George Little, chairman of the board of Sandhills Community College, re-ceived an honorary doctor of law degree at the spring graduation ceremony.

Little's career and accomplishments have been recognized locally and nationally. He has received the North Carolina Community College System's I.E. Reidy Award, the Sandhills Kiwanis Club's Builders Cup, the Boy Scouts of America Distinguished Citizen's Award, and dozens of other local, state and national awards.

Little has earned a reputation as a champion of community colleges and, in particular, a devoted friend of the faculty, staff and students of Sandhills Community College.

The Moore County Board of Commissioners appointed Little a trustee at Sandhills Community College in 1981. In 1985, he was elected as chairman and has served the college in that capacity for 25 years. Under his leadership, the college has more than doubled in size and has come to be known as one of the finest community colleges in not only North Carolina, but the nation.

In 1994, Little was elected president of the North Carolina Association of Community College Trustees and currently serves as chairman of that organization's Legislative Affairs Committee. In 1997, he was elected to a seat on the board of the American Association of Community College Trustees, and in 2001 he served as chairman of that national organization.

"For his service to Sandhills Community College and for his 25 years as board chairman, for his leadership in promoting community colleges in North Carolina and throughout the country, and for his tireless efforts to make education - and the path to a better future - available to all of the people of the community, Sandhills Community College conferred upon Little the honorary degree of doctor of laws, with all its rights and privileges," a college news release said.

Little was born in Pinehurst and educated in the public schools of Southern Pines and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is president of George W. Little and Associates, an insurance brokerage firm in Southern Pines.