Columbia, SC – ECPI University and the SC Technical College System have signed a memorandum of understanding designed to increase access and enhance the seamless transfer of students and graduates from the 16 technical colleges in South Carolina to ECPI University. 

The SC Technical College System and ECPI University will closely examine and improve transfer functions to expand and encourage access for students who complete an associate in arts, science or applied science degree at one of the state's 16 technical colleges to an approved baccalaureate program offered at ECPI University. 

Honor Marks 7 Straight Years on Military Times List

Virginia Beach, VA – ECPI University is pleased to announce it has been ranked #2 in the nation by Military Times in its Military Times Best: Colleges 2018 rankings, formerly known as Best for Vets. The rankings factor in the results of Military Times’ annual survey, the most comprehensive school-by-school assessment of veteran and military student services and rates of academic achievement. 

As with all Military Times rankings, Best Colleges 2018 is an editorially independent news project that evaluates the many factors that help make colleges and universities a good fit for service members, military veterans and their families. More than 600 colleges took part in this year’s detailed survey, with ECPI University ranking #2 in the nation among career and technical colleges, a category that includes community colleges and four-year career-focused colleges and universities. 

“It’s an honor to be recognized for our commitment to skill-based education,” says ECPI University Executive Director of Military Education Bob Larned. “In today’s highly-technical job market, employers in such areas as computer and information science, engineering, and healthcare need people who can do the job with little or no training. That’s what ECPI University has been doing for more than half a century.”

Hundreds of Students Expected to Visit Lab Showcasing Advanced Manufacturing Technology

Showdown Begins at 1 pm November 5

Norfolk, VA – Aspiring chefs from the Culinary Institute of Virginia will be competing in a live cooking competition based on those made popular by the anime show, Food Wars. Shokugeki (食戟 Shokugeki) is a term that refers to cooking duels at the fictional Tōtsuki Culinary Academy where students face off in intense high-stakes cooking showdowns. That makes this year’s NekoCon the ideal setting for a similar, anime-themed food war. 

Set for November 5 beginning at 1:00 pm at the Hampton Roads Convention Center, competing student teams must create a dish with an Anime/Japanese inspired theme that exudes finesse and precision. Shokugeki is intense. Every ten minutes when the Challenge Gong rings, all cooking stops while one member from each team races to center stage to complete a culinary skills challenge.

Dental Assisting Program Director Leads Effort to Replace Missing Smiles

Newport News, VA – For the past five years, Vicki Brett has been on a tireless journey to provide basic dental care to Virginia’s uninsured. She is ECPI University’s Newport News Campus Dental Assisting Program Director, but also the volunteer chairperson for the Virginia Mission of Mercy (MOM) Project. Several times a year, the group harnesses a collection of dental professionals to provide free care to hundreds of people a day, usually in a school gymnasium. 

For the most part, it is a rewarding experience beyond compare. However, there is a small group of people that she has been unable to forget. These are the ones whose teeth are so rotten that full-mouth extraction is the only option. “My heart is full to see them out of pain, but I wonder how they must feel to be toothless,” says Vicki. 

MOM is funded by the Virginia Dental Association Foundation (VDAF) and this year, the group found it had about a $9,000 surplus. That gave Vicki an idea. She asked the VDAF if MOM could use those funds to provide dentures to this particular group of patients. Depending on whether they require upper and/or lower dentures, Vicki expects to help at least 25 people. 

She’s also getting her dental assisting students involved. They will be on hand to assist dentists in taking impressions to create molds for the dentures. The pre-selected recipient’s first appointment will take place on Thursday, October 26 at 10:30 am at the Chesapeake Care Dental Clinic, located at 2145 S Military Highway in Chesapeake, Virginia. 

Partnership Also Provides Opportunity for Guaranteed Admission

Greenville, SC – ECPI University’s Greenville campus and Greenville County Schools are partnering to offer students an opportunity to get a jumpstart on college. Through a new dual-enrollment opportunity, they can earn up to 15 college credits while still in high school. Students may choose from the following courses: 

• CIS106 Introduction to Operating Systems
• CIS121 Logic and Design
• CIS115 Computer Applications
• CIS150 Networking I
• EET250 Computer Configuration I 

What’s more, students who participate in this program can receive guaranteed admission to ECPI University upon graduation, provided they meet the following criteria: 

• Successfully complete a dual credit course with a GPA of 2.5 or higher (based on a four point scale)
• Achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher (based on a four point scale)
• Apply for admission within two years of graduating from a GCSD high school 

Students with lower GPAs may still gain acceptance by successfully completing the SAT, ACT, and/or the University Entrance Assessment, College Success, Programming Logic and/or TEAS. 

Richmond, VA – Massage Therapy students from ECPI University’s Richmond/Moorefield campus have once again been invited by the Washington Redskins for the fifth straight year to provide massage therapy to players throughout the team’s three week training camp in Richmond, Virginia. 

“This opportunity provides real-life sports massage scenarios that will be of tremendous benefit to our students,” says ECPI University Richmond/Moorefield Campus President Ashley Richards. “Professional athletes are physically very different. Obviously, their muscles are well-defined and tend to be large. Our students will have the opportunity to make connections between their work and the body parts they are trying to address visually and kinesthetically.” 

Recipients to Visit Campus June 30 to Try Them Out

Richmond, VA – All over the world, there are children with missing hands and arms, a large number of which live in third-world countries and war zones. Impoverished, most have no access to artificial limbs. 

Even here in the United States, many struggle to function without an assistive device. Simply put, they’re expensive and insurance companies oftentimes will not pay for them because children outgrow them so fast. 

Now with the help of 3-D printers, students at ECPI University’s Richmond/Innsbrook campus are joining a global movement to change that, making assistive devices affordable and donating them to children who desperately need them – in Richmond and throughout the world. Recently, the campus formed a chapter linked to a global network of volunteers called Enabling the Future. 

Donated Computers Refurbished by Students and Given to Vets

Richmond, VA – ECPI University’s Richmond/Innsbrook campus is launching a new partnership with Tech for Troops which provides veterans with PCs, computer training, and jobs, helping them learn new skills and rejoin the workforce. 

The first event takes place this Saturday, January 14 at ECPI University’s Career Discovery Day. Donations of used computers will be accepted at the Richmond/Innsbrook campus – located at 4305 Cox Road in Glen Allen – from 10 AM to 4 PM. 

ECPI University students will then join other volunteers to refurbish the computers so they can be given to vets. 

Shirley Plantation Event Features Home-Grown Freshwater Prawns, Emphasizes Sustainable, Farm-to-Table Food

Norfolk, VA – For the second straight year, students and faculty from the Culinary Institute of Virginia have been invited to prepare the feast at the annual Shirley Plantation Shrimp Boil, featuring locally-grown freshwater prawns. Larger than regular shrimp, these especially-large delicacies are native to Asia, but grown in specially-designed ponds on the plantation’s grounds.