Success at WPCC
Edwards earns WPCC Academic Excellence Award
April 22, 2021 – At 52 years old, first-generation college student Kim Edwards is the 2021 recipient of the Academic Excellence Award at Western Piedmont Community College, which the WPCC Trustees presented on April 20. Edwards is a Morganton resident in the...
MLT student on front lines of diagnosing COVID-19
Feb. 17, 2021 – Noe Lopez believes a strong work ethic and kindness are essential to success and has carried that mission into his work as a medical lab assistant during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lopez, a Western Piedmont...
WPCC Nursing students volunteer at COVID-19 vaccination clinic
Jan. 30, 2021 – Nursing students at Western Piedmont Community College bravely volunteered at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic during the last two weeks of January as Burke County battles rising cases of the virus. Forty-six first-year nursing students have assisted...
Basic Law Enforcement Training spring course at WPCC announced
Nov. 2, 2020 – The next Basic Law Enforcement Training course at Western Piedmont Community College will begin Jan. 7, 2021. The course is designed to give students essential skills required for entry-level employment as law enforcement officers. Successful BLET...
WPCC Alum Finds Her Way to A New Career
Beginning college mid-life isn’t the typical path taken by most students, but that was the unlikely route Kay Smith found herself on. At the age of 42, Smith’s job was outsourced and sent overseas. The years of production sewing had been good to her financially, but she was ready for a change and seized the opportunity to go to college through the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, which paid for her two-year degree in full.
Burke Middle College Student Flourishes in Non-Traditional Environment
Burke Middle College (BMC) senior, Haley Strickland, has flourished in a non-traditional, high school environment. The opportunity to gain an associate’s degree while earning her high school diploma intrigued Strickland, and has led her to majoring in criminal...
Strong Study Habits and Seeking Help is Key to WPCC Student Success
A second year student in the industrial systems technology (IST) associate in applied science (AAS) program, David Morgan is learning the art of reinvention with strong study habits and a little help. Morgan worked in a local furniture company for over 18 years until...
Persistence pays off for WPCC Graduate
2015 was an important year for Alex Miguel. Nine years ago he enrolled at Western Piedmont Community College (WPCC) seeking to earn a college degree. He tirelessly worked towards this goal by taking one class at a time and maintaining full-time employment in local...
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...
Immigrant Finds Way to UNC Degree by way of WPCC
There are several ways to describe Western Piedmont Community College (WPCC) alumnae Tea Yang including activist, refugee, educator and speaker. She recently acted in each of these roles as a panelist during the College’s 2015 Fall Speakers Forum/Ervin Constitutional...
WPCC Student Finds Her Way From Plant Work to Feature Film
Burke County native Julie Whitis is no stranger the art of reinvention. Raised by her great-grandmother until her death, she had to learn quickly how to be on her own at the age of 16. She has lived through three industry layoffs while being a single parent to her...
WPCC Success Story Finds Her Way to NC State Engineering Program
Morganton, N.C. – Roberta Cassar recently moved to Raleigh, N.C. to pursue an undergraduate degree in chemical engineering at North Carolina State University. Though she has lived in several places in her young life including Italy, New Jersey, Texas, and California,...