ROCKINGHAM — June is a time when students complete one of life’s benchmarks and enter their season-long rest before the next challenge whether it be the next grade, higher education or the “real world.”
There are 386 seniors graduating from Richmond Senior High School, 54 from Richmond Early College and 23 from Ashley Chapel Educational Center this year, according to Connie Lindstrand, SIS Coordinator for Richmond County Schools.
And RCC is ready for a strong summer. RCC President Dale McInnis called this year “a record Summer enrollment,” noting a large jump in summer enrollment between the 17-18 and 18-19 school years.
“Thanks to the efforts of our leadership here, they stocked the shelves with the right courses and sections,” said McInnis. “Last year we had a big increase and this year we had another big increase [in enrollment].”
While 69.1 percent of 2018 high school graduates were enrolled in college as of October 2018, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Richmond Community College had an estimated Spring 2019 full-time enrollment of 1,310 total students.
An estimated amount of 894 students will be enrolled in curriculum, 267 in occupational and 149 in basic skills courses. In comparison, that’s 287% of students enrolled in college versus high school graduates – a much higher number than the average 69.1 percent.
“We’ve had an increase in our graduations,” McInnis said. “We will surpass the 17-18 graduation numbers to the point that next year we’ll have to move the graduation to the Friday before Mother’s Day, and we’ll have three ceremonies.”
McInnis also noted an increase in the diversity of the graduates.
“We had more women and more minorities graduate from the substation program this year than we’ve had total in the program since its inception in 2011,” he said. “It is now our single largest technical program in terms of enrollment and graduation, and the success of the graduates who come out of this program speaks volumes for how RCC can put people on the path to high-wage, high-demand careers.
“The growth in enrollment is a direct result of an action plan that was put into place last year and the hard work of our faculty and staff to implement these changes to better serve our students and potential students,” McInnis continued.
Next December, students will have a new building in which to learn with the completion of the downtown Rockingham satellite campus.
College is not the only option for graduating, or non-graduating, youth. As of October 2018, the high school dropout unemployment rate was 13.7 percent while the rate for recent associate degree holders was 9.6 percent, bachelor’s 12.9 and advanced degree holders at 10.4 percent.
There are many jobs available to people with the right sets of skills such as electric lineman, welding, different technician positions, bartending and more. Community colleges offer classes on these types of jobs that do not require the same time commitment that an associate’s or bachelor’s degree would.
There are also plenty of jobs that do not require any licencing or certifications at all.
Alternatively, some students may decide to join the military, start their own business, volunteer or even get an internship. The possibilities are endless, given the right tools to start the search.