Congratulations to Central Piedmont alumnus and 2018 Hagemeyer Award winner Chris Coleman for winning Food Network's Chopped!

Last month, Central Piedmont Model United Nations Club members attended the UNCC Carolinas Conference, together with high schools and colleges from across North Carolina. The event gave the college's first-time and returning Central Piedmont Model United Nations delegates the opportunity to further develop their negotiating, problem solving, and public speaking skills within each committee. 

Students researched, debated, and wrote mock UN resolutions at the conference about a variety of current global topics, such as gender and the role of women in disarmament, the effects of global warming on human health, the rising tensions between China and the U.S., and preventing spillover violence from the Sudan conflict.

"I learned about topics I otherwise would not have been aware of beforehand," said Returning Model UN member Yasmine Outtara.

Three of the newer members of the Central Piedmont Model UN team Katherine Beekman, Emma Hoff, and Christopher St. Hilaire were named Outstanding Delegates for representing South Africa in the Security Council and General Assembly 1st respectively.

Learn more here.

To support Model UN at Central Piedmont, click here.

Upcoming Conferences
Central Piedmont students will be attending two more conferences in spring 2020: the Harvard National Model UN Conference in February and the Southern Regional Model UN Conference in Charlotte in March.

After graduating from Hopewell High School, Brian LaBombard took a semester's worth of classes at Appalachian State. Twice. Both times, he realized that he wanted to be independent but was not quite ready to pursue a degree. Instead, he enlisted in the Army. When his enlistment ended four years later, he immediately applied to Central Piedmont and focused on his goal of earning a college degree. Now, Brian is both a United States Army veteran and a college graduate with an A.A.S. degree in Computer Engineering Technology.

Brian chose to attend Central Piedmont because he wanted a personal learning experience with classes that worked around his schedule. He also wanted to be part of a community dedicated to personal improvement and community contribution. He says, "Central Piedmont provided me with an amazing professional foundation to build upon. I enjoyed learning alongside great individuals and having outstanding professors. I also loved working in the Engineering Lab with state of the art equipment." 

Dave Ross, one of Brian's former instructors at Central Piedmont, nominated Brian for an Outstanding Student award in 2015, describing Brian as, "a detail oriented student who produces high quality work and works hard to understand material beyond what is required." 

One of the hallmarks of Central Piedmont's Electrical, Electronic, and Computer Engineering Technology programs is that they are all ABET accredited. Central Piedmont is one of three community colleges in the state that earns this designation; only 17 institutions statewide do so. This accreditation ensures a high quality of education and enhances future employment opportunities for program graduates. As a graduate of Central Piedmont, Brian has benefitted from this accreditation, securing a position in his field even before he finished his degree. Brian explains, "I was able to land a position at Red Ventures while completing my final semester at Central Piedmont and have been with them since." He is currently a Desktop Support Engineer II. 

He offers encouraging advice to prospective students, especially those that have not followed a traditional path to higher education. "Every assignment, quiz, and test you take is another brick in your professional foundation. Treat all of your work with a high level of importance; doing so will bring value to yourself and an appreciation for the dedication you've put into bettering your future. We can all become discouraged at times, but do not allow your failures to define you. Instead, let the solutions that you create become a beacon of inspiration to guide your future." 
 

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill launched C-STEP (the Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program) in 2006 to enable more community college students to transfer to and graduate from Carolina. This year, UNC Chapel Hill  has expanded C-STEP to include a partnership with Central Piedmont Community College and Guilford Technical Community College, and has launched a new component of the program, Pathways to STEM Success. The additions to the program were made possible by a $1.13 million grant from the North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation.

As part of UNC Chapel Hill's mission to provide a high-quality education to North Carolinians of all backgrounds, C-STEP is used to identify high-achieving high school seniors and community college students whose household incomes fall at or below 300 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Once accepted in C-STEP, students are guaranteed entry to UNC Chapel Hill following the completion of an associate degree with cumulative grade-point averages of at least 3.2 at a partner community college such as Central Piedmont and the 12 other partner schools. Student also receive transition and support services, such as dedicated advising, mentoring, networking opportunities, and special seminars. This support contributes to the program's success. C-STEP students earn their bachelor's degree at a rate of over 85 percent, as opposed to only 17 percent of students completing their bachelor's degree outside of the program.

In addition to the expansion of C-STEP, the new Partners to STEM Success initiative aims to train the next generation of STEM and health professionals. Students in this part of the C-STEP program will receive specific mentoring to prepare them for graduate study or careers in STEM and health professions, and have opportunities for immersive experiences such as summer internships and lab assistantships.