Chamber of Commerce

Another degree area that's gained in interest is the General Occupational Education Degree, which is designed for a wide variety of purposes but has "worked well for the military, es- pecially Special Forces," Keen said. Some of the opportuni- ties have come about because people want to be better trained and educated. Students in the Special Forces course are now required to earn an Associates Degree before receiving their green beret. Satellite campuses of FTCC are in Spring Lake, on Fort Bragg and next to the Cape Fear Botanical Gardens. The college has also purchased about 60 acres in western Cumberland County for a site that will focus on technology and health care. "Over the years, we have anticipated the needs of the future and re- flected those needs in our service to the community," Keen said. Keen attributed FTCC's quality as a key component to growth and continued interest at the school. "When students get our stamp of approval and move to pursue a four-year degree or into the workforce, we get reports that they do very well," he said. The college polls employers of FTCC graduates to deter- mine whether they are satisfied with that hire and if they would be likely to hire more FTCC graduates. Keen reports the fol- lowing statistics: three months after hiring an FTCC graduate, 78 percent of employers report they are pleased with the hire. A year after the hire, 99.8 percent of employers polled report being satisfied. College transfers are also on the rise as students take general education classes in preparation of going to a four-year institu- tion. "We know for a fact that when students transfer with a full suite of skills and knowledge, they compete effectively at four-year institutions with students who started at four-year schools," Keen said. Some reports indicate students who start- ed at FTCC perform at a higher level than those who started at four-year schools. "This goes back to the effort by our stu- dents and the quality of our faculty to stimulate students." FTCC has had drops in enrollment, but numbers are rebound- ing, Keen said. About two years ago, the college changed its standards and had initial drops. But this year, numbers are up 8.5 percent in head count and up 9 percent in full-time equiva- lency. Numbers are also up in the retention rate of existing students. For more information on Fayetteville Technical Community College, go to www.faytechcc.edu 16 | ACCENTS • 2012/2013

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