NCC Urges Residents to Vote During Primary Election
Did you know that Nash Community College (NCC) serves over 11,000 students each
year? The number continues to rise each semester as NCC strategically meets the
needs of the area through educational offerings. This includes traditional students,
displaced workers, adult basic education, professional continuing education, first
responders completing required training and much more. Chances are in a typical day,
you have benefitted by more than one Nash Community College graduate working in
local occupations.
In 2012, Nash County citizens demonstrated their support of higher education with an
overwhelmingly positive response to the bond referendum that helped NCC construct a
new Continuing Education and Public Services Building. The building opened last
summer and was part of the College’s long-range master plan helping administer the
Continuing Education needs of the local community and region. Hyperbole aside, the
one-of-a-kind facility is home to instructional technology that can be found nowhere else
in North Carolina. This helps ensure fire, law enforcement, EMS, electric line
construction and other heroes serving our communities are prepared for their
demanding roles.
You may have heard about a statewide bond initiative called “Connect NC”. During the
March primary election, North Carolina voters will decide whether or not to support the
proposed $2 billion bond that will be used for strategic investments in North Carolina’s
public infrastructure. This includes investments in higher education, state parks,
agriculture, safety, and water and sewer projects in 76 North Carolina counties.
The full Connect NC Bond project list is available at connect.nc.gov. Voters are encouraged to
visit the site and view the project list to see how specific bond programs will impact the
future of our state. Many areas in eastern North Carolina will see major benefit and
improvement if the Connect NC bond passes. Nash, Edgecombe, Halifax and Wilson
community colleges would all receive funds for improvement projects, as would Medoc
Mountain State Park.
It is important to remember that many necessary improvements cannot be financed
from annual operating budgets on either the state or county levels. Therefore, another
funding source must be provided. Long-term financing can be the most efficient way to
fund critical needs projects, especially when interest rates are at an all-time low. Just as
homeowners pay for a house as they use it over time, North Carolinians will pay over
decades for these needed-right-now improvements. This financing can occur without
new taxation now or in the future to finance the bonds. The reason is that North
Carolina will have finished paying some current bond debt before the cost of these
bonds would be added.
North Carolina has an established and successful history of responsibly using long-term
financing to support the infrastructure and educational needs of communities and
citizens. Bonds will allow North Carolina to pay over 20 to 25 years for assets that will
last far beyond that period of time.
If the Connect NC bond passes, Nash Community College will receive $7.7 million. The
funding will be used to:
1. Transfer Building C for the Nash-Rocky Mount Early College High School moving
students out of 10 year old trailers and into an up-to-date instructional space with
room for growth.
2. Construct a new building for Engineering and Cosmetology students who are
currently learning in Building C. These programs continue to see growth and
require additional space to accommodate real-world training and technology.
3. Establish a new two-year degree program in Veterinary Technology for which
Nash Community College has already been approved to offer. Currently no other
community college in the east has the program.
Early voting in Nash County continues Monday, March 7 through Friday, March 11, 8:00
AM through 6:00PM and Saturday, March 12, 8:00 AM through 1:00 PM. Stop by Nash
County Agriculture Center Auditorium in Nashville, Word Tabernacle Church in Rocky
Mount or Spring Hope Community Building to cast your vote during One Stop Early
Voting. The Connect NC bond may be located at the end of the ballot or on the reverse
side. For more information or to request a presentation, call 252-451-8235 or visit
www.nashcc.edu/bond.
