Germanna Community College (GCC) is a community college in Virginia with campuses in Locust Grove, Fredericksburg, Stafford and Culpeper. Founded in 1970, it takes its name from Germanna, a settlement founded by Governor Alexander Spotswood for a group of German miners by the Rapidan River at what is now Germanna Ford. Germanna Community College is one of the twenty-three community colleges in Virginia that comprise the Virginia Community College System. The college serves the residents of Caroline, Culpeper, King George, Madison, Orange, Spotsylvania, and Stafford counties and the City of Fredericksburg. Accreditation Germanna Community College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges to award Associate's degrees. The college's Associate in Applied Science nursing program is accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission and both the Associate in Applied Science nursing and practical nursing certificate programs are approved by the Virginia Board of Nursing. Location and facilities Fredericksburg Area Campus in Spotsylvania The Fredericksburg Area Campus in Spotsylvania is located on seventy acres in Spotsylvania County near the intersection of Interstate 95 at Routes 1 and 17 South donated by the John T. Hazel family. Phase I of the Fredericksburg Area Campus opened January, 1997. The V. Earl Dickinson Building, a 76,000 square-foot facility, includes classrooms, laboratories, library, student lounge, bookstore, and offices for faculty and administrative staff to provide a full range of services to students. Phase II, The Workforce Development and Technology Center, a 40,000 square-foot building devoted to the use of technology for the delivery of instruction and advanced technology training programs, opened in October 2004. Phase III, opened in 2012, is a 50,000 square-feet providing laboratories, instructional resources, student services and more. Parking decks opened at the same time. Tennis courts, playing fields, nature trails, jogging paths, and picnic areas are planned for future development of the 70-acre campus. Locust Grove Campus The Locust Grove Campus is located on Route 3 midway between Culpeper and Fredericksburg. The campus consists of 100 wooded acres donated by the Germanna Foundation in 1969, adjacent to the Rapidan River in Orange County. The campus building of approximately 60,000 square feet includes classrooms, laboratories (including a state-of-the-art technologies laboratory), a wellness center, bookstore, administrative and faculty offices, a library, information services, business office, and student lounge. Outdoor facilities include tennis courts and a playing field, as well as nature trails, jogging paths, and a