation has enabled it to attract outstanding, engaged faculty to campus. Because DCC is primarily a teaching institution, the aim of its faculty is to provide the best possible educational opportunity to all students in all programs. A favorable student/faculty ratio ensures that students will not be just a face in the crowd, as does the faculty’s involvement in the academic advising of students. In sum, Dutchess is a place where students grow and work under the direction of a highly qualified faculty.
The academic services of the College are multi-faceted. Students with a wide diversity of backgrounds and interests are enrolled and are offered a wide range of academic opportunities. Honors courses are available to those students prepared for more demanding academic challenges.
College academic staff constantly evaluates programs, standards and courses to make certain that all programs represent current academic, business and professional practice and are effective and responsive to student needs. Whether your goal is transfer, entry into the job market, personal enrichment, or just the satisfaction of fulfilling intellectual curiosity, you will be able to find an appropriate course of study at Dutchess Community College.
Statement on Nondiscrimination
Dutchess Community College (DCC) is committed to the principle of equal opportunity in education and employment and does not engage in unlawful discrimination based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence or dating violence victim status, or criminal conviction in the execution of its educational programs, activities, employment, daily operations or admission policies, in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local laws. These laws include the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as Amended by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, and the New York State Human Rights Law.
Employees, students, applicants or other members of the College community (including but not limited to vendors, visitors, and guests) may not be subjected to harassment that is prohibited by law, or treated adversely or retaliated against based upon a protected characteristic. The College will not tolerate any form of sexual harassment including sexual assault, sexual violence, and sexual misconduct. It is therefore the responsibility and obligation of all members of the College community to report and or to assist others in reporting incidents of sexual harassment. All members of the College community are expected to cooperate and assist in investigations related to such incidents.
DCC’s Title IX Coordinator oversees the investigation of claims of violations of the College's policy of non-discrimination and prohibition of sexual harassment and assault.
Reporting
Reports of violations and or inquiries regarding the application of Title IX and other laws, regulations and policies prohibiting discrimination may be directed to:
Title IX Coordinator
Dutchess Community College
53 Pendell Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Email: TitleIX@sunydutchess.edu
Alternatively, reports or inquiries may be directed to:
The Office of the Dean of Student Services and Enrollment Management
SSC, Room 304
Dutchess Community College
53 Pendell Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
(845) 431-8974
Inquiries or complaints regarding the College's procedures and compliance with applicable laws, statutes, and regulations may also be directed to:
United States Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights
32 Old Slip 26th Floor
New York, NY 10005-2500
(646) 428-3800
OCR.NewYork@ed.gov
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-1100
Customer Service Hotline: (800) 421-3481 TDD (877) 521-2172
OCR@ed.gov
http://www.ed.gov/ocr
The College Campus
Situated on beautifully landscaped grounds on Pendell Road in the Town of Poughkeepsie, the main campus consists of approximately 140 acres. The major buildings that make up the main campus are open to students from 7:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. during the regular academic year when classes are in session. For a map of the campus and parking areas, click here.
The Allyn J. Washington Center for Science and Art houses state-of-the-art science, mathematics and art classrooms, and faculty offices for the Allied Health and Biological Sciences, Mathematics, Physical and Computer Sciences and Visual Arts departments. The Center also is home to the Mildred I. Washington Art Gallery.
Bowne Hall houses the Office of the President, the Office of Instruction & Learning, the Business Office, the Office of Marketing & Communications and the DCC Foundation. It also is home to the Office of Workplace Development & Continuing Education, which provides non-credit classes as well as training programs for business.
Center for Business and Industry provides classroom and laboratory space for the computer information systems program and the nursing program, as well as two large television studios and other production facilities for the communications and media arts program. Also included are the Telecommunications and Instructional Media Department and Information Systems Office and the Help Desk.
Drumlin Hall houses the College’s dining facilities, which include the Louis Greenspan Dining Room and the Handel Family Dining and Conference Room.
Dutchess Hall contains the Office of Student Activities, the Student Government Association office, the Francis U. Ritz Lounge and the James and Betty Hall Theatre. It also has classrooms, practice rooms, and offices for the Department of Performing, Visual Arts and Communications. The College Bookstore, offering textbooks, educational supplies and selected merchandise, also is housed in Dutchess Hall.
Falcon Hall contains classrooms, the gymnasium, a dance studio, the Phil Arnold Fitness Center and other activity areas designed for health and physical education instruction.
Hudson Hall provides classrooms, studios, laboratories and faculty offices for the following departments: Behavioral Sciences; English and Humanities; and History, Government and Economics.
The Francis U. and Mary F. Ritz Library is housed in Hudson Hall and is described in greater detail in the Academic Services section.
The Orcutt Student Services Center houses all student services offices, including Admissions, the ACT Center (academic advising), Counseling, the Registrar, Student Financial Services, Office of Enrollment and Student Success, Health Center and Campus Security.
Taconic Hall provides classrooms and laboratories for instruction as well as faculty offices in the following areas: Business, Aviation and Construction Technologies; Behavioral Sciences; and Engineering Technology.
Additional Sites
Accessibility to the College’s programs and services is enhanced through the availability of instructional sites other than the main campus in Poughkeepsie. While the College will offer courses at any acceptable site where a class of students is located, it does have additional locations where courses and services are offered every semester. A new, state-of-the-art extension site, DCC @ Fishkill, is located at the intersection of Route 9 and Interstate 84 at 461 Route 9, Fishkill. The site is particularly attractive to people who work or live in southern Dutchess and northern Putnam counties. Additionally, DCC @ HVR Airport, located on the busy Hudson Valley Regional Airport, offers an immersion experience in a state-of-the art Aviation Education Center for students enrolled in DCC’s aviation programs. Finally, DCC @ The Partnership, located at the Family Partnership Center on North Hamilton Street in the City of Poughkeepsie, offers convenient access to essential services like ESL classes and high school equivalency programs.
On-Campus Housing
DCC is proud to be the only community college in our region to offer on-campus housing, allowing students to combine the quality and affordability of a DCC education with the experience of living away at college.
The fully furnished, contemporary suites in Conklin Hall feature large bedrooms; two bathrooms; kitchenette with sink, microwave and refrigerator; and living room. Building amenities include a multi-purpose atrium, lounges on each floor and laundry facilities. Designed for student safety, comfort and convenience, the residence hall is located close to academic buildings and adjacent to parking lot D.
Students from counties other than Dutchess and Putnam must have a high school average of at least 75. Those who do not meet the academic requirements may attend DCC but not live on campus until completing at least one full-time semester and demonstrating satisfactory progress. Students transferring from another college must have a 2.0 GPA to be considered for housing.
For more information please visit www.sunydutchess.edu/housing, email academichousing@sunydutchess.edu or call (845) 790-3676.
Smoking Policy
Dutchess Community College is a smoke- and tobacco-free campus. Smoking is prohibited in all College buildings and on all College grounds. The policy applies to any cigarette, e-cigarette, cigar, pipe, or other device that emits toxic smoke or vapors. The policy applies to all College employees, students, visitors and vendors, and all College personnel have shared responsibility for enforcing the policy.
State University of New York
The State University’s 64 geographically dispersed campuses bring educational opportunity within commuting distance of virtually all New York citizens and comprise the nation’s largest, centrally managed system of public higher education.
When founded in 1948, the University consolidated 29 state-operated, but unaffiliated, institutions. In response to need, the University has grown to a point where its impact is felt educationally, culturally and economically throughout the state.
Nearly 400,000 students are pursuing traditional study in classrooms or are working at home, at their own pace, through Empire State College, whose students follow individualized and often non-traditional paths
to a degree. Of the total enrollment, more than 100,000 students are 24 years or older, reflecting State University’s services to specific constituencies, such as refresher courses for the professional community, continuing educational opportunities for returning service personnel and personal enrichment for more mature persons.
State University’s research contributions are helping to solve some of modern society’s most urgent problems. It was a State University scientist who first warned the world of potentially harmful mercury deposits in canned fish, and another who made the connection between automobile and industrial exhaust combining to cause changes in weather patterns. Other University researchers continue important studies in such wide-ranging areas as immunology, marine biology, sickle-cell anemia and organ transplantation.
More than 1,000 public service activities are currently being pursued on State University campuses. Examples of these efforts include special training courses for local government personnel, state civil service personnel and the unemployed; participation by campus personnel in joint community planning or project work and campus- community arrangements for community use of campus facilities.
A distinguished faculty includes nationally and internationally recognized figures in all the major disciplines. Their efforts are recognized each year in the form of such prestigious awards as Fulbright-Hays, Guggenheim and Danforth Fellowships. The University offers a wide diversity of what are considered the more conventional career fields, such as business, engineering, medicine, teaching, literature, dairy farming, medical technology, accounting, social work, forestry and automotive technology. Additionally, its responsiveness to progress in all areas of learning and to tomorrow’s developing societal needs has resulted in concentrations which include pollution, urban studies, computer science, immunology, preservation of national resources and microbiology.
SUNY programs for the educationally and economically disadvantaged have become models for delivering better learning opportunities to a once-forgotten segment of society. Educational Opportunity Centers offer high school equivalency and college preparatory courses to provide young people and adults with the opportunity to begin college or to learn marketable skills. In addition, campus-based Education Opportunity Programs provide counseling, developmental education and financial aid to disadvantaged students in traditional degree programs.
Overall, at its EOC’s, two-year colleges, four-year campuses and university and medical centers, the University offers 3,600 academic programs. Degree opportunities range from two-year associate programs to doctoral studies offered at 12 senior campuses.
The 30 two-year community colleges operating under the program of State University play a unique role in the expansion of educational opportunity. They provide local industry with trained technicians in a wide variety of occupational curriculums, and offer transfer options to students who wish to go on and earn advanced degrees.
During its brief history, State University has graduated more than 1 million students, the majority of whom are pursuing their careers in communities across the state.
State University is governed by a Board of Trustees, appointed by the governor, which directly determines the policies to be followed by the 34 state-supported campuses. Community colleges have their own local boards of trustees whose relationship to the SUNY board is denied by law. The state contributes one-third to 40 percent of their operating cost and one-half of their capital costs.
For more information about SUNY visit www.suny.edu.
Accreditations
Dutchess Community College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. It is a member of the American Association of Community Colleges, the International/ Intercultural Consortium of the AACC, and a founding member of the Association of Colleges of the Mid-Hudson area. Its curricula are approved by the State University of New York and registered by the State Education Department.
Academic Program Accreditations
- Nursing: The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), 3343 Peachtree Road NE, Suite 850, Atlanta, GA 30326, (404) 975-5000
- Clinical Laboratory Technician: National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS), 5600 N. River Road, Suite 720, Rosemont, IL, 60018; (773)714-8880
- Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic: Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (9355 -113th St. N, #7709, Seminole, FL 33775-7709, www.caahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professions (CoAEMSP) (8301 Lakeview Parkway, Suite 111-312, Rowlett, TX 75088; (214) 703-8445, www.coaemsp.org.)
The College is authorized to award certificates, and the Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, and Associate in Applied Science degrees as established by the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York.
The College is approved for recipients of New York State Scholarships for Veterans’ training.
The Louis Greenspan Day Care Center is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) (1313 L St. NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC, 20005; (202) 232-8777, www.naeyc.org.)
For additional information about actions and approvals by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, please see https://www.msche.org/institution/0305/.