The CFCC Foundation and Sea Devil Athletics are partnering with NewBridge Bank to bring the Wilmington community the 2nd Annual NewBridge Bank Bridge to Bridge 4.0 run / 1.0 walk. A 4-mile course will take participants from the Isabel Holmes Bridge to the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge through some of the most scenic areas of downtown Wilmington, NC. The race will take place Thursday, June 13th, at 6:30 pm. The finish line will consist of a celebration inside the Schwartz Center with food, beverages and community supporters. Funds raised will support student scholarships at CFCC. Click here to register.

November 1-9, 2013

9-Day Tour Includes:

• Roundtrip airfare from NY
• Seven nights accommodation
• Luxury Motor Coach and Professional Tour Manager
• Breakfast daily
• Welcome Dinner, Farewell Dinner, and 5 additional dinners
• Wine & Cheese Tasting at Le Colline di Sorrento
• Tours of the Correale Museum, Santa Lucia, the Royal Palace, the ruins of Pompeii, and much more!

$2,249 per person based on double occupancy, plus air taxes, pending air confirmation.

For complete details and registration information, click here.

View the itinerary highlights of the tour.

In celebration of Student Engagement and Philanthropy Day on Thursday, February 28, the Cape Fear Community College Foundation introduces the Class of 2013 True Blue Fund…

Graduating seniors: As you prepare to leave Cape Fear for your next adventure, consider also leaving a legacy.

Give a gift of at least $20.13 to the Class of 2013 True Blue Fund and receive a special blue ribbon to wear at your commencement ceremony. You will also receive free membership in the CFCC alumni association so you can stay connected to Cape Fear long after you graduate.

Your gift will leave a legacy for future CFCC students by providing scholarship support and helping academic programs meet crucial needs. In addition, the CFCC Student Government Association will designate a permanent landmark to the campus in honor of the 2013 True Blue campaign. Together, the Class of 2013 will make a significant, indelible impact.

To make your gift now, click on the link below. Make to indicate in the comments section that you are donating to the “Class of 2013 True Blue” Fund.

LEAVE YOUR LEGACY. CLICK HERE AND GIVE NOW.

The BINGO event was held prior to the men’s Homecoming basketball game and was open to faculty, staff, alumni, and the public.  All proceeds from the event benefitted CFCC student scholarships.

 PHOTOS

A site that analyzes state-level data of how much people earn a year after graduating college found some counterintuitive results: Certain students who earn associate’s degrees can get higher salaries than graduates of four-year programs — sometimes thousands of dollars more.

“These numbers and the consistency of these numbers are surprising to me,” said Mark Schneider, president of CollegeMeasures.org and a vice president at the American Institutes for Research. CollegeMeasures aggregates anonymized education and earnings data to figure out who earns what after graduation.

Some of its results run counter to commonly-held assumptions. Community college degrees, long considered also-ran prizes in the race for academic achievement, “are worth a lot more than I expected and that I think other people expected,” Schneider said.

But there is a catch: You have to earn your degree in a technical or occupational program to earn anywhere near $40,000. That’s the approximate average earned by students who went to school and worked in the state of Virginia and graduated with two-year degrees in these fields between 2006 and 2010. Graduates of two-year nursing programs earned am average of $45,342.

Once they entered the work force, holders of what CollegeMeasures characterizes as “occupational/technical” associate’s degrees made about $6,000 a year more than people who earned associate’s degrees in non-occupational programs. Given the high demand for nurses, computer specialists, mechanical technicians and the like, that’s not unexpected. In a study published earlier this year by the Census Bureau, college graduates with science and engineering degrees were about 10 percentage points more likely to be employed full-time than the average of all graduates.

The surprising finding is a comparison of those earnings to what bachelor’s degree graduates made, on average: $36,067.

People with liberal arts and humanities majors didn’t even fare that well: on average, grads with political science majors earned $31,184, history majors earned $30,230 and English majors only earned $29,222 a year.

“In general, majors that are linked to occupations have better employment prospects than majors focused on general skills,” a report published earlier this year by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce, said.

Schneider said this pattern of workers with two-year technical degrees outearning many four-year grads has been consistent across the states it has studied so far. (Data on Arkansas, Virginia and Tennessee has been published; the group plans to release statistics for Colorado graduates soon.)

“In the U.S., we’ve tended to think that the bachelor’s degree is the only thing that matters, and this data tells us that technical degrees from community colleges are hidden gems,” he said.

A generation ago, things were different. Before the recession of 1980-1981, a bachelor’s degree of any kind was a ticket to a career that offered middle-class earnings, said Anthony Carnevale, director of Georgetown’s Center on Education and the Workforce.

This isn’t the case anymore, he said. “It’s a system in which you can’t just have an ambition to go to college and get a degree. You have to pay attention to the courses and the content of your degree.”

The big caveat with the impressive amounts some two-year grads can earn is that they don’t reflect lifetime earnings. In general, people with more advanced degrees still earn more over the course of their careers, Carnevale said, but there’s a growing divergence between humanities and technical-field majors when it comes to future earnings performance.

“The degree level matters, but a lot less than it used to,” he said “What matters is what you take. Thinking about it as a hierarchy of degrees isn’t the way to think about it anymore.”

With an Associate in Arts degree from CFCC’s Articulate Agreement Program and a Bachelor in Geo Sciences (Meteorology) degree from Mississippi State, Colin Hackman has become one of Wilmington’s top local meteorologists for WECT TV and was even honored as Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas’ 2012 North Carolina Reporter of the Year.

Colin is a Wilmington native and 1995 graduate of Hoggard High School. After graduation Colin enrolled in Cape Fear Community College and began working at WECT TV. Colin became a production assistant in 1996. The two hurricanes Wilmington experienced in 1996 are what sparked Colin’s interest in weather broadcasting.  “Being here and being around it, I absolutely knew I wanted to do something in broadcasting.”  Colin graduated with an Associate in Arts degree from CFCC in 2000 and immediately began classes in UNCW’s Communication Studies Department.

Colin returned to WECT TV in 2003, but continued to follow his passion and left to pursue work as the weekend meteorologist at an NBC affiliate station in Reno Nevada in 2005. It was there that he met his wife Michelle Hackman, who at the time, was working as an executive producer. Colin resumed classes in 2006 at Mississippi State University and he received a Bachelor degree in Geosciences. Colin and Michelle both returned to Wilmington in 2009, where he was once again welcomed back with open arms at WECT TV.

Colin gives advice to future and current CFCC students,  “The best way to go is to have two years of college under your belt and then go into a North Carolina school as a junior. I think this gives kids a better opportunity for their money.” Colin also goes on to express his gratitude for CFCC’s Articulation Agreement program. “This program allows for extra time for work and study.” As a participant in this program, Colin was able to successfully work at WECT TV while attending CFCC as a part-time student.

Colin applauds his CFCC professors, Phil Garwood, Frank Carter, and Pat Hogan. “I took public speaking with Frank Carter, he was a good teacher and public speaking is kind of what I do now, so it helped a lot with speaking in front of the camera.”

Colin can be seen Monday through Friday during “Carolina in the Morning” on WECT TV.

By Jenni O’Toole, CFCC Foundation Intern 

A graduate from CFCC’s Culinary Arts program, Bree Peterson- Resnick has used her talent and education to give Wilmington a new choice of bakeries by opening Uprising. 

Uprising, located at 1701 Wrightsville Avenue, advertises itself as “Not Just a Bakery.” Uprising has everything from cheesecake and red velvet cake to savory goat cheese pastries and veggie scones. Resnick’s tasty treats are unique, due to her use of almost entirely locally grown, organic ingredients and her large selection of gluten-free goodies. Local or American made retail items such as hammocks, greeting cards, wind chimes and shirts can also be found at Uprising. Resnick describes this unique fusion as, “selling an atmosphere, not just a cupcake.” 

Resnick relocated from Syracuse, New York, to the Port City in 1991. She graduated from New Hanover High School in 2001. As an arts enthusiast, Resnick imagined herself working in the theatre, but years later, discovered her love for cooking. “I knew that I wanted to do something food-related and I eventually figured out that I was good at making things taste good and look pretty. That combination let me use my creativity to the max,” says Resnick. 

Resnick launched her culinary journey by enrolling in CFCC’s Culinary Arts program. She praises the program and its benefits. “They give you all the tools you need to be successful,” says Resnick. “You learn how to purchase your products, set up your kitchen, hire your staff, create menus, evaluate your product, and to analyze your profits and losses.” 

Resnick applauds her CFCC culinary professors, Chef Valerie Mason, Chef Jim Dishaws and Chef Marilyn Lowers. “They helped to shape my style and views on everything from steak to cake and back again! I admire and love those chefs and am so grateful for all they have taught me,” she exclaims. 

Resnick has some advice for current and future CFCC culinary students. “I would recommend this program to other prospective students, as long as they are focused, strong and enthusiastic.” The importance of class attendance is something she stresses. “This program is not for everyone, and having a few students in the class that do not take it seriously, or don’t show up for class can make it hard on everyone else,” says Resnick. 

Resnick’s own work ethic has certainly paid off. With the achievement of earning her culinary arts degree, and the support of her loving family, Resnick was able to successfully start her own successful in-home wedding cake business, which eventually led to the opening of Uprising. 

Today, Resnick is married and has two children. She co-owns Uprising with Michael Scott, her husband, and says she has achieved her culinary dream. She says, “I not only work in a kitchen where I’m needed and appreciated, but I get to be my own boss and I have all the artistic freedom I could ever want!”

John Hinnant, President and CEO of Wilmington Downtown, Inc., presents a check to Becket Morgan, vice president of the CFCC Alumni Council, and Dana McKoy, Coordinator of Special Events, Donor & Alumni Relations at the CFCC Foundation.

Wilmington, NC – Forty-Two, the Ultimate Coldplay Experience, took the stage at the Downtown Sundown Concert Series last Friday, July 6. Through the charity wristband program, WDI raised $465 for the Cape Fear Community College Alumni Association. The mission of the CFCC Alumni Association is to form partnerships and strengthen relationships between the community, the College and its alumni. 

“The CFCC Alumni Association is thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in the charity wristband program for Downtown Sundown this year. WDI provides a valuable service to the Wilmington non-profit community by inviting a different charity to each concert. The funds raised will be used to help endow the CFCC Alumni Legacy Scholarship. Once endowed at $10,000, this scholarship will generate income yearly to provide scholarships to family members of CFCC alumni who are enrolled in classes at CFCC,” says Dana McKoy, Coordinator of Special Events, Donor and Alumni Relations for the CFCC Foundation. 

Wristbands will be sold for $1.00 per person at the Downtown Sundown Concert Series for the remainder of the summer. WDI will split the proceeds with local charities and nonprofit organizations each week up to $1,000. Please visit wilmingtondowntown.com for a list of charities and corresponding dates.

The 2012 CFCC Student Ambassador team (clockwise from top left): Marco Crawford, David Wilson, Jamie Placco, Tiffany Pigford, Holly Keegan, Shawn Cress, Natalyn Wallin, Chloe Coleman, Shannon Beers and Courtney Hull (center).

Student Ambassadors Establish Giving Society to Honor CFCC President

Since announcing his retirement in January, CFCC President Dr. Eric McKeithan has received many unusual surprises, including a flash mob of CFCC students in Tabitha’s Courtyard and a lifetime achievement award from Phi Theta Kappa.

Knowing he would receive numerous accolades and retirement gifts, the outgoing 2011-12 CFCC Student Ambassadors searched for a unique gift that would signify the impact Dr. McKeithan has had on Cape Fear Community College, especially his untiring support of students. After much discussion, the team settled upon an idea: they wanted to establish a special giving society for former student ambassadors at CFCC.

At a luncheon on the last day of spring classes in May, ten student ambassadors presented Dr. McKeithan with  a framed certificate that announced the creation of the CFCC Ambassador Giving Society and commemorating Dr. McKeithan’s 18 years of service to CFCC students. Team members also presented him with $250 they personally donated as an inital gift to establish the society.

The funds will be added to the CFCC Alumni Association Legacy Scholarship, which once fully funded, the scholarship will allow CFCC alumni (including former student ambassadors) to nominate family members, or legacy students, to receive scholarship awards.

Donors to the Ambassador Giving Society will be recognized in CFCC’s annual President’s Report. In addition, once construction of CFCC’s Union Station building is completed, donors will also be recognized on a permanent plaque on the fifth floor outside the CFCC Foundation office.

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If you are you a former CFCC Student Ambassador and would like to be included in the CFCC Ambassador Giving Society, please contact the Cape Fear Community College Foundation at 910.362.7207 or email foundation@cfcc.edu.

The CFCC Foundation / NewBridge Bank Bridge to Bridge 4.0 run / 1.0 walk is a 4-mile course that will take participants from the Isabel Holmes Bridge to the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge through some of the most scenic areas of downtown Wilmington. Thursday, June 14th, 6:30 pm. Race ends with a celebration inside the Schwartz Center. Funds raised support student scholarships at CFCC. For more info or to register, visit: http://its-go-time.com/cfcc-bridge-to-bridge-4-0