Rowan College of South Jersey (RCSJ) is a public community college with two campuses in the South Jersey region of New Jersey. The first, Gloucester Main Campus, is in Sewell. The second, Cumberland Branch Campus, is in both Vineland and Millville. The college was established in 1966 as "Gloucester County College" (GCC). In 2014, the college changed its name to "Rowan College of Gloucester County" when Rowan University and Gloucester County College entered into a partnership. The college then expanded in 2019, combining Rowan College at Gloucester County (RCGC) and Cumberland County College to become Rowan College of South Jersey.
The college now offers conditional dual enrollment with Rowan University depending on GPA. While then GCC took the Rowan name, the community college maintains its independence with its own Board of Trustees and administration.
RCSJ has articulation and credit transfer agreements with many area and online colleges and universities, and several dual enrollment agreements. Academic areas include Nursing and Allied Health, an area with selective admissions, unlike most other programs, Gloucester County's Police Academy and related degrees, and continuing education.
As of February 2012, RCSJ has about of grounds on the main Gloucester Campus with twelve buildings, two of which Gloucester County organizational headquarters. It has an art gallery, a walking and jogging trail, and community gardens. Student life at the college includes KotoriCon, an anime convention, as well as many other activities.
History Gloucester County voters passed a non-binding referendum in 1965, calling for the Board of Chosen Freeholders to start a community college in the county. Gloucester County College was established in 1966, when the New Jersey Department of Education approved its charter.
Buildings The first classes were taught in the summer of 1967 at Monongahela Middle School and Deptford Township High School. The first building owned by RCSJ was the Instructional Center, which was completed in 1970. The first classes were taught there in the fall of that year. Other past building projects include the College Center (opened in January 1971), the Library (dedicated in October 1988), the Health Sciences building and the Police Academy (begun in 1993), and Scott Hall, which houses the chemistry and biology classrooms and laboratories (began in 2001 and dedicated in September 2002).
Presidents 20th century The college's first president, William L. Apetz, began his tenure in September 1966. He retired from RCGC in 1980 and went on to be the first president of Sussex County Community College, another County College in New Jersey.
The second president was Gary L. Reddig, who was appointed in July 1980 and resigned on October 31, 1986, giving two reasons. First, he wished to assume the position of director of the County Community College Presidents Association of New Jersey. Second, he alleged that the then chair of the board of trustees, Richard J. Ambacher, Jr. (later a professor emeritus of Rowan University), had pressured him to get Ambacher's son a custodial job at the college and his daughter-in-law into the nursing program, which has selective admissions; he also claimed that Ambacher had otherwise interfered in college operations. Ambacher denied the allegations, and stated that he had only asked that the nursing program's admissions standards be altered to avoid bias against non-traditional students. One trustee resigned in sympathy with Reddig. A state investigation resulted in a report and letter recommending that the relationship between the board of trustees and the school be changed (including requiring the college president's approval for hiring done by the board), that trustee quorum requirements be increased, and that trustee training and selection be improved. The investigation did not find Reddig's allegations correct. One member of the Board of Chosen Freeholders asked for Ambacher's term as a trustee not to be renewed; Ambacher responded that this was a political maneuver in the context of an upcoming election. Ambacher did not seek another term as trustee after his existing term ended in November 1987, stating that this was for health reasons (diabetes exacerbated by stress). There was considerable dismay at RCGC over these events, especially with accreditation renewal coming in spring 1987.
On October 4, 1987, Richard H. Jones became its third president, serving until his retirement on February 1, 1998. He had been a vice-president at RCGC, then acting president after Reddig's departure.
The fourth president was Gail O. Mellow, who was selected prior to Jones' retirement and worked with him from November 1, 1997, until his retirement.
21st century Mellow served as president until she left to become president of LaGuardia Community College on August 1, 2000.
The fifth president was William F. Anderson, who had previously served as vice president, then as interim president. He resigned in July 2007, but stayed with RCGC as the food science program administrator.
Russell A. Davis was the sixth president from September 2008 until his resignation on April 13, 2011. He had earlier been vice president of student services, then acting president after Anderson's resignation. On April 29, 2011, Davis was charged with eleven counts of forgery of a signature to obtain loans from his pension/retirement account (similar to the loans allowed from a 401(k)); the prosecutor's office has not accused Davis of theft of college property.
In February 2012, Frederick Keating, who had been serving as interim president, was named the seventh president. He was previously RCSJ's vice president of student services and before that superintendent at the Gloucester County Institute of Technology (GCIT). During his tenure Keating focused on expanding RCSJ’s presence within the South Jersey region, integrating the Gloucester and Cumberland campuses more, establishing several corporate partnerships, and expanding degree opportunities. Keating retired in the summer of 2025, and was succeeded by interim president Brenden Rickards.
Problematic periods There has been tension between faculty and administration on two occasions: a strike was threatened in 1989 over pay; further tension in 2002 was settled largely by Lalaji S. Deshbandhu, the late president of the RCSJ Faculty Association.
RCSJ's nursing program had difficulties in 1997–98, with lower pass rates (78% in 1998, and below 80% in 1997) on state examinations for nursing qualifications. These led to it being put on probation by the state. Changes made that elevated the pass rate to 93% for May–September 1999, taking the school from the bottom 20% of two-year nursing programs to the top 25%.
In 2008, the workweek was cut to four days during the summer, more buildings were closed during breaks, and there was increased scrutiny of purchases. RCSJ (including RCSJ Foundation) investment revenue went from $636,391 per year in 2007 to $202,805 per year in 2009.
Organization and administration
The college's governing body is the board of trustees. Eight trustees are appointed by the Gloucester County Administrator and Board of Chosen Freeholders; two are appointed by the governor of New Jersey; the eleventh trustee is the county Superintendent of Schools, a voting ex officio member; and the college president is a non-voting ex officio member.*
RCGC's annual budget in 2009 was $39,388,473. The college is financially dependent primarily on money from Gloucester County and the State of New Jersey (about 49.1% of revenue in 2009), followed by funds from student tuition and fees (about 35.2% of revenue in 2009).
The RCGC Foundation holds the college's endowment ($4,761,853 as of 31 December 2018). Most income from the endowment is used to provide scholarships.
The academic divisions of RCGC are: Division of Allied Health and Nursing Division of Business Studies Division of Health, Physical Education and Recreation (also includes Exercise Science) Division of Liberal Arts Division of Public Safety and Security (Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement) Division of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Other Areas (including continuing education, some certificate programs, the Police Academy, and the Fire Academy)
Articulation and credit transfer agreements exist with 27 area or online four-year colleges and universities. These include Rowan University, Fairleigh Dickinson University, Wilmington University, Temple University, Penn State University, the University of Maryland University College (UMUC), Thomas Edison State College, Drexel University, and Rutgers University. RCGC offers dual enrollment with Rowan,*
Fairleigh Dickinson,* Wilmington, and UMUC (generally only for some programs and majors). Stephen M. Sweeney, President of the New Jersey Senate, has called for other community colleges in South Jersey to follow RCGC in having dual enrollment agreements with Rowan.
Academics Admissions Most of RCGC's programs are open to anyone with a high school diploma or GED; some opportunities to take for-credit courses are available to high school students and others. (RCGC has links with the Gloucester County Institute of Technology (GCIT) and, to a lesser degree, with other high schools in the county.) There are, however, selective admissions for Nursing, Allied Health, and Automotive Technology.
Enrollment and demographics The college awarded 819 associate degrees and 15 academic certificates in 2009–2010. Of the 1561 first-time, full-time students starting in 2007, 350 had graduated with associate degrees and 351 transferred (for example, to a four-year college or university) by 2010. The total percentage of 44.9% was the third highest among the nineteen New Jersey County Colleges (NJCCs); the median was 35.3%. Among all students in 2010, the percentage enrolled in remedial courses was 28.9% (seventh among the nineteen NJCCs; the median is 28.1%); among first-time, full-time students, the percentage was 63.3% (tenth among the nineteen NJCCs; the median is 63.3%). Enrollment in for-credit courses was 6,609 in 2010; of these, 1,557 (about 23.6%) were first-time, full-time students, and altogether 60% were full-time. 33.5% of RCGC's students in 2010 were between 18 and 21 (48.5% of full-time students and 10.6% of part-time students). In 2010, about 17% of RCGC's students came from outside Gloucester County; 99.5% were from New Jersey. In 2011, 170 of RCGC's students were veterans; On G.I. Jobs magazine's 2012 list of Military Friendly Schools, and on two lists from previous years, RCGC was ranked in the top 15% of universities, colleges, and trade schools nationwide for enrolling veterans as students.
Adjunct professors make up about 77.4% of the faculty. About 61.8% of course sections are taught by adjuncts or staff members rather than full-time faculty. RCGC ranks ninth out of the nineteen NJCCs in the proportion of course sections not taught by full-time faculty; the median is 60%.
Tuition/fees and financial aid
Tuition and fees at RCSJ are lowest for Gloucester County and Cumberland County residents, intermediate for other New Jersey residents, and highest for others. In this, the college follows the way other county colleges in New Jersey favor their counties or pairs of counties. The total of tuition plus fees for in-state but out-of-county full-time students at RCSJ in 2011–2012 was less than the in-county rates charged by all but three other county colleges in New Jersey. The same was true of part-time (twelve credits per year) rates, compared with those of all but two other county colleges in New Jersey.
Over 40% of students entering RCGC in 2010 received some form of financial aid. The most common source was a federally funded Pell Grant, received by about 34% of students. Approximately 1% received financial aid from the RCGC Foundation in 2010.
Accreditation and programs