North Carolina’s Top Community College Students Honored with 2025 Academic Excellence Awards

The North Carolina Community College System, State Board of Community Colleges, and the  North Carolina Community Colleges Foundation announce the winners of the 2025 Academic Excellence Awards – the highest academic honor the System bestows on its students. The award was created in 1998 to recognize and encourage scholarship among students at all North Carolina community colleges.  

Each college selects one student to receive the award each year. To be eligible, students must be currently enrolled, have completed at least 12 semester hours in a curriculum degree program, and have a cumulative GPA of no less than 3.25.

“The Academic Excellence Award represents the very best of our students. They have excelled in the classroom and are preparing to make a meaningful impact in their communities. Their achievements are a testament to the power of North Carolina’s community colleges in transforming lives and opening doors to opportunity. We are incredibly proud of their hard work and dedication,” said Dr. Jeff Cox, System President.

The NC Community Colleges Foundation will present the names of all winners at the NC Community Colleges Awards Dinner and Celebration on the evening of April 3 at The Umstead Hotel in Cary. Each student receives a plaque and medallion in honor of their academic accomplishments, which are provided by the Foundation.  

Below are the 2025 Academic Excellence Award winners, in alphabetical order:  

College	Student
Alamance Community College	Mary Rose Villagante
Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College	Ezrah Hanson
Beaufort County Community College	Brandon Maples
Bladen Community College	Jamie Barnes
Blue Ridge Community College	Crystal Mortensen
Brunswick Community College	Isabella Ogden
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute	Thomas Franck Manning
Cape Fear Community College	Brandon Williams
Carteret Community College	Nikole Leeann Mills
Catawba Valley Community College	Braiden Scott McAlpin
Central Carolina Community College	Jack Triglianos
Cleveland Community College	Benjamin Jeffries
Coastal Carolina Community College	Samantha Bivin
College of the Albemarle	Robert Wernock
Craven Community College	Tyler Joseph Zobel
Davidson-Davie Community College	Tabitha Long
Durham Technical Community College	Suwimon Panalak Martin
Edgecombe Community College	Payden Kiser
Forsyth Technical Community College	Olivia Barak’el Gaines
Gaston College	Jeshua Gallo-Solano
Guilford Technical Community College	Logan Jenkins
Halifax Community College	Aja Soneya Madison
Haywood Community College	Shelli Russell
Isothermal Community College	Weston Smith
James Sprunt Community College	Bryan Regalado-Rojo
Johnston Community College	Nour M. Issa
Lenoir Community College	Hayden Elizabeth Stroud
Martin Community College	Riley Wynne
Mayland Community College	Roby Leigh Summerfield
McDowell Technical Community College	Keylee Hensley
Montgomery Community College	Drew A. Harmon
Nash Community College	Tammy Lynn Keel
Pamlico Community College	Rochelle Monique Meadows
Piedmont Community College	Carlie Ryan White
Pitt Community College	Daniel J. Dinkins
Randolph Community College	Jacob Mraz
Richmond Community College	Madison Gentry
Roanoke-Chowan Community College	Javier Pagola Osorio
Robeson Community College	Maliki Adonte Canady
Rockingham Community College	Gwendolyn Goad
Rowan-Cabarrus Community College	Talia Lee Perry
Sampson Community College	Tyler Ward
Sandhills Community College	Krittinee Dangsanan
South Piedmont Community College	Tera Waddell
Southeastern Community College	Gabrielle FormyDuval
Southwestern Community College	Zyla Young
Stanly Community College	Tracy Vester
Surry Community College	Lukas Blaze White
Tri-County Community College	Anna Brinke
Vance Granville Community College	Grayson Gaul-Kinyon
Wake Technical Community College	William Guevara
Wayne Community College	Keonte Omand Sidbury
Western Piedmont Community College	Natasha Jennings
Wilkes Community College	James Howard Brandt
Wilson Community College	Christopher Niles Chin

 

The North Carolina Community College System is a network of 58 community colleges created to improve the quality of life across North Carolina by opening the door to opportunities that minimize barriers to post-secondary education, maximize student success and develop a globally and multi-culturally competent workforce. The 58 institutions, serving more than 600,000 students, are located throughout the state and provide easy access to low-cost, high-quality educational opportunities and academic support that focuses on increasing employability. The System Office is located in downtown Raleigh, NC.

The State Board of Community Colleges is the policy-making arm of the NC Community College System. The Board consists of 22 members, who have either been assigned by the Governor, the State House or the State Senate. The Lieutenant Governor, State Treasurer, Labor Commissioner, and President of N4CSGA (Student Government Association) also serve on the board. 

The North Carolina Community Colleges Foundation (the Foundation) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization founded in 1986 to support the mission of the NC Community College System. The Foundation is governed by a diverse board of directors who, together with the executive director, steward the endowment; raise awareness and funds to develop and advance the System; manage several scholarship and award programs that honor excellence, and support public-private partnership programs that foster innovation. Going forward, the Foundation will lead a national campaign to drive more student, college, employer, and system success; and deliver more community, economic, and workforce development value for the state. To engage with the Foundation, visit www.nccommunitycolleges.edu/foundation.