The Shadow
President of Mountain Gateway Community College Dr. John Rainone presided over the unveiling ceremony of the new signage that replaced Dabney S. Lancaster Community College’s logo on Thursday, July 1.
Among the guest speakers that Rainone invited to share the podium was Dr. Rebecca Corbin, president and CEO of the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE), from Raleigh, N.C.
She is the cofounder of the Nonprofit Development Center of Southern New Jersey at Rowan University.
“Fundraising Success” magazine named her Fundraising Star of the Year in 2011.
In 2014, she was named to the Top 40 Women in Business by the “SNJ Business People” magazine, and in 2016 she received the Audrey K. Doberstein Award for Leadership from Wilmington University.
Corbin noted that community colleges across America serve 54 million students.
“I think there is so much hope and opportunity in the world,” Corbin remarked.
Corbin commented about the beautiful setting for the college that is surrounded by mountains.
She concluded, “I love the Roadrunner idea and its rich history.”
Rainone said, “On this day, our college has a new name but not a new mission.”
He explained to the large gathering of dignitaries and supporters of the community college that the process to select a new name began two years before when a taskforce was formed.
Rainone remarked, “There were 430 names submitted to our taskforce, and Mountain Gateway was the one we chose.”
He explained that the word “mountain” symbolizes strength and that the word “gateway” means a way for students to enter and acquire the skills they need to become successful.
He added that mountains connect all of the settings for Mountain Gateway Community College in Alleghany and Rockbridge counties.
Refreshments were provided to those in attendance, and Rainone posed for photographs with the Roadrunner coaching staff beside the new sign.
Dan Callahan, the athletic director; Vince Wyatt, the track and field coach for men and women; Steve Webb, women’s basketball coach; Ben Kluzak, men’s basketball coach; and Hugh Bouchelle, cross country coach for men and women; posed with Rainone while refreshments were being served.
