About Wake Tech
Wake Technical Community College (Wake Tech) is a two-year, public institution providing an open door to education and training for the citizens of Raleigh, North Carolina, and surrounding Wake County. It was chartered in 1958 as the Wake County Industrial Education Center and has grown steadily since then, from 34 students in the first class to an enrollment of more than 56,000 in 2005. Wake Tech is governed by a Board of Trustees, with members appointed by the Wake County Board of Education, the Wake County Commissioners, and the Governor of North Carolina. The College is part of the North Carolina Community College System, and it is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
Wake Tech provides a comprehensive array of learning opportunities. Curriculum (for-credit) pro-grams in more than 168 academic, vocational, and technical specialties offer two-year associate degrees in science, applied science, the arts, and general education; college transfer programs for entry into four-year institutions; and diploma and certificate programs that prepare workers to succeed at jobs in high demand in the community. Wake Tech also offers a broad scope of continuing education courses, including public safety officer training (fire, rescue, and law enforcement), high school equiva-lency classes, training for entrepreneurs and small business owners, and non-credit courses for personal and professional development. Wake Tech provides customized workforce training for new and expanding industries and a cooperative education program that interfaces with the corporate community. In support of these programs, Wake Tech has two libraries housing more than 75,000 volumes and 500 periodicals titles, as well as electronic databases and online resources.
To meet the changing needs of its community, Wake Tech offers programs and services day and night, at four primary sites across Wake County. The Main Campus is located nine miles south of Raleigh on U.S. Highway 401, between Garner and Fuquay-Varina. In Raleigh, the Health Sciences Campus is adjacent to Wake Medical Center, and the Adult Education Center, which houses the basic skills curriculum and the English as a Second Language (ESL) program, is on Capital Boulevard. The Western Wake Campus, in Cary, houses the Business and Industry Center and the Biotechnology Learning Center. Wake Tech also operates the Eastern North Carolina Plastics Technology Center, in Zebulon, as the leader of a consortium of seven community colleges. In 2004, construction began on Wake Tech's Northern Wake Campus, which will open in August 2007. Wake Tech provides classes at sixty additional Wake County sites - high schools, senior centers, prisons, and other facilities - to make education and training accessible to the entire community. With technology, the College also reaches beyond the bounds of bricks and mortar: Wake Tech serves thousands of curriculum and continuing education students through Web-based and other distance education media.
Wake Tech enriches student learning through services that include counseling, faculty advising, job placement, and cultural enhancement activities and events. The Individualized Learning Center offers one-on-one tutoring and academic support. Wake Tech assists students with language and cultural challenges and provides support for students with disabilities. The Office of Student Life links students with professional organizations that offer leadership development and community connections. Wake Tech has an active Student Government Association and sponsors a student-produced newspaper.
Wake Tech is a comprehensive community college that takes seriously its mission to improve and enrich lives by meeting the lifelong educational, training, and service needs of its diverse community. The College is committed to promoting individual success in the workplace and higher education and to promoting cultural, social, and economic development. To that end, Wake Tech strives to be a college that exceeds the expectations of its stakeholders by providing world-class programs, services, and resources through an approach that models and teaches the core values of respect, responsibility, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration.