Northern New Mexico College, formerly known as Northern New Mexico Community College, is a two-year and four-year degree granting institution with campuses in Española and El Rito, New Mexico. It is known as NNMC, or more familiarly, simply as Northern.1
Northern is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools to grant associate's and bachelor's degrees.2 Its student body is predominantly Hispanic (74%) and the male-female ratio is male 37% / female 63%.3 It is a member of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU)4
Campuses
The Española campus is the main one and consists of a 30-acre (120,000 m2) tract extending from U.S. Highways 84 & 285 to the banks of the Rio Grande. It is approximately 25 miles (40 km) north of Santa Fe.5
The El Rito campus is located 25 miles (40 km) north of Española and is the older and smaller of the two.6 It is the home of the El Rito Heritage Retreat Center7 as well as Northern's Corporate Retreat Center.8
History
Northern was founded in El Rito in 1909 as the Spanish American Normal School with the original mission of providing teacher training for the area's Spanish speakers.9 In 1977 the college became Northern New Mexico Community College, the state's first designated community college and in 2005, it became Northern New Mexico College with the power to grant bachelor's degrees.
Least Expensive four-year college in the United States
Northern New Mexico College is the cheapest four-year school in America. It charges only $1,030 a year to in-state residents (outsiders pay $2,206).
