Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) was recognized by Charlotte-Mecklenburg School’s Career and Technical Education program on Wednesday, August 22 at their annual Back-to-School training meeting. The Construction Industry Education Coalition (CIEC), which includes CPCC and other construction related associations, was honored with the Career and Technical Education Service Award for 2007. In addition, CPCC President Dr. Tony Zeiss served as a keynote speaker and shared information with the CMS teachers on workforce development and the impending labor shortage.

The award was presented to Steve Corriher, Director of the Construction Technologies Division at CPCC, as well as Bill Stricker with Carolinas Associated General Contractors, and Ray Terry with the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. Under their leadership, CIEC has partnered with CMS’ Career and Technical Education to extend learning for CMS students in a number of ways. Some of the partnership opportunities include:
• Speakers for middle and high school career events
• Career speakers for individual class presentations
• $10,000 for the successful program, “If I Had A Hammer” program, which allows middle school students from 22 middle schools to spend a day at CPCC’s Harper Campus using math skills to construct a mini-house.
• Volunteers to facilitate the “If I Had A Hammer” program, which includes hundreds of volunteer hours

“CPCC and the Construction Industry Education Coalition are proud to be strong partners with CMS,” states Steve Corriher. “We believe that it takes all of us working together to ensure success for our students. Our investment in these students is important to the community and to the construction industry. Our hope is to get students interested in the construction profession early on and show them the career opportunities available to them.”

Central Piedmont Community College is the largest community college in North Carolina, offering 100 degree and certification programs, customized corporate training, market-focused continuing education, and special interest classes. CPCC is academically, financially and geographically accessible to all citizens of Mecklenburg County. In 2002, the National Alliance of Business named CPCC the Community College of the Year for its response to the workforce and technology needs of local employers and job seekers through innovative educational and training strategies.

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This release prepared by Jerri Haigler, 704.330.6660.
An archive of CPCC news releases is at http://lists.cpcc.cc.nc.us/pipermail/cpccnews/