CHARLOTTE, N.C. — North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper visited Charlotte Thursday to promote a statewide programming helping high school graduates pay for community college.
To date, 11,604 students have received a Longleaf Commitment Grant, according to the governor's office. The grants provide between $700 and $2,800 to eligible students per year. A total of $4,614,021 have been awarded as of Thursday.
“North Carolina’s community colleges are our not-so-secret weapon when it comes to building a talented workforce, and Longleaf Commitment grants are helping to make education and training more accessible and affordable,” Cooper said in a released statement provided to WCNC Charlotte.
The Longleaf Commitment Program was created in May 2021 using the Governor's Emergency Education Relief (GEER) funds. In November of that year, the program was expanded in the state budget to include 2022 high school graduates.
Among the eligibility requirements, students must be North Carolina residents graduating high school in 2022, be a first-time college student, and enrolled for the fall semester at any of the 58 participating community colleges.
“Education translates into opportunity, and with this grant, we are excited to provide more opportunity to our diverse student populations across the state,” Thomas A. Stith III, president of the N.C. Community College System, said in a statement. “North Carolina’s ‘Great 58’ community colleges are essential to the state’s economic recovery efforts and are well poised to prepare the workforce needed today and tomorrow.”
Cooper attended a roundtable discussion Thursday at Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC), which is one of the largest community colleges in North Carolina.
“The Longleaf Commitment grant funds will help our incoming students pay for college to achieve their academic goals, secure a better paying job, begin a family-sustaining career, or pursue further education," Kandi Deitemeyer, president at Central Piedmont Community College, said in a statement.
CPCC students have received $431,000 in Longlead Commitment grant funds.
