Writer: Joshua Andino
2 min read October 2022 — While the Queen City continues to lead in many aspects, a key draw for families and the businesses relocating to the area remains the region’s premier education ecosystem. With both public and private offerings available at the secondary, undergraduate, and graduate levels, a robust talent pipeline has been created that businesses are eager to tap into.
The ensuing positive feedback loop, where the area’s schools attract businesses that bring employees and their families, has made a number of educational institutions across the region bullish for the future, even as others elsewhere look to mitigate challenges associated with the demographic cliff that has seen declining enrollments nationally. With 2023 a little more than two months away, Invest: spoke to a number of schools across the Charlotte area, asking what they were looking at for 2023 and why they remain bullish on the future.
Scott Bullard President Pfeiffer University
What is your outlook for higher education over the next three to five years?
I am a lot more confident now than I was a year ago. Small universities continue to be places wherein professors with PhDs in
important fields mentor young adults, and help them find the most effective and fulfilling ways in which to exercise their gifts. It also remains a great investment. The average college graduate’s lifetime earnings still exceeds the average non-graduate by over $1 million. The federal and state governments know this. We have benefitted from two CARES Acts essentially and the state of North Carolina has designated relief money for each private college in next year’s budget. Our benefactors have seen our vision and I believe we’ve entailed confidence in our donors.
We are currently recruiting architecture firms to do a master facilities plan for our athletics complex. We have some proposals on the way and are evaluating our academic programs. We are refocusing to find what is working and what people want.
Barry Giller, Head of School, Charlotte Christian School
What is the outlook for Charlotte Christian School for the near term?
We are seeing tremendous growth in the private school community. There is strong demand for private school education and we have the ability to service that interest. South Charlotte is a healthy market for independent education. My colleagues and I are facing greater application numbers than seats available.
I’m very excited. God is doing amazing things on our campus. While we set up our students to be accepted to the college of their choice, I’m more concerned about who they are when they go to college. For me, the best day is handing out diplomas to seniors because I know they are ready. The outlook is positive. Charlotte is a great city and we’re seeing growth.
Dan Lugo, President, Queens University of Charlotte
What is your outlook for your institution in the next two to three years?
I couldn’t be more bullish about the near-term and long-term future of Queens University of Charlotte. We are well-positioned to truly grow into being the signature private university for the city and this region. Charlotte desperately needs to invest in its higher education ecosystem. In comparison to most major cities of our size and economic power, we don’t have enough higher-education institutions. We have approximately seven higher-education institutions. Nashville and Memphis have a dozen, Pittsburgh and Portland have 20-something and Boston has nearly 40 and we were bigger and growing faster than all those places. Now is the moment for the institutions of Charlotte to step up to the plate to grow their offerings and grow the volume and quality of students that we can educate. All that makes me very bullish about our future.
Gregory Monroe, Superintendent of Catholic Schools, Diocese of Charlotte
What is your outlook for the next two to three years?
Demand for Catholic education is growing. Our enrollment has increased 10% over the last two years, so we want to continue to shine a light on the good things we’ve been doing for many years. We want to continue to welcome more people in our robust, excellent Catholic education and to reach out to underserved communities and people of different racial, ethnic, socioeconomic and other backgrounds. They all have a home here; Catholic schools truly are schools for all people.
I like to highlight the fact that our schools are part of a large system that goes from pre-K to high school, and graduates 99% of students. We engage families, so regardless of where they are in their educational journey, our schools help them transition through each phase of life. We are excited about our partnership with Belmont Abbey College, so there are abundant opportunities within our system. This is all possible thanks to the talent and commitment of our great teachers, bus drivers, nurses, cafeteria workers, after-school workers and dynamic principals. We all work to reach the result of doing what is best for the students to help them succeed.
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