ECC Graduate Heading to University of Alabama

Edgecombe Community College graduate Eren Exum completed her first two years of college at ECC. “It was the best choice for me,” she says.

When Eren Exum starts classes at the University of Alabama as a junior in August, she says she feels well prepared, thanks to the first two years of college she received at Edgecombe Community College.

Exum completed an Associate in Arts degree at ECC in May. She also graduated from Edgecombe Early College High School in May.

The Early College is a five-year public high school located on ECC’s Tarboro campus. A goal of the Early College is to improve college attendance rates for Edgecombe students by exposing them to a rigorous curriculum of high school honors courses and community college courses.

Students graduate with both a high school diploma and a two-year College Transfer degree. Exum earned an Associate in Arts degree, which consists of a minimum of 60 semester hours of credit of college transfer courses.

“I highly recommend completing the first two years of college at ECC,” Exum says. “It was the best choice for me. I wanted to get a head start on my college career.

“The classes were small, so they felt like an extension of my high school classes. The instructors were nice and helpful. Plus, my degree cost very little.”

Exum chose to transfer to the University of Alabama because it boasts among the strongest public relations programs in the country. Her goal is to work in sports media. Football is her favorite sport.

The University of Alabama is located in Tuscaloosa. “It’s a huge campus, but it feels like a small campus, just like I’ve been accustomed to for the past five years,” Exum says.

Edgecombe high school students don’t have to be students at the Early College to take classes at ECC. Through Career & College Promise, qualified high school-age students can pursue college credits – tuition free – while they are in high school, enabling them to get a jumpstart on their workplace and college preparation.

Exum says the personal attention she received at Edgecombe Community College made all the difference. “It feels like everyone there knows everyone there,” she adds.

To learn more about attending ECC as a high school student, please contact dawess@edgecombe.edu.