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Lacombe, LA — Northshore Technical Community College (NTCC) proudly participated in the Louisiana Board of Regents’ 2025 Untapped Talent Summit, which this year included an immersive site visit to Rayburn Correctional Center (RCC). The visit highlighted NTCC’s enduring commitment to expanding educational opportunity within Louisiana’s correctional system—an effort that began at RCC in 1983 with the Sullivan Campus and has continued uninterrupted for more than four decades.
During the site visit, summit attendees heard directly from RCC students enrolled in NTCC’s Automotive, Welding, Building Technology, and General Education programs. Students shared powerful stories of how education has helped them build confidence, gain workforce-ready skills, and find renewed purpose as they plan for their futures.
“The Board of Regents’ Untapped Talent Summit underscores the impact of meaningful partnerships. For more than four decades, NTCC and Rayburn Correctional Center have worked together to provide education that restores dignity, builds skills, and prepares students for brighter futures. The student’s voices made that impact unmistakably clear,” said Dr. Jim Carlson, Chancellor of NTCC.
NTCC’s programs at RCC reflect a long-standing belief that talent exists everywhere—and that education is one of the most effective tools for rehabilitation, family stability, and community renewal. By combining industry-aligned training with strong academic foundations, NTCC prepares incarcerated students for successful reentry and participation in Louisiana’s evolving workforce.
“The Untapped Talent Summit 2.0 was designed to do more than just spark dialogue; it was built as a Solution Starter to activate systems change. By creating opportunities for immersive site visits to facilities like the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women (LCIW) and Rayburn Correctional Center, we invited thought leaders to witness firsthand the resilience, talent, and untapped potential behind the wall. These moments challenge assumptions and ignite new commitments,” said Dr. Lisa S. Vosper, Senior Associate Commissioner for Workforce, BOR and Host of the Untapped Talent Summit. “Moving forward, we must continue to build bold, cross-sector partnerships that ensure returning citizens are not only restored, but ready -- skilled, credentialed, and positioned -- to thrive in Louisiana’s workforce."
The summit also highlighted the vital collaboration among NTCC, the Louisiana Board of Regents, Rayburn Correctional Center leadership, and the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections. Collectively, these partners are expanding access to high-value training and credential opportunities for incarcerated learners statewide.
"The site visit to Rayburn Correctional Center was a profound reminder that potential doesn’t disappear behind prison walls, but through education that potential is nourished and grows. I saw that first-hand in the NTCC students being transformed by learning. I am proud of that institution's longstanding commitment to not just equip individuals with skills, but to provide the tools that allow students to unlock futures, rebuild families, and strengthen Louisiana. As Craig, one of the students I met during the Rayburn visit, reminded me, his 'story is only really relevant as a part of all of our stories,’” said Dr. Kim Hunter Reed, Commissioner of Higher Education, Louisiana Board of Regents.
NTCC remains dedicated to strengthening correctional education pathways and advancing its mission to deliver opportunity, equity, and workforce mobility to every learner.
