Wayne Community College has been named a double finalist for an award that recognizes exceptional work among the nation’s two-year colleges.
WCC is the only North Carolina school announced as a finalist for the American Association of Community Colleges 2019 Awards of Excellence. It is competing against three other colleges in the “student success” category and another three in the “outstanding college/corporate partnership” category.
“Wayne Community College has always been a college with excellent practices and partnerships prior to being recently recognized at the national level,” said Dr. Patty Pfeiffer, interim vice president for academic and student services. “We believe these awards help highlight our students’ successes.”
The student success practice for which WCC has been recognized is its CAPPS (Clearing a Path to Student Success) initiative. CAPSS embraces a “guided pathways” approach to supporting students as they progress to completion. Faculty and staff were involved in the redesign of academic programs and student support services. Those changes resulted in measurable improvements in student completion and increased employability skills.
The college was also honored for its CAPPS effort earlier this month as a Bellwether Award Finalist. That award was provided by the Bellwether College Consortium and co-sponsored by the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges.
The partnership that is celebrated in the other award bid is between the college and Wayne UNC Health Care. The college and the county’s hospital have worked together for more than 50 years to insure a robust pool of highly skilled, ready-to-work, health care professionals.
The relationship was recognized in 2018 with the State Board of Community Colleges’ Distinguished Partners in Excellence Award.
The AACC’s Awards of Excellence bring national visibility to outstanding practices among the organization’s member colleges. Winners are chosen by a select committee of the AACC Board of Directors.
The finalists will be recognized and winners will be announced at the Awards of Excellence Gala on April 15, a part of the 99th Annual AACC Convention that will be held in Orlando, Florida.
The winning college will receive a trophy and mention in a story in “Community College Daily.”
As the voice of the nation’s community colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges delivers educational and economic opportunity for 12 million diverse students in search of the American Dream. Uniquely dedicated to access and success for all students, AACC’s nearly 1,200 member colleges provide an on-ramp to degree attainment, skilled careers and family-supporting wages. Located in Washington, D.C., AACC advocates for these not-for-profit, public-serving institutions to ensure they have the resources and support they need to deliver on the mission of increasing economic mobility for all.
Wayne Community College is a public, learning-centered institution with an open-door admission policy located in Goldsboro, N.C. As it works to develop a highly skilled and competitive workforce, the college serves 12,000 individuals annually as well as businesses, industry, and community organizations with high quality, affordable, accessible learning opportunities, including more than 70 college credit programs. WCC’s mission is to meet the educational, training, and cultural needs of the communities it serves.