State leadership program experience shapes SCC administrators’ approach to student success

Two Southeastern Community College leaders recently completed the Spring 2026 cohort of the North Carolina Community College Leadership Program (NCCCLP), gaining new perspectives on leadership, collaboration and how to better serve students across campus. 

Colene Faulk, Dean of Student Services, and Jason Strickland, Chief Information Officer, were selected to participate in the statewide program, which brings together emerging leaders from across North Carolina’s Community College System. 

The program is offered through the Belk Center for Community College Leadership. NCCCLP is designed to help develop future leaders by providing participants with a deeper understanding of community college operations, including strategic planning, budgeting, and leadership, while also creating opportunities to build relationships with peers across the state. 

Both Faulk and Strickland said the experience offered valuable insight they are already applying in their roles at SCC. 

Faulk’s perspective 

For Faulk, the program provided an opportunity to step back and take a wider view of leadership beyond her day-to-day responsibilities. 

“The NCCCLP experience was transformational for me,” Faulk said. “It really pushed me to step back from my daily responsibilities and look at the bigger picture—how leadership impacts not just our campus, but the entire community college system.” 

A key takeaway for Faulk was the importance of cross-departmental collaboration to better support students. “When we collaborate more, we’re able to meet students’ needs in a stronger way.” 

“Leadership isn’t just about making decisions—it’s about listening, adapting and keeping students at the center of everything we do,” Faulk said. 

Faulk said the program has already influenced her work at Southeastern, particularly in how she approaches student services and campus partnerships. 

“It’s helped me think more strategically and be more intentional in how we support students,” she said. “I’m working more closely with other areas of the college and really focusing on how everything we do connects back to student success.” 

Being selected for NCCCLP was also a meaningful milestone in her career. 

“It was truly an honor,” Faulk said. “It meant a lot to be chosen and to learn alongside leaders from across the state who all care about education and helping students succeed.” 

“The connections were one of the most valuable parts,” she said. “It’s a network of people I can continue to learn from and collaborate with going forward.” 

Strickland: Practical tools and new connections 

For Strickland, the program provided both new ideas and practical tools he has already begun applying within his Information Technology department. 

“One of the biggest things I took away was the Team Player Styles Inventory,” Strickland said. “I’ve already used it with my department to better understand how everyone works so we can be more effective as a team.” 

He said the program also offered insight into leadership pathways across the community college system. 

“A lot of the college presidents who spoke had very different journeys,” he said. “There’s not a straight path to leadership, and that was encouraging to see.” 

While many sessions focused on instruction and academic areas, Strickland said the experience still helped him better understand how colleges operate as a whole. 

“It gave me a deeper perspective on how others view budgeting and planning, especially for people who may not work in those areas every day,” he said. 

He also pointed to several sessions that stood out, including presentations on managing talent and evaluating program performance. 

“There were some good takeaways when it comes to managing resources and looking at how programs perform,” Strickland said. 

Being selected for the program was an important recognition at both the college and statewide levels, he said. 

“At SCC, it shows that leadership sees potential in me as an aspiring leader,” Strickland said. “And within the program, it meant others believed in that potential as well.” 

Strickland said building connections with peers across the state was another key benefit of the experience. 

“I’ve already been networking with the IT director at Vance-Granville, discussing technologies used at both our institutions and how we can collaborate on future projects” he said. “I’ve also been connecting with the new IT director at Bladen Community College since she has a background in the federal government.” 

As he moves forward, Strickland said he plans to continue using what he learned while staying connected with colleagues from the program. 

“The relationships and ideas I gained are something I’ll continue to build on,” he said. “It’s been a great experience overall.”