Warren County students graduate from VGCC summer transportation academy

Sixteen Warren County High School students were honored on July 31 for making history as the graduates of the first-ever Summer Transportation & Trades Academy (STTA).

The summer program was conducted by Vance-Granville Community College, in partnership with Warren County Schools , the Federal Highway Administration and the North Carolina Department of Transportation . Based at VGCC’s Warren County Campus in Warrenton, the academy began on June 22 and concluded on July 31, when graduation exercises were held at Warren County High School.

Graduating students included Juston Alexander, James Collins, III, Robert Davis, Sykedrick Davis, Alexander Fitts, Jarvis Hicks, Nate Johnson, Kelvin Jones, Matthew Mayes, Tyrell Perry, K.W. Reid, Dontrez Waddell, Darius Walker, Gary Wilkins, Byron Williams and Samir Williams. All are rising ninth or tenth-graders at WCHS.

The ceremony, entitled “Transformation through Transportation,” began with welcoming remarks by VGCC Director of Occupational Extension Jean Blaine, who managed the STTA project for the college. “This is the first time that this type of program has been offered by a community college in the state of North Carolina,” Blaine told the assembled family members and other guests. She explained that the five-week camp taught the students about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) subjects, in addition to the “soft skills” that all types of employers value.

Odessa Perry, coordinator of the camp and a Warren County educator, introduced the other staff for the camp, including case manager Dan Miller, a VGCC communications instructor, and assistant coordinators Leonardo Williams and Luke Stavish, a recent VGCC graduate. She then brought forward groups of students to make presentations that summarized their experiences during the program.

The academy featured a variety of guest speakers and instruction on careers related to all modes of transportation, including highways, rail, air and water. As they learned about workplace safety, students became certified in CPR by Stephen Barney from the VGCC Emergency Medical Services department. Among the other VGCC faculty teaching sessions were Steve Woodworth, head of the Global Logistics and Distribution Management program, and Wesley Williams, head of the Engineering Technology program . Williams spent multiple hands-on sessions with students learning about electricity, electronics and computers, as applied to transportation technology. Students went on several field trips during the program, visiting the N.C. National Guard training facility at Camp Butner, the Guilford Technical Community College Aviation Center in Greensboro, the Walmart Distribution Center in Henderson, the Food Lion distribution center in Butner, the Port of Norfolk, Va., as well as bus and rail systems in Raleigh.

Melvin Williams, Jr., the on-the-job training (OJT) manager for the N.C. Department of Transportation (DOT) Office of Equal Opportunity and Workforce Services, was the guest speaker for the graduation ceremony. He praised the graduates “for having the inner strength and courage to travel down roads that no other student in Warren County has traveled.” He noted that these students had been the first to participate in such a high school partnership between the DOT and a North Carolina community college. Williams thanked the partners for believing in his idea for the STTA and implementing it. His office would like to not only continue to offer the STTA camp at Vance-Granville, but also use the successful program as a model for other community colleges across the state.

“Years from now, your names will be first on the list of graduates of this program,” Williams said to the graduates. “That, to me, is impressive. You have paved the way for other students.”

Williams noted that he has been recognized with the President's Volunteer Service Award for his work with the non-profit organization he founded, PROUD Fathers. “I tell you that to say that you never know who is watching what you do,” he said. “I hope that you will be recognized one day for what you do, in the transportation industry or in a different career.” Recalling that the camp had taught them about aviation, Williams concluded that for these students, “The sky’s the limit.”

Also making remarks to congratulate the graduates and applaud the partnership that made the STTA possible were: VGCC Vice President of Employee and Public Relations Stacey Carter-Coley, Warren County Schools Director of Career and Technical Education Ernie Conner, Warren County Board of Education member Barbara Brayboy, Warren County Commissioner Victor Hunt, and VGCC South Campus Dean Cecilia Wheeler, who taught one of the program’s sessions.

Leonardo Williams presented a video of camp participants that represented how far they had come during the program. Perry later singled out four graduates for going “above and beyond” to make the program a success: Juston Alexander, Darius Walker, Gary Wilkins and Byron Williams.

In closing remarks, newly appointed VGCC Warren Campus Dean Lyndon Hall said that students’ newly acquired knowledge gave them a responsibility “to do better and go further because you have been empowered.” VGCC, he said, “stands ready to continue to educate, inspire and support you.”

Each participant attended the camp at no cost and received a stipend based upon their academic coursework completed prior to enrollment.

VGCC is partnering with the DOT on a number of training initiatives this year. Among them is a Heavy Equipment Operator course , which is also conducted at the Warren Campus. For more information on transportation-related training, contact Jean Blaine at blainej@vgcc.edu .

 

Above:  First (front) row, from left: graduates Jarvis Hicks, Kelvin Jones, Byron Williams, Gary Wilkins, K.W. Reid, Samir Williams, Juston Alexander and Darius Walker; second row, from left: STTA assistant coordinator Leonardo Q. Williams, graduates Matthew Mayes, Nate Johnson, Alexander Fitts, Sykedrick Davis, James Collins, Robert Davis, Dontrez Waddell, VGCC Director of Occupational Extension Jean Blaine and STTA coordinator Odessa Perry; third row, from left: VGCC Warren Campus Dean Lyndon Hall, Dean of Continuing Education Dale Fey, graduate Tyrell Perry, STTA assistant coordinator Luke Stavish and N.C. Department of Transportation OJT Manager Melvin Williams; not pictured: STTA case manager Daniel Miller. (VGCC photo)

Related: See more photos from STTA on Flickr !