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PCC Year-In-Review: Part I (January-April)

PCC President G. Dennis Massey held a press conference in February to discuss a recently-released study by Economic Modeling Specialists, Inc. One of the many positive findings revealed in the report showed that during the analysis year (FY 2015-16), the college and its students added $277.2 million in income to the PCC Service Area economy, approximately equal to 3.6 percent of the region’s total gross regional product.

WINTERVILLE—There were many highlights for Pitt Community College in early 2018, including numerous honors for a retiring president, a positive economic impact study, and student and alumni success.

The following is the first of three installments recapping events that took place at North Carolina’s sixth-largest community college in 2018.

January

  • PCC celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.’s life with a program featuring a scholarship presentation and remarks by longtime Pitt County teacher/administrator Ella Harris.
  • Economic Modeling Specialists, Inc., releases a study showing PCC creates a significant positive economic impact on the business community and a positive return on investment for students, taxpayers and society.
  • A public forum gives the community a chance to share input with RPA, Inc., that will help the consulting firm in its search for retiring President G. Dennis Massey’s replacement.
  • The Greenville-Pitt County Chamber of Commerce presents Massey its 2017 Citizen of the Year Award.
  • Dr. Johnny Smith is selected to serve as vice president of Student Development Services.
  • An oil painting of late Greenville Attorney Earl T. Brown is unveiled in the Pitt County Courthouse. The portrait is painted by Richard Wilson, a PCC graduate and former adjunct instructor.
  • PCC baseball and softball appear in the Top 20 of the NJCAA’s Division II preseason polls.
  • The PCC Pharmaceutical Services Center opens to provide a simulated manufacturing environment for training workers in the production of oral solid dose medications.

February

  • A Career Services initiative brings 29 employers to campus to speak with students about their careers and what it takes to be successful in them.
  • The American Red Cross honors PCC as a 2018 Premier Blood Partner.
  • PCC hosts a signing day program to honor future technical students and business division enrollees.
  • PCC and East Carolina University approve an articulation guiding the transfer of Pitt Health Information Technology graduates to the university.

March

  • Longtime PCC supporter and trustee Walter L. Williams passes away at 88.
  • Farmville Mayor Bobby Evans presents Massey with a resolution honoring his service with PCC.
  • During PCC’s Women’s History Month program, Lori Preast, assistant vice president of Academic Affairs, receives the 2018 Woman of Substance Award for leadership, dedication to education, and commitment to student success.
  • Gov. Roy Cooper discusses workforce development and tours the Walter and Marie Williams Building.
  • PCC honors 55 students for classroom, campus and community achievements during the 2018 Academic Excellence Awards. The event features remarks from Early Childhood Education student Amira Ali, who was the college’s choice to receive the N.C. Community College System (NCCCS) Academic Excellence Award.
  • The N.C. Small Business Center (SBC) Network recognizes Shareen Berkowitz, a Pitt SBC counselor, with the “Boots on the Ground Award” for helping plan the organization’s 2017 professional development conference.
  • Students Raquel-Alicia Cabrera, Alton Ray Hilliard-Howell and Amber Magazine receive State Employees’ Credit Union Continuing Education Scholarships that will make it easier to pursue additional health care training.
  • Students deliver speeches on social issues plaguing America as part of the annual public speaking contest. Grace Fields and Annagrace Saufley tie for first.
  • A PCC professional development series features the NCCCS Office’s Jennifer Haygood and Roxanne Newton sharing their thoughts on leadership.
  • University Transfer student George Cherry Jr. is elected North Carolina’s vice president of the Carolinas Region of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) Honor Society.
  • PCC administrators cut the ribbon on the newly-renovated Greenville Center Annex. Formerly home to the college’s law enforcement training programs, the 8,000-square-foot facility is now the site of Business and Industry training.

April

  • PCC participates in “Construction Careers Awareness Week,” a statewide celebration of career and technical education programs.
  • Renovations begin on the second floor of the Clifton W. Everett Building, which opened in 1987.
  • PCC Spring Fling 2018: Under the Big Top takes place on the Whichard Lawn. The event includes an inflatable obstacle course, dunking booth, live music, and free food.
  • PCC’s Health Sciences Division holds a fair featuring information booths, displays and basic health screenings to promote healthy living.
  • The 2017-18 edition of PCC’s Leadership in Action Series wraps up with a presentation by Greenville’s Scott Shook, who chairs the 21-member State Board of Community Colleges.
  • PCC celebrates employee achievements with an event at Rock Springs Center. Nearly 400 attend, including Assistant Vice President of Student Development and Community Standards Jasmin Spain, who receives the top staff award, and Humanities and Communications Coordinator Mitch Butts, who receives the top faculty honor.
  • English Language Acquisition (ELA) students create displays to highlight their home countries and discuss them with individuals attending ELA International Day.
  • More than 400 students meet with area employers during the annual Spring Career Fair, which features 37 businesses recruiting employees for current and future job openings.
  • Engineering and Physical Sciences Club members send a payload carrier high into earth’s atmosphere as part of the 2018 NASA/N.C. Space Grant Community College High-Altitude Ballooning Team Challenge and Competition.
  • Student clubs and organizations are recognized for outstanding service to campus and the community during the 3rd Annual Student Talent and Recognition Awards. The big winner is Pitt’s National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS) chapter, which claims three top awards.
  • PCC Volleyball holds a signing ceremony on campus to introduce seven newcomers who will join the program in the fall.
  • While PCC’s NSLS chapter awards honorary membership to Massey, PTK presents the retiring president with its Michael Bennett Lifetime Achievement Award for longtime support of the organization.

01/02/2018