Fayetteville Technical Community College is pleased to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the highly successful Funeral Services Education Program.

Since 1974, FTCC has trained students for rewarding careers in the funeral services industry. A great deal has changed in the half-century since those first students entered the program, but the core values of the program remain unchanged. The faculty, staff and students involved with this program are dedicated to helping people through some of the most difficult times most of us will ever experience.

Today, FTCC has the only funeral service program in North Carolina, but students from Richmond, Randolph, Vance Granville and Robeson community colleges now have the ability to earn academic credits from FTCC’s Funeral Service program, thanks to a unique partnership. Students travel from all over the state and the nation to study and learn industry-specific skills under the watchful eye of FTCC’s award-winning faculty—all licensed funeral service professionals. Students enjoy a well-rounded education in history, law, psychology, sociology, ethics, science, and funeral home operations.

Students may pursue the six-semester associate degree in Funeral Service Education, which includes courses in both funeral home operations and embalming sciences, or the three-semester N.C. Funeral Director Diploma Program, which focuses exclusively on funeral directing operations and management.

The majority of the program’s coursework can now be completed online, although some face-to-face coursework is required in embalming, restorative arts, and funeral service tasks. Students who already work in a funeral home may be allowed to complete a work-based learning option in lieu of attending the on-campus embalming lab.

Graduates of the curriculum, upon passing the national exams and completing an internship in a funeral home, will be qualified for employment as embalmers and/or funeral directors. The current median salary for funeral directors in North Carolina is $65,000 per year.

The United States Department of Labor reports strong growth in the Funeral Services industry and good job prospects for new graduates of accredited Funeral Service Education Programs, like the one at FTCC.
When student Nicole Henderson entered the Funeral Services Program at FTCC, she was concerned that she would be unable to balance her duties as a wife, a mother of three children, and a full-time employee. Nicole recently explained that her fears melted away almost instantly when she was greeted with “pure confidence” from her instructors at FTCC.

Nicole says, “I didn’t just earn a degree; I earned a whole new life.” She now enjoys a highly rewarding career as a funeral director at Reeves Funeral Home in Hope Mills. Nicole beams with pride when she calls her former instructors and “they treat me like a colleague.”

Are you ready to reimagine your future? If so, your next chapter starts at FTCC! Please contact us today. FTCC’s Funeral Services Education faculty are eager to help you take the next step on your path to success. The department chair is James Bullard, and he can be reached at bullardja@faytechcc.edu. His office is located at Cumberland Hall, Room 311-B, 2215 Hull Rd. or you can call 910-678-8301.

The full-time faculty includes David Brooks, Trey Herring and Rachel Dinehart, and the adjunct faculty includes David Hall, James Peterson, Patricia Burns, Tawanna Johnson and Ferell Mowell.