It was founded as the
Clinton Institute in 1894 and named after Bishop Caleb Isom Clinton of the
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church's Palmetto Conference. On June 22, 1909, it was incorporated as
Clinton Normal and Industrial Institute after receiving authorization to grant state teacher certificates. The school grew in the postwar era from the late 1940s into the 1960s and in 1965 the college changed its name to Clinton Junior College when the charter was amended to offer
associate degrees. In 2013, the college was renamed from Clinton Junior College to Clinton College after it received accreditation to become a four-year institution. The college added two bachelor programs, a
Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies and a
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Clinton College celebrated 130 years of higher education in 2024. ==Academics==