Leadership Academy Visits System Office
WINTERVILLE—Pitt Community College employees participating in the college’s redesigned Leadership Academy visited the N.C. Community College System (NCCCS) Office recently for meetings with the state’s community college leaders.
The trip, which took place Oct. 29, included presentations by President Peter Hans and Chief of Staff Jennifer Haygood. Each administrator that spoke with the PCC group discussed his or her area of responsibility with North Carolina’s 58-member community college network, which currently serves more than 700,000 students.
The purpose of the meetings, according to PCC Vice President of Human Resources Ina Rawlinson, was to give the 15 academy participants a chance to “acquire knowledge and learn successful practices” they can incorporate into their daily work duties.
“During each session, the leadership participants gained knowledge, as each (leader) provided pertinent answers to their questions,” Rawlinson said. “Participants were able to interact and network with senior officials leading our community colleges.”
While Hans emphasized the importance of having a cohesive team to carry out multiple NCCCS objectives, Haygood explained the role of each division within the System Office. She also detailed the make-up of the State Board of Community Colleges, its policymaking process, and the board’s relationship with the N.C. General Assembly.
PCC President Lawrence Rouse participated in the visit and said he enjoyed the opportunity to encourage Pitt’s emerging leaders.
“Our newly-designed leadership academy offers employees opportunities to interact with leaders in the state’s community college system, in order to gain insight into the various administrative responsibilities these individuals fulfill,” Rouse said. “Future academy programming will introduce them to government officials, as well as business and industry leaders.”
Dr. Rawlinson was assigned the task of implementing PCC’s new Leadership Academy, which focuses on leadership roles within the N.C. Community College System. It’s a year-long program that follows competencies established by the American Association of Community Colleges to help educational leaders at all management levels assess their current job performance, determine areas for improvement, and gauge readiness for career advancement.
In addition to Hans and Haygood, PCC employees heard from Bryan Jenkins, executive director of Accountability and State Board Affairs, during their visit, as well as an information technology team that described the challenges associated with meeting the community college system’s current technology needs. Senior Vice President/Chief Academic Officer Kim Gold and Associate Vice President of Student Services J.W. Kelley discussed oversight of the system’s academic programming, and Director of Government Relations Mary Shuping spoke about her work with state legislators on NCCCS’s behalf.
The PCC group also met with Executive Director of Communications Jane Stancill, who shared the importance of the community college system’s marketing and branding efforts. Vice President/Chief Financial Officer Elizabeth Grovenstein provided the group with information on the budgetary process each community college follows, along with details on how state funding is allocated to the colleges.
11/25/2019