Dear Reader,

"This is concerning because it uncovers the fact that taxpayer dollars, allocated for educational purposes- are now adding to funding of buildings that bolster the representation of law enforcement on campus, and these campus facilities operate under a carceral umbrella..."

The recent announcement of the construction of a new cop training facility as a project of Central Piedmont Community College has created a lot of buzz from the campus and the surrounding community. A lot of issues on the use of tax dollars on the project have arisen, with students demanding to know if their development was prioritized using the same funds. There are a lot of people who oppose this move in the campus who feel that it is a misappropriation of $118 million in county education funds that could otherwise be used to develop programs that address immediate concerns of students in terms of education, finances, and support services before taking care of facilities dedicated to training individuals who want to become law enforcers- a job known to rife with abuse, brutality, and oppression.

The leadership of the Central Piedmont Community College is choosing to invest in a new cop training facility rather than student programmers, student resources, or general infrastructure facilities for creativity. While there have been complaints about classroom technology allocations, the bulge in financial aid resources, and lack of available mental health resources, this new mock prison construction site demonstrates newly shifted priorities away from student success, where bold

allegations suggest that taxpayer dollars are being allocated in the promotion of a cop training ground instead of an educational campus. This is concerning because it uncovers the fact that taxpayer dollars, allocated for educational purposes- are now adding to funding of buildings that bolster the representation of law enforcement on campus, and these campus facilities operate under a carceral umbrella (Obona et al., 2020). CPCC is now guilty of contributing to the trend of the professionalization and empowerment of campus police outside of limiting campus access to needed learning resources (Watkins, 2020). With this access on campus to law-enforcement facilities, taxpayers may wonder what else their money is adding to this pancake campus of buildings. By diverting funding away from needs to greed, the school risks creating distrust in taxpayers, students, employees, and affiliates who play a part in the success of a school's educational mission.

In addition, the recent choice to invest heavily in the new cop training building indicates an unfortunate lack of funds for key student support. Specifically, the disproportionate attention to police training highlights a neglect for crucial issues that students face on a daily basis, including the lack of technology in the classroom, limited access to counseling services, and aging campus facilities. As learning environments shift their focus to the training of future law enforcers, opportunities for classroom activities become stagnant due to a lack of resources and funding for modern teaching equipment, thus compromising the integrity of the scholar's learning experience. Furthermore, the lack of adequate psychological and emotional support for a large segment of the student population indicates a care-free attitude from the college regarding the importance of these factors in student life (Lo, 2025). The construction of the new cop training building, and the neglect surrounding potentially educational opportunities, relegates students to have little say about such matters, creating a gap between students and the college administration and encouraging a sense of distrust (Lo, 2025). Not only does the administration ignore the hardships students face in everyday campus life, but they demonstrate a lack of both collaboration and transparency regarding their decision-making policies (Lo, 2025).

In light of this, ultimately, Central Piedmont Community College's plan to move ahead with a police training facility demonstrates misplaced priorities that counteract the actual purpose of the institution to serve students. Rather than using taxpayer money to improve academic courses, campus facilities, and support for students, the College invested taxpayer money in a facility that does not connect with the needs of students. Sure, everything looks well-kept on the surface, but campus library hours don't reflect the needs of the working-class student body, many students lack housing and food stability, and mental health check ins are reduced to "pop-ups" on the lawn. Students walk on a campus filled with evidence of neglect of facilities, like elevators out of service, and resources necessary for student success, and taxpayer money is used to expand police training. Student advocacy on the campus through initiatives like petitions, public demonstrations, and the formation of coalitions to the community from which the College draws continues to be important to demand transparency in decision-making and changes in institutional priority. Ongoing action and engagement with the community are essential to hold the administration accountable to the student body for its decision-making and resource allocation and return the focus of the College to the students it serves. Want to make a difference? Show up at the next Board of Trustees meeting for CPCC, or make your voice heard and follow @studentsagainstcopcity Charlotte on IG for more action items.

References

  • Lo, W. Y. W. (2025). Trust and tension: shared governance in higher education amid student activism. Studies in Higher Education, 50(12), 3016–3031. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2024.2449243
  • Obona, E. E., Edim, A. E., & Edim, G. N. (2020). Funding, misappropriation, and mismanagement as predictors of tertiary education management in Nigeria. International Journal of Educational Administration, Planning and Research (IJEAPR), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5234989
  • Watkins, G. (2020). “Cops Are Cops": American Campus Police and the Global Carceral Apparatus. Comparative American Studies an International Journal, 17(3–4), 242–256. https://doi.org/10.1080/14775700.2021.1895039