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Chief Justice Cheri Beasley visits
students at Mineral Springs
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
Earlier this week,
North Carolina Supreme
Court Chief Justice Cheri
Beasley spent time with
students from Mineral
Springs Elementary and
Middle Schools. The vis
it was part of Beasley’s
statewide tour to ensure
that the state’s justice sys
tem reflects the values of
the citizens, including stu
dents.
Beasley, the first Afri
can American woman to
serve as Chief Justice, par
ticipated in a panel discus
sion at Mineral Springs,
Studentsfrom Mineral Springs Middle School enjoy their discussion with N. C. Supreme Court
Chief Justice Cheri Beasley and other special guests on Monday, Sept. 9.
where a select group of
students from both schools
had the opportunity to ask
questions. Other partici
pants in the panel included
Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough,
Police Chief Catrina
Thompson, District Court
Judge Carrie Vickery,
Tembila Covington, presi
dent of the Ministers’ Con
ference of Winston-Salem
and Vicinity, Julie Chil
dress, assistant district at
torney, Susan Frye, retired
Forsyth County Clerk of
Court, and Bishop Todd
Fulton, social justice chair
of the Minsters’ Confer
ence of Winston-Salem
and Vicinity.
The students from
grades fifth through eighth
didn’t hold back when' it
came time to ask the guests
the tough questions. The
students asked questions
about gang violence, gun
laws, the spread of vio
lence throughout the com
munity, and several others.
They also asked questions
about their inspirations
growing up and what made
them pursue their careers.
Following the panel,
Chief Justice Beasley
stuck around to mingle
with the students. Beasley
said the visit to Mineral
Springs was a wonderful
opportunity to have mean-
Photos by Tevin Stincon
N.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley speaks with students from Mineral Springs
Elementary and Middle Schools during a panel discussion on Monday, Sept. 9.
ingful conversations with
young people who are
aware of the issues that are
plaguing our communities.
“They had great ques
tions and really sparked
some wonderful conver
sations,” Beasley said. “I
think it’s important for
young people to know that
the people who lead their
communities care about
some of the challenges
they’re facing. And I think
it’s important that leaders
serve as role models.”
Beasley said she was
impressed by the knowl
edge the students had on
some very important topics
and issues that plague their
communities, but was also
concerned. She said, “For
them to be fifth through
eight graders, to have a
handle on these is very
inspiring bn one hand, but
they’re also issues that you
don’t want young people
to be thinking about.”
Lisette Choate, a par
ent, thanked Chief Justice
Beasley and the other pan
elists for taking the time to
sit down with the students.
Choate said students hear
about police and judges
but it’s not often that they
get to actually sit down
and talk to the people in
these positions.
“They may hear things
like this in the classroom,
but hearing it like this, I
think, is eye opening. It
makes it more real for the
kids, I think. As a parent, I
appreciate each and every
one of you for coming and
sharing your perspective,”
Choate said.
While in Forsyth
County, Beasley also met
with local lawyers and
judges in the area. She
will return to the area next
month when the North
Carolina Supreme Court
is scheduled to hold court
here in Forsyth County.
Winston-Salem Chamber hosts inaugural State
of Education luncheon
BY TEVIN STINSON
THE CHRONICLE
In an attempt to bring
the community together
for an important conversa
tion on workforce opportu
nities and the role institu
tions of higher education
play in building those op
portunities, last week the
Winston-Salem Chamber
invited all six CEO’s from
the colleges and universi
ties in the city to' partici
pate in a panel discussion.
The panel included:
Janet Spriggs, President of
Forsyth Tech Community
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College; Elwood Robin
son, Chancellor of Win
ston-Salem State Universi
ty; Charles Petitt, President
of Piedmont International
University; Nathan Hatch,
President of Wake Forest
University; Sandra Doran,
interim president of Salem
College; and Brian Cole,
interim president of UNC
School of the Arts. The
chamber’s inaugural State
of Education luncheon was
held at the Benton Con
vention Center on Sept. 4.
While addressing the
room during the luncheon,
Mark Owens, president
of the Winston-Salem
Chamber, talked about the
importance of businesses
having working relation
ships with the colleges and
universities in the city. He
said, “With the changing
economy, communities
must focus on recruiting
and retaining talent in or
der to provide the greatest
asset of all to your com
pany - good people.
“In this new era, we
have to ask a lot from our
colleges and universities,
because in order to be suc
cessful, we need our uni
versities’ help to develop
talent. We also need their
help to recruit and retain
talent in our community.”
Owens continued, “The
collective impact of build
ing our knowledge around
retaining graduates equals
billions of dollars in eco
nomic impact for Winston-
Salem and Forsyth- Coun
ty-”
Following lunch and
individual introductions,
Owens kicked off the
discussion by asking the
panelists about some of
the gaps in workforce pro
grams in higher education
and some courses that may
need to be added to the
curriculum.
President Hatch called
all universities to offer
courses that teach techni
cal skills. He also suggest
ed taking a closer look at
the job market and create
courses based on need and
the need for more intern
ships for students.
Photos by Tevin Stinson
Last week the Winston-Salem Chamber invited all six presidents and chancellors from the
colleges and universities in the city to participate in a panel discussion on their relationship
with the business community.
“I think technical fields
are growing so much and
I think at every level,
whether it’s community
college or whether it’s un
dergraduate or graduate,
they should be technically
competent, producing
more engineers so compa
nies can hire more people,
or even sophisticated tech
nicians. I think seeing what
the market is and making
sure we’re providing an
open invitation for what’s
needed,” Hatch said.
President Petitt said
there’s a need for more
collaboration between
businesses and colleges
because industries are rap
idly changing. He said,
“Having close collabora
tion between industry and
the colleges is required
because they’re changing
more quickly than we can
even notice.”
Chancellor Robinson
raised concerns about the
growing gap between the
“haves and have-nots”
and keeping costs afford
able so every student has
the opportunity to further
their education after high
school.
“I worry about this
growing gap between the
haves and the have-nots
See Education on A2
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