The Cooperating Colleges of Greater Springfield (CCGS) is a consortium of accredited colleges and universities located in Hampden County in Western Massachusetts, in and around the city of Springfield. Formed in 1971, the consortium provides various benefits to the students enrolled in its member institutions.[1] It includes four-year public and private institutions as well as two-year community colleges, all of which are non-profit schools accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.[2]