RICHMOND – Collectively, the 24 foundations that support Virginia’s Community Colleges and their students awarded more than $5.8 million dollars to nearly 5,000 students during the 2008-2009 academic year.

“Our community college foundations exist to create opportunities, to ensure that cost does not deter hard-working individuals from pursuing their college dreams.  These results show that they are doing a terrific job,” said Glenn DuBois, chancellor of Virginia’s Community Colleges.

Kellie Gibbons, who attends Thomas Nelson Community College, is among the students who earned a scholarship last year.  The single mom had been working as many as 80 hours a week at a theme park and attending college part time – while maintaining a perfect 4.0 grade point average.  She said, however, that earning the Kathy Camper Commonwealth Legacy Scholarship from the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education “changed my life.”

“Getting the award was the catalyst for me to change my status to full time.  It seemed like a sign that I was moving in the right direction in my career choice,” Gibbons said.

Gibbons said completing her degree in information technology will allow her to stop “struggling paycheck to paycheck.”

“These stories are moving and they are pervasive throughout the individual foundations that are serving our community colleges,” said Jennifer Gentry, VCCS vice chancellor and executive director of the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education.  “There is nothing easy right now about building the relationships that are necessary to raising money and creating opportunities like Kellie’s.  But the leadership of our foundations is working hard and they have a lot to show for it.”

The work of the Virginia Community College foundations was among the bright spots in the Dateline 2009 VCCS strategic plan.  One year early, they met the goal of doubling their collective holdings to $150 million.

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About Virginia’s Community Colleges: Created more than 40 years ago, the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) is comprised of 23 community colleges located on 40 campuses across the commonwealth. Together, Virginia’s Community Colleges serve more than a quarter-million credit students each year. For more information, please visit myfuture.vccs.edu.

About the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education:  Working hand in hand with Virginia’s 23 community colleges, the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education seeks to guarantee financial assistance to all students who dream of attending college.  The foundation is building an endowment that is already generating interest to provide full scholarships to selected community college students.  Donors to the fund are invited to endow a single scholarship in their name and designate it to any of Virginia’s community colleges or regions.  For more information, please visit www.vccs.edu/Foundation.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Jeffrey Kraus
Assistant Vice Chancellor for Public Relations
(804) 819-4949
jkraus@vccs.edu