SANFORD - Central Carolina Community College once again has been designated as a 2015 Military Friendly (R) School.

Now in its sixth year, the Military Friendly (R) Schools designation and list by Victory Media is the premier, trusted resource for post-military success. Military Friendly (R) provides service members transparent, data-driven ratings about post-military education and career opportunities.

The Military Friendly (R) Schools designation is awarded to the top 15 percent of colleges, universities and trade schools in the country that are doing the most to embrace military students, and to dedicate resources to ensure their success in the classroom and after graduation.

"We are proud to be known as a Military Friendly (R) School and provide many resources to veterans that other places do not have," said CCCC President Bud Marchant.

Tracey Gross, CCCC's Veterans Affairs coordinator, is a retired First Sergeant who served 26 years in the U.S. Army.

"I personally feel that the 2015 Military Friendly (R) Schools award recognition highlights what Central Carolina Community College is all about," Gross said. "We are certainly one of the top ranked community colleges in this state and we are a host to the Fort Bragg community, as well as the surrounding communities, which have many veterans who attend CCCC.

"The Military Friendly (R) designation means that we care about our service members, their dependents and veteran students -- and this shows in their numbers here and in the many programs' success rate which they attend," Gross said.

"We have created an environment that allows any student to succeed and this also translates in to a smooth college transition when service members depart the service -- and, also, the camaraderie that exists here between other service members and dependents is unparalleled," he said. "Those potential student veterans, service members, and dependents who are looking for a community college want a military friendly environment where the faculty and staff are aware and understand the military lifestyle and this it what we provide."

Veterans, military and dependents comprise about 7 percent of the college's students.

For information about veterans' services at CCCC, call Tracey Gross, Veterans Affairs Coordinator, at 919-718-7233 or email at tgross@cccc.edu.