Written by Matt Smith, Vice President, Development + Strategic Partnerships, Wake Tech
When people think about Western Wake County, they tend to think local.
We think about our favorite restaurants, Friday night ballgames, Tuesday night swim meets, PeakFest or LazyDaze, greenways, and the familiar faces we run into at the grocery store. That’s one of the things I love most about living here. Even as our communities continue to grow, there is still a strong sense of connection and belonging.
What many people don’t realize, however, is that some of the work happening right here in our backyard is gaining attention on a much larger stage.
I was reminded of that recently while looking at several accomplishments involving Wake Tech students. Individually, each achievement was impressive. Taken together, they told a much bigger story about the talent being developed across our region.
One example came from cybersecurity, an industry that continues to grow rapidly throughout the Triangle. This is a very resilient and in-demand degree in our region. Wake Tech’s Cyber Team was recently ranked No. 55 in the nation in the Cyber Power Rankings, which measure student performance against more than 500 colleges and universities across the country. Students were challenged to solve real-world cybersecurity problems, including identifying hackers, responding to ransomware attacks, and testing vulnerable systems.
Not bad for a group of students studying right here in Wake County!
And cybersecurity isn’t the only area where Wake Tech students are making an impact.
This year, Wake Tech students also earned a place in the Community College Innovation Challenge, a prestigious national competition that highlights student creativity, problem-solving, and entrepreneurship. Other students showcased their skills through SkillsUSA, competing against some of the best technical and workforce talent in the country.
And then there was baseball.
If you followed the Wake Tech Eagles this spring, you know our team advanced all the way to the NJCAA World Series!! That’s an accomplishment that puts Wake Tech in conversations well beyond North Carolina.
At first glance, cybersecurity, innovation competitions, technical skills contests, and baseball may not seem to have much in common.
But they all reflect what happens when talent meets opportunity.
One of the best parts of my job is getting to meet students at different points in their journey. Some arrive with a clear plan. Others are still figuring out what comes next. What consistently impresses me is how often they exceed their own expectations once they are given the chance to grow, compete, and challenge themselves.
That isn’t just a Wake Tech story. It’s a Western Wake story.
Our region continues to attract employers, entrepreneurs, educators, and families who believe in investing in potential. The result is a community where people have the opportunity to learn, innovate, and compete at the highest levels without leaving home to do it.
We should absolutely be proud of new businesses, new developments, and the continued growth happening around us. But we should also recognize the people behind those headlines. The students developing skills that employers need. The innovators creating solutions to real-world problems. The athletes representing our community on a national stage. They are, as we like to say, “laddering up” to meet demand and better their own opportunities.
Those achievements may not always make the front page, but they say something important about who we are becoming.
Western Wake is growing. It’s also producing innovators, competitors, and leaders who are making an impact well beyond our backyard. And that may be the most unexpected story of all.
