Author: Sandy Wall, Pamlico Community College
Pamlico Community College instructors and administrators recently honored the perseverance and drive of 14 men who earned their associate degrees in Human Services Technology (HST) while housed at Pamlico Correctional Institution.
Family members and friends of the men – some of whom traveled from out of state – joined with PCI officials and others for the college’s special ceremony Aug. 29 at the Bayboro facility. It was PCC’s second prison-based graduation ceremony since the COVID-19 pandemic. A similar event took place with six HST graduates in May.
“Thank you for your persistence and to sticking with the program through all your trials and tribulations,” said Mary Grammer, the college’s coordinator of correctional education. “You should be very proud of yourselves.”
Thirteen of the graduates attended the ceremony, which took place in PCI’s visitation room. The missing graduate has been released from custody. Eleven of the 14 graduated with honors.
The 14 Summer 2024 honorees make up the most recent class of graduates in the college’s innovative Human Services Technology program, which was launched in August 2017. It’s designed to reduce recidivism among participants by teaching life skills such as anger management, avoiding substance abuse, maintaining family relationships, and other material.
Students who successfully complete the coursework earn an Associate in Applied Science degree in Human Services Technology (HST) from the college. Earning a college degree while incarcerated can give justice-involved individuals a critical advantage when seeking employment and going on with their lives after they’re released from prison, college leaders say.
Pamlico’s HST program is the first of its kind in North Carolina.
Graduate Mitchell Johnson said the program, combined with a renewed faith in God, had made him a better person.
“I’m a changed man,” he told the audience. “HST has helped me learn more about myself.”
Johnson held back tears as he acknowledged his parents, who had traveled from Bladen County for the event. He acknowledged they had done their best to raise him and his brother, but that he had mistakenly taken a dark path. However, taking and passing all 23 courses in the college’s HST program had helped him to turn his life around, Johnson said.
“I wish this program was taught in all detention centers,” he said, thanking college and prison officials for their support and encouragement. “We are on our way to becoming positive members of society.”
Fellow graduate Paris Coleman also thanked college and prison officials for their support of the HST program. He singled out N.C. Sen. Norman Sanderson and former PCI Superintendent Faye Daniels for spearheading the HST initiative.
Coleman said he learned a lot about himself in the program, including why he struggled with anger and trust issues.
“There was a time when I didn’t think I’d see my 18th birthday, much less earn a college degree,” the former Jersey City, N.J., man said.
By participating in the HST program, Coleman said he learned how to deal with his past, take control of his life and decisions, and to focus on positive action and service to others.
“Action behind words is how you stand on business,” he said, adding there were no shortcuts to success. “I want my legacy to inspire those in need of uplifting.”
In his keynote address, PCC Instructor Ronald Scott, who serves as chair of the HST program, told the graduates that he was proud of them and impressed by their resilience. Noting the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and other obstacles, Scott saluted the graduates for their perseverance and confidence in themselves.
“Who you were when you started this program is not who you are now,” he said.
Scott told the men to understand that, once they are released, they would need to work harder and better than others because of their pasts.
“As you strive for excellence, rise above those who want to see you fail,” he said. “The world is yours to change. Go, and be a difference-maker.”
The 14 graduates are:
Chandler Bible, Michael Caswell, Michael Chambers, Paris Coleman, Julius Davis, Willis Hodges, Elbert Horton, Ra’heem House, Hugh Johnson, Lonnie Johnson, Mitchell Johnson, Joshua Seagro, Keith Shropshire and Nicholas Tuccicaselli.