Funding roundup

The Community College of Beaver County (CCBC) in Pennsylvania has been selected as one of American Airlines’ top aviation-focused schools and organizations, earning the college a $25,000 grant. The funding will support CCBC’s launch of its WINGS (Widening Interest for the Next Generation of Students) in Aviation program, which will increase outreach efforts to school districts and enable CCBC to purchase several desktop flight simulators that can be taken to the local school districts for hands-on learning.

“We believe we’re making the pilot profession more visible, accessible and obtainable to a broader range of people than ever before,” said Captain David Tatum, director of pilot recruiting and development for American.

CCBC was one of only 17 aviation schools to receive an American Airlines grant in 2018.

California

Norco College received $200,000 from the College Futures Foundation to implement a case-management approach for guided pathways. The college plans to create a new website that will make it easier for students to choose a program. The funding also will help to expand student access by using an academic planning system that allows students to easily monitor progress on their program of study, as well as support student success teams and the college community with professional development..

Louisiana

Six Louisiana community colleges will receive commercial-grade refrigerators from Healthy Blue Louisiana to expand their campus food pantries. The refrigerators will allow the colleges to offer perishable items, such as milk and meat.

The colleges receiving the refrigerators are Bossier Parish Community College, Delgado Community College, Fletcher Technical Community College, Nunez Community College, South Louisiana Community College and Sowela Technical Community College.

Michigan

Washtenaw Community College’s auto service programs will benefit from the donation of a 2018 Nissan Murano from the Nissan Technical Center North America (NTCNA).

“The ability to learn from the active systems that this vehicle will offer our students is a turning point,” said Brandon Tucker, dean of advanced technologies and public service careers. “New vehicles are advancing at such a rate that it is challenging for institutions like ours to keep up with the newest technologies in the industry.”

North Carolina

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College will use a $200,000 investment from Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas to support its new multi-craft maintenance technician apprenticeship program, aimed at connecting students with hands-on training and career development opportunities. The funding will cover all tuition, book and material costs for each apprentice over the next four years. In addition, money is allocated to purchase new equipment and related supplies for the college’s new Advanced Manufacturing Training Center, which is slated to open at the end of 2019.

“We started this program because companies need more multi-craft maintenance technicians who have a mastery of all required job duties, but most of our local companies do not have the critical mass to run an apprenticeship program,” said Kerry Motley, apprenticeship director and account manager in business services at Rowan-Cabarrus. “By the college taking on the administrative functions, this allows companies to join a collective of manufacturing companies to ensure that their apprentices get the training they need when they need it.”

Tennessee

Pellissippi State Community College will use a $400,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to lay the groundwork for its Appalachian Heritage Project, which will focus on regional literature, history and folklore.

“The Appalachian Heritage Project will create a cultural center that will educate not only our Pellissippi State students, but the entire community about the traditions and narrative of our region,” said Pellissippi State President L. Anthony Wise, Jr.

The grant requires a $400,000 match, which will be met through a major gift fundraising campaign. The project is expected to be completed by October 2020.

Texas

The Student Government Association (SGA) at El Paso Community College (EPCC) received a check for $5,000 from PepsiCo to support the SGA-run Tejano Food Pantry for EPCC students.

“This will go a long way in fighting food insecurities among our college family,” said Jones Arvis, director of student leadership and campus life.