ENGELHARD — The Continuing Education Department at BCCC, along with the Hyde County Board of Commissioners, Greater Hyde County Chamber of Commerce, Northeastern Workforce Development Board and BHM Regional Library, will host a ribbon cutting and open house for the Hyde County-Davis Center at 3 p.m. on Sept. 15. The center is located at 33478 U.S. Highway 264, Engelhard. Residents are invited to tour the facility after the ribbon cutting.

The Davis Center will offer seated classes that until now have only been available to students at the main campus in Washington or the Washington County Center in Roper. The new classes will include defensive driving, gardening, keyboarding and small business workshops. The 10,350-square-foot building is a business incubator run by the Hyde County Community Development Corporation.

Hyde County, along with Tyrrell, Washington and Beaufort counties, is served by BCCC. At 2,008 square miles, BCCC has the largest service area of any community college in North Carolina. BCCC already provides online and hybrid classes to Hyde County residents and broadcasts classes to Mattamuskeet School and Ocracoke School. The college also provides vocational training and high school equivalency classes at Hyde Correctional Institute.

“I am very excited about Beaufort County Community College having a presence at the Davis Center in Engelhard. Hyde County’s community college enrollment is among the lowest in the state,” said Earl Pugh Jr., chair of the Hyde County commissioners. “This new location gives local residents the opportunity to further their education here at home without a commute of 70 miles one way on a daily basis. Increasing the number of Hyde County residents receiving college degrees will have a positive impact on household incomes and quality of life. We here in Hyde County look forward to working with BCCC in the future to expand the educational opportunities here at the Davis Center and throughout the county.”

“Beaufort County Community College and the BHM Library are long-standing partners of Hyde County residents in their efforts to grow their minds, careers and communities,” said Kris Noble, planner and economic development director for Hyde County. “The increased presence of BCCC and BHM in Hyde County will give our residents increased opportunities to grow and will, in turn, grow our small businesses and local economies.”

The college has focused on expanding its services outside of its main campus near Washington, including opening the Washington County Center in Roper. The opening of the Davis Center builds on BCCC’s commitment to provide high-quality, postsecondary educational opportunities to residents across its service area.