SCHOOLS & EDUCATION
OH, the PLACES YOU’LL GO The future looks bright for Durham’s community college
B Y R E N E E A M B RO S O | P HOTO GR AP HY BY JO HN MICHAEL SIMPSON
ore than 18,000 students – from high schoolers taking early college courses to older adults earning certifications – will attend Durham Technical Community College’s in-person and online classes this school year. More than 100 associate degrees and certificates are now offered at the school, which began in the mid-1940s under the umbrella of Durham Public Schools’ Vocational and Adult Education Department. Durham Tech President J.B. Buxton has worked within the state’s education system for decades – as coordinator of special programs for the North Carolina Teaching Fellows program, as senior education advisor to former Gov. Michael Easley and as deputy state superintendent for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, among other roles. President Buxton took the reins from Durham Tech’s fourth president, William G. Ingram, in summer 2020. The Durham Tech Board of Trustees voted unanimously in early September to extend President Buxton’s contract for an additional four years, through August 2026. President Buxton describes the far-reaching impact that community colleges can have as one of the reasons he pursued the job. “I came to the conclusion that the indispensable education institution in North 82
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durhammag.com
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october/november 2022
Durham Technical Community College President J.B. Buxton.