Lees College

Lees College was founded on January 8, 1883 by Rev. John J. Dickey in Jackson, Kentucky. It started out as Jackson Academy and was an elementary and high school for the children of Breathitt County by Rev. Dickey from his idea to establish a high school every county in Eastern Kentucky due to the lack of secondary education in the region at the time.

Going through several name changes and battles with accreditation, it would become a private two-year liberal arts college serving the people of Appalachia and Eastern Kentucky under the affiliation of the Kentucky Synod. Also, it is one of the oldest higher education institutions in the region.

In 1996,Hazard Community College would acquire the college and is now used as an extended campus and HCTC's northern administrative hub. It is now known as Lees College Campus of Hazard Community and Technical College.

Lees College once grew to an average of 300–500 students per semester and has more than 10,000 alumni up until its acquisition by Hazard Community and Technical College.

Rev. John J. Dickey came to the small town of Jackson in November 1882 in an effort to convince the community to start a high school. His mission was to establish a high school in every county seat in Eastern Kentucky. His idea was to convince young men to go to colleges in the Bluegrass Area (Lexington, Winchester, Danville, Georgetown, etc.) of Kentucky and be qualified to do so. Then, for them to return to their communities and allow the young people of these counties to have better advantages. In other words, so education could come full circle and the schools be supplied with better teachers and building of better facilities for education for the youth of the region.

Jackson was just one of the many places he had planned to stop. Yet, his horse became lame with a swollen ankle and he was stuck in Jackson for a few weeks – especially, since there was no train service in the area at the time and horse, mule, or foot was the only means of transportation.

During this time, he visited the homes of many residents in Jackson and found the great need for education in the area. There were only two elementary schools in the town and no high school in the entire county. So, beginning on January 8, 1883, Mr. Dickey began a subscription school with the help of R.A. Hurst (a local lawyer and teacher). They would end up using the basement of the county courthouse as the school. Mr. Dickey became the principal and Mr. Hurst was the assistant. It would open with 51 pupils.

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