WPCC Prepares Student for Success Outside of the Classroom

Pahoua Lee has a bright future ahead of her in the field of public health promotions.  She says this is due, in part, to her experiences while a student at Western Piedmont Community College (WPCC).

“I was able to clarify my strengths and weaknesses when I attended WPCC which allowed me to get to where I wanted to be,” she said.  While she originally thought she wanted to be a nurse, her overall experience at WPCC helped her to ultimately decided to transfer to East Carolina University where she recently graduated with a bachelor degree in public health.

Lee first became connected to Western Piedmont Community College through Burke Middle College (BMC), a two-year program for 11th & 12th grade students that permits them to finish high school on WPCC’s campus while also taking college courses.

Lee earned her high school diploma through BMC in 2011 and decided to continue her education at WPCC, earning her associate in arts degree in 2012.

Lee found her WPCC classes to be engaging and interactive and taught by instructors who cared about her success.  She particularly appreciated the one-on-one time she received and the close connections she made with faculty members

“I miss the faculty at WPCC because they wanted you to succeed,” she said.  “They were more than just instructors, they got you involved with things that they loved and thought would be helpful to you.”

These connections inspired Lee to join the Rotaract and Global Village clubs where she forged relationships with fellow students, faculty, and staff outside of the classroom.

She also decided to join WPCC’s Student Government Association (SGA) which allowed her to be a part of something that impacted all WPCC students.  She believes that the time she spent with the SGA and WPCC employees who served as club advisors helped her to grow personally and be better prepared to move out of her comfort zone when she arrived at East Carolina University.

“When you first get to ECU, you get home sick,” she said and went on to explain that she initially felt overwhelmed and a bit intimated by her new environment.  However, she would reflect on her time at Western Piedmont and remind herself that what she learned at WPCC prepared her to be fully engaged in her studies and the university’s extracurricular activities.

“I can do this again,” she would say to herself when she was challenged by new situations.

And she did.

After Lee transferred to ECU, she found her fit in the university’s public health program where she concentrated in worksite health promotions.  In her studies, she found a passion for developing ideas into programs that could potentially serve large audiences.  A passion she first tapped in her work on WPCC’s Student Government Association.

Lee graduated from the ECU in May 2015, but her skill set and passion were so strong, that her ECU instructors created an internship position for her so they could keep her on campus to promote healthy living to their students. She currently serves as ECU’s campus wellness education leader where she provides outreach programs to freshmen with a goal to promote wellness and how to have balanced life while new students are adjusting to college.

“Because of what I learned from my experiences in WPCC’s SGA, my current supervisors don’t need to explain to me how to handle projects,” she said.  “I can easily implement these activities because I already know the process including set-up, break-down, and working with community partners.”

Other WPCC students transferring to ECU have reached out to Lee for advice and she always suggests networking and participating in campus student life.

“There are over 400 student clubs and groups on campus so there’s bound to be a fit based on your interest,” she said.  But she also encourages students to stay focused on their educational goals and to be ready to make slow, steady progress.

“While campus life can be fun, you have to keep striving to get where you want to be,” she said.  “And even though you may ask yourself if you are smart enough, or if you can do it,…you can.  You just have to be patient.  That is the key to being successful.”

Burke Middle College is a partnership between Burke County Public Schools and Western Piedmont Community College that annually provides approximately 120 students the opportunity to complete their 11th & 12th grade years of high school at WPCC while also taking college credit classes.  Recognized as an Honor School of Excellence, BMC makes it possible for local students to graduate with both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree at the same time.

Credits earned in WPCC’s associate in arts and associate in science degree programs will transfer to any college or university in the University of North Carolina (UNC) system, in addition to a large number of in-state independent schools.  The degrees are designed in compliance with a Comprehensive Articulation Agreement between the North Carolina Community College System and the constituent institutions of the University of North Carolina. To learn more about WPCC’s transfer degree programs, contact Amanda Cooper, transfer counselor, at (828) 448-3159 or by email at acooper@wpcc.edu.