Allied Health

Allied Health

Crystal Overcash

Crystal Overcash, Davidson County Community College, Excellence Award 2013

Pursuing a dream is not easy. My dream has always been to become a labor and delivery nurse. That dream became secondary while I raised my young daughter as a single mother, but finally at age 30, I was able to start college and my dream came back into focus.

Glorygrace Dickinson

Glorygrace Dickinson, Fayettville Technical Community College, Excellence Award 2012

I am a military widow and the mother of five children. After my husband was killed in action in Iraq, I witnessed the lack of services for injured soldiers. Realizing how much I wanted to help others, I decided to go back to school to become a Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA).

Kaitlin Rae Colvin

Katelin Rae Colvin, Carteret Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

My journey through the Carteret Community College has been a very rewarding experience.  Through the Radiography program, I have found a love and passion for a career and I have gained experience from opportunities I never knew I would be a part of.

Chanda Sherrill

Chanda Sherrill, Catawba Valley Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

When I graduated from high school in 1989, going to college was not an option because I was pregnant with my son. I had to put my educational dreams on hold and go to work so that I could take care of him. The majority of the jobs I have had were factory jobs.

Thu Vu

Thu Vu, Gaston College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

When moving to Gastonia four years ago, I did not know what to do with my life other than what my family has set out for me - nail business. I wanted something more to satisfy my hunger for knowledge, so I took the first step by getting my GED at Gaston College.

Krystie Pendergrass

Krystie Pendergrass, Halifax Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

Something in me changed once I entered the doors of a community college. All of my teachers were very encouraging. Upon becoming a Dental Hygiene student at Halifax Community College, I truly started to focus on my grades. I have pushed myself to make the best grades I could.

Matthew Green

Matthew Green, Johnston Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award

In 2010, I graduated from Central Carolina Community College with an Associate Degree in Lasers and Photonics.  I had to look for a job outside the state due to economy.  Half a year after graduating, I found a good job in Delaware.  I packed all my things and moved to an unknown place with no fr

Matthew Ray

Matthew Ray, Mayland Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

Mayland Community College’s 2015 North Carolina Community College System’s Academic Excellence Award recipient is Matthew Ray. He will graduate with his Associate Degree in Nursing this May, and intends to continue his education at a four-year institution after graduating.

Monica Spencer

Monica Spencer, Randolph Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

First, please allow me to begin by saying that I am a high school dropout.  I start with this information because it is an event that has set the tone for most of my adult life. In March of 2004, three years before my high school graduation, I decided to discontinue school.

Brett D. Ange

Brett Ange, Beaufort County Community College, Excellence Award 2013

Beaufort County Community College student Brett D. Ange has been chosen to receive the prestigious Academic Excellence Award for the 2012-13 academic year. He is one of 58 award-winners statewide and will be recognized at a ceremony on the BCCC campus later this year.

Amber Blackwelder

Amber Blackwelder, Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

I always wanted to do something with my life, but didn’t exactly make the best plan of action to make that possible. I am twenty-nine years old, I worked in collections a few years but for the most part, I’ve been in the restaurant industry all my life.

Carrie Parker

Carrie Parker, Alamance Community College, Excellence Award

Alamance Community College has had a tremendous impact upon my life. The faculty, students and sheer love resonating from everyone has helped me to blossom into a successful woman who will continue to journey forward after college. Through ACC, I learned that everything is possible.

Audi Torres

Audi Torres, Wayne Community College, 2015 Academic Excellence Award Recipient

Ever since I can remember, I have always wanted to be a nurse.  However, it took many years for me to finally work towards my dream.

William K. Riddle

William K. Riddle, Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community Colleges, Excellence Award

Upon receiving my acceptance letter into the Radiography program at AshevilleBuncombe Technical Community College (A-B Tech) I instantly knew that my life, as well as the lives of my family, had positively been changed for the better. That letter was the ticket to a new start.

Joao Bezerra

Joao Bezerra, Blue Ridge Community College, 2014 Academic Excellence Award

I am Joao Washington Bezerra, and I am originally from Brazil. All my life, I was taught to be involved and help people. In Brazil, I served as a volunteer at a school in a poor community.

Michelle Leggett

Michelle Leggett

Michelle Leggett, a nurse on the second floor of Vidant Beaufort Hospital, said it was her daughter’s illness that led her to leave a successful business career and pursue a career as a nurse. But she credits Beaufort County Community College for helping her succeed in her new career.

Jennifer Rice

Jennifer Rice, Coastal Carolina Community College, Excellence Award 2013

My early mentor is an amazing nurse who reached out to me as a teen and provided a sofa for me during my difficult youth.  I am currently enrolled in Coastal’s Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) program, and my goals include graduation, licensure, and subsequently earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursin

Chelsea Smith

Chelsea Smith, College of The Albermarle, Excellence Award 2013

I chose College of The Albemarle’s Associate Degree Nursing (A.D.N.) program because of its incredible reputation as one of the best in the state.  I packed up my life and drove 4 hours north to the tiny town of Elizabeth City with one thing in mind – doing whatever it takes to become an RN.  Sin