ECC Attains Highest Score in High School Equivalency Program

Edgecombe Community College’s College and Career Readiness instructor Varnell Kinnin works with student Yvonne Dancy. ECC’s Division of College and Career Readiness ranked number one in performance among North Carolina community colleges for the 2020-2021 program year.

Edgecombe Community College’s Division of College and Career Readiness ranked number one in performance among North Carolina community colleges for the 2020-2021 program year.

A focus of College and Career Readiness is to assist adults who have not earned a high school credential by helping them prepare to take the high school equivalency exam and continue on to post-secondary education and/or enter the workforce.

The state’s Excellence and Average performance benchmarks for the measurable skills gains performance measure were set at 42.5% and 36.5%, respectively. A measurable skills gain is the level of progress students attain as they complete proficiency levels in reading or math.

At ECC, 68.8% of Career and College Readiness students achieved a measurable skills gain. Once students matriculate to high school equivalency-level coursework, they take the official exams in the five core subjects of Reading, Writing, Social Studies, Science, and Mathematics.

“Although we were put to the test by the many challenges imposed by the pandemic, we were flexible, responded with changes where they were needed, and came out on top,” says LaShawnda Washington, director of College and Career Readiness.

“Our dedicated staff worked tirelessly to provide quality instruction and to ensure that students were contacted frequently to review and update their plans of study. We set the bar high, and our students met the challenge. We are very proud of their success, which will continue to inspire us,” she adds.