NRCC History Book

40 Virginia Community College Programming Contest held at RU. The students solved computer programming challenges during a three-hour period. Emily Gabrysch, Daniel Burgess, and James St. Clair placed second, and each received a $500 scholarship. Lauren Robertson, Andrew Meeks, and A. J. Tucker won third place. The next month, May 2008, Lauren Robertson became the first game design specialization graduate from NRCC. In April 2009, Diane Belcher (Gray), then a human services major at NRCC, was named to the All-USA First Academic Team. She was one of 20 community college students in the nation to receive this award. In addition, Belcher was named Virginia’s New Century Scholar, and she received the highest All-USA Academic Team score in Virginia. She received a $2,000 stipend from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, as well as a plaque and pin. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) evaluates and reaccredits NRCC every 10 years. Since the college’s last reaccreditation was in 1997, the college began preparing for the 2007 visit in the early 2000s. Beginning in 2004, SACS required colleges to submit the compliance audit by email instead of during the on-site visit. When the SACS on-site review team was on campus from October 29-31, 2007, committee members evaluated the college’s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) which focused on developing goals, objectives, and strategies for an applied approach to developmental math. The college received reaffirmation in 2008.

Special Guests on Campus Several special guests visited NRCC’s campus during the first decade of the 2000s. Ralph Stanley, a legendary American bluegrass artist, was honored at the NRCC Fiddle, Banjo, and Dance Club Jamboree in December 2002 with a resolution presented by Chancellor DuBois. In May 2004 Chancellor DuBois addressed the 35th graduating class and recognized Billy Friend, an NRCC graduate and professor of instrumentation who began teaching at New River’s Vocational-Technical School 40 years earlier. On January 10-11, 2005, Mrs. Constance R. Kincheloe, chair of the State Board for Community Colleges, toured the campus and met with college administrators and staff. Dr. Belle Wheelan, former secretary of education under Virginia Governor Mark Warner and president of SACS, addressed graduates on May 12, 2006. In Fall 2006, Jonathan Mooney, international lecturer and author of Learning Outside the Lines , shared his message of personal empowerment, academic success, and educational revolution for students who think and learn differently. Cynthia Andrews, wife of the late state Senator Hunter B. Andrews, visited NRCC on April 19, 2007, to attend a ceremony during which the library’s collection of works about Virginia was named for the senator. Senator Andrews served the 31 st , 28 th , and 1 st districts as a Virginia State Senator for a total of 32 years. The Honorable Anne B. Crockett Stark, who served the 6 th district as a state delegate from 2006 to 2014, spoke at the college’s graduation on May 11, 2007. In November 2007, Delegate Dave Nutter, who served the 7 th district from 2002 to 2012, toured the mall site to explore the programs

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