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STATESVILLE, NC – July 1, 2025 – Crosby Scholars of Iredell County is welcoming a new Executive Director as the non-profit college access program prepares for the 2025-26 school year. Jennifer Christian takes on the leadership role, effective July 1, following the retirement of longtime Executive Director Suzanne Wegmiller.

“I am excited to continue the work that has been done by the Crosby Scholars team, our Board, and our Volunteers,” shared Christian. “It is an exciting time for Crosby as we celebrate our 10-year anniversary serving students in the Iredell County community.”

Christian has served as Iredell County Crosby Scholars’ High School Program Coordinator since 2021, leading student-centered programming while collaborating with staff in our public schools and public charter schools in our community. Her passion for public education, however, precedes her time with Crosby Scholars.

Christian is a decade-long volunteer with PTO organizations at numerous schools in Iredell County. She has helped generate funding for student initiatives and teacher support. Her service as Chair of the Iredell County Education Facilities Task Force and as a member of Our Schools First has helped secure more than $125 million in capital investments for local schools and community college facilities.

She currently serves as Vice Chair on the Board of Directors for the Boys and Girls Club of the Piedmont and continues her long-standing service as a Girl Scout Troop Leader.

While reflecting on education in Iredell County, Christian says, “I live here, my children go to school here, and I care about how we support our students and all of the teachers and staff that support them, too.”

In prior roles, Jennifer held senior marketing and communications leadership positions with healthcare organizations and PR agencies, where she developed campaigns, led corporate communication strategy, and managed brand portfolios. Her early career in broadcast media gave her an understanding of audience engagement and campaign execution. Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Broadcast Journalism and a Master of Business Administration degree.

A reception for departing Executive Director Suzanne Wegmiller was held last week, honoring her decade of service with the organization. She will remain as a consultant through Aug. 1 to provide a smooth transition.

Wegmiller has been leading Iredell County Crosby Scholars since its founding in 2015, establishing student programs, building relationships in the county’s two school systems and creating partnerships with local and statewide student support groups.

Under her guidance, Iredell County Crosby Scholars has benefited more than 7000 students, awarded more than $250,000 in scholarships, and celebrated more than 1700 program graduates. The program has hosted hundreds of academic and career exploration sessions, reviewed thousands of student essays, and hosted campus visits to dozens of colleges. The community has also benefited. As a part of the program requirements, Iredell Crosby Scholars have completed more than 100,000 hours of local volunteer service.

Wegmiller’s influence will also continue in the future, with the newly created Wegmiller Volunteer Learning Scholarship. It is a $500 renewable scholarship for graduates of the Iredell Crosby Scholars program. Qualifying students must create a 400 to 500-word essay detailing lessons learned through volunteer service. Students must also maintain a 2.0 GPA.

“When I was in college, I was lucky to receive a scholarship through a community program in my hometown”, stated Wegmiller. “I’m thrilled to be able to offer this same kind of help to local Crosby Scholars.  My family and I are proud to continue our support with this scholarship knowing that Jennifer will lead the program to new levels of excellence and success.”

CONTACT:

Mark Brown, Marketing and Engagement Coordinator

mbrown@crosbyscholarsiredell.com

336-247-3285

We are told that A.I. (artificial intelligence) is revolutionizing the workforce. The effects are already being felt in virtually every corner of the job market. 

As A.I. grows in importance, two more letters will also become essential to the workplace skill sets – E.I.

E.I., or emotional intelligence will become even more highly valued in the future, no matter the job you take or the career you pursue.

Here’s why.

A.I. is expected to take an increasingly larger share of the workplace workload. And as these changes take place, employers will seek skills technology can’t replace. That’s according to Bill Daggett, founder of the Successful Practices Network and International Center for Leadership in Education. Daggett spoke at Iredell Ready’s Annual Workforce Forum March 28. 

Employees displaying honesty, trust, teamwork and motivation will be better positioned for success, according to Daggett, who urged school systems to support developing those skills in students.

He says AI will eliminate the most tedious administrative tasks, with workers focusing on decision-making, based on critical thinking and analysis. 

A recent CNBC report on AI and the workforce agrees. The most successful employees of the future will be able to:

• Handle and deliver constructive feedback
• Manage conflict
• Have critical conversations with urgency
• Work cross-functionally by persuading peers and other leaders
• Effectively present ideas to leaders above them

This isn’t to say that technological skills should be ignored. Technology will exist everywhere. But that technology will be driven by people.

And as artificial intelligence continues to expand, emotionally intelligent employees will need to keep the pace. Make sure you make time to develop those skills, even as you train for a more A.I.-integrated workplace.

TWO MONTHS TO GO! How to finish the school year strong!

For a deeper dive on this article from School Habits, click here. 

1. What is your current situation?

Know where you stand. Are your grades in a good place? Are you struggling? It’s not too late to make things better. And we know it might be tough, but talk to your teachers or your counselor. If you’re willing to help yourself, they’ll help you do it.

• If you have one class that’s an issue, you know where to focus. 
• If you’re struggling in more than one class, figure out where you should focus to make the most improvement. 
• Are you missing assignments? Ask if you can get partial credit. 

2. Pick a goal. 

If you don’t have a target, you don’t know where to aim. 

• Do you want to go from a C to a B in science? Find out what you can do, like turning in missing work or going above and beyond on a final project.
• Is your goal to maintain your grades, but do really well on finals? Create a study plan and stick to it. 

3. Prepare for finals and final projects – NOW! 

Do you want to finish on a good note? Start prepping now! 

• Two months may seem like a long time, but it’s not. Taking 20 minutes of study each weekday can pay off in a big way.
• If you have a final project, start now. Figure out obstacles you’ll face, while you still have time to overcome them. You’ll thank yourself later when other students are stressing over that deadline. 

4. Show up. 

We get it. The sun is out. The weather is warm. There are a lot of things you’d rather be doing. But don’t get distracted now. Show up to class, physically and mentally. Remember, this is your last chance to:

• Pull up your grades 
• Earn class participation points 
• Strengthen your connections with teachers

Plus, you DON’T want to miss assignments and deadlines that could tank your grade at the last minute. 

5. Work WITH your teachers. 

Keep a good relationship with your teachers, especially as the year finishes up. Teachers can be really helpful in your future. They can provide letters of recommendation for college applications, job applications, or internship opportunities. And they might even be talking to the teachers you’ll have next year. Having a good relationship with your teacher now might result in getting off to a great start with next year’s teachers in the fall. 🙂

Going to college is intimidating. You have lots of questions. We get it. So, we spoke to recent Virginia Tech graduate Maranda Patterson, who provided some great advice and guidance to our Crosby Scholars. Check it out, from someone who was (recently) in your shoes!

We don’t know about you, but 2024 gave us a lot to celebrate. Student success is our goal, and as this photo retrospective shows, Iredell Crosby Scholars were engaged and taking charge of their future! Thanks to everyone who made 2024 a great year.

…and now, onto 2025!

Here’s great news for students planning to apply for college. The FAFSA form is now open!

See the details below regarding completion of your FAFSA. Keep in mind, it starts with setting up an FSA ID first. Then, you’ll need to wait a few days until the ID syncs with the system before completing the full FAFSA form. See below for a step-by-step guide to the process!

A few things to know:

• Students and parent(s) will need their own FSA IDs. Each contributor to your FAFSA will need a unique FSA ID. Students and parents cannot use the same email address when creating individual accounts. (See FSA ID creation below.)
• This is still technically a Beta version of the FAFSA! As the FAFSA is still in a Beta testing stage, there are unknowns surrounding any future steps a student/parent will need to take after the Dec. 1st official open date. It is also possible that any information out there at this time may change. Once the FAFSA has its official release, a student/parent who completed the Beta version may have nothing more to do or may be advised to take additional steps.
• You need to complete a Residency Determination Status. To receive in-state tuition and state funded financial aid, you will need to complete a NC RDS. If you already have a CFNC login, you will need it to log in. If you don’t have a CNFC login, you can create one for residency determination.
• If residency is an issue, it’s best to wait until Dec. 1. If you are a student who has had issues with their RDS or if you have a parent without a social security number, it may be best for you to wait until the full release on Dec. 1st before completing your FAFSA.

Creating Your Federal Student Aid (FSA) ID

Your Federal Student Aid ID, or FSA ID, is an account created at www.studentaid.gov, and is required to complete your FAFSA form. It takes one to three days after an FSA ID is created for the account to become verified. Filling out your FAFSA before your FSA ID is verified will result in additional questions and possibly errors. With that in mind, visit www.studentaid.gov to create your account. This video will walk you through the process, step-by-step:

Apply for Scholarships!

Now that you’ve completed your FSA ID, waited a few days, and filled out your FAFSA application, it’s time to apply for scholarships! You’ll need to do this through Submittable. This video will show you, step-by-step, how to proceed:

Now that the 2024-2025 school year is well underway, we’ve taken a moment to look back at everything our students accomplished over the summer break. For students on vacation, they were awfully busy!

Check out our summer review on issuu here!

Our summertime review includes a review of these programs and great photos of our students:

Try It Tuesdays

• Computer Science/Graphic Design
• Social Work
• Healthcare Careers
• Law and Criminal Justice
• Business Careers with CINTAS
• Education Careers
• Entrepreneurial Skills

Workshop Wednesdays

• Essay Writing
  • Brainstorming Topics
  • Final Draft Review
• SAT Test Prep
• Common App Navigation

College Campus Tours

• UNC Asheville
• Western Carolina
• Lenoir Rhyne
• NC School of Math & Science/Morganton Campus

Leadership Training

• Middle School Ambassadors
• High School Officers
• Crosby Launch for 6th and 9th Graders

Enjoy!

Each student in Iredell County is on their own unique journey.

In the first video in our series, “Student Journeys,” you’ll hear Johnny McLean’s personal story and how Iredell Crosby Scholars contributed to their achievement of being awarded a full-ride QuestBridge Scholarship to attend Duke University this coming fall.