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2023 PCC Year-in-Review: Part II (May – August)

Collage of photos recapping the middle four months of 2022 at PCC.

WINTERVILLE—In-person graduations, new technology for training, academic success recognitions, and unique opportunities to shine in the spotlight were just some of the highlights for Pitt Community College between May and August.

As one academic year gave way to another, the middle four months of 2022 for PCC featured celebrations, awards, introductions, orientations and efforts to ensure educational equity. As 2023 approaches, the following is the second of three installments recapping the past 12 months at Pitt.

MAY

  • American Legion Post 39 continues to support PCC nursing scholarships with a $2,000-check to the PCC Foundation.
  • The City of Greenville turns the Greenway Pedestrian Bridge blue to honor Pitt graduates.
  • Nearly 500 of PCC’s 600-member graduating class participate in spring commencement. The event takes place in Williams Arena for the first time since 2019, with former President G. Dennis Massey serving as keynote speaker.
  • PCC hosts 40 black males from Pitt County public high schools for “College Bound, Here We Come,” a program to increase their awareness of student support services Pitt offers to help them achieve career and educational goals.
  • VISIONS celebrates the upcoming graduations of its 71 high school participants. South Central’s Leah Shiver, who earns an award for having a 4.25 weighted GPA, says the program has given her “tools and advice” that will help her in college and life, in general.
  • Radiation Therapy students use Virtual Environment Radiotherapy Training to practice delivery of ionizing radiation used to treat cancer and other diseases. The equipment creates a life-size, 3D setting for students to hone skills with various linear accelerators.
  • President Lawrence Rouse celebrates 40 years in higher education.
  • The NJCAA honors 17 student-athletes for classroom achievement. Six earn First-Team honors with a 4.0 GPA.
  • Radiation Therapy student Erin Brzoskowski receives a $5,000-scholarship from the American Society of Radiologic Technologists Foundation.
  • NISOD recognizes Biotechnology Department Chair Christina Weeks for contributions to student success and Pitt’s educational mission.

JUNE

  • PCC holds a grand opening at the newly-renovated Bethel Workforce Development Center, which features program/career information and industrial classrooms.
  • Transitional Studies holds graduation for students who have completed its programs during the 2021-22 academic year.
  • The Pitt County Schools Early College High School (ECHS) on PCC’s campus holds graduation. Of the 52 students receiving high school diplomas, 39 have also earned associate degrees from PCC.
  • Instructor Joe Jeansonne delivers a presentation during the 2022 National Security Agency Centers of Academic Excellence Cybersecurity Symposium in Atlanta.
  • David Smith and Dearius Bynum help North Carolina claim silver in a Special Olympics USA Games basketball competition. Smith and Bynum are enrolled in PCC’s Career Academy, which provides students with learning difficulties and challenges opportunities to explore and develop job skills.
  • PCC encourages youths to participate in Explore Summer Camps, which focus on science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics.
  • VISIONS welcomes more than 90 rising high school seniors to Summer Institute to learn more about themselves and PCC educational options.
  • To help local leaders understand the challenges of transitioning from incarceration to everyday life, PCC and the Local Reentry Council invite them to campus for a reentry simulation exercise.
  • A new group of PCC Student Ambassadors meets for the first time to prepare for their duties, which include assisting PCC staff with recruiting and helping out during college-related events and PCC Foundation fundraisers.
  • Pitt’s RaSheeda Waddell co-hosts the Miss North Carolina and Miss North Carolina’s Outstanding Teen competitions in High Point.
  • LatinxEd’s “We Are NC Listening Tour” stops at PCC to gather information the non-profit can use to invest in Latin American leadership and ensure educational equity and opportunity for Latinos in North Carolina.
  • PCC instructors and students visit The Oakwood School to lead elementary and middle school students through hands-on demonstrations as part of a tuition-free summer enrichment initiative dedicated to advancing educational equity.

JULY

  • Texas native and former Marine Tahira Gatson begins serving as Student Government Association president, saying her term will be successful if she and fellow SGA officers provide excellent services and opportunities to students, increase awareness of SGA programming, and encourage more students to participate in student government.
  • Home school families benefit from a special opportunity to learn more about the programs and services PCC has to offer their students, as well as the advantages of dual enrollment.
  • PCC takes ownership of two trucks it purchased to take educational opportunities throughout Pitt County. The Ram 3500s will pull mobile labs equipped to provide Biotechnology, HVAC and Industrial Systems training.
  • A new internship offers cybersecurity students experience with helping local businesses secure financial and intellectual property assets from cyberthreats.
  • A special orientation session highlights programming and services for first-generation students.
  • Nine students receive recognition for completing PCC’s pre-hire training for Thermo Fisher Scientific.
  • PCC and Barnhill Contracting Company partner to give students from seven area high school students an up-close look at construction careers.
  • Area Boys & Girls Club participants enjoy a camp PCC organizes to introduce them to curricula and opportunities to get started on higher education in high school.

AUGUST

  • Student Ambassadors participate in a scavenger hunt, personality assessment and team-building ropes course in preparation for the upcoming academic year.
  • ECHS students and staff get the new school year off to a good start. The school has an enrollment of 330 students.
  • PCC employees train on effectively responding to violent critical incidents.
  • Pitt’s Health Sciences Division welcomes 36 Pitt County high school students to campus for Destination Health Careers, which features presentations and hands-on activities that introduce the prospective health care professionals to various medical careers.
  • PCC Trustees swear-in Randy Walters for another four-year term and SGA President Tahira Gatson as an ex officio board member for the 2022-23 academic year.
  • Pitt’s first Dental Assisting graduates participate in a pinning ceremony.
  • 74 ECHS freshmen sign a banner, pledging to do their best academically and earn diplomas.

01/04/2023