HENDERSON, Ky. – Henderson Community College’s focus on opening its doors widely to students and equipping them for higher wages and workforce success has gained national recognition, according to a news release. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education has named HCC as an Opportunity College for “Higher Access, Higher Earnings,” one of only 60 community colleges in the nation. In the 2023-24 academic year, 27% of HCC students were the first in their families to go to college, and 41% of students received Pell Grants. HCC students pay less than half the average of the state’s public universities. The Opportunity Colleges and Universities designation is part of a newly developed Student Access and Earnings Classification published by the Carnegie Foundation and the American Council on Education.