Perspective | Good jobs, good futures at McDowell Tech

My first teenage job was at a summer church camp. The weekdays started early with cleaning the pool before breakfast. Mornings were spent cutting grass, weed eating, and handling other landscaping duties. Afternoons were for lifeguarding and teaching swimming lessons. Saturdays were filled with cleaning, maintenance, and whatever else needed to be done.

The pay was small, but the food was free. For a teenage boy, that was a substantial fringe benefit.

Was it a good job? In many ways, yes. My work ethic and character grew from that first experience of full days of work, six days a week. I learned how to follow directions, serve others, and give my best even when the work was hot, tiring, and repetitive. For a teenager, it was a good job. For someone trying to support a family, probably not.

What makes a job a “good job?” That is being discussed nationally, regionally, and locally. In community college leadership, the conversation has expanded beyond access, enrollment, and graduation rates. Those things still matter deeply. But more leaders are now asking what happens after completion. Did the student transfer successfully? Did the credential lead to meaningful employment? Did education provide a path toward family-sustaining wages, stability, and upward mobility?

Organizations such as the American Association of Community Colleges and the Community College Research Center have helped advance this conversation. Their work reinforces an important truth: Community colleges should not measure success only by how many students graduate, but also by whether students are prepared for the next step in education, employment, and life.

The same conversation is happening here in North Carolina. The Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research recently hosted Dr. Jason Wood for the 2025 Dallas Herring Lecture. His message was clear and memorable: “We don’t graduate people into poverty.” That statement captures both the challenge and the calling of community colleges. Completion matters, but completion should lead somewhere meaningful.

Building on that momentum, and in the context of western North Carolina’s ongoing recovery from Hurricane Helene, Good Jobs Western North Carolina was launched. This regional initiative includes McDowell Tech and 10 other community colleges, along with partners such as America Achieves, employers, foundations, and regional leaders. Together, we are working to identify what good jobs mean for our communities and how education can better connect
people to those opportunities.

So, what is a good job for McDowell County?

A good job is work that provides family-sustaining wages, stability, opportunities for advancement, and a clear connection between a person’s education, skills, and purpose.

At McDowell Tech, we know this work cannot happen from behind a desk. It requires listening carefully to local employers, understanding their workforce needs, and making sure our educational pathways align with real opportunities. As part of this effort, Baxter, Columbia Forest Products, and Smurfit Westrock graciously joined us for a two-day workshop to discuss both immediate and long-term manufacturing workforce needs.

Their insights were valuable. They helped us better understand the skills, work habits, technical knowledge, and career pathways needed for students to move from education into good jobs. Together, we have drafted the McDowell Manufacturing Momentum initiative, or M3 Good Jobs. The McDowell Tech M3 Good Jobs team, led by Annie Duncan, is now finalizing plans and budget proposals for potential funding through Good Jobs Western North Carolina.

This work fits squarely within McDowell Tech’s mission: “to enrich our community with access to student-centered, affordable, high-quality, lifelong learning opportunities that promote workforce development.” The M3 Good Jobs initiative builds on our historically strong workforce education programs and seeks to create clearer pathways for students into employment that can strengthen families and support our local economy.

For some students, that pathway may begin with a short-term workforce credential. For others, it may lead to an apprenticeship, a certificate, a diploma, an associate degree, or transfer to a university. The pathway may look different from person to person, but the goal is the same: education that leads to opportunity.

My summer camp job gave me important lessons, and I am grateful for them. But as a college, our responsibility is greater than helping someone find a first job. We want to help students prepare for good jobs that support families, strengthen employers, and build a stronger McDowell County.

That is when students know The Tech is Right Where They Belong.

You do not have to wait on this new initiative to discover McDowell Tech’s current workforce education opportunities. Visit our website to learn more.