As we go on vacation, my hopes and wishes for all of our students, employees, and stakeholders are to have a safe and happy vacation. Our employees and students are certainly large families. We are very grateful for our community and the many stakeholders who support us every day. Like many North Carolina counties, COVID-19 has left many families without a loved one, and many spend time in hospitals or recovering. Then there are those who don’t necessarily feel sick, but quarantine themselves over the holidays and feel disconnected from the holiday traditions.

We know from Thanksgiving statistics that if we don’t take precautions during the vacation break, there will be an increase in cases. We all want to return to a sense of normalcy. Our students need the social interaction and emotional support that our educational environment provides. Many of our employees need the same thing.

The pandemic has shown us that we are all vulnerable and need one another when times get tough. I’ve seen numerous agencies turn to help during these challenging times. Our child feeding, carers and maintenance workers have stepped up to fill the gaps. We have served thousands of meals and helped families find unemployment through food and donations. Our advisors, teachers, and administrators have visited homes to check on students. Our nurses, many of whom came to work for us to escape 80-hour weeks in healthcare, work tirelessly to ensure that our students and staff stay as safe as possible.