Durham Technical Community College can grow its life sciences program with the help of a $6 million gift from healthcare company Novo Nordisk. This is the largest donation received in the North Carolina college’s history.
The gift is “life-changing news for the thousands of local residents who will benefit and go on to great jobs in a growing and important industry,” Durham Tech President J. B. Buxton said at a recent press conference regarding the donation.
The college is building a 35,000-square-foot life sciences training center and will establish a biotechnology associate of applied science degree program.
As part of its ongoing partnership with Durham Tech, Novo Nordisk will have a full- and part-time employee serve in the professor-in-residence program. The company also will offer apprenticeships, internships and scholarship programs and purchase select necessary biotech training equipment for the new training center, which is expected to be completed in 2026.
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Central Carolina Community College (CCCC) will use a $50,000 grant from Truist Foundation for a new program that serves unemployed, underemployed and justice-involved individuals.
Through the program, participants will receive training on employability skills and commercial driver’s license or forklift operations, as well as a weekly allowance, food box and paid tuition. When training is completed, participants will undergo a match process with employers. CCCC has partnered with the Food Bank of Eastern and Central NC on this program.
The college also will use part of the funds to purchase additional forklifts for the training.
In addition, CCCC recently received $1,900 from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation to help feed neighbors in their time of need. The CCCC Foundation will use the gift for its food pantry.
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Southeastern Community College (SCC) has received a $150,160 Minority Male Grant from the NC Community College System. The college’s Jumpstart to Success project will focus on improving the pipeline to college and the pathway to employment for underserved, underprepared minority males in Columbus County. The project will include intentional recruiting, career exploration activities and mentoring.
One of the project’s goals is to increase the number of minority males earning college credits or employability credentials before high school completion by 25%. The percentage of local minority males who do not enroll in postsecondary education within 12 months of graduation exceeds the percentages of other race/gender groups both locally and statewide by several percentage points.
With that in mind, the target population for this project will be 11th-grade minority males ranked in the bottom 75% of their graduating class who have been identified as not likely to meet UNC System requirements for admission or those who are at-risk of not graduating.
Iowa
With a $2.2 million grant, Western Iowa Tech Community College will work to improve retention of students and transfer rates, as well as create a culture of equity.
In the first phase of the five-year U.S. Education Department grant, the college will hire additional staff to focus on increasing completion and transfer rates among arts and sciences students seeking their bachelor’s degrees. The college will use the grant to evaluate experiential learning approaches, where students gain valuable soft skills and real-world learning. There also will be a renewed focus on retention of minority students.
The second phase of the grant will focus on fostering a culture of equity by funding a center for diversity enrichment within the college.
Massachusetts
MassBay Community College will receive more than $1 million as part of a Massachusetts Early Education and Care (EEC) Career Pathways grant to provide free courses to educators and future educators.
The award marks the fifth consecutive year the college has received EEC grants, totaling more than $2.6 million. The grants have enabled MassBay to provide nearly 1,000 individual educators with tuition-free classes. This latest funding is the largest grant amount so far and will provide 1,000 class seats for students with no-cost tuition, fees and books.
“We know that essential, foundational learning occurs at young ages, and this grant provides educators in the field with the learning support to advance their teaching skills and their careers. MassBay is proud to be a leader in the development of the essential early childhood educators of MetroWest,” MassBay President David Podell said.
New Jersey
New grant funding will allow Bergen Community College to celebrate the work of Englewood artist and activist Faith Ringgold. With $17,000 in grants from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the Puffin Foundation, Bergan can offer numerous events recognizing Ringgold, including an art exhibition in the college’s gallery and a performance in its theatre.
Ringgold’s “Coming to Jones Road” series of artwork, inspired by her family’s 1992 move to Englewood that subjected them to racism and hostility as Blacks, chronicles her own story of survival while celebrating her ancestors and their journeys along the Underground Railroad into Harlem.
“Ringgold’s work continues to acquire resonance, inspiring both activists and artists,” Gallery Bergen Director Tim Blunk said. “We think of this exhibition as a kind of atonement for the hostile reception Faith Ringgold received in Englewood in 1992. We want her to know that she is revered here, we honor her and that going forward, we will build on her legacy.”
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Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) is the recipient of a $100,000 Signature Grant from the Provident Bank Foundation for 2022.
RVCC was selected for the work of The Achievement Center (TAC) — a collaboration between the college and the Arc of Somerset County. The center provides a certificate-based, postsecondary program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities so that they can continue academic study, experience college life and gain important skills for entering the workforce.
The multi-year award will support the expansion of the courses offered at TAC, specifically in the STEM disciplines, and allow the TAC model to be used more broadly across the state.
Pennsylvania
The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has donated $200,000 to Bucks County Community College. The donation marks the largest single corporate investment the college has received in its 60-year history.
The gift is expected to fund scholarships for local students interested in supply chain to complete their associate degree at Bucks on campus or online. Beyond the scholarships, students also will obtain experiential learning opportunities at ELC’s Bristol, Pennsylvania, facilities to gain insights into supply chain, manufacturing and distribution operations. ELC leaders will also serve as mentors for the students.
“This career pathway program will provide support, funding and intentional engagements to propel students from their first college course to successful supply chain careers. It underscores the power of higher education and corporate collaborations to drive employment,” said Bucks President Felicia L. Ganther.
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Montgomery County Community College’s (MCCC’s) new MontcoWorks Apprenticeship Program (MAP) got a boost with a $25,000 donation from Penn Community Bank. MAP is an earn-while-you-learn program that offers MCCC students the opportunity to gain in-demand workforce skills and college credits at no cost.
The donation will help fund the associated costs for MCCC’s division of workforce and economic development to train mentors for industry partners, who will work directly with apprentices and teach them the tools of their trade and how to grow and succeed in the workplace.
MAP will begin with the 24-month industrial maintenance mechanic apprenticeship.
