West Virginia University at Parkersburg is a public college located in Parkersburg, West Virginia, United States. It is a stand-alone college with its own board of governors and degree granting authority, separate from WVU. Conceived as a community college to serve seven counties in west central West Virginia, it now offers some baccalaureate programs. It is the largest community college in West Virginia and the state's fifth largest public college with over 4,300 students. WVU Parkersburg is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The college was founded in 1961 as the Parkersburg Branch of West Virginia University. It became Parkersburg Community College (PCC) in 1971 and was originally governed by the West Virginia Board of Regents. In a reorganization of the state's higher education governance structure in 1989, the West Virginia Legislature enacted S.B. 420 which, among other initiatives, renamed PCC as West Virginia University at Parkersburg, designated it a regional campus of WVU, and transferred its governance to the newly-formed University of West Virginia Board of Trustees.