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Time Capsule Letter - Dirk Jesbit (?), West Mecklenburg High School
No full textLetter to the Class of 2013, written by West Mecklenburg High School Senior Dirk Jesbit (unsure of last name spelling). This letter was added to the time capsule buried in honor of Central Piedmont's 25th anniversary in 1988 and was reopened in 2013 during the 50th anniversary celebrations
Reception to Honor Dr. Ruth Shaw
No full textA newspaper clipping written by Rose Gregory about the reception being held to honor Dr. Ruth Shaw.Reception To Honor Dr. Ruth
Shaw
Written by: Rose Gregory
On August 28, 1986 at 3:00
p.m., there will be an Open
House Kickoff Reception at
the Central Piedmont
Community College -
Matthews Area Learning
Center. Clay Lefler,
Matthews Mayor, will give
an official welcome to the
college's new president, Dr.
Ruth Shaw, Mayor Lefler
will also present her with a
key to the town of
Matthews.
Among those invited are
the Matthews town officials,
Matthews Business owners,
native town members
affecting the past, present
and future of the town of
Matthews, former CPCC-Matthews
Learning Center
Personnel, CPCC administrators,
instructors and
college staff having touched
the lives of the learning
center students, Mecklenburg
Board of Commissioners,
Charlotte City
Council, area town mayors
and officials, and last but not
least, Dr. John Moore, an
old time friend to the
community and former
Area Coordinator, will be
coming from Conway, S.C.
to give a speech on the
history of the CPCC
Matthews Area Learning
Center.
We are looking fo rward to
a successful reception
Matthews Area Learning Center
No full textCourtesy of the Southeast News. Photo by Carol Gordon. Pictured left to right: Clay Lefler (Former Mayor of Matthews), Kathy Faulkner (Matthews Office Supply), Jill Jennings (A Basket Instead), Arthur Kramer (Blass Development Group), Shirley Kelly (Domenicas Courtyward), Shawn Lemmond (Mayor of Matthews), Jean Phebus (A Basket Instead), Bob Pamn (Bass Development Group), Bonnie Lee and Frank King (Volpe Nails), Gene White (Textural Inc, Monroe, N.C.)
Time Capsule Letter - Bryan Arier, Amay James Elementary School
No full textThis letter was written by Bryan Arier, 6th grade student of Amay James Elementary School. It was added to a time capsule that was buried in honor of Central Piedmont's 25th anniversary in 1988. The time capsule was reopened in 2013 during the 50th anniversary celebrations
Time Capsule Letter -Rose Synani, Amay James Elementary School
No full textThis letter was written by Rose Synani, 6th grade student of Amay James Elementary School. It was added to a time capsule that was buried in honor of Central Piedmont's 25th anniversary in 1988. The time capsule was reopened in 2013 during the 50th anniversary celebrations.I---IL ,
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Phi Theta Kappa in Washington, D.C.
No full textMembers of Phi Theta Kappa at the National Convention in Washington, D.C
The Spark, Volume 22, No. 1
No full textTAYLOR HALL 205, P.O. BOX 35009
DR. RUTH SHAW
RECIEVES TOP
HONORS
Dr. Ruth Shaw, president of
Central Piedmont Community Col- ,
lege, has been selected as one of the
top 50 community college leaders
in the nation by a panel of colleagues
in higher education.
She has also been named a "Distinguished
Graduate" of the Community
College Leadership Program
(CCLP) and the College of
Education at the University of
Texas at Austin. Dr. Shaw will be·
recognized at the 1988 CCLP
League/Kellogg Fellows meeting
Austin in October.
"Your outstanding contribution
to both the community you serve
and the community college movement
is a source of tremendous
pride for those of us who study
'the movement,"' noted Dr. John
E. Rouche, professor and director
of the Sid W. Richardson Regents
Chair at the University of Texas, in
a letter of congratulations.
Dr. Shaw, who came to Central
Piedmont in 1986, recently led a
successful 65,000 drive.
CPCC staff will be assisted by Central
YMCA volunteers who have
been trained by the College.
"ABLE is another program we
can off er to the neighborhoods we
already serve," said Danny McConnell,
coordinator of Community
Services at the YMCA. "As necessary,
we will provide group transportation
and babysitting for students
from Strawn Apartments,
Boulevard Homes, Wilmore Community
, Dalton Village, Southside/
Brookhill Village and Cherry
Community. A program of this
nature has not been attempted by
any other Y ·in the country. We
hope it will serve as a model for
other Y's ... "
The college, which started the
literacy program in 1983, operates
other ABLE Centers at Freedom
Mall, Double Oaks, Belmont Center,
Camp Greene, McGuire Nuclear
Plant, and the Learning Resources
Center on campus. Total enrollment
in the program has increased
steadily over the years, and each
quarter about 600 students are
served.
CPCC News Release
STUDENT FINANCIAL AID
AVAILABLE
Student financial aid in rite form
of grants, scholarships, part-time
employment and loans -is available
through the CPCC Student Financial
Aid Office. Last year, over
1,530 per academic year.
Part-time employment through the
College's Work-Study program,
which pays 3,000 per year. Guaranteed
Student Loans, with a maximum
value of $2,600 per year are also
available. "It's not too late to apply
for financial aid. In keeping
with the College's philosophy of
helping students when they get
helping students when they get
here, we have few real deadlines,"
Eargle says.
For more information, forn1s
and assistance, visit the Student
Financial Aid Office in Room 504
of th Terrell Administration Building
or call 342-6942.
.Kent Eargle
~
FALL QUARTER :Lc:i88
Final Registration
Tues- & bled-,
August 30 & 31
Classes Begin
Thl.rs-, Sept 8
.....,,..,__.______..----=----------
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1 a A a a a a : ti • e a a A s : a an, s n •• a: a • 5 2 s : a • e_ tis ru p s 5 a rs n aJ!t!~
DR. JAMES G. WINGATE, NEW VICE PRESIDENT FOR EDUCATION
Dr. James G. Wingate has been named Vice President for Education at
Central Piedmont Community College. He will assume his new post in
September, replacing Dr; Gayle Simmons, who is retiring.
The new administrator comes to CPCC from Guilford Technical Community
College, where he has served as vice president for four years. Dr.
Wingate has worked in higher education since 1971 as a teacher, consultant,
researcher, and administrator. In those roles, he has had experience
in curriculum instruction, continuing education, student development,
literacy, and data processing and has supervised learning resource centers
and satellite campuses.
''Jim Wingate brings to us strong educational ~redentials, an impressive
breadth of administrative experience, and an understanding of the North
Carolina Community College System," said Dr. Ruth Shaw, CPCC president.
"I am looking forward to my work at CPCC and want each instructor
to feel that he or she is fully supported," said Dr. Wingate. "Teaching and
learning are what it is all about."
Dr. Wingate earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry/mathematics
from Allen University in 1966, a Master's degree and a Certificate
of Administrative Studies in educational administration from State University
of New York in 1975, and a Ph.D. in administration and supervision
from Syracuse University in 1979.
Acting Editor ..... . .. Charles Young
Photography
Advisor ............. David Inman
Staff Writers .......... Anja Benbow
E. · Owen DuBose
Jack J. Powley
Photographer ...... . .. Charles Young
Graphics . . . , . . . . . ~ . . Dwight Seltzer
Typesetting .. . . .. ..... Anja Benbow
Student Publica-tions
Advisor ..... Mary Murchison
Director of Stu-dent
Activities .... . . Ross Surphlis
THE SPARK is a news publication financed
by student activity f ees and
written and published by student
journalists for the CPCC community. It
is not an official college publication. Any
viewpoints expressed should not be interpreted
as representing official CPCC
positions.
Letters to the Editor should be sent interoffice
to Tay lor Hall 205 or through the
U.S. Mail to THE SPARK, CPCC, P.O.
Box 35009, Charlotte, NC 28235 ..
·~----------
:THE SPARK I ' .
'
NEEDS
REPORTERS
AND
Telephone
342-6665
fo r details !
·-----------
Dr. Wingate taught mathematics and science in the public schools of
Baltimore, Md., and in Syracuse at the School of Social Research in New
York. His administrative experience includes work at an agricultural and
technical college in Morrisville, N.Y. He founded and served as president
of Winard Research Associates, Ltd., from 1981 until 1984.
His research articles have appeared in numerous publications. He has
conducted seminars and workshops for the Fund for the Improvement of
Post Secondary Education, the National Association for Institutional Research,
the Public Broadcasting System, and the National Council for
Supervisors of Mathematics. He received an award for the Promotion of
Afro-American History and Culture from Millers Brewery and the Excellance
in Compensatory Education Award from the State University of
New York-Educational Opportunity Center of Syracuse.
He is a member of the United Negro Fund, the National Association
for the Advancement of Colored People, Greensboro Civitans, Civitan International,
High Point Chamber of Commerce, and the Episcopal Church
of the Redeemer.
Dr. Wingate's wife, Marjorie, is a registered clinical pharmacist. They
have two sons -- Marwan, 15, and Sean, 12-- and a daughter - Rukiya, 9.
"A number of factors contributed to my interest in the position of
Vice President for Education at CPCC," said Dr. Wingate. "As a member
of the League for Innovation in the Community College, CPCC is a natio~
al leader in educa~i~nal innovations. The quality of the CPCC faculty ,
thetr level of productmty, and the fact that they appear to enjoy their
work are very attractive. The President's leadership and focus and her idea
of b~ilding a high-energy team to lead CPCC into the 21st century are appealmg.
"Charlotte appears to be a city that has made some concerted decisions
about growth and development," he added. "The community seems to be
interested in the college's programs and proud of the institution. One of
the most invigorating and exciting examples of the college and community
partnership is the recent establishment of a literacy center at the Central
YMCA."
SPRING .QUARTER MERIT AWARD WINNERS
Spring Quarter Merit Award
winners_ were Gladys Bolden, Industry
Division secretary ; . Irene
Honeycutt, English and Foreign
Language instructor; Alex Gow,
counselor; and Virginia Christen-
•• bury, part-time English and
* Alex Gow (counselor) - "With
Alex there is not an 8-5 day. His
day begins with the student...in his
role as advocate for students, Alex
is unparalleled in this institut ion ...
His counseling extends beyond the
disbursement of hard, cold informaI
Foreign Language instructor. tion."
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Comments from those who
nominated the winners included
the following:
* Gladys Bolden (Industry
Division secretary) - "It is my
estimate that she provides more
help, dir~ction and advisement
to students ... than any other person
in this institution. At times
when she has been inundated
with work, she has provided
patient counsel to students who
were lost, bewildered or totally
unfamiliar with ... this campus."
* Irene Honeycutt (English
and Foreign Language instructor) -
"Whether it is developing unique
and fun assignments for students,
or through her own poetry or
fiction, Irene is a constantly exploring,
changing and creative person.
The fact that she -can impart this
creativity to students is .. .inspiring
to the rest of us ... lrene is an appropriate
symbol of the good this
college pours .. .into the community."
* Virginia Christenbury (parttime
English and Foreign Language
instructor) - "She has fired our
smoldering ambitions, and made
our fondest dreams come true -
the dream to write ... Nearly everyone
in the class has been fortunate
enough · to have at least one article
published .. .It's as though her passion
for good writing was a disease,
and when her students are exposed
to it - there is no hope -- they, too , ·
become afflicted ."
Exp. horseman to offer
riding lessons. Steve Mullis,
Little Mexico Stables.
Day: 704-342-6423.
(~ Night: 704- 385-:-9690.
JUST -FOR TODAY
by Jack J. Powley
Staff Writer
This is the first article on Pre- ·
venting Dnig Abuse in a continuing
series for the '88-'89 academic
year. Watch for future articles on
related topics in each mailer issue
of The Spark in the fall, winter
and spring quarters.
Everyone there - people just like
you - is trying to return to a life of
normalcy, or as near to it as he or
she can get. I hope I haven't made
it sound easy, because it's not, but
with the love and support you 'II get
after you take that fi,:st . step -
which is deciding you need help -
you '11 stand a better chance than
ever before of being drug-free! For
more info, call the 24-hour hotline -
(704) 379-0440.
Thirty-five years ago, some
members of Alcoholics Anonymous
got together and wrote up the
tenets of a new organization. Many
of their new members were suffering
from drug abuse specifically,
rather than just alcohol, though alcohol
is considered a drug. They
named it Narcotics Anonymous,
· and it is now in no way connected
with AA.
It seems everyone is familiar
with the workings of AA, but hardly
anyone knows about NA 's accomplishments.
But first, let me throw out an invitation.
If your life seems to be
out of control because of drugs -
any kind - and you don't know
where to tum; if you've run out of
supporting friends and family; if
you can't hold a job or give your
studies the attention they deserve;
if there's no one left to steal from,
or lie to ... there is a next step: attend
one meeting of NA, even if
only to satisfy your curiosity. While
there is a meeting in Charlotte
every night in the week at different
locations around the city, I am only
going to tell _you about one place_ to
save confusmg you. If you like
what you see, they'll give you the
addresses of the other meeting
places.
There is a little Episcopal church
(St. Peter's) on the comer of N.
Tryon St. and W. 7th St; You can
park across the street for free ( on
W. 7th) and go up the steps and in
the side door of the Activities
building. Take the inside stairs
down to the basemen(where you'll
find a large meeting hall. Th~ meetings
are held there two mghts a
week, Mondays and Wednesdays,
at 8 p.m. They last about an hour
and a half. There'll be about 200
peopl!J1here; you won't feel alone.
The members don't greet each
_ other with hand shakes; they wrap
their. arms around each other and
exchange a heart-wanning hug!
That hug says two things: "We're
both still 'clean,' and we're both
going to make it!"
And everything is on a
first-name basis only. When a member
has something to say, he'll
walk up to the speaker's podium
and say, "My name is Freddie, and
rm. an addict."
And everyone will answer -loudly,
"Hi, Freddie.','
In their talks they stress - just
like in AA - that their winning the
fight against drugs was largely made
possible by the help of a Supreme
Being (the one they, personally, believe
in), without whom they
couldn't have made it. I guess this
is as good a place as any to note
there are a few atheist members and
instead of relying on a religious·
faith, they draw their support from
the ·group, as a whole. This means
that you either draw yo_ur support
from something or somebody. You
know, little things like sharing that
hug with a fellow member. But
each meeting is begun with the nonsectarian
"Serenity Prayer," and
they mean every word of it! Perhaps
you're familiar with it: "God,
grant me the serenity to accept the
things I cannot change, the courage
to change the things I can and the
wisdom · to know the difference."
Then the meeting progresses in
one of two ways: Either one of the
members - by previous arrangement
- gets up and gives a short talk
on how he won his fight against
drugs, which can get very explicit,
or the membership might divide into
small discussion groups, where .
you learn the tricks of staying
"clean."
They're all addicts, but recovering
addicts! Let's face it; advice from
family, friends, pastors, psychiatrists
and psychologists doesn't
really tell you .what you want to
know. The only guy that "knows
the score" is the one who has been
there!
They'll be of different ages,
from teens to senior citizens, males
and females, all colors and all races,
rich and poor.
WANTED POTTERS
interested in
production work
CALL 552 -9398
., .
Before the meeting breaks up,
they hand out small, inch-and-a-half
diameter plastic chips of different
colors. On your first night there,
they'll give you a white one - the
crowd will cheer you for taking
that first step - then when you've
been "clean" for 30 days, they'll
give you an orange one. When
you've been drug-free for 90 days,
you get a red one. And so on, up
to a year and more. What they
teach you is: Take one day at a
time. Hang tough just for today!
,
They supply you with the name
and phone number of a "sponsor"
whom you can call any time of the
day or night when you feel the urge
to light up, shoot, or snort. The
sponsor will be of the same sex as
yourself, but will have a lot of experience
to share with you in how
to "stay clean" and how to handle
your withdrawal symptoms - just
like in AA.
There's free coffee and most
everyone smokes throughout the
meeting. They pass the hat - NA is
self-supporting - but you only give
if you feel like it - or if you've got
it.
CPCC NORTH AREA
LEARNING CENT ER
OFFERS CPR AND.
MORE FOR FALL
A CPR' course leading to certification
is among the many offerings
at Central Piedmont Community
College's North Area Leaming Center
during Fall Quarter.
The class, ,scheduled for four
2.5-hour sessions beginning Sept.
12, will focus on one- and/or twoperson
CPR, infant CPR, and clearing
obstructed passages.
A class on retirement/pre-retirement
planning will also be offered,
as well as classes in economics, business
law, accounting, hotel/restaurant
management, typing, mythology,
English, medical terminology,
computer literacy, and other subjects.
For those who enjoy crafts,
there will also_ be classes in porcelain,
oils, watercolors, and holiday
ornaments and crafts.
Classes begin Sept. 8.
For more information, call 892-
7600.
CPCC Press Re/ease
ONE ON ONE
with D.G. Martin
LEARNING SOMETHING
NEW AT A HIGH SCHOOL
REUNION
How long has it been since you
have been back to a high school
class reunion?
Reunions are trips back in time.
Thank goodness we can go for a
few hours. And thank goodness we
· don't have to stay forever.
What can these reunion adventures
teach us?
A few things: I learned that I am
. not the only one of my classmates
that has "premature" grey hair.
. That was _nice. I am glad I left the
Grecian Formula in th~ bottle.
l learned about children and
grandchildren. And that helped me
remember how proud I am of my
own family.
I heard about a few business and
professional success stories.. But
more important were the many
human successes.
Most of us had changed in looks.
Wider, taller, fuller, greyer, thinner
- thirty years makes a difference.
We had changed in other
ways, too,-of course. -Even so, when
you put us all back together again
in the school cafeteria, with the
fifties music in the background,
some things came rushing back.
What came back was not the
memories of the things w~ cele- ·
brated then. It was not the great
athletic victories, or the good
test scores, or the awards, or any
other individual achievement that
any of us had made.
Those are not important anymore.
What came .rushing back-what
is at least as important now
as it was then--is the memory
of things we did for each other.
The friend who would talk to us
when no one else would. The
teacher who took the time to help
get us over the hump or who knew
when to encourage us to reach up
and really learn something. The
principal who knew our qame (and
still does) and who cared about us
(and still does).
What can you learn at a high
school reunion?
If what we did for each other
then is so important now, we've
got a clue about what to do with
the rest of our lives.
CANNONBALL EXPRESS
BURNB AGAIN AT
WHJSPE~S!
A Review
by Anja Benbow
Staff Writer
On Wednesday , July 27, the jazz
band Cannonball Express made
another rare appearance at the
nightclub called Whispers at Park
Road Shopping Center. Rare - not
in the sense of " infrequent" - but
rather in the · serise of "unique."
Rare and raw . While a powerful
thunderstorm raged overhead ; this
band on the covered patio of Whispers
drowned out the drama of the
weather.
The band, consisting of Don
"Cannonball" McClure on keyboards
as well as alto ·and soprano
sax; Leroi Paige on tenor, alto and
soprano sax as well as flute; Jallies
Gregory on bass guitar; Freeman
Williams on percussion and vocals;
Don Thompson on dru~s and vocals;
and CPCC's Jim Duckworth on
guitar, has performed in the Charlotte
area for the past seven years;
all continue to play with other
bands as well as Cannonball Express.
The band played for about three
hours, beginning with instrumentals
such as "Wine Light" and "Memphis
Underground" and building up
to a funk version of "Everybody's
Talkin'" and vocal pieces wJ.tich E!;
spired some of the audience stand.
ing around the bar to get up and
dance.
Cannonball Express has been
known for its ability to do long
improvisations, with solo inter- ·
changes which are masterfully
self-indulgent. There was the occasional
"knowing smile" between
musicians which reflects a certain
appreciation of soulful style between
them; there was also the o
Inside CPCC, Spring Quarter, Volume 2, Number 7
No full textInside CPCC celebrates the 25th anniversary of Central Piedmont Community College. It looks at the college's early days in 1963 and how the college had grown since then. It also features brief profiles of David L. Hunter, Dean Davis, Gayle Simmons, Phoebe Oplinger, Powell Majors, and Claud Hunter.• OPENING
~ DOORS&
MINDS<P~
25YEARS.
1963-1988
On our cover:
For 25 years, Central Piedmont Community
College has been opening the minds of those
who have come lo Its doors loo/clng for o
betler future. In this Sliver Anniversary year,
the College loo/cs back at the many who
have walked through Its doors - freshlaced
high school graduates, unskilled laborers
and longtime housewives looking for new
fob skills, those with physical disabilities, professionals
who must keep up with changes in
their fields. And the College loo/cs ahead lo
those who will walk through those same
doors during the next quarter-century.
Spring Quarter, 1988
Volume 2, Number 7
Published by
Community Relations
Central Piedmont
Community College
Carol L. Timblin, contributing writer
Harold Warren, contributing writer
Tom Covington, contributing photographer
Mike Slade, contributing photographer
Donna Bice, contributing photographer
Mervll Paylor, graphic designer
Peg Robarchek, editor
Copyright 1988 by Central Piedmont Community
College. For reprint rights, contact
Peg Robarchek, CPCC, P.O. Box 35009,
Charlotte, N.C. 28235
CPCC is an equal opportunity institution.
Fifteen thousand copies of this public document
were printed at a cost of 5 - 342-6534
■ Child Care Training Center Alumni Ice Cream Social - May 12 - 5:30 p.m. -
Child Care Training Center, CPCC Main Campus - For all children who attended
1 970-Present
■ Professional Development for Women Luncheon Seminar - "Working
Within a Group: How to be a Team Player" by Evelyn Nikkel, Zareba's - May 13
11 :30 a.m. - 1 p.m. - Marriott City Center, 100 W. Trade Street - 9 - Contact Mecklenburg County
Women's Commission, 700 N. Tryon, 28202
■ Graduation Ceremony - June 12 - 3 p.m. - Grady Cole Center - Speaker Dr.
Peter Relic, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent
■ Professional Development for Women Luncheon Seminar - "Good Managers
Make Bad Decisions" by Ken Iverson, Nucor Corporation - June 24 - 11 :30
a.m. - 1 p.m. - Marriott City Center, 100 W. Trade Street - 9 - Contact Mecklenburg
County Women's Commission, 700 N. Tryon, 28202
■ Summer Quarter Classes - June 29-Aug. 1
■ Fall Quarter Registration - Aug. 1-2 for current students; all students Aug. 3-4
and 8- 11 ; final registration Aug. 30-31
■ Fall Quarter Classes - Sept. 8 - Nov. 23
■ Winter Quarter Registration - Nov. 7-8 for current students; all students Nov.
9-10 and 14-17; final registration Nov. 28-29
■ Thanksgiving Holiday - Nov. 24-27
■ Winter Quarter Classes - Dec. 1 - March 1, 1989
■ Christmas Holidays - Dec. 21 - Jan 2, 1989
■ Martin Luther King Holiday - Jan. 16, 1989
President's
Message
Help us realize the dream
Dear CPCC Friends:
This special issue of "Inside CPCC"
celebrates twenty-five years of enterprising
education for Charlotte/
Mecklenburg. In these pages, you will
read the "inside story" of those who
built the foundation for excellence at
CPCC. Such anniversaries call for nostalgic
- and analytical - recollections
of the past. They also call for
clear vision to shape the future. Just in
case you miss the fiftieth anniversary
edition of "Inside CPCC" in 2013, let's
speculate on what the next twenty-five
years will hold.
The downtown campus on Elizabeth
contains the carefully preserved core
of the original campus. Garinger Hall
(Old Central High) has a restored exterior
and a contemporary interior that
serves, most fittingly, as a continuing
education center. The latest in technology
and that CPCC standard - caring,
competent faculty and staff - come
together to help the adults who continue
to come to CPCC to brush up their
computer literacy, their reading comprehension,
their analytical skills, their
computation, and their writing. Learning
is lifelong - for everyone!
Only a few campus old-timers
remember Memorial Stadium. The
park-like campus that houses the "new"
science building, the child care facility,
the fine and performing arts center, the
occupational skills building, and the
technology annex seems to have been
there forever. Occasionally a graying
athlete stands in amazement and looks
toward his wife, saying, "But it was
right here, Debbie. I caught the pass
right where the rapid transit stop is now:•
CPCC extends beyond the Elizabeth
Avenue site, however. Throughout
Mecklenburg County, strategically
located CPCC centers make general
studies, specialized job training, and
short term courses accessible for
everyone. And thanks to the interactive
distance learning programs, students
can choose to study at home when that
is most convenient.
Since 1990, Mecklenburg County has
paid CPCC tuition for any high school
graduate who agreed to do five hours
of community or civic service a month.
The program has become a way of life
in the community, stimulating higher
levels of education and a renewed
commitment to social responsibility. It
has been widely emulated, and its success
in Mecklenburg County continues.
Community service has become almost
synonymous with the community
college.
The business community and its
"Learn a Living" program have also
been instrumental in making the Mecklenburg
population the best-educated
in the region. Students start summer
jobs programs while still in high school,
are provided financial support as they
receive career education at CPCC, and
have jobs for which they are exceptionally
well-prepared when they graduate.
This program was another aspect
of the 1990 Community Compact that
brought together all resources to help
reduce school dropouts, improve educational
opportunity, and provide a
better match between jobs available
and the skills of the people who
wanted them.
CPCC has a first-rate reputation for
quality, whether for its adult literacy
programs or its college transfer offerings.
Business and industry leaders
help evaluate the career programs and
their students regularly, and they share
a justifiable pride in the ability of these
students to keep on learning, no matter
how rapidly the technology changes.
The corporate and continuing education
program has become a key training
component for hundreds of businesses.
The international perspective
has become commonplace as our
world economy and world society
became ever more interdependent.
And the dream of smooth transitions
from high school to the community college
to work or the university has
become a reality.
In 2013, CPCC is still an educational
enabler for all adult students. CPCC is
uncomprimising in its high standards,
and equally uncompromising in its commitment
to help students reach them.
It's the formula that worked in 1988; it
will still be working in 2013!
Enjoy reflecting on our first 25 years;
help us realize the dream for the
second 25.
L. a ).,{J_ ,,IL..-J
Ruth G. Shaw, President
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e t,U GAi I ON
Blueprint for Change
From plumbing to philosophy, excellence,
egalitarian spirit thrive side-by-side
'
wenty-five springtimes have
blossomed on the Central
Piedmont Community College
campus since the school set
out in 1963 in quest of its
identity.
One of North Carolina's first community
colleges was in so many ways a
pioneer in unmapped forests, cutting
unconventional paths to educational
achievements. Growing from small and
simple to vast and complex, it continually
redefined what it was and reexamined
where it was going.
Maybe the concept is not yet final.
Maybe it never will be. Maybe it will
evolve as long as society evolves.
Maybe that is in the nature of a good
community college.
But from the beginning, CPCC cultivated
some of the seeds of ideas that
would germinate into offspring ideas.
The commitment to excellence in all
things. The "open door" policy and
egalitarian spirit. The pragmatism, flexibility
and innovation. The notion of
lifelong learning. The student-oriented
values.
Today, as CPCC's 25th anniversary
nears, the 2,500 or so courses listed in
the spring quarter schedule include
everything from plumbing to
philosophy.
Consider these words from a classic
book on "Excellence;• first published in
1961 not long before CPCC's birth.
"We must learn to honor excellence
(indeed to demand it) in every socially
accepted human activity, however humble
the activity, and to scorn shoddiness,
however exalted the activity ...
"An excellent plumber is infinitely
more admirable than an incompetent
philosopher. The society which scorns
excellence in plumbing because plumbing
is a humble activity and tolerates
shoddiness in philosophy because it is
an exalted activity will have neither
good plumbing nor good philosophy.
Neither its pipes nor its theories will
hold water:•
The book, by John W. Gardner, then
president of the Carnegie Foundation,
was subtitled, "Can We Be Equal and
Excellent Too?" Gardner grappled with
thorny, age-old dichotomies and
argued powerfully for institutional diversity
in education. The book proved to
be prophetic, locally and nationally.
Story by Harold F. Warren
The book could well have been a
blueprint of CPCC's emerging spirit.
The traditional approach was for the
18-year-old high school graduate to go
off to a residential college, if that was
affordable. Few alternatives existed
before the community college
movement.
From its beginning, CPCC was in the
vanguard of the community college
movement as the flagship of a North
Carolina system that would spread to
58 campuses and become the nation's
third largest system.
And its first president, Dr. Richard H.
Hagemeyer, was on the cutting edge
of vocational education before that, as
an administrator at Michigan's Henry
Ford Community College. Henry Ford
had pioneered many concepts in occupational
education for his employees,
and his company later transferred the
programs to the local junior college.
"That was really the beginning of
what we now know as the community
college;' reflects Hagemeyer. "It was
really a technical college. But it probably
was the first community college
that put a heavy emphasis on occupational
education, which is very common
now:'
Meanwhile, in Charlotte, the stage
was set. A few local leaders - most
notably, perhaps, former local school
superintendent Dr. Elmer Garinger -
could see the need for a new kind of
school. Terry Sanford, interested in
new approaches, was governor.
Visionary Dr. Dallas Herring was state
Board of Education chairman. And the
state and nation were in ferment, old
concepts of education shaken by the
Soviet leap into space with Sputnik,
racial tension, and other unsettling
challenges of the late 1950s and early
1960s.
Some could foresee the coming technological
revolution and the urgent
need to re-educate a work force, to
upgrade occupational skills, to turn out
practical nurses and business managers.
And even to develop on academic
curriculum that was to become one of
the first liberal arts college transfer
programs in the state in fall 1964.
But how could they foresee the myriad
turns and twists in CPCC's future?
The flourish of the fine arts, for
instance, in a setting that began as a
3
small, trade-oriented school. The fine
arts, started in fall 1967 when Gene
Bryant arrived to build a new department
from scratch, would grow like
wildfire during the next decade, not
only in size but in vitality, creativity and
excellence. More than any other lure,
probably more newcomers have been
attracted to the CPCC campus for the
first time - tens of thousands of them
yearly - to see performances of
drama, choral and instrumental groups,
dance and the like. Many went away
impressed, becoming friends of the
college.
Still, in the beginning, old ideas
about what a college should be died
hard, and new ideas about community
colleges and their potential required
painful struggle for acceptance.
"It was hard for people to understand;'
Hagemeyer says now. "It
wasn't high school. And it wasn't a
truncated version of a four-year college.
Instead, it was a brand new institution
that was brought about because
of the needs of American society. All
the other aspects of the American educational
system we inherited from
Europe. Not this one. This one is an
American creation, designed for Americans'
needs:•
Even after the N.C. General Assembly
passed the bill on May 17, 1963,
creating CPCC on paper and the new
college began operating a few months
later, on July 1, all sorts of uncertainties
lingered.
Newspapers referred to the new college
by various names. It did not get its
permanent name for five more months.
Following his election as president by
the trustees on September 17, 1963,
Hagemeyer was quoted by "The Charlotte
News" as musing, "Isn't that
something? Here I am president without
a salary (still undetermined), of an
institution without a name:•
Less than a month later, the same
paper quoted him, "We're a boardwalk
college, not in the tradition of the
ivy-covered universities. There'll be an
atmosphere here of enthusiasm, of students
in a hurry to get the job done
because of the wonderful things which
will happen tomorrow.
"Getting the public to understand
that both (technical job training and
academic preparation for universities)
are functions of a community college is
a hurdle we must jump. We will have
an open door policy, but we will have
quality education:•
By February 1964, in announcing
plans for the first adult education centers
at off-campus sites, Hagemeyer
explained to "The Charlotte Observer:•
"We're going to bring the classroom to
the people:' A "Charlotte News" editorial
the next day quoted him as saying
4
that the aim is to rid the community of
the notion that "education is a childhood
disease that you develop an
immunity to after your teens:•
At that time, the strangeness of
these ideas required some innovative
approaches, Hagemeyer recalls now.
"Just one problem, from day one,
was, how do you let people know
what kind of programs you're offering?
You can't hand out catalogs like
they do in a traditional college. So we
started the idea of putting information
about the schedule in newspapers.
Boy, that was criticized! It was not
respectable for a college to do that. It
was degrading. Now, of course, most
everybody does it:•
If the rudiments of a concept of CPCC
were in place, there was no full-blown
definition, no grand scheme for its ultimate
structure and missions, and
apparently no notion by Hagemeyer
that he was going to stamp his mark on
history by setting a standard for others
to follow.
"Those things might have crossed my
mind - but I doubt it;• he says. "I was
so involved in doing the things I believe
in and there were just so many opportunities
to be of service that I really
didn't think about what was going to
happen.
"The programs we developed -
and this is extremely important -
were never developed because somebody
in the administration thought we
ought to have such a program. All of
them came about because of the
encouragement and pressure and
assistance of the industrial community,
occupational groups, professional
groups or others:•
If the impetus for ever-lengthening
lists of what is offered came from the
outside, the restless stir for new and
better ways to serve more and more
people was part of the inner spirit of
CPCC from the beginning. The spirit
brimmed with excitement and a sense
of pregnant potential.
You could feel it, for instance, in
what Gene Bryant told "The Charlotte
Observer" in January 1968, just months
after he arrived at CPCC:
"It is the most challenging job I have
ever had - by far. This school is an
exciting place. You feel like it is an
enormous thing, just beginning to come
to life - not bound by traditions, so
that you can try new paths, do new
things. The potential, I think, is
fantastic:•
CPCC was unfettered by the idea
that the classroom lecture method of
imparting knowledge was sacred and
was willing to "try new paths" to teach
an increasingly non-traditional student
body. So the college became a hotbed
of experimentation and innovation that
would bring a national reputation.
During the 1960s, Claud Hunter pioneered
the use of slides and
audiotapes to teach automotive students
how to repair a carburator, and
others experimented on campus with
concepts of individualized instruction,
allowing for self-paced study.
In February 1965, CPCC touted the
opening of a new "Learning Lab" with
450 students enrolled and Frank
Turnage as director. It was set up on
the former balcony of the auditorium in
Old Central (now Garinger), using programmed
materials, "learning
machines" and "reading machines:•
Called a supplement, not a replacement
for regular class, the lab could
handle 97 students at a time.
By September 1969, the idea had
evolved into a more ambitious and
complex venture when CPCC opened a
"revolutionary information retrieval
system" in the big new Learning
Resources Center. Directed by Dr. Al
Corum, it was based on the theory that
almost all students could learn anything,
given adequate time. It offered a
dazzling arsenal of learning tools such
as slide projectors, tape recorders, film
strips and then-new gadgets, computers.
It even had a dialing system for
remote automatic projection of closedcircuit
television and films into any
classroom.
Corum said at the time that "the lecture
method is not the beginning or end
of education:•
During the early 1970's, those
unconventional approaches were followed
by alternative ways to reach the
public off-campus, gradually expanding
to use of television, radio, telephone,
newspaper courses and mail.
Just one telephone service, DOLLY (Dial
Our Listening Library Yourself), took 2.6
million calls from the public between
1975 and its demise in 1985.
As enrollments and student success
rates soared, other colleges began to
take notice. Two marks of that recognition
were the 1970 invitation to join the
elite League for Innovation in Community
Colleges and the 1985 selection of
CPCC from among 1,219 schools as
one of the nation's top five community
colleges for good teaching and innovative
instruction, based on a study by
college educators from around the U.S.
But beyond all the multiplicity of programs
and the creative ways of delivering
them, at the heart of the college's
approach was the unflagging ,
emphasis on the students themselves,
who would get individual attention
from instructors who primarily wanted
to teach rather than publish or conduct
research.
Symbolic of that student-centered
bias, students played key roles in such
landmark ceremonies as
groundbreakings and dedications.
On a Thursday afternoon, December
15, 1966, for instance, when CPCC
held momentous groundbreaking ceremonies
for the first two major buildings
(now known as Van Every and Terrell),
student body president Calvin Connor
presided and 15 students from 15
departments wielded shovels.
"We realize that this is a break with
tradition, but this is such a wonderful
group of students;• Hagemeyer said at
the time. "They're so eager •..• We
decided to involve them to the hilt and
let them see what's coming at Central
Piedmont:•
As the college's student body grew
toward an all-time peak enrollment in
1980 of 54,394 individuals, it kept
expanding its vision of its roles and
society's needs by touching the lives of
people as diverse as fresh-faced high
school graduates senior citizens, those
aiming toward a better job or those
simply seeking to enhance the quality
of their lives. Even toddlers, who have
attended child care at CPCC's innovative
training center since the early
1970s, count themselves among the
college's "alumni:' Central Piedmont
even takes education to prison
inmates.
A key impetus came from thousands
of returning Vietnam veterans enrolling
as full-time students during the 1970s.
Just as World War II veterans returning
with the G.I. Bill spurred traditional colleges,
so Vietnam veterans helped fuel
the community college movement, says
John Tripp, CPCC's director of veterans
affairs and testing services.
"They tended to be more mature and
motivated. They also demanded more
of instructors, so they improved the
quality of instruction here;• Tripp says.
Veterans made a blockbuster economic
impact on the community with
their educational benefits, which
peaked at more that 11 million in
1975. That fall quarter, 3,817 veterans
were CPCC students, the largest enrollment
of veterans in any N.C. college.
From 1970 to 1987, CPCC veterans'
benefits totalled almost $88 million.
CPCC's "Open Door" admissions policy
not only meant it wanted to serve
all educational levels, from illiterates to
academic whizzes, but also reached
out to such diverse groups as the handica
