About Us

The College

Three Rivers College is one of 12 public, two-year institutions established under the Missouri Junior College Act of 1961. The College serves a 14-county area of nearly 10,000 square miles that encompasses the Southeast Missouri counties of Bollinger, Butler, Carter, Dunklin, Howell, Mississippi, New Madrid, Oregon, Pemiscot, Reynolds, Ripley, Scott, Stoddard, and Wayne.

The College taxing district is comprised of the following school districts: Poplar Bluff R-I, Neelyville R-IV, and Twin Rivers R-X in Butler County; Van Buren R-I and East Carter County R-II in Carter County; Doniphan R-I, Naylor R-II, Ripley County R-III, and Ripley County R-IV in Ripley County; and Clearwater R-I and Greenville R-II in Wayne County.

College History

Three Rivers College was founded April 5, 1966, when citizens of the Southeast Missouri counties of Butler, Carter, Ripley, and Wayne voted into existence the College District. The College opened storefront facilities in downtown Poplar Bluff, Missouri, with 138 students in the summer of 1967. Today, Three Rivers enrolls thousands of students at locations throughout Southeast Missouri, including an 80-acre campus and workforce training lab in Poplar Bluff; full-service locations in Dexter, Kennett, and Sikeston; and other locations. Programs include college transfer, career-technical, transitional, continuing education, and workforce training.

Vision Statement

Three Rivers College will be the preeminent, cutting-edge community of learners with a student-first focus, and will operate as a vibrant, dynamic catalyst for the creation of opportunities that foster learning and student success.

Mission Statement

Three Rivers College inspires, prepares, and empowers students to succeed through open access to high-quality learning opportunities that meet the needs of the communities we serve.
Commitments that inform the mission:

Open access to educational programs to prepare students for transfer to a four-year baccalaureate institution, as well as programs of career and technical education to prepare students for entry or advancement in the global workforce.
Comprehensive academic services, learning resources, basic skills development, and educational opportunities for students of diverse cultural, socioeconomic, and academic backgrounds.
Support services and student activities to enhance individual growth and academic potential.
Collaborative partnerships to develop specialized programs that meet the changing needs of business and industry, government, secondary schools, and other colleges and universities.
Lifelong learning opportunities for individuals who wish to improve job performance, develop new skills, or pursue personal interests.
Community services that support and encourage the economic, civic, and cultural vitality of the region.

Go to College Mission for more information.

Core Values

Commitment to Learning

We provide exemplary learning opportunities and maintain the highest standards through continuous improvement.

Hardworking

We are dedicated to working more diligently, smartly, creatively, and innovatively.

Honesty and Integrity

We honor our commitment to the College mission as we hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards in all operations.

Quality

We take decisive action to shape the future in order to fulfill our commitment to excellence.

Respect

We value the worth of individuals from all backgrounds and treat coworkers and members of the community with courtesy and dignity.

Strategic Plan

ENGAGE 2030

The Three Rivers College Strategic Planning Steering Committee developed the following strategic themes of ENGAGE 2030 to guide planning and direct resources to fulfill the mission. The focus areas of the strategic plan are Innovation, Institutional Sustainability, Instructional Excellence and Relevance, and Student Success. The plan is organized into the following five strategic themes:
Operational Infrastructure for a Sustainable Future; Community Connection and Impact; Collaborations for Student Success; Create a Culture of Student Engagement; and Enhance Data Informed Practices. The planning process is systematically designed to create a dynamic continuous improvement cycle that aligns annual priorities for planning, allocating appropriate resources based on data-informed decision-making, implementing initiatives, and assessing the effectiveness of those initiatives to annually close the loop. Student success is at the heart of all planning at Three Rivers College. The Board of Trustees adopted the strategic plan by unanimous vote on January 22, 2025.

Theme: Operational Infrastructure for a Sustainable Future

Initiative: Respond to the educational needs of students and employees to ensure an organizational environment which promotes success through effective and efficient operations.

Strategies:

Create a work culture to foster growth of potential, fully supported by professional development opportunities to increase knowledge and skills.
Design a seamless learning experience for students that considers all available platforms, modalities, and support to enhance student learning.
Develop an infrastructure (policies, guidelines, training, etc.) to support the ethical use of new technologies (i.e., Artificial Intelligence) in support of the curriculum and in College operations.
Enhance the quality of online instruction and programming through improved organizational infrastructure.
Ensure quality instruction through evaluating processes (i.e.: curriculum, program assessment, etc.) to add efficiency while strengthening the processes.
Evaluate LMS options for improved online functionality and course design.
Evaluate the use of electronics in the classroom: laptops, tablets, phones, etc.
Evaluate workload responsibilities to ensure positions are balanced for optimal productivity.
Explore and adopt technologies that enhance learning and operations.
Formalize evaluation processes for functional areas that address improved infrastructure, facilities, and equipment for better alignment and student success.
Improve communication across departments.
Improve onboarding, guidelines, and mentorships for new employees.
Increase the use of interdepartmental teams to collaborate on College initiatives and share results and use of results for improvement.
Leverage myTRCC information portal to expand its use.
Provide appropriate technology support for students.
Repurpose underutilized space for students, faculty, and staff.

Theme: Community Connect and Impact

Initiative: Reinforce the alignment of the College with the community through partnerships seeking to further embed the College in our service area’s culture and build a better community for all.

Strategies:

Create more donor and scholarship opportunities.
Enhance marketing to capitalize on online content through website visibility, using accurate and current content as a strategy that expands reach to increase program enrollment.
Enhance relationships with local communities and entities, (i.e.: libraries, schools, civic organizations, community groups, etc.).
Focus on campus beautification to enhance the “wow factor impact” and instill College pride.
Improve and expand alumni relations.
Increase the number of small-scale community educational events and use of College facilities for improved student enrollment.
Provide educational opportunities that address community needs through community organizations.
Systematically highlight alumni and current student success stories and testimonials.

Theme: Collaborations for Student Success

Initiative: Collaborate with faculty and staff as well as business and industry partners to build a workforce for the future by educating students in areas of need.

Strategies

Create programs in areas of high labor market demand.
Design a comprehensive enrollment management plan that considers future community growth and development.
Design an educational, fun, and inviting student life program that creates a sense of campus community which promotes balanced health approaches and provides life skills experiences.
Develop an internal retention-focused marketing campaign.
Enhance career services to connect College programs, faculty, College advisors, and students to ensure career readiness, improved program completion, and job placement.
Enhance partnerships with high schools and Career Technology Centers to align dual credit educational systems designed to improve student learning, outcomes, and outputs.
Evaluate institutional practices, policies and regulations, as well as procedures and processes, to eliminate unnecessary barriers for students.
Improve advising to systematically include all relevant parties with appropriate roles and responsibilities as part of a comprehensive advising and retention plan.
Increase collaboration with faculty, advisors, and student life staff to strategize application of student services focused on retaining “at-risk students” through seminars/activities (i.e.: money management, job interview skills, etc.).
Increase student access to internships, apprenticeships, and work-based learning experiences.

Theme: Create a Culture of Student Engagement

Initiative: Ensure student retention through inclusive student engagement activities and events to provide the tools and skills necessary for students to succeed.

Strategies:

Address high withdrawal rates of students with emphasis on ACAD 101 and Developmental Course retention and success.
Align curriculum in all modalities as appropriate.
Allocate funds to enhance quality instruction and student support.
Enhance the faculty mentor program to ensure adjuncts are fully informed and involved in the academic process and to ensure appropriate engagement and instructional methodologies.
Ensure the technological competency of students.
Evaluate the course scheduling and location options for improved enrollment, retention, and student engagement
Increase “Regular and Substantive Interaction” (RSI) between faculty and students and ensure RSI is integrated in the design of all new and existing distance courses.
Increase housing and Division II athletic opportunities for students.
Involve faculty and staff to create a campus culture focused on student engagement which includes a broad range of knowledge and skills.
Maximize timely academic services that engage students before they fail or withdraw.
Provide professional development opportunities in educational delivery methods, teaching methods, student engagement and other pedagogical/andragogical methods in the learning environment.
Provide substantive and timely feedback to students to improve engagement.
Showcase TRC students to enhance and cultivate an appreciation of our students’ success.

Theme: Enhance Data Informed Practices for Improved Outcomes

Initiative: Implement targeted approaches to planning that focus on student retention and graduation strategies for potential growth and operational improvement.

Strategies:

Align interdepartmental operations through shared data approaches.
Assess training efforts and use results to promote and increase the value of College provided training.
Expand the inclusion of faculty and staff in planning and implementation of student recruitment efforts.
Implement a tracking system for professional development.
Improve student learning by taking definitive action to alter the curriculum and/or instructional methods based on academic assessment results and shown through the annual planning and assessment process.
Increase advisor knowledge of curriculum, programming, and transfer requirements for improved outcomes.
Increase student enrollment and retention through alignment of services, (i.e.: advising, career services, counseling, financial aid, tutoring and instruction).
Increase student participation in tutoring services
Provide faculty and staff appropriate data to enable effective collaboration for improved operations and student success.

Accreditation

Three Rivers College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (https://www.hlcommission.org/), located at 230 South LaSalle Street, Suite 7-500, Chicago, Illinois 60604, 800-621-7440 and the Missouri Department of Higher Education (dhe.mo.gov).

Three Rivers College has received approval and/or accreditation to offer the following programs (trcc.edu/about/accreditation/):

Education: Pre-professional teacher education programs are approved by the Missouri State Board of Education
Medical Laboratory Technician: The Medical Laboratory Technician program is accredited under the Missouri Health Professions Consortium MLT Program by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences.
Nursing: Associate Degree Nursing Program Poplar Bluff and Sikeston locations is accredited by the Accreditation Commission on Education in Nursing (ACEN) and fully approved by the Missouri State Board of Nursing.
Occupational Therapy Assistant: The Occupational Therapy Assistant Program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). This program is accredited under the Missouri Health Consortium.
Paramedic: The Three Rivers College Paramedic Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs upon the recommendation of
the Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the Emergency Medical Services Professionals. Three Rivers College is recognized by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Bureau of Emergency Medical Services as an accredited EMS training entity.
Practical Nursing: The Practical Nursing program is fully approved by the Missouri State Board of Nursing.
Respiratory Care Program : The Respiratory Care Program is accredited under the Missouri Health Profession Consortium and is provisionally accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC)
Surgical Technology: Three Rivers Surgical Technology Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (www.caahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA)

Distance Learning

As a participant of State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (SARA), Three Rivers College is authorized to offer its online courses and degrees to students residing in other SARA participating states. SARA has no effect upon professional licensing requirements.

Go to Policies and Regulations for more information