Wayne Community College, James Sprunt rated high by state
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on June 22, 2006 1:47 PM
Wayne Community College is among 36 community colleges in the state to earn a superior performance ranking, based on the 2004-2005 school year. It has earned the ranking for five of the six years that the measure has been used.
According to a report released by North Carolina Community Colleges, all 58 of its community colleges met or exceeded the state's rigorous standards in five performance areas, up from three last year. Performance measures are the standards used by the General Assembly to assess how well the state's community college system is doing its job.
There are 12 standards described in the annual Critical Success Factors Report, which documents each college's performance.
Wayne Community's performance is gauged by six criteria, said Bill Thompson, director of planning and research - student satisfaction, goal completion, licensure or certification exams, progress of basic skills students, performance of college transfer students and curriculum students.
Providing a quality education for a reasonable price is the role of the community college, he said. For employers seeking well-trained employees, that also equates to a bargain investment.
Receiving a superior ranking is a nice feather in the cap of the local community college, Thompson said, with the credit to be divided up among the ranks.
"The accolades actually go to the faculty and the support staff that work out here at the college to improve services across the board," he said. "From the groundskeepers to instructors in the classroom, this is an example of great teamwork and dedication to provide the best possible education for our students, at a very affordable price."
For the past six years, community colleges have had the opportunity to earn the superior ranking. The first year, only four of the 58 comprehensive community colleges received the distinction. The numbers have risen in subsequent years, with 26 superior rankings given the second year, 31 the third, and 36 in the fourth year.
Community colleges in neighboring counties also made the list, including Lenoir Community College, Wilson Technical and James Sprunt Community College, which was one of seven in the state to have a perfect score.