New Community Career & Technical Institute Welcomes New Director

Newark NJ

16 February, 2022

11:13 AM

Description

Service has been a driving force in Dr. Sylvia McCray's career. She served in the Air Force for five and a half years as a medical technician and has worked in the higher education space, helping students reach their goals. She became the director of New Community Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) on Jan. 19, a position she pursued because of the organization's mission. "Looking at the mission of the organization, NCC, and the overall mission of NCCTI, I felt that I wanted to somehow be involved," McCray said. "When the director position was available, I thought about it in relation to where I am in my career and I felt that I had the experience of working in that type of programming and also balancing the fine line of laying out procedures and processes to get better operational results." Prior to joining NCCTI, McCray was the campus director and dean of academic affairs and students for a college in Philadelphia. "I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Sylvia McCray to New Community," said New Community Chief Operating Officer Fred Hunter. "Dr. McCray is a proven leader and a visionary with a strong commitment to academic excellence, advancement of diversity and student-focused. I think the combination of Dr. McCray's impressive academic credentials, military service and higher education work experience have prepared her well to serve as our new director of NCCTI." McCray's favorite part of working in higher education is helping individuals reach their potential. "Really being able to see the empowerment of individuals developing, whether it's students or staff," she said. McCray says her role in higher education, regardless of the official job title, is focused on the students and their advancement. "My job is to make sure that every department and process that touches or impacts a student is in the best interest of the student and leads to student success and career development," she said. McCray's goal is to work to ensure NCCTI is a well-known school in Newark and the surrounding area to help propel it forward. "I really want NCCTI to be positioned to move to the next level successfully and be able to see all of its hard work continue to pay off and build upon the brand and the reputation of the school as well as NCC itself," she said. "I really look forward to continuing to learn about NCC and look forward to working with our community partners and strengthening those relationships." McCray lives in the Burlington Township area. Before the pandemic hit, she enjoyed traveling and has visited different countries around the world. She loves anything related to the beach and enjoys doing yoga and hiking. NCCTI is an accredited post-secondary career and technical institution that offers the following programs: Automotive Technician, Diesel Technician, Building Trades Specialist, Clinical Medical Assistant, Patient Care Technician, Community Healthcare Worker, Culinary Arts Specialist and Business & Computer Technologies. NCCTI also operates a comprehensive Financial Opportunity Center and Bridges to Career Opportunities Program sponsored by the local and national Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) offices. For more information, call 973-824-6484, log onto newcommunitytech.edu or visit 274 South Orange Ave., Newark.