Community Link Newsletter

Did you know that you can make an investment in BRCC online?  If you value what BRCC provides to our community, and want to help make a difference for students today, it’s as simple as going to the BRCC Educational Foundation’s homepage at www.brcc.edu/edfound, and clicking on the “Donate Now” button!

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BRCC is once again partnering with the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank to raise awareness and support for the Food Bank by hosting the 2011 Virginia Hunger Symposium on October 24-27, 2011.  The Virginia Hunger Symposium is a partnership between the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank Network and Blue Ridge Community College.  The hunger education event was founded in 2007 by current BRCC President, Dr. John Downey, and is geared toward engaging students in ways to fight hunger right in their own backyards. In 2008, the partnership expanded to include community colleges and food banks across Virginia. The event has been a success not only for the food bank, but for BRCC students as well.  Many of the BRCC’s faculty members incorporate hunger education into their coursework—this provides their students with a clear message of how they can play a role in ending hunger in their communities.

Many events ranging from lectures and presentations to benefit dinners and concerts are planned on campus and throughout our community.  Visit the event website (http://community.brcc.edu/vhs/) to view a current schedule of events, and make plans to help our neighbors in need!

Event Highlights

October 27, 2011, 6:00 to 7:15 p.m.
Empty Bowl Dinner
Robert E. Plecker Workforce Center
$15 minimum donation*

October 27, 2011, 7:30 p.m.
Benefit Concert: Robin & Linda Williams and Their Fine Group
Fine Arts Center
$20 minimum donation*

*All proceeds support the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank

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Looking for a way to get the most out of funds in your IRA?

For the rest of 2011, persons over age 70 may make tax-free withdrawals up to $100,000 from their IRAs for contribution to Blue Ridge Community College Educational Foundation.  This gift will avoid income tax usually levied on withdrawals from your IRA, while allowing you to benefit our local community in your own way.

To qualify, the withdrawal must be

•    Made payable direct to the BRCC Educational Foundation, Inc., rather than to you.
•    Made by December 31, 2011.
•    Be no more than $100,000.00.

This withdrawal also counts toward your mandatory distribution for 2011, freeing you from taxes on that withdrawal, as well.   Persons who do not need their mandatory distribution for living expenses have found much satisfaction in giving this withdrawal to BRCC instead.

Help bring education and opportunity to your fellow citizens, while reducing your taxes.   A stronger BRCC means a better community for everyone.  To create a legacy for your community using your IRA, including a ready-made letter that will arrange the transfer, please contact Amy Kiger, Executive Director of the BRCC Educational Foundation, at kigera@brcc.edu, or (540) 453-2211.

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John S. Barret Jr.

John Barret is the VP of Finance & Systems, CFO and Corporate Secretary at the Rockingham Group.  Prior to joining Rockingham Group he worked in banking and was the CFO of Bank of America’s retail credit card business.  He holds a BBA from JMU and a MS-Finance from VCU.  He has served on the boards of the United Way, Rotary and the Harrisonburg Education Foundation.  He serves on the board of the National Conference of Insurance Guaranty Funds where he chairs the Corporate Governance Committee.  Additionally, he is a member of the National Association of Mutual Insurance Company’s Accounting and Investment Policy Committee.  He lives in Rockingham County with his wife.  His son is a recent VT graduate and his daughter is a BRCC graduate and senior at VCU.

Alphonso P. Boxley III

Al Boxley owns and operates eight McDonald’s restaurants in the central Shenandoah Valley.  In 1977, he left American Safety Razor to pursue a dream of being in his own business by becoming a  McDonald’s owner operator in Luray. From there he spent 18 years in the Western Maryland area owning and operating 12 restaurants and in 1997, he returned to the valley and lives on the family farm. Al holds a BS in Business Administration from Virginia Tech, and a MBA from JMU.  He is a member of the Harrisonburg, Woodstock and New Market Chambers of Commerce.  Al has actively served on the boards of Boy Scouts of America, Frostburg State University Foundation, Chancellor’s Advisory Council of the University of Maryland System, Allegany Community College, Sacred Heart Hospital, WVPT Public Television, and the Industrial Development Authority, Augusta County.  Al and his wife Dale live in the Stuarts Draft area and have three children and five grandchildren.

Denise E. Dawson

D.D Dawson serves as the Director of Finance and Technology for Harrisonburg City Public Schools, a diverse school division with over 4,500 students.  She has been with the school division for 15 years, and prior to that taught high school in Rockingham County Schools.  She has a B.S. degree from James Madison University in education and a M.S. degree from James Madison University in secondary education.  D.D serves as a member of the BRCC College Board in addition to her position on the BRCC Educational Foundation Board.  She lives in Harrisonburg with her husband, Tom.

Thomas C. Mendez

Tom Mendez is Vice President of BB&T Insurance Services where he provides risk management and insurance consulting services to businesses throughout the state. Tom is Past-Chairman of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce and served on the Harrisonburg City School Board for eight and a half years.   He has also been a member of the Harrisonburg Education Foundation as well as the Massanutten Technical Center Foundation.  Mr. Mendez is currently the chairman of the Vision 2020 Leadership Board, co-chair of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham United Way Campaign, and a member of the Harrisonburg Rotary Club.  Tom and his wife, Lori, reside in Harrisonburg and are the proud parents of six children.

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Community college alumni are unique in that their educational goals and time spent at BRCC may differ from four-year school graduates.  For many, attending BRCC is the stepping stone before transferring to a four-year institution where they will achieve their bachelor’s degree.  For others, BRCC provides a convenient opportunity to complete a course that will enhance their employability or serve a personal interest.  And for some, BRCC will be their final educational destination as they obtain a certificate or associates degree to jumpstart their career and enter the workforce.  In each of these cases, the student makes a connection with Blue Ridge Community College that will prove valuable to them and their future.

The BRCC Educational Foundation Board of Directors recognizes the importance of connecting with our alumni and sharing their success stories.  As a result, over the next few months, efforts will be made to locate “lost” alumni and to obtain contact information for them.  It is the Foundation’s goal to conduct an alumni survey and to use the results to develop an alumni relations program for Blue Ridge Community College.

Alumni profiles and personal testimonials about their experiences at BRCC will be shared in future issues of the Community Link newsletter.  Watch for exciting ways alumni can stay involved with Blue Ridge Community College!

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Perseverance is a potent word to recent BRCC graduate Valorie Kier-Johnson. She began taking classes in the fall of 2005 and became actively involved in campus organizations such as the SPECTRUM Multi-Cultural Club. “I was really enjoying my classes,” Valorie said. “I hadn’t really joined any clubs in high school, so I was doing something different by getting involved with SPECTRUM.”

When Valorie joined the Army National Guard, she juggled her coursework and basic training at Fort Jackson, SC. In 2009, Valorie was deployed to Afghanistan for 9 months with the 276th Engineer Battalion. She performed her duties as a driver of supply convoys honorably, and returned home to the Shenandoah Valley to resume her studies in the spring of 2010. She said: “I never thought about giving up on my education. I wanted to go straight back because I knew I would have to catch up as best I could. I was very motivated.”

Though the deployment took its toll physically and mentally, Valorie would not be deterred, and earned an Associate of Arts and Sciences degree and a General Education certificate in May. Recently engaged to a fellow soldier she met while deployed, Valorie plans to transfer to a four-year school to study botany.  “My life is moving at a fast pace, and I feel really good about that,” the 23-year-old said. “I feel like I have a bright future.”

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Results of The Chronicle of Higher Education’s 2011 survey of “Great Colleges to Work For” were recently released, and Blue Ridge Community College was once again recognized as a “Great College to Work For” in 10 of the 12 two-year college categories.  As a result of achieving this designation in so many different areas, BRCC was also listed on the Chronicle’s “Honor Roll” as one of the top three two-year colleges in its size category!  This is the third consecutive year that BRCC has achieved this honor roll designation.  Honor Roll members in the four-year college & university category included institutions such as Duke, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, Baylor, and University of Southern California.

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Occasionally a student will say something to me that reminds me of my great fortune, having chosen a profession that profoundly changes lives.   Such was the case when a young woman approached me recently during our new student orientation event on campus.  Ironically, she was not a new student.  She was at the orientation because she was returning to BRCC to earn a second specialization after having already earned an Associate’s Degree.  What impressed me, however, is that she told me that during her previous experience at the College one of our faculty members was the only person, besides her own mother, who believed in her and convinced her not to give up when she first started toward her college degree.  This student had overcome incredible difficulties to achieve her degree, and she credited that faculty member’s patience as the only reason she was able to persist and find a high paying job locally.  Now she is working for that local employer, while returning to the College for even more valuable education.

Blue Ridge Community College is changing the lives of our students and transforming the communities we serve.   We train the current and future employees of the Shenandoah Valley, but beyond that, we instill in our students a perspective of commitment, caring and confidence that ultimately touches the lives of us all.  When we purchase the goods and services produced locally, we are the beneficiaries of the great work of our dedicated faculty and staff.   Most importantly, we are the beneficiaries of the perseverance and dedication that shines through the work in which our students engage. 

We could not do this profoundly impactful work if not for you, the benefactors of the Blue Ridge Community College Educational Foundation.  Through your generosity you demonstrate your belief in the work we do, so that our faculty and staff can demonstrate a life changing belief in the future of our students!

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The BRCC Educational Foundation closes out its fiscal year on June 30, 2011, but there is still time to contribute to the 2010-11 Blue Ridge Annual Fund.  If you want to be a part of building the dreams of today’s students while ensuring them one of the finest educations available, then make your gift to the Blue Ridge Annual Fund. Go to http://www.brcc.edu/edfound/ and click on the “Donate Now” button, and know that you are making a difference for our students, faculty and community.

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Libba Hall received this award from the Promise Group for her work assisting Hispanic students on campus.  Libba was honored at the 3rd annual Celebration of Hispanic Education in June on the campus of Eastern Mennonite University.  Information about the Promise Group can be found at: http://mysite.verizon.net/promisegroup/index.html.

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