Alumni Success
Local Professional Land Surveyor and A-B Tech Alum Lissa Turner is Reshaping the Local Landscape
September 24, 2025 A year after Hurricane Helene flooded local waterways, Lissa Turner, an alumnus of the A-B Tech Geomatics Technology program, has been busy behind the scenes helping engineers repair rivers and streams damaged in the storm.
The Conscious Catch: How A-B Tech Culinary School Helped Hook Chef Mike McCarty on Sustainable Seafood
September 2, 2025 When Mike McCarty landed his first restaurant job, he had no idea he would someday own the only restaurant in North Carolina certified by the national “Smart Catch” program for sustainable seafood practices.
Former Welding Student Uses Skills to Renovate Old Marshall Jail Hotel
July 30, 2025 Josh Copus, owner of the Old Marshall Jail Hotel, conducts a tour of the historic jail built in 1910 that he co-purchased in 2016 and renovated into a stunning boutique hotel and restaurant.
BLET Award Winner Ed Solomon Aims to Help Troubled Youth
June 19, 2025 When he was a teenager growing up in Los Angeles, Ed Solomon, 52, saw his fair share of gang violence happening around him. His high school, though, was blessed to have its own “rescue remedy”.
Trailblazer Success: Dedrick McFadden, Brewing, Distillation & Fermentation Class of 2022
June 12, 2025 Dedrick McFadden is a 2022 graduate of the Craft Beverage Institute of the Southeast at A-B Tech. McFadden enrolled in the Brewing, Distillation & Fermentation AAS program after serving in the US Army and used the G.I. Bill to fund his education.
Aviation Alum Andrew Leih Turned Childhood Dream into Successful Career
June 4, 2025 One of A-B Tech alum Andrew Leih’s earliest memories helped to ignite the 23-year-old’s passion for flying. When he was in fourth grade and living in Dallas, Texas, his dad, an airline pilot, surprised him at school one day by picking him up and taking him along on a flight to St. Louis.
Edible Asheville Features A-B Tech Culinary Alum Josh Waters
February 11, 2025 When James Beard Award–nominated chef Ashleigh Shanti invites you to help cater an event for world-renowned musician Yo-Yo Ma, you don’t just say “yes.” If you’re an up-and-coming star chef, Josh Waters, you say “Absolutely, yes!”
Culinary Alum Roman Nourse Presented with A-B Tech’s ‘You Make a Difference’ Award
May 1, 2025 In the weeks following Helene, A-B Tech alum Roman Nourse took the words “food runner” to a new level. The energetic sous chef, who works at Givens Estate, put his culinary and project management skills to use by acting as a volunteer chef, project manager, and delivery driver for organizations providing food to those in need.
Steppin' High in Grandma’s Boots: Construction Alum Ashley Kepley-Steward Wins Pro Builder Award
March 5, 2025 As far back as she can remember, A-B Tech graduate Ashley Kepley-Steward, 36, recalls watching her grandmother climbing up and down ladders to remodel her Concord home.
Blue Jean Queen: Industrial Sewing Alum Sophia White on Faith, Fashion and Finding her Bliss
December 16, 2024 Industrial Sewing graduate Sophia White never would’ve guessed she’d be a textile artist. The 38-year-old California native was more of a pen and ink gal.