Craven Community College’s (Craven CC) testing center was recently approved to administer the North Carolina General Contractor Exam that allows general contractors to become licensed. This exam joins an extensive list of offerings available at the college’s New Bern campus testing center, which is open to the public.
The testing center started off as a department to facilitate student and faculty exams, makeup tests and placement testing. However, Data & Assessment Coordinator Brandy Caton realized that it had the potential to be an invaluable community resource. Her idea was met with encouragement by college administrators, and she set off on her mission of becoming an approved testing center. The first company to approve the college was Pearson VUE, the global leader in computer-based testing, in July 2019.
“Even though we’re a Pearson VUE testing center, you have to go through steps to be approved to give particular exams,” said Caton. “Becoming an authorized testing center is extremely hard, but it allows our students and the public to test locally and not have to drive out of town to take their test.”
Not long after, they were approved by PSI, which utilizes the browser-based test delivery platform ATLAS. Caton explained that testing companies such as Pearson and PSI usually start by approving testing centers for basic exams. As the center does more testing, they are considered for additional exams. Such was the case with Craven CC’s New Bern testing center, which administered a total of 3,049 tests to 1,661 different people in 2019. This year, even with the center being shut down for four months during the pandemic, they’ve already given 1,468 tests to 952 people.
Earlier this month, PSI approved the college to administer the North Carolina General Contractor Exam. Caton and her testing center crew were thrilled with the news and look forward to assisting more people with certifications.
“We are so excited about that,” she said. “They approved us and then they sent us this huge shipment of the materials. So we’ve got all the blueprints here, and we were all looking at the them and getting so excited.”
Caton has worked at Craven CC for about eight years and has been working in the testing center since March 2017. Her initiative has propelled the testing center into a regional testing hub, still used often by students and staff for makeup tests, placement testing and proctored exams, but now also frequented by members of the public looking to start new careers or advance in their current ones through certifications and state licensures.
Since it is the only testing center open in the area, it has been a hotspot for test takers from all across the region. Caton said they have even administered exams for members of the Secret Service. The testing center offers free Performance Assessment Network (PAN) pre-employment tests for various government agencies such as Transportation Security Administration, United States Postal Service, FBI, Customs and Border Protection and I-9 processing. Through Pearson VUE, they administer many industry recognized certification exams for professional careers ranging from introductory to expert levels, including NC Insurance, Physician’s Assistant, Pharmacy Technician, Psychological Services Bureau and ServSafe.
They also offer PSI testing, which includes proctored, computer-based testing for government and state licensing agencies, as well as certification and professional associations. Some include Certified Personal Trainer, Diabetes Educator, Clinical Hemodialysis Technician and Family Nurse Practitioner. Additionally, they administer Scantron testing services to certification and licensure organizations, corporations, educational institutions, government agencies and professional associations.
Many of the exams go hand in hand with Craven CC programs, including Automotive, Health, Basic Law Enforcement Training and various trades programs offered at the Volt Center. Others include the TEAS test that students must pass to be accepted into the nursing program, and a recently acquired exam for the American Health Information Management Association, which is taken by students in Craven CC’s Health Information Technology program.
“A year ago, the gentleman who’s over the EMT program here reached out to me and said ‘hey, we would like to get that exam here,’” added Caton. “It took me a year to get it approved, but we’re approved now and give the EMT exam.”
Caton is enthusiastic about her role and has repeatedly offered to reach out to the testing companies if any Craven CC deans have other exams they’d like to be offered at the college. She and other testing center employees are also highly invested in the success of the test takers. Caton noted that some of the exams can last for hours and are attempted several times, so she and her crew always feel relieved and happy for those people when they pass.
“We have students who come here and they’re here for five or six solid hours,” she said. “When they pass, we get so excited. We have some who have come seven times and haven’t passed, but when they finally pass, we are so excited.”
Students and visitors pick up on the enthusiasm and welcoming atmosphere, and many were more than happy to recount the positive experiences they have had at the New Bern testing center. Among them is student Emmie New, member of the Hurst Student Ambassadors.
“The employees were both helpful and kind,” she said. “I have been in the testing center to make up tests and complete placement testing, and each time I have had a great experience.”
Another test taker, Ronnie Godley, is in the process of becoming a Workforce Development student and has utilized the testing center as a resource to get him started.
“I have taken several insurance license exams with college staff,” he said. “They are amazing people. They made me feel like family and that really helped with my test anxiety. The facility and accommodations were awesome. I will refer everyone I come in contact with that needs a test to schedule it at Craven Community College.”
The New Bern campus testing center is located on the second floor of Barker Hall, just outside the entrance to the Godwin Memorial Library. Both the testing center and library were renovated and reopened in February 2018. The testing center was enlarged and now has three small rooms and two larger ones, allowing multiple tests to be administered simultaneously in group and individual settings. It also offers adjustable lighting to accommodate a wide range of test-taker preferences, as well as wide aisles and ample space for universal access.
The college also offers testing locations on the Havelock campus, as well as the Cherry Point campus for military-affiliated students. The New Bern testing center is currently open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridays from 8 a.m. until 2:30. Test takers will need to bring a valid ID. Certain tests require other forms of identification, which can be found at https://cravencc.edu/testing-center.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, visit their website or contact 252-638-3508 or ctc@cravencc.edu.
This article was originally published in the New Bern Sun Journal on October 21, 2020.