At the 7th Annual Leadership Summit, which was hosted virtually for the first-time ever this year, the National Coalition of Certification Centers (NC3) presented 11 institutions awards for their leadership and innovation in career and technical education. Each year at NC3’s Annual Leadership Summit, awards are presented to top-performing institutions in the NC3 Network. This year’s Leadership Award Winners were announced to attendees during the second day of the Annual Leadership Summit on July 9, 2020.

Awards were presented to Mech-Tech College (Caguas, Puerto Rico), WSU Tech, Gateway Technical College, Metropolitan Community College, Bollman Technical Education Center, Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, College of the Desert, Person High School, San Diego Miramar College, Elkhorn Area High School, and Rosedale Technical College.

The following award winners are institutions that are leading the way for career and technical education.

2020 Enterprise Award

Mech-Tech College (Caguas, Puerto Rico), was presented the 2020 Enterprise Award in recognition of being the top-performing school district system in the NC3 Network to develop and implement industry partnerships that move ideas and people forward.

Despite having encountered numerous natural disasters and setbacks in recent years, Mech-Tech College continues to expand its NC3 programs with Greenlee, Festo, Lincoln Electric and Snap-on. During the 2019 calendar year, this institution issued 4,048 NC3 certifications, which made it the top-performing school district system in the NC3 Network.

2020 Dennis Iudice Memorial Awards

The 2020 Dennis Iudice Memorial Award was presented to WSU Tech, Gateway Technical College, and Metropolitan Community College for having issued the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th highest number of NC3 certifications among all schools in the NC3 Network during the 2019 calendar year.

Boasting 3,104, 2,375, and 1,599 issued certifications respectively, these institutions go above-and-beyond with their contribution to skills certification training and are true leaders in career and technical education.

WSU Tech from Wichita, Kansas is a truly inspirational institution that works hard to ensure it is consistently among the list of NC3’s top-performing schools. WSU Tech not only serves as an NC3 Center of Excellence institute for Aviation, Automotive, and Welding but also was the inaugural host of the 2020 National Signing Day Game Day event.

Gateway Technical College from Kenosha, Wisconsin is NC3’s founding school and is consistently one of NC3’s top-performers. This institution hosts several NC3 Centers of Excellence across multiple programs, utilizes a wide variety of certifications, and is an innovator in CTE.

Metropolitan Community College from Omaha, Nebraska has been climbing the ranks of NC3’s top-performing schools year-after-year. This college has been an NC3 Leadership School since 2013 and currently offers its students the opportunity to earn 36 different Snap-on Certifications and/or Certificates of Knowledge! Through hard work and dedication, Metropolitan Community College is paving the way forward for technical education in Nebraska. This institution is definitely worth celebrating.

2020 START Award

The 2020 START Award was presented to Bollman Technical Education Center in recognition of being the top high school in the United States to develop and implement industry partnerships that move ideas and people forward.

Bollman Technical Education Center from Thornton, Colorado offers specialized career and technical training that is otherwise not provided at other high schools in the surrounding area. Since becoming an NC3 Certification Center in 2017, Bollman Technical Education Center has increased its number of issued certifications by over 50% each year!

2020 School in the Rise Awards

The NC3 “School on the Rise” Award is a monthly achievement granted to schools that have shown consistent growth in issued certifications as well as dedication to career and technical education since joining the NC3 Network.

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College from Salisbury, North Carolina received the inaugural #1 School on the Rise Award for 2020 in recognition of being this year’s highest-achieving School on the Rise. Rowan-Cabarrus Community College has been an NC3 Leadership School since 2016. This institution boasts highly dynamic and diverse programs. Most notably, this school has shown incredible growth as well as expansion in three different NC3 certification programs: Festo, Lincoln Electric, and Snap-on.

Other institutions awarded the NC3 “School on the Rise” designation during the first half of 2020 were College of the Desert, Person High School, Bollman Technical Education Center, San Diego Miramar College, Elkhorn Area High School, and Rosedale Technical College.

College of the Desert from Palm Desert, California has an average of 1,000 students enrolled in its Automotive Technology Program each year. Since 2018, this school has increased its number of issued certifications by a staggering 625%!

Person High School from Roxboro, North Carolina joined the NC3 Network in 2016 and has more than DOUBLED its number of issued certifications each year.

Bollman Technical Education Center from Thornton, Colorado – also the winner of NC3’s START Award – was awarded the ”School on the Rise” designation for exponential growth in the total number of certifications issued since joining the NC3 Network.

San Diego Miramar College from San Diego, California joined the NC3 Network in 2014 and has steadily increased its number of issued certifications year-after-year. As an NC3 Leadership School, San Diego Miramar College offers 20 different Snap-on Automotive Certifications to its students.

Elkhorn Area High School from Elkhorn, Wisconsin joined the NC3 Network in 2017 and has nearly DOUBLED its number of issued certifications each year.

Rosedale Technical College from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania joined the NC3 Network in 2010 and became an NC3 Leadership School in 2017. Their Automotive and Diesel Programs have since grown in their number of issued certifications by over 1000%!

Our team at NC3 is sending our utmost congratulations again to these high-achieving institutions!

Click here to learn more about the NC3 Network and our certification programs. To see photos and video testimonials from this year’s award winners, please be sure to follow NC3 on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook!

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Contact: Ashley Adams
Phone: 760.782.5923
Email: ashley.adams@nc3.net

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About NC3:
NC3 was established to help build a workforce prepared to meet the needs of today’s and tomorrow’s industries by connecting employers and educational institutions in synergistic partnerships that foster effective training, elevation of skilled careers, and employment opportunities. In fulfilling its mission, NC3 builds deep industry-educational partnerships and develops, implements, and sustains industry-recognized portable certifications built on national skills standards. We, along with our global industry partners Snap-on Inc., Trane, 3M, Festo, Lincoln Electric, Greenlee, Kubota Tractor Corporation, L.S. Starrett Company, Daniels Manufacturing Corporation (DMC), Palmer Hamilton, Tormach, Dremel, and Certiport, envision an industrial labor market where all workers have the jobs they need to thrive and all companies have the well-trained employees they need to operate and grow. Learn more at www.NC3.net.

About the NC3 Annual Leadership Summit:
Education leaders, NC3 Leadership Schools, and industry experts from across the nation gather each year at NC3’s Annual Leadership Summit to celebrate achievements within the field of career and technical education. During this premier event, members of the NC3 Network discuss new and innovative industry trends as well as best practices that will propel the network’s institutions, industry-recognized certification programs, and students forward. NC3’s Leadership Award winners are announced annually at this conference.

Find NC3 and This Year’s Award Winners Online:

NC3

Website: NC3.net
Instagram: @NC3skills
Twitter: @NC3partners
Facebook: facebook.com/NC3Skills
YouTube: youtube.com/NC3Marketing

Mech-Tech College (Caguas, Puerto Rico)

Website: mechtech.edu/recinto/caguas
Instagram: @mechtechpr
Twitter: @MECHTECHPR
Facebook: facebook.com/Mechtechpr
YouTube: youtube.com/mechtechpr

WSU Tech

Website: wsutech.edu
Instagram: @wsutech
Twitter: @wsutech
Facebook: facebook.com/wsutech.official
YouTube: youtube.com/c/WSUTech

Gateway Technical College

Website: gtc.edu
Instagram: @gatewaytechcollege
Twitter: @gatewaytech
Facebook: facebook.com/GatewayTechnicalCollege
YouTube: youtube.com/user/GatewayTechCollege

Metropolitan Community College

Website: mccneb.edu
Instagram: @mccneb
Twitter: @mccneb
Facebook: facebook.com/MCCnebraska
YouTube: youtube.com/user/mccnebraska

Bollman Technical Education Center

Website: bollmantech.adams12.org
Instagram: @bollmantechnicaledcenter
Twitter: @Adams12
Facebook: facebook.com/BollmanTech
YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCv5HNRG1FAnVtGfIH4iKgNQ

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College

Website: rccc.edu
Instagram: @rcccedu
Twitter: @RCCCedu
Facebook: facebook.com/NC.RCCC
YouTube: youtube.com/c/RowanCabarrusCC

College of the Desert

Website: collegeofthedesert.edu
Instagram: @collegeofthedesert
Facebook: facebook.com/CollegeOfTheDesert
YouTube: youtube.com/c/CollegeoftheDesertOfficial

Person High School

Website: pcsnc.org/Domain/20
Instagram: @personhigh1010
Twitter: @PersonCoSchools
Facebook: facebook.com/personhighschool
YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCnF9PArHSunReN6B4xZAZFg

San Diego Miramar College

Website: sdmiramar.edu
Instagram: @SDMiramar
Twitter: @SDMiramar
Facebook: facebook.com/SanDiegoMiramarCollege
YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCAW9o2tK52NekfZFixJOU0w

Elkhorn Area High School

Website: elkhorn.k12.wi.us
Instagram: N/A
Twitter: @ElkhornAreaSD
Facebook: facebook.com/elkhorn.wi
YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UC2ZHz5Io_Y9YwtKLe4WBlOQ/videos

Rosedale Technical College

Website: rosedaletech.org
Instagram: @rosedaletech
Twitter: @RosedaleTech
Facebook: facebook.com/rosedaletech
YouTube: youtube.com/RosedaleTech