ECC Employee Completes Leadership Program

Courtney Baggett, a counselor at Edgecombe Community College, recently completed the NC Community College Leadership Program

For Courtney Baggett, opening the door to new possibilities wasn’t easy, but it was rewarding. Baggett, a counselor at Edgecombe Community College, recently completed the NC Community College Leadership Program. According to the NC State University website, the program allows participants to “develop and enhance essential skills to support their current and future leadership roles in the NC Community College System.” The Martin County native graduated from the program May 16.

“It feels great,” said Baggett. “I think there’s really something cool about committing to something that’s not easy, putting in the work, and then looking back and saying, ‘oh wow, I did that.’”

Baggett’s participation included a six-month long commitment, comprised of two in-person sessions in Raleigh, one virtual session, and two in-person sessions in Charlotte. Team members also met virtually between scheduled sessions in order to complete a team project.

“We were assigned a population, county and a community to serve,” recalled Baggett. “We had to define who we served, how we served them, and how we would structure the college around their needs.”

Organizers would often throw in deviations, like financial issues, that the group would have to manage in order to complete the project.

Aside from the project, the Greenville resident also learned about best practices in Artificial Intelligence, Emotional Intelligence, Full-Time Equivalent (FTE), and reviewed data from the system office.

“My favorite part of learning in this sort of setting is hearing new ideas and different perspectives from others,” acknowledged Baggett. “That kind of brainstorming, where you start thinking about how those ideas could relate back to your own college, that was one of my biggest takeaways.”

Those takeaways almost didn’t happen for the counselor. Although Baggett shared her interest in the program with Samanthia Phillips, vice president of student services, and retired dean of students and director of the Rocky Mount campus, Tony Rook, she was unsure of whether or not she should move forward. With a required letter of approval from Dr. Greg McLeod, ECC president, Baggett was still undecided on if she should go for it.

“The real push came when I was talking to Dean Rook about the program,” said Baggett. “He looked at me and simply said, ‘why not now?’ Those three words were all I needed. I submitted the application, completed all the paperwork, and got the approval. I don’t regret any of it.”

While the program wasn’t easy, Baggett says she was able to complete it thanks to the support of Phillips, Rook, McLeod and her colleagues. She was one of the 33 graduates from 24 community colleges across the state to graduate from the NC Community College Leadership Program’s Spring 2025 class.

To future potential participants, Baggett said, “If you love the work we do, if you believe in the mission of community colleges, and if you’re someone who’s trying to do the right things for the right reasons, like I was, then this program is for you. It gives you the chance to learn more, grow, and keep doing good work with more clarity and purpose.”