Zac Schnell, President, Pamlico Community College

In an interview with Invest:, Zac Schnell, president of Pamlico Community College, discussed experiential learning, workforce needs, and the evolution of artificial intelligence. “Some people are fearful of AI, but unless something dramatically changes, it is not going away,” Schnell said.

How has your perspective as a younger community college president influenced your leadership?

I embrace it. Providing a different generational perspective is useful, especially as society, technology, and AI continue changing. I can be a bridge between younger students, including Gen Z, and older students, employees, and community members.

That gives me the opportunity to look at things from both younger and older perspectives. I think that is beneficial, and people may expect some different things from me compared with other leaders.

What led Pamlico Community College to create its AI Creativity Fest?

There is a lot of discussion around AI, and when it first became more publicly known, I started exploring it because I knew it was going to affect things, especially education. The AI Creativity Fest came partly from my own experience playing with these tools. I have always enjoyed tinkering with music, video editing, and pictures, so I experimented with image generation, music, and video and thought other people might enjoy doing the same.

Some people are fearful of AI, but unless something dramatically changes, it is not going away. I wanted people to look at AI differently and use it to enhance their creativity. We turned the fest into a local competition with area schools so students could experience different ways of using the technology. It does not all have to be work-based or productivity-based. If you can imagine a picture, video, song, or even an app, you can now create it without necessarily hiring a whole team or spending thousands of dollars.

We also held workshops for community members covering AI basics. Ultimately, I wanted people, especially students, to begin using AI in some capacity. Moving forward, companies are going to expect people to know how to use these tools, just as employees are generally expected to know programs such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.

What have you learned about student attitudes toward AI?

There is a mixture. Students who have not used AI much may only know what they have seen in the media, and they can be hesitant at first. Once they actually use it, their perspective can change. During the AI Creativity Fest, we had students who initially did not want to participate because they did not think it was important. Once they started experimenting, they built games, programs, and all kinds of things. They realized they could be creators and builders using these tools.

We saw something similar with adults in a basic AI course over the summer. They came in without knowing much about it and with some hesitation, but by the end they were asking what the next class would be. Once people understand more about AI and see applications beyond school, they begin to view it as another tool they can use.

Where are you seeing the strongest demand across the college’s programs?

Anything in the trades is top of mind right now, including electrical, welding, plumbing, and similar areas. Environmental science is another example because there is still fieldwork and laboratory analysis involved.

More broadly, I have heard industry partners focus on what a student can do rather than simply what a student knows. I have always been a big proponent of students gaining actual, hands-on experience whenever possible.

We have a couple of things in the pipeline this year intended to expand the student experience and somewhat change the education model.

How are you working to give students more practical experience?

One of the things we are working toward is what I currently call a community-based education model. The idea is to pair students with local groups, organizations, businesses, local government units, and the college as part of cohorts.

Those cohorts could work together on a community issue, business problem, or another real need. Students would build a portfolio throughout their schooling so that, when they finish, they can show what they have actually built and done.

Part of the reason is that a variety of entry-level jobs are fading away. We have seen entry-level job postings that ask for two or three years of experience, and students wonder how they are supposed to get that experience.

I see an opportunity for the community college to help fill that gap by allowing students to gain actual entry-level experience in different ways while keeping them invested in their local community. I like to say we should put the community back in community college.

How are partnerships with businesses and government supporting that work?

Showing up is a big part of strengthening those relationships. I am willing to partner with anyone willing to help.

On the business side, we work with our local economic developer, chambers of commerce, and other organizations to understand the needs in our area and in the surrounding region. We want to know what skills employers want students to have and what they need students to be able to do.

On the government side, I go to Raleigh regularly and try to stay connected with what leaders are discussing and what they see as priorities for community colleges.

Our local senator recently reached out because he knows I am doing AI-related work at the college and wanted to talk more about it. When government leaders want to have those conversations, I am open and transparent about what is happening, what we need, and what we are trying to accomplish.

How do you view the role of community colleges in North Carolina?

Community colleges in North Carolina have been receiving a lot of good support, especially recently. Part of that comes from the services and skills we provide, often at a lower cost compared with other options.

North Carolina has 58 community colleges across the state, so we touch a lot of communities. That helps us build goodwill locally and statewide.

Historically, community college might not have been the first thought for someone, but I think that is changing. More people are considering whether they should start at a community college first and then go elsewhere.

Some students know exactly what they want to do, whether that is nursing or another career. Others come in unsure and are still exploring. I understand that because that is how I started as well.

What is your broader vision for the future of the college?

I want to take community college education into its next phase by making it more experiential. Students should not just sit in a classroom. They should actually do things. If you are in a business program, for example, part of your curriculum could involve actually running a small business on campus and going through the legal paperwork and processes involved. I want to provide more life experience opportunities.

I see college as a place where people can fail safely. You can come into the classroom, work through something, and fail. That is part of life, and that is OK. We are here to help people try an idea, gain a skill, or learn something new.

I also want us to play with things. One of my goals is to turn the whole campus into something like an educational theme park, where the moment you step onto campus, you are part of the learning cycle. New technologies can help us create that kind of environment while providing more individualized, customized education.

We are working on new courses and types of training to help prepare people for the future, whatever that future may be. Creative thinking, critical thinking, analytical thinking, and continuous learning are important.

Everybody, including me, is going to have to learn new things as time goes on. I want to create an atmosphere where people have the ability to continuously learn throughout their lives and have some fun doing it as well.