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Editor’s note: At the fifth annual convening of superintendents and presidents of community colleges, Superintendent Eisa Cox and President John Gossett were asked to reflect on the leadership of districts and community colleges in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
In Ashe County, the high school served as a community shelter.
The campus of Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College (A-B Tech) was used to stage local and regional rescue and relief efforts.
Eisa Cox, Superintendent, Ashe County Schools
Going through Hurricane Helene has reminded us how valuable public education is.
We stepped up to the plate.
Our people are nimble. They’re innovative. They’re used to directing things all the time.
We’re the largest employers, most of the time, in our counties, and we deeply care about people we serve in our communities.
It was that care that carried us through.
If it weren’t for public education and our school leaders, we would be far behind where we are today with recovery efforts from this storm.
We need to share what we have done to support our communities, and how we worked together to get back on our feet so that our people can thrive and get back to work.
When people are thriving, we thrive as a community, as a state.
It is really important for superintendents collectively to share the story of our leadership because we problem solve every single day. It might not be from a hurricane or a massive flood, but we’re doing the work every single day that matters for our communities.
Who was there in the middle of the storm?
Law enforcement, fire rescue, emergency medical personnel. Trained by community colleges.
Who was there the day after the storm?
Forestry workers with chainsaws, electricians, plumbers, heavy equipment operators. Trained by community colleges.
Who is there now rebuilding our communities?
Our workforce development graduates, our small business center clients. All community college people.
So if you talk to your policymakers, feel free to tell them that the community colleges are going to rebuild western North Carolina.
Count on it.
