RTP Tour: Finding What Works

This blog post, written by Caldwell County native Nation Hahn, first appeared on the Pathways to Opportunity RTP Tour blog.

As we wrap up the first leg of the Pathways to Opportunity tour, we realize that each place we’ve visited told us the same thing: in difficult times, our communities band together to find what works. Whether it’s educating a workforce to meet a rapidly changing economy, supporting businesses in an unfriendly investment climate, or enacting policies to drive down unemployment, North Carolina’s communities are plowing ahead.

On Friday, Nov 16, we brushed frost off of the bus and headed down the mountain to Caldwell County, a region that is fast learning to tell its story — and celebrate its community’s success.

Caldwell Community College has a trifold mission:

• First, to provide academic programs and opportunities for students in the area.
• Second, to support economic development across the region.
• Third, to improve the quality of life of the region.

Their commitment was music to our ears. RTP’s mission is a near perfect match: we’re devoted to improving access to education and 21st-century jobs that improve quality of life for people in our state.

Naturally we were eager to hear how Caldwell is working toward our common mission. Dr. Boham, President of Caldwell Community College, shared a story about Amelia Hawkins, a student who literally went from homelessness to Princeton.

I remember seeing the headlines, but never connected her story with Caldwell County. On the bus en route to Charlotte I found a powerful speech Amelia had delivered about the path her life took:

“Throughout my journey, I discovered that when we lose sight of our dreams, we lose hope. I’ve been depressed. I’ve been wracked with anxiety. I’ve wanted to give up. When I was little, listening to fight after argument after fight, I made preparation lists for the day I would run away. When I was older, I thought about drinking or snorting myself into oblivion.

For one reason or another, I didn’t. I learned what it was like to survive one day, then survive one day, then survive one day — until I reached my goals. The work that you are doing in your schools helps your students reach their own goals.”

Amelia’s message of perseverance and survival resonate in a county where unemployment peaked at 17% following the 2008 recession. Deborah Murray, head of the Caldwell County Economic Development Commission and Caldwell 20/20, told us that the exodus of manufacturing companies has left many with a sense of hopelessness.

“I worry about the conversation around the dinner table between our students and their families. So many people have given up after seeing manufacturing jobs leave — we have to stress that people still have opportunities.”

Caldwell County’s solution? A remarkable collaboration between Caldwell Community College and the Economic Development Commission to offer customized training to disenfranchised workers. The training helps people find employment after an industry leaves, and it creates the skilled workers that attract 21st-century industries to the area.

Another successful initiative is Caldwell Works!, a job fair that helps connect workers with local employers. At the October fair a young man walked up to Ms. Murray and thanked her for helping him find a job back in April. Ms. Murray was puzzled — if he had a job, why was he back so soon? He told her he’d been promoted to manager, and came to the fair to hire workers himself.

Caldwell County’s event closed with a story that demonstrated to all of us why North Carolina needs the community college system. Chris Ryan graduated from high school and went straight to work at a furniture factory. Next he delivered furniture for a local trucking company that offered good pay and benefits. “I thought it was my forever job,” Chris told us; “I thought I’d retire from that company.”

But then the job disappeared, leaving Chris feeling, as he put it, like a rug had been pulled out from under him. He decided to enroll in Caldwell Community College and is a student there today. “I came back to Caldwell Community College because the more I learn, the better my chances are. I don’t ever want that feeling of getting the rug pulled out from under me again.”

Chris Ryan, Amelia Hawkins, and Ms. Murray’s job seeker-turned-manager are exactly the kinds of people our community colleges serve.
Their resolve to persevere through economic hardship, and to find opportunity where it seems none exists, is worthy of praise — and worthy of support.

Caldwell County is supporting them. The RTP wants to help. Together, we want to find what works for North Carolina.

For more information about the RTP Tour, visit http://www.reimaginenc.com/ or follow @reimaginenc on Twitter.