Central Piedmont Sporting Clays Classic Raises Over $190K

Central Piedmont Sporting Clays ClassicThe Central Piedmont Sporting Clays Classic benefits the College's U.S. military veteran and first responder students and programs, and 2023 marked the 19th year of the event's history. The event was once again held at Meadow Wood Farm in Waxhaw, NC.

After a bit of a rain scare, the sky cleared up for a beautiful April day of sport, community, and conversation. 

The College raised nearly $193K through the support of corporate sponsors, team registrations, raffle tickets, and donations. We are especially grateful for the support of our tournament sponsors: Piedmont Natural Gas (Clay Pigeon Challenge), Juneberry Ridge (First Responders Cup), and Concrete Supply and Rodgers (B.D. Rodgers Cup)

Almost 300 participants joined us for the day-long event featuring 17 stations including a Frenzy and a Flurry - which proved key in providing the tie-breaker for two of the tournaments. Our winners for the day's event are below:

B.D. Rodgers Cup: Individual
1st Place: Chris Dorton | 44 (Streak of 31)
2nd Place: Gerald Tucker | 44 (Streak of 17)
3rd Place: Page Tucker | 43

B.D. Rodgers Cup: Team Champion
Rodgers | 212: Taylor Miles, Jason Money, Paige Tucker, Gerald Tucker

Clay Pigeon Challenge: Individual
1st Place: Carter Loetz | 43 (Streak of 18)
2nd Place: Thomas Hovis | 43 (Streak of 17)
3rd Place: Tim Hileman | 42

Clay Pigeon Challenge: Team
1st Place: Pinnacle Financial | 205: Tim Hileman, Paul Cochrane, Greg Everhart, Lain Reavis
2nd Place: Warco Construction | 199: Thomas Hovis, Austin Claytor, Drew Rochester, TM
3rd Place: Piedmont Natural Gas | 177: Randy Bost, Jeremy Koster, Carl Peterson, Brad Holbrook

First Responders Cup: Individual
1st Place: William Wallis | 50
2nd Place: Mike Small | 45
3rd Place: Hunter Hampton | 44 (Streak of 22)Headshot of Dale Thomas

First Responders Cup: Team
1st Place: MEDIC | 223: William Wallis, John Gibson, Bill Ward, Janet Geradot
2nd Place: CMPD | 215 (Flurry 39): Curt Bell, Gene Rivera, Mark Smith, Bill Booth
3rd Place: CFD #1 | 215 (Flurry 32): Mike Small, Derek Alexander, Jason Cloninger, Mike Stroup

The two Janet Chernaga award winners were Deborah Edwards (morning) and Janet Gerdot (afternoon).

Over lunch, the guest speaker, Dale Thomas (pictured right), inspired the audience with his story of trials and triumphs. Dale Thomas served in the U.S. Army for four years as an Infantryman at Ft. Hood, Texas. He graduated from Central Piedmont last week with an Associate of Applied Science in Human Services Technology.  Dale plans to utilize his education in Human Services to empower, advocate, and bring awareness to marginalized populations, such as helping those with disabilities and veterans. You can read more of his story here. We look forward to seeing how far he'll go!

We are so grateful to all those who supported this event, be it as a sponsor, a team, a volunteer, or a vendor. Thank you. 

View pictures from this year's event here.

Stay tuned for information on how you can support the 20th-anniversary event.

Posted in Announcements, Events, Foundation News. Tagged as event, sporting clays classic.

Central Piedmont Holds Spring 2023 Commencement

Central Piedmont Community College held its 2023 spring commencement ceremonies on Thursday, May 11, in Charlotte. Approximately 900 students "marched" and received their college credentials during the morning and afternoon ceremonies. More than 1,500 students were eligible to graduate.

During the morning festivities at the Bojangles Coliseum, Maria "Fernanda" Moreno Tovar, a 2023 graduate, addressed her peers by delivering the commencement address. RaeDeja Sawyer, also a 2023 graduate, spoke at the afternoon ceremony. It has become Central Piedmont's tradition to have graduating students serve as commencement keynote speakers. Both Maria and RaeDeja were graduating with associate in arts degrees.

Maria shared her experiences and challenges as an immigrant from Mexico. She concluded her address by saying, "As I am standing here today, I am confident that Central Piedmont gave me the right tools to continue chasing my academic goals. I am also confident that just like mine, your struggle can make magic if you take the leap of faith."

RaeDeja recounted how she had lost loved ones during her time at Central Piedmont and how the college provided her much needed support. "This journey has been charged with intense emotion. I have experienced elevating highs and depleting lows, but seeing it through has been most valuable and unforgettable. And the truth is, graduation today does not mark the end of our studies, nor does it mark the end of deadlines, decisions, or expectations," she explained.

Students graduating from Central Piedmont with a degree, diploma, or certificate had the option of participating in either the morning or afternoon ceremony. Central Piedmont combined its for-credit and non-credit program conferrals into both ceremonies, giving graduates the choice to "walk" at the time that best fits their families' schedule.

Posted in Alumni, Announcements, Foundation News, Students. Tagged as graduation.

Central Piedmont and Partners Host Free Dental Clinic

Central Piedmont Community College, the North Carolina Dental Society Foundation Missions of Mercy, the Charlotte area Dental Society Foundation Missions of Mercy (MOM), and other members of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg dental community came together to offer a free dental clinic on April 29.

The joint clinic treated 85 patients who received more than $57,700 in free dental care. Held at Central Piedmont's dental clinic teaching labs, located in the Leon Levine Health Sciences Center, on the college's Central Campus, the goal of the nine-hour clinic was to provide essential dental services, such as restorative dental care and extractions, for underserved, in-need community members. Many of the patients had been treated by Central Piedmont dental hygiene students but needed additional treatment they could not afford.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this was the first free dental clinic held in Charlotte since 2019. In the past, such clinics have been held at Bojangles Coliseum or the Charlotte Convention Center. The college opened the Levine Health Sciences Center and its dental clinic facilities in 2020. The college approached Charlotte MOM about the possibility of hosting a free clinic in the new, state of-the-art facilities. This was the first time in Charlotte and perhaps North Carolina that dental educational facilities were used to provide care to those in the community with no other care options.

"This was truly a collaborative effort between the college and the Charlotte-area dental community that brought this clinic to fruition," explained Linda Polito, dentist and associate dean of outpatient programs at Central Piedmont. "We thank North Carolina Dental Society Foundation MOM and Charlotte MOM for collaborating with the college and working together to provide care to community members in need."

Clinic organizers say the event partnerships and operation could become a pattern for other communities to follow. "We feel like the clinic was a great success and believe this kind of partnership and utilization of educational facilities could become a statewide and perhaps a national model," said Dr. Evan Miller, Charlotte MOM ambassador.

Central Piedmont offers a one-year dental assisting program and a two-year dental hygiene program. For more information, visit the college's healthcare career page, inquire by email at healthsciences@cpcc.edu, or call 704.330.6496.

Posted in Community, Foundation News. Tagged as dental assisting, dental clinic, dental hygiene.

Dr. Kandi Deitemeyer included in the ‘Power List’

Central Piedmont Community College President Dr. Kandi Deitemeyer has been recognized as a member of Business North Carolina magazine's 2023 Power List.

According to Business North Carolina, "the annual report on the state's most influential business leaders is divided into 18 categories. These are the power brokers with an extraordinary ability to lead their enterprises and influence North Carolina's direction."

Deitemeyer is one of only two community college presidents included in the 2023 list.

Review the Education Power List 2023

Posted in Announcements, Faculty/Staff, Foundation News. Tagged as Dr. Deitemeyer.