News in Education
SCC honors high achievers
The highest-achieving students at Southwestern Community College were honored in the annual Academic Awards Ceremony on April 16 in Myers Auditorium on the college’s Jackson Campus in Sylva.
Among the honorees were 74 students who received “high honors” for maintaining a perfect 4.0 cumulative GPA.
Jonathan Mallard, a Franklin resident enrolled in the Associate Degree Nursing — RIBN program, was named the N.C. Community College System Academic Excellence award recipient.
The Charles McConnell New Century Scholar Award went to Makahla Chandler of Franklin, and David Coulter of Whittier received the Dallas Herring Achievement Award — given annually in honor of one of the state’s earliest advocates for community colleges.
Glenn Barnett of Robbinsville won the Bob Scott Leadership Award, named after the former N.C. governor who also served as president of the state’s community college system for 12 years.
The following “Students of Distinction” were also honored: Ginger Alfrey, Barnett, Sarah Jane Blackburn, Katlin Bradley, Amber Brown, Whitney Coggins, David Coulter, Tina Cronberger, Elizabeth Crowe, Jacob Eilers, Madilynn Franklin, Ariel Giles, Ashlye Johnson, Dalton Jones, Tazanna Jones, Mark Kaserman, Lauren Kirby, Jessica Koch, Stacey Lindsay, Jo Loewy, Diane Mahoney, Heather Mallard, Jonathan Mallard, Brittany Martin, Michael Sherman, Lindsey Stephens, Kathryn Sumrell and Linneah Taylor.
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To qualify for the “Academic Honors” portion of the program, each student had to earn a minimum of 30 semester hours of credit within the last four years by the end of the fall semester at SCC, be enrolled in the spring semester and have a cumulative Grade Point Average of 3.5 or above.
For more information about SCC, call 828.339.4000, visit southwesterncc.edu or drop by your nearest SCC location.
WCU commitment deposit deadline nears
First-year students with an admission offer to Western Carolina University were granted a time extension to secure a spot in the summer or fall 2024 entering class after the Office of Undergraduate Admissions moved the commitment deposit deadline from May 1. However, come May 15, that deadline will pass.
While some of the next steps in the enrollment process require submission of the commitment deposit (e.g., pre-registration, orientation, housing assignment preferences), WCU is extending the deadline for families who face challenges associated with changes to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
“WCU is seeing an increase in the number of admitted students who have committed for this coming fall,” said Mike Langford, director of undergraduate admission. “Many interested students recognize that WCU is a great institutional choice to help manage college costs. NC Promise helps many families minimize debt and maximize savings. At recent spring open houses, guests shared how the educational value that NC Promise affords attracted them to WCU.”
Langford emphasized that depositing as soon as possible provides more time for students to complete commitment action steps. “If any admitted students are set on coming to WCU, but submission of the $300 nonrefundable deposit poses a challenge right now, those students can reach out to the Office of Admissions, and we’ll assist them with saving a seat in the entering class so that they can proceed to the next steps.”
The Offices of Student Financial Aid and University Scholarships continue prepping to share award information as soon as federal and state aid information become available to WCU. Students and families who haven’t completed the 2024-25 FAFSA are urged to do so quickly because awarding is about to begin.
“WCU eagerly awaits the release of federal and state aid information to finalize financial aid offers,” said Trina Orr, director of financial aid. “Have confidence; our team is working diligently behind the scenes to ensure you receive the support you need. We expect to start sending aid offer notifications by mid-April.”
Contact the Office of Admissions for more information about the commitment deposit and commitment actions steps (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). Visit finaid.wcu.edu for more information about financial aid or scholarships.wcu.edu for more information about scholarships. To learn more about NC Promise, go to ncpromise.wcu.edu.
HCC hosts Bobcat College
Enroll your rising 6th, 7th or 8th grader at Bobcat College June 17-21 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Haywood Community College in Clyde.
Students will be emersed in interactive and educational sessions with college instructors including topics of STEM, biology, nursing, virtual reality, forensics, IT, EMS, fiber and more. Students will be able to participate in each opportunity. The day is packed and will keep students engaged all day. They should bring traditional outing items such as sunscreen and weather-appropriate clothing.
Students will need to provide their own lunch and water bottle. Cost of the class is $215 per week. Register online at hcc-register.fundfive.com/course/section/10256.
WCU Chancellor again on Business NC Power List
For the fourth year in a row, Business North Carolina magazine included Western Carolina University Chancellor Kelli R. Brown in its Power List of the state’s most influential leaders.
The recognition comes in the current issue now on newsstands. The magazine made selections based on interviews with businesses and community members, research and reader suggestions, for candidates in categories for education, health care, economic development, finance and others.
Brown took office in 2019, making her the first permanent female chancellor of WCU. She has garnered attention for making the top priorities for the university as academic excellence and quality, economic development and regional engagement, and campus diversity and inclusive excellence.
Business North Carolina noted that since her arrival, there’s been a continued student-centered focus and innovation in teaching.
Brown holds a doctorate in education from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale; a master of science and education in public health degree and bachelor of science degree, both from the University of Toledo in Ohio; and an associate in applied sciences degree in dental hygiene from Michael J. Owens Technical College in Toledo.
Jackson County NAACP announces scholarship
The Jackson County Branch of the NAACP announces the 2024 Leroy Jackson Memorial Scholarship, which was established by the branch to honor the contributions of Mr. Jackson in promoting an equitable and inclusive society.
The Jackson County NAACP Diversity Scholarship is a one-time scholarship awarded to public high school seniors planning to attend a college or university in preparation for a professional career beginning in fall 2024.
Preference will be given to those who demonstrate that they are committed to promoting a diverse, equitable, inclusive and just society and who exhibit a financial need. In 2024, the Jackson County NAACP will award two winners.
The winning recipients will each receive $3,000 for first-year college expenses.
The application deadline is Feb. 28, 2024, and award notifications will be sent out by March 28, 2024.
A link to the online scholarship application can be found at the Jackson County NAACP website at jacksonncnaacp.org.
WCU spring enrollment shows positive growth, retention rate
For the first time since 2020, total headcount enrollment climbed at WCU, with the spring semester total enrollment numbers topping out at 10,742, which is an increase of almost 200 students compared to spring 2023.
In the inaugural fall 2018 and 2019 terms of N.C. Promise, WCU enrolled its two largest first-year cohorts ever and successive years of record-setting enrollment elevated those levels, but then the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a recruitment and retention drought.
Total spring enrollment crested in January 2020 and total fall enrollment crested in August 2020. Headcount enrollment began receding in 2021, fueled in part by the record-setting, pre-pandemic entering classes that began graduating in record numbers.
Fall first-year enrollment bottomed out in fall 2021 (1,745) but rose in Fall 2022 (1,947). In fall 2023, WCU enrolled the second largest first-year cohort ever (2,108), second only to the inaugural year of N.C. Promise which was fall 2018 with 2,237 students.
As the pandemic abated, the flow of new undergraduate enrollment tributaries began to swell.
WCU has experienced increases in transfer student enrollment for four successive fall semesters and four successive spring semesters. Fall-to-spring, first-year retention rates have rebounded for successive spring semesters as well with spring 2022: 86.5%; spring 2023: 87.1%; and spring 2024 with about nine out of ten students returning at 89.9%.
Mars Hill University announces new trustees
Mars Hill University begins 2024 with new leadership on its governing body. The university’s board of trustees welcomes two new trustees, two trustees serving their second consecutive term, and two former trustees returning to service following required time off the board.
Don Icenhower of Weaverville, North Carolina, is one of the new trustees. He is an alumnus of Mars Hill’s class of 1980 and was a standout on the basketball team, scoring more than 1,000 points. He also holds two master’s degrees from Western Carolina University. He retired from the North Carolina public schools as the principal at Enka High and the South Carolina public schools as the chief operations officer in Lexington School District Two.
Also joining the board is Paula Kahn of Bristol, Virginia. Paula Corbin Kahn attended Mars Hill on a basketball scholarship and graduated in 1979 with a degree in education. She subsequently attended Western Carolina University and received master’s and education specialist degrees. Kahn spent several years as a teacher, coach and school administrator. She was elected to the Halls of Fame at Mars Hill College and Franklin High School for playing basketball, and the Jackson County, North Carolina, Hall of Fame for coaching.
Trustees Wayne Higgins of Weaverville, and Gene Holdway of Greer, South Carolina, are beginning their second consecutive four-year terms, while Mike Cranford of Fuquay-Varina, and Mike Kelly of Mason, Ohio, are returning to board service.
Brent Townsend of Tyrone, Georgia, begins a term as chair of the board. Other officers are Anna Renfro of Gastonia, as vice-chair; Higgins as treasurer; and Paul Powell of Greensboro as secretary.
STEAM receives grant for after-school program
The SkillSet program at UNC Asheville’s STEAM Studio received its largest grant to date from Dogwood Health Trust, amounting to $499,860 over five years, in order to expand the reach and impact of the program’s out of school-time programming.
SkillSet was founded in 2018 and hosted its first after-school programming in 2019, with the focus of addressing the gender gap in science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) fields and trades. The program has since expanded to include a wider audience of learners but is still underpinned by the idea that under-represented people should be taught STEAM skills so communities can be designed and built by the diverse people who live in them.
The grant will allow Skillset to expand off-site by funding the purchase of a cargo van for the purpose of bringing equipment and staff to local schools for classes and after-school programming.
SkillSet currently works with Partnership for Appalachian Girls Education at Madison County Middle, hosts an elective class at Hanger Hall Middle and works with In Real Life (IRL) after-school programming at Asheville Middle.
The grant will also go toward funding a bilingual full-time employee to work in collaboration with SkillSet Coordinator Amanda Simons in expanding programming to migrant and English-learning communities.
Several student employees who will help develop curriculum and teach the classes will also be funded by the grant, with the hope of training future educators.
Being employed with SkillSet allows UNC Asheville students to solidify their own understanding of material relevant to them by engaging with younger students and learn short-term programming organization and teaching skills, all while being paid a competitive wage.
Having student workers assist with the classes not only engages college students with the community but also gives younger students someone to connect with and see their future in.
To find out more about SkillSet visit steamstudio.unca.edu/programs/skillset/.
Free tuition opportunity at SCC
North Carolina residents from households making $80,000 or less may qualify for a new scholarship opportunity that covers all tuition and fees at Southwestern Community College starting this fall.
The Next NC Scholarship is a financial aid program that helps qualified individuals by providing $3,000 – enough to cover all tuition and fees for a full year at SCC with enough left over to assist with books, food or housing.
To become eligible, current and prospective students need only fill out the FAFSA form.
“One of the best things about this is students won’t have to repay any of the money they receive,” said Dr. Mark Ellison, dean of students at Southwestern. “It’s also nice that students aren’t required to complete any additional paperwork other than the FAFSA, which is something they’re required to fill out anyway. Upon filling out the FAFSA, if students are eligible, they will receive the Next NC Scholarship.”
Anyone interested in taking advantage of this opportunity can fill out the FAFSA at tinyurl.com/yr69t7pp.
To learn more about the Next NC Scholarship, visit nextncscholarship.org. To learn more about Southwestern and the career fields it offers, visit southwesterncc.edu, call 828.339.4000 or drop by your nearest SCC location.
Moses family endows scholarship for BLET students at SCC
Back when George Moses first became Macon County’s Sheriff in the 1970s, the entire department consisted of two full-time deputies and one part-timer.
That small crew also covered the jail, which included just six cells and was located at the courthouse at the time. Even then, Sheriff Moses recognized the need to have high-quality law enforcement training nearby.
Now that the Macon County Sheriff’s Office includes a roster of 59 sworn full-time deputies, the former sheriff — along with Margaret, his wife of more than 70 years — has endowed a scholarship to make it easier for future generations to enter the field through Southwestern Community College’s Basic Law Enforcement Training program.
Former Macon County Sheriff George Moses and his wife, Margaret, endowed a new scholarship fund for Basic Law Enforcement Training through the Southwestern Community College Foundation. Pictured behind the couple are, from left: Dr. Thom Brooks, Curtis Dowdle and Brett Woods.
The former sheriff and Mrs. Moses formally signed off on the fund that has since been named the “The George Moses Family Endowed Scholarship” earlier this fall. One factor in the Moses’ decision to support Southwestern’s program is his longtime friendship with Curtis Dowdle, who oversees SCC’s public safety training.
A lifelong Franklin resident, Dowdle got his start in law enforcement when Moses was sheriff.
“He was always like a dad to us,” Dowdle recalled. “He’d bring us in if we did something wrong and explain to us how he wanted us to police. I always drive cautiously, and I always wave at people because he had always taught me to communicate with the public and acknowledge people when we were in that patrol car. He also taught me to be fair, and to have empathy. Those were some of the lifelong lessons that I’ve carried with me.”
The scholarship will be awarded annually to a deserving recruit at SCC starting in the spring of 2024.
For more information and to learn more about other ways to support students at Southwestern, contact Brett Woods, director of the SCC Foundation, at 828.339.4241 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
