The Lenoir County Young Scholars Program is the flagship Young Scholars project generously funded by the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation.  There are three additional projects scheduled to begin this fall in other North Carolina cities. The ultimate goal is to have the program replicated in every county in North Carolina.

The Young Scholars Program assists targeted youths from local housing developments by building bridges to the educational and economic mainstream.  Participants were involved in summer academic and cultural enrichment programs that would not have been available to them without the LCYSP.  The students will participate in targeted academic programs at Lenoir Community College (LCC) during the school year.  The students and their parents have committed to long-term participation in this program.

"These young students represent the future and I am honored to have an opportunity to share the message of community colleges with them and their parents," said Lancaster. "Lenoir Community College has done a wonderful job in providing educational and athletic experiences for these young people.  The next few years will prove to be critical in their academic and social development.  These students will benefit greatly from their association with the community college."

LCC is forming an initiative with LCYSP to create college scholarships for all program participants upon graduation. LCC is one of four partners supporting this project in Kinston.  The other partners are the Kinston Housing Authority, Lenoir County Public Schools and Greater Kinston Community Development Corporation.

The LCYSP is modeled after the Durham Scholars Program, a twenty-year initiative launched in 1995 with support from the William Rand Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust.  The LCYSP was designed and is administered by the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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