CPCC to host German delegation

Central Piedmont Community College will welcome a high-ranking delegation next week from Karlsruhe, Germany, the college announced Thursday.

The delegation will include a German government minister, the German consul general to the United States, representatives of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg and the CEO of the Karlsruhe Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

The college will host the delegation Monday through Thursday as part of the “German-American Transatlantic Bridge Project,” which supports business and economic development initiatives between the Charlotte region, Karlsruhe and the German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg.

Of the more than 200 German-owned companies with operations in the Charlotte region, 60 are based in Baden-Wuerttemberg, according to CPCC.

The bridge project grew out of a multi-year collaboration between CPCC and the Karlsruhe Chamber.

In April 2012, the college signed a cooperative agreement with the Karlsruhe Chamber to give CPCC students the chance to earn dually endorsed CPCC and chamber credentials.

In August 2012, CPCC students began taking classes in two certificate programs – programmable logic controller technology and computer numerical control machining technology.

“The college believes these German certifications are making CPCC students and the Charlotte region more attractive to German and other European companies,” the college said in a statement.

The Charlotte relationship with the Karlsruhe Chamber has expanded to include Duke Energy, other regional companies and UNC Charlotte, which established a student exchange program with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology.

On Monday, CPCC will welcome the delegation at a reception and dinner at the Morehead Inn, hosted by CPCC President Tony Zeiss.

Delegation members will attend a meeting of the Charlotte region’s Global Vision Leaders Group and next Thursday’s Energy Inc. Summit in Charlotte. They will meet with officials from Duke Energy and other regional energy sector leaders and representatives of UNC Charlotte, and attend a “German Business Roundtable” hosted by CPCC.

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 11:12 AM with the headline "CPCC to host German delegation."