Teacher candidates begin Sampson Community College licensure program at no cost
Nontraditional educators will begin their educator preparation program at Sampson Community College (SCC) this month at no cost thanks to a new grant from Anonymous Trust.
The grant provides teacher candidates in Sampson County Schools and Clinton City Schools with full tuition and fees toward the educator preparation program (EPP) at SCC. Up to 120 eligible candidates can be financially supported over the next three years, beginning with the 2026-27 academic year.
In addition to tuition and fees, candidates will receive financial assistance for required licensure tests, including the Pearson Foundations of Reading test and the Praxis or Pearson math subtest.
“We need teachers. We need good teachers. We need great teachers,” said Vevlyn Lowe on behalf of Anonymous Trust at the program’s kickoff reception on Sept. 2. “We need them right here in our county, and we want to get you certified. We want to keep you. That’s the goal.”
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The grant demonstrates a shared commitment to addressing the “critical” teacher shortage in the southeastern region of North Carolina, according to a press release from the college.
“People are not going to move into our area to fill these jobs, so the only way in the world that we can support public schools — and you know, rural health — is we have to engage and prepare our own people from this service area,” SCC President Dr. Bill Starling told EdNC.
SCC’s educator preparation program is what’s called a residency licensure program, formerly known as lateral entry. Lateral entry refers to the alternative teaching pathway of allowing individuals to begin teaching immediately while simultaneously completing the process to become a licensed educator. In recent years, enrollment in these programs has been on the rise.
The program requires that candidates already possess a bachelor’s degree with a minimum GPA of 2.7 and 24 hours of general education coursework or have passed a North Carolina State Board of Education content exam.
Candidates in SCC’s program will complete six courses over the course of three years at a rate of one course per semester. Previously, candidates were taking two courses a semester, but the program readjusted the course load based on feedback from educators and to increase the persistence rate, program director Dr. Juandalynn Freeman-Sankey said.
All of the candidates will complete the program as a cohort, meaning they matriculate through each course as a group. Freeman-Sankey told the incoming cohort that this means they are “not on an island” by themselves.
“There are 13 teachers in this room who are in their first year of getting their license. So, what you’re going to be experiencing, somebody else is going to be experiencing,” Freeman-Sankey said.
Candidates who complete the coursework will receive an Elementary Education Residency Certificate.
Freeman-Sankey said that the cost of even a more affordable educator preparation program can be significant on a beginning teacher salary.
“To remove that barrier, so teachers can focus on being the best and not having to worry about, ‘Where do I find the financial aid or the tuition,’ that’s remarkable,” Freeman-Sankey said.
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One of the perks of its program SCC highlighted is specific support for each individual candidate’s success.
Freeman-Sankey visits the classroom of each candidate twice per semester that they are enrolled in the program. She also said that she meets with the candidates’ mentors, beginning teacher coordinators, and building administrators on a regular basis.
SCC will also offer summer instruction for the Foundations of Reading exam and the Praxis or Pearson math subtest. The community college is also a Pearson testing site — eliminating travel for candidates to complete the exam.
As Freeman-Sankey closed out the kickoff reception, she had the candidates affirm themselves with four words.
“Yes, I will pass.”
Editor’s note: Anonymous Trust supports the work of EdNC.