VGCC to hold Adult Basic Skills Commencement
Vance-Granville Community College will hold special commencement exercises dedicated exclusively to new graduates of Adult Basic Skills programs for the first time on Thursday, May 21. The ceremony will begin at 6 p.m. in the Civic Center on the college’s main campus in Vance County.
Those being honored will include approximately 160 students who completed either the Adult High School program or the General Education Development (GED) High School Equivalency program. For the past four years, VGCC has ranked as the third-largest North Carolina community college in the number of GED and Adult High School completions.
“We are proud to recognize these students who have taken the necessary steps to begin their higher education and to increase their employment opportunities,” said VGCC Vice President of Community & Economic Development Vanessa Jones. “We are also proud as a college that we can provide these resources to the community.”
Lou Ann M. Parker, a Henderson resident and Director of Adult High School and GED Programs for the North Carolina Community College System , will be the principal commencement speaker. Parker, a native of Greene County, joined the North Carolina Community College System in October 2004. She also represents North Carolina as the GED Testing Administrator for the American Council on Education’s GED Testing Service. Previously, Parker was Director of Basic Skills and Human Resources Development at Pitt Community College. She is a graduate of the North Carolina Community College Leadership Program. Parker has also been a partner in a small real estate appraisal firm and taught in public schools for 11 years. Parker earned bachelor’s degrees in Education and Home Economics and a master’s degree in Reading from Meredith College. She has also completed undergraduate and graduate studies at East Carolina University in Learning Disabilities. Parker has been active in many professional and civic organizations. She is a member of the North Carolina Community College Adult Educators Association, Phi Delta Kappa, Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, and the Henderson Rotary Club.
