Charles R. Preston Scholarship Endowment

The CVCC Foundation, Inc. announces the establishment of the Charles R. Preston Scholarship Endowment with funds provided by the Preston family and memorial gifts.

05/14/2020

Charles R. Preston

The CVCC Foundation, Inc. announces the establishment of the Charles R. Preston Scholarship Endowment with funds provided by the Preston family and memorial gifts.

The scholarship honors the memory of Charles R. Preston, a community leader in the Catawba Valley Region. Preston’s leadership was paramount at Catawba Valley Community College where he was appointed to the CVCC Board of Trustees in January 2003 and eventually elected Chair of the Board in September 2013. 

He was passionately instrumental in a number of projects at CVCC, including the creation and construction of the 80,400 square foot Workforce Solutions Complex (WSC). 

“From his first meeting until his last, Mr. Preston positively impacted Red Hawk Nation with his passion, knowledge, experience and commitment to the mission of our college and our community,” said CVCC President Dr. Garrett Hinshaw. “I had the distinct honor of serving under Mr. Preston’s leadership for six years. There was no one more passionate about this college and its success than Charles Preston. Establishing a scholarship in his memory will represent the impact he had on this college and community for generations to come. He was a difference maker, a leader, and an advocate of Catawba Valley Community College who will never be forgotten and is dearly missed by its students, faculty and staff. Mr. Preston was a champion who represented the influence that we want to embed in our students and our culture every day from here on.”

Beyond his impact at CVCC, Preston was a community leader who was engaged civically from an early age. His leadership included political office, entrepreneurship, volunteerism and the environmental causes. 

He received numerous awards including the state’s highest honor  — The Order of the Long Leaf Pine — from the Governor of North Carolina in July 2015.

“I had the pleasure of working with Charles for many years,” said David H. Sain, chair of the CVCC Foundation Board of Directors. “We often spoke on the phone about mutual issues and opportunities for the CVCC Trustee Board and the CVCC Foundation Board to partner for the benefit of the College’s mission. He was a great man who was totally dedicated to Catawba Valley Community College.”

The recipient of the Charles R. Preston Scholarship Endowment will be a student who embodies the leadership and commitment to this community shown by Preston. The first year award will be $1,000 for tuition, books, insurance and fees. The amount of the award will vary each year according to the growth and income of the endowment.

Preference will be given to those students involved in technological programs taught in the Workforce Solutions Complex, including HVAC, Electronic, Automotive, Industrial Systems, Machining, Mechatronics, Electrical, and Welding as well as the Construction, Furniture, and Manufacturing academies and public services such as EMS, EMT, Fire and Rescue Certification, and Basic Law Enforcement.

The deadline for application is June 30. The application and instructions can be accessed on the CVCC Foundation Scholarship Application web page. When completing the application, please designate the application is for The Charles R. Preston Scholarship. 

If you would like to make a gift to the Charles R. Preston Scholarship, please contact Teresa Biggs, Executive Director of the CVCC Foundation, Inc., at (828) 327-7000, ext. 4288 or email tbiggs@cvcc.edu. You may also mail a check to the CVCC Foundation, Inc., 2550 Highway 70 SE, Hickory, NC 28602.

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