DURHAM, N.C. - North Carolina Central University's student-athletes amassed 9,750 hours of community engagement since July 2022.
There were 213 student-athlete volunteers representing all NCCU sports teams, who collected 846 hours in the summer semester of 2022, 4,251 during the 2022 fall semester, and 4,653 this past spring semester.
Student-athletes completed 5,524 hours with their teams through events sourced by the Department of Athletics. The remainder of the hours accumulated were achieved through opportunities founded by student-athletes themselves, including unpaid internship hours.
The top volunteer sites this past year were W.G. Pearson Elementary School, Shepard Middle School, and the NCCU Campus Pantry.
"When students see people that look like them succeeding in school, sports, and life, it gives them a type of confidence that's exhilarating," said WG Pearson Family and Community Liaison Jarmon Delbert. "Sports transcend the daily challenges of life. When our students are able to see and touch their athletic and scholastic community heroes, it lets them know that they too can achieve greatness. When the national champion football team came after winning the Celebration Bowl and talked to our students about being a 'Champion in the classroom,' I am convinced that was part of what helped our students focus and knock the end-of-grade testing out of the box!"
Identified as a Community Engaged Institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the NCCU community lives by the institution's motto of 'Truth and Service.'
