fbpx
Leadership

A message from the chancellor: Carolina Community Academy

'Every day, we’re doing our part to support a vibrant education system for all North Carolinians. That’s been part of our role as a public university from the beginning, and I love seeing all the creative ways we’re fulfilling that mission today.'

UNC Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz at the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz and Person County Schools Board of Education Chair Freda Tillman cut the ribbon held by UNC School of Education Dean Fouad Abd-El-Khalick and North Elementary School students Liam Adams and Adrian Gomez-Patricio. (Jon Gardiner/UNC-Chapel Hill)

Dear Carolina Community,

Each one of us is part of the Carolina community because we believe in the power and importance of education. Through education, we are preparing the next generation of leaders to solve the grand challenges of our time. Our campus is full of those future leaders from all 100 counties of our state.

Yet the next generation of leaders is not just here on our campus. They are at our fellow UNC System schools, at our community colleges and in our K-12 schools. We know that education doesn’t start when our students arrive at college. It begins much earlier in our state’s public schools.

Last week, I stood in the doorway of North Elementary School in Person County with two rising kindergartners, Liam Adams and Adrian Gomez-Patricio. Together, we cut the ribbon to officially open Carolina Community Academy, where some of our state’s youngest students will benefit from a partnership between the University and Person County Schools. We toured the classrooms, and I spoke to teachers like Carolina graduate Takeima Ricks who will be working with these students. Every person I talked with, and especially Superintendent Dr. Rodney Peterson (also a Carolina graduate), shared their passion and commitment for building their community and creating spaces for children to learn and grow.  This school is unique because it will provide robust wraparound services and instruction while leveraging the incredible talent on our campus. I am confident that we will learn much from our partners and the community in Person County, and I am grateful to the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees, the UNC Board of Governors and the North Carolina General Assembly for their support of this school.

These are just some of the many ways that our University works to support education at every level, from early childhood all the way up through continuing education for adult learners. The School of Education trains school teachers, administrators, counselors and psychologists. Carolina K-12, a program with Carolina Public Humanities, provides fantastic training for teachers across the state in history and the humanities. Morehead Planetarium and Science Center welcomes thousands of K-12 students to campus every year for camps, science fairs and a glimpse of college life. The Hussman School of Journalism and Media hosts workshops for student journalists, and the Gillings School of Global Public Health mobilized to help K-12 districts navigate the complexities of COVID-19. Carolina College Advising Corps is celebrating 15 years of supporting students in their pursuit of a college education.

Every day, we’re doing our part to support a vibrant education system for all North Carolinians. That’s been part of our role as a public university from the beginning, and I love seeing all the creative ways we’re fulfilling that mission today. And I hope to see those Roxboro kindergartners in Carolina Blue caps and gowns in Kenan Stadium when they graduate from this amazing University.

Sincerely,

Kevin M. Guskiewicz
Chancellor