Category: Education

Citizens from Vance, Granville, Franklin and Warren counties came together at the Main Campus of Vance-Granville Community College on Oct. 27 as the college’s advisory committees held their annual meetings. VGCC’s 38 advisory committees are made up of people from the communities served by the college who have worked in the fields for which the college offers training. Committees advise not only curriculum and continuing education programs, but also VGCC’s South, Franklin and Warren campuses, the Small Business Center and …

Courtesy of Senator Angela Bryant College Application Week began Monday, November 2 for high school seniors in North Carolina. During the week, many high school seniors will have the opportunity to apply to a wide variety of North Carolina colleges for free because the application fee will be waived. N.C. College Application Week is a statewide event that encourages high school students to apply early to colleges and universities in North Carolina. During the week, all state community colleges and …

Two professional staff members are now in place at Vance-Granville Community College to help area residents obtain education and training through a special grant. The college, in partnership with the Kerr-Tar Workforce Development Board, received a $147,000 “NCWorks Job Driven Initiative” (JDI) grant in 2014, made possible by federal funds awarded to the North Carolina Division of Workforce Solutions. VGCC currently ranks second out of 12 North Carolina community colleges in the number of students who have been approved for …

Vance-Granville Community College held educational programs for students on three campuses in recognition of October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Each program called upon students to “paint the campus purple” by either wearing purple or receiving a purple ribbon, which has become the symbol popularly associated with Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The VGCC Student Government Association sponsored the events. The events held at the college’s Main Campus and South Campus were held in partnership with Families Living Violence Free, Granville …

Registration for classes and orientation sessions for new students have begun for the Spring 2016 semester at Vance-Granville Community College, which starts Monday, Jan. 11, 2016. Attending an orientation session is required for all new students who wish to enroll in any of the college’s curriculum programs, and for students who are returning to VGCC after being away for three or more years. Students must also meet with an advisor or academic/career coach before registering for classes. To attend an …

North Carolina fourth grade students’ performance on the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in reading topped the national average and increased four points from 2013 and 14 points from 1992 while scores in 4th grade math held steady according to The National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES). At the 8th grade level, reading scores fell below the national average and dropped from 265 in 2013 to 261 in 2015. The state’s math scores in 8th grade also decreased from …

Approximately 80 students, school staff members and parents from Aycock Elementary School ate dinner at the Kanki Japanese restaurant at Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, on September 24, as part of their trip to attend a men’s soccer game between N.C. State University and Gardner Webb University. They are all seen in the accompanying photo as they pose for photos outside of the restaurant. The trip proved to be a great experience for students and their families members who attended, …

Vance County Board of Education Committee Meeting Dates:         * Building & Grounds, Thursday, Oct. 29th, 10:00 am              * Curriculum Committee, Thursday, Oct. 29th, 11:00 am         * Personnel Committee, Tuesday, November 3rd, 8:30 am Note:  All meetings are held in the Superintendent’s Conference Room.   

David Cooper of Aycock Elementary School, has been named the 2015-2016 Assistant Principal of the Year for Vance County Schools. Cooper was surprised this morning by members of the Vance County Board of Education and school system administrators while he was in a classroom at his school. Superintendent Anthony Jackson made the announcement that Cooper had won the prestigious honor. He was presented balloons by Ruth Hartness, a member of the board, and a planted dish garden by Dorothy Gooche, …

One of the newest programs at Vance-Granville Community College recently received high-tech equipment thanks to grant funding from the North Carolina Department of Transportation. The Heavy Equipment Operator training program, based at the college’s Warren County Campus in Warrenton, now has three computerized training simulators manufactured by John Deere. Each simulator allows students to virtually train on a different type of equipment: a motor grader, a four-wheel drive loader and a backhoe. Students use foot pedals, joysticks and steering wheels …

Vance-Granville Community College will hold its second annual “Business Technologies Fair” on Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 9:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m., in the Civic Center on the college’s Main Campus in Vance County. Attendees will learn about VGCC’s programs that provide training for careers in fields related to business and information technology, including Accounting, Business Administration, Computer Technology Integration, Entrepreneurship, Global Logistics & Distribution Management, Medical Office Administration, Office Administration, Paralegal Technology and Simulation & Game Development. At the same …

Two Vance-Granville Community College faculty members were promoted to lead instructional departments recently. Greg Nash of Durham, formerly a Business Administration instructor, assumed the role of Department Chair for Adult Basic Skills, while J. Keith Shearon of Youngsville has taken on the additional role of Department Chair for Applied Technologies while continuing to serve as a Mechatronics Engineering Technology instructor. A native of Atlanta, Nash earned a Computer Operations diploma from Atlanta Technical College while simultaneously earning a Master of …

Along with the start of the fall semester at Vance-Granville Community College came new leaders for two academic programs. William Clements of Raleigh became the new Program Head/Instructor for Criminal Justice Technology, while Faith Harris of Norlina, a Computer Education instructor, was promoted to the position of Program Head of Computer Education. Clements came to VGCC from Wiregrass Georgia Technical College in Douglas, Ga., where he had been a Criminal Justice instructor since 2011. Previously, he worked in the correctional …

The Vance County Public School Foundation recognized five schools in the Vance County Public School System for their students’ outstanding academic growth during the October 12 meeting of the Vance County Board of Education. Mary Jo Wilson, a member of the foundation’s Board of Directors, and Archie Taylor, president of the foundation’s Board of Directors, led the recognitions. Those schools recognized with plaques as a “School of the Year” for 2014-2015 by the foundation were Clarke Elementary School, first-place award …

The Vance County Board of Education has approved Dr. Cindy Bennett as the new assistant superintendent of Student Services and Strategic Planning and Carnetta Thomas as the new principal of L.B. Yancey Elementary School. Board members approved both appointments at their October 12 meeting. Bennett has extensive experience in the field of education. Most recently she has been working as a national consultant and executive director of the Strategic Twin Counties Education Partnership serving Nash and Edgecombe counties. She has …

Students and staff members at Aycock Elementary School receive important information about their school each Friday morning through the “Aycock News” television broadcast. The approximately 10-minute broadcast, seen on televisions stationed in classrooms and other locations throughout the school, features students in grades 2-5 who serve as the news anchors and additional reporters who share information about the week’s weather forecast, the breakfast and lunch menus for the coming week and important announcements about upcoming events. The broadcasts are done …

A student at Northern Vance High School and two students at Eaton-Johnson Middle School have been selected to participate in the prestigious state honors choruses. Noah Whittacre, a senior at Northern Vance High School, has been selected to the 2015 North Carolina Music Educators’ Association High School Honors Chorus. He was one of only 178 students selected for the chorus. There were over 1,200 high school students from across the state who participated in the solo auditions in late September.  …

Vance County Schools will be hosting school bus driver training sessions Monday, October 26, through Wednesday, October 28, at L.B. Yancey Elementary School. Interested persons must attend the training on all three days to receive certification. The training sessions will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at approximately 3 p.m. each day. Those interested in participating in the training sessions must register prior to the sessions with the school system’s Transportation Department, located at 226 Welcome Avenue off Raleigh Road …