Cooper Touts Finish Line Grants at Central Carolina Community College

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announced the Finish Line Grants program in July, $7 million dollars in federal money intended to help community college students who face unforeseen financial emergencies stay in school.

The funds will help students pay for course materials, housing, medical needs, dependent care or other financial struggles faced through no fault of their own.

Governor Roy Cooper at Central Carolina Community College Pittsboro campus. Photo via Blake Hodge.

The Finish Line program is directed at students who are close to graduation but might fall short due to financial hardships, and Governor Cooper said at a recent visit to Central Carolina Community College’s Pittsboro campus that he believes it will strengthen the workforce in the state.

“We have to make sure that all of our campuses can work with businesses to make sure people have the skills that they need to get better paying jobs,” said Cooper. “Our community Colleges are a hub for that.”

There are over 740,000 community college students at 58 different community colleges in the state, many of whom are the head of a household.

Making these community colleges a viable option for furthering education is a priority, according to Cooper.

“Trying to juggle the expense of family and the expense of education is very difficult for people,” the governor said. “Often times people just need that little push to get them across the finish line, and that’s what this is about.”

Alexander Blanco is a student at CCCC who has benefited from a program similar to the Finish Line Grants that the community college was already operating. He said he was inspired to go into dentistry growing up and seeing the intimidation some families feel. Blanco said he translated most medical documents for his parents when he was growing up.

“Being able to provide my parents with a reward of achieving a goal that they never had the opportunity to work toward is my driving force,” Blanco said.

State Senator Valerie Foushee represents Chatham and Orange counties and attended the presentation in Pittsboro with Cooper. She said it was important to remember that four-year colleges or universities are not the right fit for every student.

“The fact that North Carolina has such a great community college system, where just about any student who wants to attend a community college is close enough to do that, regularly makes us stand out in the country,” Foushee said. “I think that the fact that the business community depends on community colleges to be able to train workers for the skills that they need is paramount.”

In his most recent budget, the Governor proposed $20 million for Finish Line Grants to be made available to four-year university and community college students, but the General Assembly did not fully enact that provision in the approved state budget.

These funds were made available through the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

Governor Cooper Touts New Community College Student Grants in Pittsboro

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