VGCC Internet Technologies Students Build Website For Henderson Business
One of Vance-Granville Community College’s primary goals is to prepare students for employment. Three students in the college’s Internet Technologies program recently had an opportunity to put their studies into practice and earn valuable real-world experience.
Jimmy Tate, who runs Tate Financial Services in Henderson, called Tom Edwards, an Internet Technologies instructor, and asked if any of his students would be interested in building a Website for the financial planning business.
One of the skills Internet Technologies teaches is to design and build Websites. Tonya Milburn of Oxford, Uiama Jackson of Franklinton and Gary West of Henderson, second-year students in Edwards’ class, jumped at the opportunity to gain the valuable experience.
The students did the work outside classroom hours, much of it at home. Jackson and West gathered the information and prepared it, and Milburn put it all together. Edwards said the students did all the work, and he just answered questions when they had them.
When they had the site designed, they took it on a CD to Tate, and he approved it, with a few minor adjustments. Edwards said Tate was really pleased with the final product.
The site the students built will not change much, and Edwards said he will have other students make whatever changes Tate may have in the future.
Jackson and Milburn have both completed the Information Systems program at Vance-Granville Community College, and West, who graduated from Northern Vance High School in 2002, enrolled the Internet Technologies program directly.
Uiama Jackson is a New York native who has lived in Franklinton the past four years. She attended Hampton University in Virginia three years, but decided she liked computers and enrolled at VGCC. “I like working alone, just me and the computer,” she said. “The Internet has everything so it really appeals to me.” Upon completing the two year Internet Technologies program, she plans to return to a university and work toward a master’s degree.
Tonya Milburn graduated from J.F. Webb High School in 1982 and has attended N.C. Central University. After graduation at VGCC, she plans to attend N.C. State University to complete her degree.
“I’ve been doing websites just for fun for my friends, but with the Internet Technologies (associate’s) degree, I can get paid for it,” Milburn said. She also builds and repairs computers on the side, as does Jackson.
Gary West said he wants to go into the computer graphics field, and Internet Technologies sparked his interest. He would like to go to Wake Technical Community College and study computer animation after completing the VGCC program.
All three expressed satisfaction with the project they completed for Tate Financial Services. “It gives us lots of practice, and it was great to put our classwork into actual practice,” Jackson said. All said it would also look good on their resumes.
“The students did a really good job,” Edwards said. “I’m really proud of them.” If other requests like this come in, he said he would like to give other students the opportunity to get this real-world experience.
Gary West, standing, Tonya Milburn, center, and Uiama Jackson discuss a few last-minute adjustments to the Website they created for Henderson businessman Jimmy Tate in their Vance-Granville Community College Internet Technologies program. Instructor Tom Edwards, left, observes his students getting valuable experience for the future.
