Reflections on 54th Commencement

By Alfred Williams
RVCC President
Throughout the day on Friday, May 13, River Valley Community College (RVCC) celebrated our 54th Commencement on the lawn at our Claremont campus. Graduates in cap and gown were surrounded by family, friends, teachers, mentors and community members. This day was very special, symbolizing a new start for our 178 graduates as they embark on a new phase of their personal and professional lives. The students who proudly crossed the stage to receive their diplomas that day had worked very hard for their achievement. In total they earned 188 degrees and certificates and will move on well-prepared for their next steps.

This was a day to celebrate success, both individually and as a community. I am very proud of each and every graduate for their resilience, dedication and drive to completion. We were so pleased to share the day with many honored guests, the Community College System Chancellor, members from our statewide Board of Trustees and our local Advisory Boards, faculty and staff, students, family and friends.

Graduates were honored in three distinct ceremonies, each with its own student and faculty speaker chosen by the graduates. Along with the conferral of diplomas, many of RVCC’s programs included pinning ceremonies. The pinning ceremony has long traditions in healthcare and is a very moving tradition. Students in Nursing, Medical Laboratory Technology, Respiratory Therapy and Radiologic Technology all received a pin welcoming them into their chosen field. Students chose a significant person in their life to join them on stage for the pinning. Other RVCC majors were celebrated through student awards recognizing academic achievement, community service and hard work. In addition, RVCC traditionally gives each student a rose which they present it to the person who played a significant role in supporting their journey as a student.

Some of our students were recognized for their service to community, such as one graduate who is currently fostering two children while completing her degree. Our Physical Therapist Assistant club, called Body Mechanics, was recognized for raising money to support the Turning Points Network’s 16th Annual Steppin’ Up to End Violence 5K Walk. Other students were recognized for serving on local boards and volunteering their expertise in a variety of community events. These recognitions were a reminder of the ties our students have to their communities and the contributions they make.

Commencement is also a time to reflect. It’s been a year of transitions. As we welcomed more people back on campus, we were able to open up student life events again. It was a great pleasure after the challenges posed by the pandemic to simply have the ability for students and faculty to come together in a social setting. We hosted a number of events outside such as a rock-climbing wall, food trucks, and live music. We know how important social connection is to our students and it was wonderful to see these events return.

Overall, it was a very successful year of adapting to unforeseen challenges and meeting our students’ needs. Whether that was with hybrid learning, flexible schedules, online advising or continued remote learning, our faculty and staff did a great job accommodating our students in order to help them succeed and graduate. All of the faculty, staff and students have made it easier for one another through kindness and caring. I am so proud to lead an institution in which everyone works together to collectively make each other better and support success.

RVCC has continued to move forward with innovative programming. The Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) program expanded to Littleton to continue to meet the statewide demand in healthcare, and the program will expand once again over the next year with new cohorts in Manchester and Nahua. By January 2023, we should be enrolling more than 100 LPN students statewide. We partnered with ApprenticeshipNH and Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center to launch a 14-week healthcare pre-apprenticeship program for high school students to get a jumpstart on college programs in healthcare. We recognize that exposing students to college and professions at a younger age is vital and thus have created bootcamps for middle school students to introduce them to college programming and majors. As we look ahead, we have a lot that we are working on for the next school year including a new Psychology degree to meet the growing need for mental health and substance abuse counseling. English and math concentrations will be brought back into the Liberal Arts degree program to support transfer opportunities to four-year institutions.

RVCC faculty are always looking for ways to improve the student experience and provide community support. Dr. Julie Robinson created a free Anatomy and Physiology open educational resource textbook that provides significant savings for our students. Dr. Richard Andrusiak is working on a universal math dictionary with colleagues around the world which will be used by refugee children to maintain their math skills. Our Nursing faculty and students provided support in clinics, testing centers and pop-up facilities throughout the COVID crisis.

Everything that we do at RVCC, past, present and future is in an effort to support our students for success while we work to meet needs in the community. As our graduates embark on their careers and further their education, I know that they will apply the lessons learned at RVCC and do their part to build strong communities in the Granite State.

Alfred Williams is the president of River Valley Community College (RVCC). Located in in Claremont with academic centers in Keene and Lebanon, RVCC is one of seven colleges in the Community College System of New Hampshire and offers Associate Degree and Certificate programs, plus training options, preparing students for job opportunities, as well as transfer pathways to four-year colleges and universities.