Wayne Community College is a community college located in Goldsboro, North Carolina. It consists of nine buildings, with a campus area of over 287,000 square feet (27,000 m²). Over 14,000 curriculum and extension students are enrolled at the college per year.
History
Wayne Community College began as the Goldsboro Industrial Education Center (I.E.C.), established on April 3, 1958. The original on-campus building was completed in November 1960, and until Fall 1962 all courses were taught in the evening, and all students were part-time.
In the 1962-63 school year, the first full-time courses were offered leading to diplomas in automotive mechanics, electronics, drafting, and practical nursing. At that time, Goldsboro I.E.C. had 47 students enrolled with eight faculty members. From 1963 through 1965, three extension units of Goldsboro I.E.C. were established in Morehead City, Kenansville, and Clinton, which later became Carteret Community College, James Sprunt Community College, and Sampson Community College.
In January 1964, Goldsboro I.E.C. became Wayne Technical Institute. By Fall 1966, the enrollment had increased to approximately 550 curriculum students and more than 1500 extension students. During the late 1960s, several additional classroom buildings were added to the campus.
In November 1967, a community vote approved the necessary financial support, and Wayne Technical Institute became Wayne Community College. By the fall of 1968, enrollment had risen to nearly 700 curriculum students. Since 1968, the enrollment of Wayne Community College has steadily grown each year.
The 1997-1998 college year marked the 40th Anniversary of Wayne Community College, celebrated with the theme “Forty and Proud!†The College’s rapid growth has paralleled that of the North Carolina Community College System, which is one of the largest in the United States.
Notable Wayne Community College graduates include psychologist Russell Barkley (June 1972).
Wayne Early Middle College High School is located on the campus of Wayne Community College. It accepted 60 students into the first Freshman Class in August 2007.
2015 shooting
On April 13, 2015, officers responded to an active shooter call at about 8:00 am EDT. Sources say that the suspect, recently ousted student Kenneth M. Stancil III, walked onto campus with a shotgun, and took a back entrance up to the third floor of the college's main building. Once there, he walked into the print shop just outside the library, and fatally shot print shop operator Ron Lane, whom he had been performing his work-study duties with until his dismissal in March. No other injuries or fatalities were reported. The school remained in lockdown with several hundred people inside as police searched the campus and surrounding areas to ensure that Stancil was no longer on campus. The doors which Stancil entered have since been locked from the outside and are now only used as an emergency exit.
Early on April 14, 2015, Stancil was found sleeping on the beach in Daytona Beach, Florida, and was arrested without incident. He has since been extradited back to North Carolina. He faces an open count of murder, while the possibility of a hate crime is also being looked at. According to Stancil, Lane, who was gay, had allegedly molested one of Stancil's relatives, though no claim of such a crime had been filed with police, and Stancil stated "going to prison would be the easy part". Stancil was denied bond and appointed a public defender by Judge Christopher Kelly in Daytona Beach, who told him that he had the right to remain silent.
External links
- Official website
References
