fbpx
Skip Navigation

2021 PCC Year-in-Review: Part II (May – August)

Collage of photos recapping the middle four months of 2021.

WINTERVILLE—For Pitt Community College, the middle of 2021 featured new scholarship initiatives and educational partnerships, along with the decision by administrators to resume full campus operations in the fall.

In PCC’s Diamond Anniversary year, the period from May to August was a time to celebrate graduates for overcoming unprecedented obstacles to achieve their educational goals. It was a time of community support for the PCC Foundation, and, as President Rouse said, it was time to take the next step in the college’s return to normalcy.

As 2022 approaches, the following is the second of three installments recapping the past 12 months at PCC.

MAY

  • Out of 80 chapters, PCC’s Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society chapter is named the “4th-Most Distinguished Chapter in the Carolinas Region” for community service excellence in 2020.
  • Pitt and the Association of Mexicans in North Carolina, Inc., sign an agreement to increase and improve educational and life enrichment opportunities for the local Hispanic/Latino community.
  • With an initial contribution of $15,000, Dr. Mary Raab begins the process of establishing a scholarship endowment with the PCC Foundation to honor her husband, Dr. R. William McConnell.
  • More than a year after spread of the coronavirus forces administrators to close campus and move instruction online, President Rouse announces PCC will transition back to full, on-campus operations in the fall.
  • During a virtual graduation ceremony that features N.C. Community College System President Thomas Stith III presenting the commencement address, Pitt administrators tell 1,432 graduates they are proud of their dedication to achieving their academic goals.
  • University Transfer student Callie Kirby receives an N.C. Academic Excellence Award in recognition of her 3.9 GPA and service to the college and community as a PCC Student Ambassador.
  • Having already earned a GED at Pitt in 2018, Faith Hollis records a 3.5 GPA in her Criminal Justice Technology studies to receive the 2021-22 John F. Minges Criminal Justice Scholarship worth $2,600.
  • PCC establishes the Bulldog Promise Scholarship to give students who took classes at the college while in high school an opportunity to complete an associate degree, tuition-free.

 

JUNE

  • PCC agrees to provide services at the Bethel Youth Activity Center as part of its commitment to taking programming to the Pitt County communities it serves.
  • In response to significant student interest, the PCC-Pitt County Schools Technical Academy increases capacity and curricula options for the 2021-22 academic year. The academy offers Pitt County juniors and seniors hands-on training in curricula not offered by their respective high schools.
  • GEER, a relief fund to help North Carolina recover economically from the pandemic, provides students in select continuing education programs as much as $750 to help with the cost of their training.
  • PCC earns “advisory institution” status from the Center for First-Generation Student Success for improving the experiences and outcomes of students who are the first members of their families to attend college.
  • The Longleaf Commitment Grant. a new program to spur North Carolina’s economic recovery, gives the state’s 2021 high school graduates a chance to attend PCC tuition-free for the next two years.
  • The VISIONS Summer Institute introduces 76 rising Pitt County seniors to career and educational opportunities available to them locally.
  • President Rouse encourages adult learners to complete training they started in college but didn’t finish or to acquire skills in a new area of interest that leads to more gainful employment. It’s part of a partnership between PCC, the John M. Belk Endowment, myFutureNC, and four other state community colleges to ensure North Carolinians have access to an education that allows them to achieve their dreams.
  • PCC’s newest student ambassadors meet for the first time to begin preparations for the upcoming academic year. The group is comprised of six returnees and four newcomers.

 

JULY

  • PCC partners with the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office on services to help incarcerated females successfully re-enter society upon release from the Pitt County Detention Center.
  • A. Loving Company makes a generous donation to the PCC Foundation to secure naming rights for the Craig M. Goess Construction and Industrial Technology Building lobby.
  • Mitchell Jeri begins serving a one-year term as Student Government Association president.
  • Trustees swear-in newcomers and recently re-appointed board members. Joining are Jeri, as an ex officio member, and Dr. Steve Lassiter, a Pitt County Schools administrator.
  • PCC and the Office of Pitt County District Attorney Faris Dixon formalize a long-running partnership that offers individuals facing incarceration an opportunity to pay their debt to society through education.
  • The Kiwanis of the Golden K Foundation present a $1,000-check to the PCC Foundation to support the Ricks Automotive Scholarship.
  • President Rouse and Ayden Mayor Steve Tripp sign an agreement for Pitt to provide basic education, job training, continuing education and curriculum courses in Ayden. It’s the fifth such partnership PCC has entered in 2021.

 

AUGUST

  • Student ambassadors participate in extensive training that includes a StrengthsFinder assessment, the ECU ropes course, and a community service activity at Community Crossroads Center
  • After a year of planning, renovations and securing proper permissions, PCC welcomes 12 students to its new Dental Assisting program.
  • First Citizens Bank presents the final installment of a $50,000-donation it made in support of the PCC Foundation’s capital campaign.
  • PCC employees meet virtually for convocation, which features remarks from various administrators and a COVID-19 update from Dr. John Silvernail, who is Pitt County’s health director.
  • PCC teams with NC Works on a job fair to help area restaurants find qualified workers.
  • Pitt launches the PCC Health Sciences Scholars program to help prospective students prepare for health sciences enrollment.
  • The U.S. Department of Education renews PCC’s $1.4 million-TRiO Educational Opportunity Center grant through 2026, allowing the college to continue leading adults from disadvantaged backgrounds to higher education.

12/23/2021