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Media reports praise Upward Bound staff

2018-05-02
Photo of three ladies standing outdoors on SCC's Jackson Campus
SCC's Upward Bound director Annette Kesgen (left) stands beside Academic Advisors Cheryl Renfro (center) and Erica Muse.

Media outlets across Western North Carolina have been reporting this week on the actions of SCC's Upward Bound staff members who helped keep 12 area high school students safe Saturday when their bus caught fire on the way home from a service project in Asheville.

Erica Muse, SCC's Upward Bound Academic Advisor, was driving the bus through Haywood County when one of the rear tires blew out. Cheryl Renfro, also an Academic Advisor, noticed smoke, and the team immediately instructed all students to exit the bus.

After all students and staff members were a safe distance away, the fire spread and engulfed the bus in flames.

“Along with everyone at all our partner schools throughout Jackson, Macon, Swain Counties and the Qualla Boundary, our SCC family is thankful that no one was harmed during this frightening incident on Saturday in Haywood County,” said Dr. Don Tomas, SCC president. “We are extremely proud of our Upward Bound staff members whose quick thinking kept everyone safe. Saturday’s actions were proof that Erica Muse, Annette Kesgen and Cheryl Renfro always make safety their highest priority when it comes to watching out for the young people in their care.”

WLOS-TV reporter Kim King visited Southwestern’s Jackson Campus on Monday and filed this story.

Also, Carter Giegerich of The Franklin Press filed this story in Wednesday’s edition.

And here's a story by Brittney Lofthouse in this week's edition of the Macon County News.

To learn more about the Upward Bound Program, click here.

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