A path to college

Thanks for your May 5 editorial "College timber," which called attention to the excellent work that N.C. Central University is doing to recruit and enroll students from North Carolina community colleges.

UNC-Chapel Hill is also working to foster access and success for community-college transfers. The university is part of a national effort to make sure that more community college students enter and graduate from competitive four-year colleges and universities.

In 2006, with support from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, we launched the Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program (C-STEP) in partnership with Alamance Community College, Durham Technical Community College and Wake Technical Community College. C-STEP identifies talented low- to moderate-income students while they are still in high school or early in their community-college careers, guarantees their admission to Carolina if they earn an appropriate associate degree and successfully complete the program, and provides excellent transition and support services at the partner colleges and at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Next fall, 59 C-STEP students will be enrolled here, with an additional 90 at the three partner colleges. Our inaugural class will graduate either this Sunday or later this summer, only two years after completing their associate degrees. As your editorial said, this is the right thing to do. C-STEP students are succeeding beautifully, and they are making the university a better, stronger place.

Stephen Farmer

Assistant Provost and Director of Undergraduate Admissions

UNC-Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill