Education Fundraisers

Education 2023: A-B Tech Strives to Increase Access, Opportunity in Higher Education

Photo courtesy of A-B Tech

There is great value to completing your first two years of college at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College (A-B Tech), as the school’s high-quality academic programs transfer easily to all North Carolina public colleges and many of the state’s private universities. A-B Tech boasts a wide range of career training programs for in-demand jobs, with nearly 200 different degrees, programs and certifications. Smaller class sizes and a cost of around $76 per credit hour mean that students are spending about 75 percent less than they would at many other public and private institutions in the state­—without sacrificing on their experience. “These courses can prepare students to transfer to universities or work in health care, computer technology, engineering, brewing, culinary, hospitality—the sky is the limit,” says Dr. Fairley Patton, executive director of student advising at A-B Tech.

A-B Tech is also expanding its Career and College Promise High School Program, which allows students enrolled in area public, private and charter high schools or home schools to take community college courses with free tuition. The expansion is making this college transfer pathway open to more freshmen and sophomores, with a focus on clearly conveying the challenge of the program to these students. “We want students enrolling at younger ages to understand the commitment,” says Patton. “College courses are rigorous.”

Claire Lim is a senior at TC Roberson High School who is dually enrolled at A-B Tech. She’ll be graduating this year with an associate’s degree along with her high school diploma. “When I first started out with these classes, it wasn’t necessarily to get my associate’s,” she says. But she took advantage of the tuition-free courses and says that achieving her associate’s helped her get accepted to Columbia University, which she will attend in the fall. “It looks really good to graduate four years of high school and come out with an associate’s degree on top of that,” she says. “I’d advise students in the program to reach out to their professors—they’re there to help you. Use A-B Tech’s amenities, too, like the writing center. Take advantage of as many opportunities as you can.”

By providing high-quality, affordable educational opportunities and making them easy to access, A-B Tech is keeping with the original mission and intent of the community college model. “The community college system in the US is really about being reflective of and serving the needs of the community,” says Patton. “We are creating opportunities for all North Carolinians to earn a credential, degree or diploma in order to help them move forward in their life. It really is the strongest part of our mission at the college.”

To learn more, visit ABTech.edu.

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