The Shadow
Amy Phillips has joined the Mountain Gateway Community College Educational Foundation as its new executive director, it was announced by MGCC President Dr. John Rainone.
The Bath County native and resident also serves as the Director of Institutional Advancement and Public Information Officer for the College. She began her new position on November 21.
“We are thrilled to have someone of Amy’s caliber and experience join MGCC,” said Dr. Rainone. “She understands our service area and has been successful working with individuals in our communities.”
Phillips has spent more than 20 years working in the healthcare industry, as manager of Development, Marketing and Communications at Bath Community Hospital in Hot Springs and then as Development Officer for Operations at the Augusta Health Foundation in Fishersville.
“I’m excited to transition to higher education to help support the growth and education of our communities,” says Phillips, a first generation college graduate who had the unique opportunity to attend several of Virginia’s community colleges while she was pursuing her associate degree, working fulltime and raising a family.
“I guess you could say I was my own academic advisor,” she adds.
Phillips enrolled in a variety of courses all over Virginia, to coordinate with her own busy schedule with courses she needed to complete her degree. Most were online, others she attended on campus, including Virginia Western, Northern Virginia, New River, J. Sargent Reynolds, Tidewater, and Mountain Gateway (then Dabney S. Lancaster) Community Colleges. She has a well-earned perspective and appreciation for Virginia’s Community College System.
Phillips holds an Associate degree from Northern Virginia Community College and a Bachelor of Science degree in Leadership and Organizational Management from Eastern Mennonite University. She also holds a certificate from NOVA in Promotions, Public Relations, & Social Media as well as a Fund Development Certificate from the University of Richmond. A 1998 graduate of Bath County High School, she and her husband Rocklynn have two sons, both juniors at Covington High School.
During her time in healthcare, she was involved in management, operations, philanthropy, marketing, public relations and human resources. She was instrumental in helping direct a successful $4 million capital campaign while at Bath Community Hospital. She is well aware of the needs of the local workforce.
“As our area workforce needs change, our community needs to be poised to meet that demand by providing education opportunities to students within our service that align with the job vacancies in the marketplace,” notes Phillips.
“I’m very excited to lead the Educational Foundation at MGCC and promote our mission of providing affordable education,” she continues. “I look forward to working with our community partners to develop the resources necessary to help MGCC with technology, classroom equipment and programming development so we are able to continue to provide qualified candidates to the area.”
