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The State Board of Community Colleges will meet this week… The North Carolina Association of Community College Trustees met in Greensboro last week… A look at early childhood apprenticeships… Robeson Community College held a lineman rodeo… An interview with Edgecombe Community College’s program chair for early childhood education… Mitchell Community College partners with a local church to offer ESL classes… Education leaders share perspectives on workforce development, the role of community colleges, back-to-school, and dual-language immersion programs… Plus, register for upcoming events…
Hi all, Emily Thomas with Awake58.
We have a lot of EdNC Reads for you this week, including this apprenticeship piece from EdNC’s Early Childhood Reporter Liz Bell.
The big takeaway from Bell’s piece: “Financial incentives and wrap-around support for both child care programs and apprentices drove the recent growth of early childhood educator apprenticeship programs across the state. With most of that funding dried up, providers and teachers will not have the same level of support without a new funding source.”
Bell spends time going over the practical aspects of early childhood apprenticeships, what it takes to build a statewide model, advocacy for statewide investment, and pre-apprenticeships in high schools.
In other news, the State Board of Community Colleges will meet this week in Raleigh for its annual planning retreat and monthly meeting. There are several items on the agenda, including ApprenticeshipNC’s annual report, state aid allocations and budget policies, the annual report for strategic planning, and more. We’ll have a recap from the meeting next week. As a reminder, you can find our past coverage of the State Board of Community Colleges here.
Last week, EdNC attended the North Carolina Association of Community College Trustees’ (NCACCT) leadership seminar in Greensboro. The seminar is a chance for trustees to learn more about what’s happening across the state’s community colleges and to meet the requirements for their trustee training certification.
The agenda was quite robust, with some of this year’s sessions focusing on AI, legal issues impacting community colleges, college programs that lead to jobs in national and economic cybersecurity, and systemwide and regional partnerships that address needs in the top workforce sectors
Gov. Josh Stein gave the keynote address during Thursday’s lunch, highlighting that North Carolina’s community colleges are “engines of opportunities in our state.”
Below are a few takeaways from Stein’s keynote:
North Carolina’s success: In 2025, North Carolina became the top-ranked state in the country for business. It’s the third time the state has been number one in the last four years. North Carolina is also growing at a rapid pace, making it the third fastest-growing state in the country in terms of population. Just this year, the state has recruited businesses that are bringing more than 25,000 jobs and more than $20 billion in capital and investment.
“There’s a lot to be proud of and plenty of credit to go around, not least to our community college system,” Stein said. “But we cannot rest on our laurels.”
The intersection of community colleges and the economy: Stein discussed several ways community colleges will continue to be an important part of helping students earn credentials and grow the economy, including increasing apprenticeship opportunities, partnering with business and industry to align credentials that meet evolving demands of the labor market, and collaborating to implement Workforce Pell Grants.
“You are an integral component of growing North Carolina’s workforce, leading to a stronger economy and more thriving families and communities,” Stein said.
Be sure to check out EdNC Reads and AroundNC for more stories and news.
Until next week,
Emily Thomas
Regional Director of Western North Carolina — EdNC.org
EdNC reads
As early childhood apprenticeships increase, leaders say more are needed to support ‘the workforce behind the workforce’
The long-term sustainability of the workforce requires increases in the wages of early childhood educators, apprenticeship experts told EdNC. In March, Gov. Josh Stein established a bipartisan Task Force on Child Care and Early Education to come up with solutions to child care challenges. The average hourly wage in 2024 for “child care workers” in the state was $14.20 in 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Stein’s early childhood task force’s initial recommendations, released in June, recognized apprenticeships as one of the state’s “successful, ready-to-scale early care and education workforce programs.”
Robeson Community College students demonstrate their training at the college’s lineman rodeo
Tim Bryant, the director of industrial technologies at RCC, emphasized how the rodeo prepares students for what lies ahead in the real world.
“This rodeo gives students the opportunity to demonstrate the skills they have learned over the past 11 weeks. Their performance and scores reflect not only their progress, but also how they may be placed within the industry,” Bryant said.
Investing in the future: One leader’s pathway from community college student to program chair
“I think one of the things that led me here was just because I started in this seat as a community college student,” QuaShawnda Everett said of her role at Edgecombe Community College. “With me, I can take advice from people all day, but if you’ve walked in my shoes, I’m really going to listen.”
Connect Church: Breaking down barriers and meeting new neighbors in Iredell County
Harmony Methodist Church in Iredell County started offering free ESL (English as a second language) classes to community members wanting to learn English in September 2019. Six years later, the program is still up and running and has earned some of the highest test scores in the state when compared to similar programs. Their secret to success? Forging a partnership with Mitchell Community College (MCC) that helps the church meet new neighbors and break down barriers in the process.
Perspective | Equipping the toolbelt generation: Leveraging Gen Z’s career interests to fuel enrollment growth
From Blue Ridge Community College President Dr. Laura Leatherwood: “While Gen Z students generally consider a college education to be important, they are more skeptical of the traditional college experience than previous generations, questioning its value for the cost, and expressing concerns about employability and student loan debt. Many are opting instead for skilled trade work, attracted by the promise of job stability, work-life balance, a shorter time to certification, and a varied day-to-day schedule. A new study conducted by The Harris Poll shows that previously negative perceptions of ‘blue-collar’ work are shifting, and young people are leading the movement.”
Perspective | Putting the community into community college
From Cape Fear Community College President Jim Morton: “Being a community college is more than being an academic institution. It means being a partner, a neighbor, and a resource. It means that our classrooms extend beyond four walls, and our lessons touch lives well outside the boundaries of our campus.”
Around NC
Dual language immersion programs | David Young, CEO of Participate Learning, shares in this EdNC perspective how dual language immersion programs — programs that immerse students in English and a partner language for core academic subjects — are a driver of our state’s economy.
Back-to-school reflections | In this EdNC perspective, Johnston Community College instructor Dr. Ken Robol shares his reflections on why he chose education and why he still continues to believe in education.
Helene updates | Share this article if you know someone in WNC whose home was damaged by Hurricane Helene. RenewNC is a program with $807 million in federal funding for homeowners in western North Carolina to repair, rebuild, or reconstruct homes.
On Monday, Gov. Stein announced that he is requesting nearly $13.5 billion in new funding from Congress for Hurricane Helene recovery. According to a press release, “Those dollars will go toward restoring homes and small businesses, supporting local government services, and rebuilding roads and bridges for the long haul.”
Mental health services after Helene | Farmers, ranchers, and communities affected by Hurricane Helene can now access additional mental health services. The U.S. Department of Agriculture grant will be used by the North Carolina Agromedicine Institute’s Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network-NC to provide services, including an updated N.C. Farmer Stress Directory, an expanded helpline, counseling, first-aid training, and mental health literacy and a project impact report.
New agricultural program | Central Carolina Community College’s Small Business Center and the Siler Area Chamber of Commerce is set to launch Impact the AREA: Agricultural Resilience, Entrepreneurship & Adaptability – a “four part series designed to help local farmers strengthen their bottom line and prepare for the future,” a recent college press release says. The new program will focus on innovative farm and agribusiness models and feature successful operations and real-world examples of how “farmers can increase profitability through regenerative farming, agritourism, direct-to-consumer sales, and sound financial management.”
Partnership spotlights | Johnston Community College and Corning Incorporated are partnering to introduce an advanced train-the-trainer fiber optic technician course.
NC East Alliance, in collaboration with College of the Albemarle (COA), seven county school districts, and regional health care partners are launching the Health Science Technical Academy at COA. The new academy is focused on “transforming the healthcare workforce pipeline across seven rural counties in northeastern North Carolina,” a recent press release says.
Donations | Nissan Motor Corporation donated three vehicles to Wayne Community College to be used as training resources for students in the college’s automotive technical educational program.
Leadership opportunity | The North Carolina Community College Leadership Program (NCCCLP) is currently recruiting emerging leaders for its next cohort. The application window closes on Sept. 22.
Upcoming events | The NCCCS Office is hosting a webinar for the higher education and military-affiliated community in North Carolina. The American Council on Education (ACE) Learning Evaluators will lead the webinar. The session will cover various items, including information about military credit for prior learning (CPL) and Official Military Transcript. The webinar is Thursday, Oct. 9 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm EST. Please RSVP directly to ACE.
The Latine Education Summit is scheduled for Oct. 15-17 in Greensboro. Additional details and information about registering can be found here.
Registration is open for the 38th annual NCWorks Partnership Conference, which is also scheduled for Oct. 15-17, at the Koury Convention Center/Sheraton Four Seasons in Greensboro. This year’s theme is “Stronger Together. Unlimited Possibilities.” You can read the draft agenda and more information here.
To register, visit www.train.ncworks.gov. If you don’t have a TRAIN account, click on “Create an Account” or contact the NCWorks Training Center at [email protected] for assistance.
Registration for the 11th annual Dallas Herring Lecture is now open. The virtual event, presented by the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research, is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 18 at 11 a.m. EST. Dr. Jason Wood, former president of the 2025 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence winner Southwest Wisconsin Technical College, will deliver the 2025 lecture, titled, “We Don’t Graduate People Into Poverty: Designing the College Experience Around Student Success.”
Other higher education reads
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