The People of John Tyler Calendar and Annual Report 2009

Bold Steps Toward the Future
2007 was a bold year for the John Tyler Community College
Foundation. It was a year of firsts, innovations and successes.
It was a year that sparkled with a new Diamonds Gala. It was
a year that inspired a society to celebrate the College’s first 40
years, and it was a year that saw eleven new board members
answer the call to serve the Foundation.
A Year of Firsts
As the College marked 40 years of service to
the community in 2007, the Foundation created
a one-time giving opportunity for the College’s
alumni, faculty and staff, as well as individual
and corporate friends. The Forty-for-Forty
Society asked members to give $40 in honor
of the College’s first 40 years of educational
excellence and partnership with the community.
A total of 179 members celebrated the College’s
growth, from one campus with 1,231 students to
a multi-campus institution
that serves more than
11,000 students, by joining
the society.
In another first, the
Cameron Foundation,
which provides support
to programs that benefit
Petersburg and surrounding
localities, generously
awarded the College
Foundation $256,000 to
fund four career coaches for two years at Petersburg High
School and the city’s two middle schools. Career coaches seek
to engage students in education by helping them with longrange
career planning. The gift is the largest private foundation
gift ever made to the John Tyler Community College
Foundation.
The Cameron Foundation award was just one gift that helped
donations to the Foundation surge to an all-time high. Grants
to the Foundation increased 39 percent, rising $80,500 from
$204,500 in 2006 to $285,000 in 2007. Annual fund donations
grew 70 percent. Nursing support grew 28 percent, and
scholarship dollars awarded increased 18 percent.
To increase awareness of the scholarships available, the
Foundation conducted a scholarship awareness campaign which
boosted scholarship applications by more than 73 percent.
More than 77 students who received scholarships united with
donors at Scholarship Celebration Night in August. More
than 40 donors participated, seeing first-hand the benefits of
supporting student scholarships.
Scholarship dollars were also the driving force behind the new
Diamonds Gala and Auction, held for the first time in October
2007. The event was a success both in terms of friends- and
fundraising. More than 125 community leaders gathered at
the black-tie event held at the Country Club of Virginia. The
evening raised $20,788, and guests enjoyed dancing and dining,
as well as a silent and live auction with more than 120 items
and services donated by individual and corporate friends of the
College. Two scholarship recipients were also present to share
their stories with guests.
With all these firsts and fundraising successes, the
Foundation met the Dateline 2009 fundraising goal
set in 2002 by Virginia Community College System
Chancellor Glenn DuBois, two years ahead of
schedule. In total, the Foundation’s net assets grew
from $4,308,274 in 2006 to $5,295,839 in 2007, a
solid 23 percent increase.
fees totaling $25,250. The Manufacturers’ Coalition supports
the College’s Quick Connect program, an innovative training
program designed to grow the number of entry-level, skilled
workers in manufacturing and the skilled trades. The program is
now being used as a model across the Commonwealth.
Partnerships like the Manufacturers’ Coalition are the result of
the hard work and investment of the John Tyler Community
College Foundation Board of Directors, which also saw great
change in 2007. The Board established a new governance
structure, revising its bylaws and articles of incorporation. The
newly founded governance committee identified top needs for
the College; set fundraising priorities; created a profile for new
members based on regional linkage and economic sectors; and
developed an extensive new member orientation process.
The Foundation also adopted a new mission statement:
The John Tyler Community College Foundation acquires vital
resources, which advance the College’s mission to provide
superior, affordable, and accessible education. The Foundation
seeks the time, talent and financial support of alumni,
individuals, businesses, civic groups and elected officials in
order to build relationships, which ultimately help the College
elevate the community’s quality of life.
New leadership for the board was tapped in 2007, with eleven
new members elected to the board at the December meeting.
The new directors represent the area’s business community, as
well as the College community. They have diverse leadership
in the areas of art, construction, workforce development and
banking.
Success in Student Terms
In 2006, the Foundation began awarding the Defining Your
Future Award, its highest honor bestowed upon a student. Each
year, the award recognizes a student for outstanding academic
performance and volunteer service to John Tyler. Faculty and
staff nominate students who they believe will achieve great
success and thereby define the future of the College, the local
community and the nation. In 2007, Lindsay Megan Edwards
was awarded the Defining Your Future Award. Edwards had
already garnered national recognition for the College when she
was one of only 20 students named to the All-USA Community
College Academic Team. Edwards was selected from more
than 1,500 students from across the country nominated for the
award. Edwards maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout her career at
John Tyler, as well as served as president of the Beta Omicron
Omicron Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa.
Also in 2006, the Foundation announced the creation of the
Rising Star Award, an award to honor alumni of the College.
The Rising Star Award was established to be presented annually
to a graduate whom faculty and staff believe will not only be
an ambassador for the College but will also distinguish himself/
herself in his/her chosen career. Michael Heitz was the 2007
recipient of the award. “Michael Heitz exemplifies the best
characteristics of second-career college students,” says Dr. Mirta
Martin, executive vice president of the John Tyler Foundation.
“In the words of one of his professors, he is motivated, engaged,
professional and intelligent. He has offered his tutoring abilities
and encouragement to his fellow students. He is a member of
PTK and a stellar ambassador for John Tyler.”
Toward a Bright Tomorrow
With tuition and fees that run, on average, one-third of the
tuition and fees of Virginia’s public, four-year colleges and
universities, John Tyler Community College is committed
to affordable, accessible education. But, the College is
also committed to top-quality education. The John Tyler
Foundation fills in the gaps, whether that means funding student
scholarships, outfitting academic buildings with cutting-edge
equipment, or giving faculty funding to explore new programs
and enhance their teaching. The steps the Foundation and its
supporters are taking today are bold steps that truly will define
the future.
Innovations for Tomorrow
Partnerships are at the very core of the Foundation’s
work, and the Manufacturers’ Coalition is a prime
example of public and private organizations
working together to meet community needs. In its
second year of existence, the John Tyler Community College
Manufacturers’ Coalition expanded its membership to 28
companies, with membership fees totally $32,600 and hiring
Manufacturers’ Coalition
Employer members of the Manufacturers’ Coalition include: Aleris Rolled Products, Anderson Machine Manufacturing, Atlantic
Constructors, Boehringer Ingelheim Chemicals, Brenco, Chesterfield County Economic Development, Church & Dwight Virginia Co.,
Colortree, Comcast, DeGussa Goldschmidt Chemical Corporation, Electrical and Mechanical Resources, Filtrona Richmond, Inc.,
Fiorucci Foods Inc., Gerdau Ameristeel, Hill PHOENIX, Honeywell – Hopewell Plant, Jewett Machine Manufacturing Company, Philip
Morris USA, Progressive Engineering, Quality “Plus” Services, Inc., Richmond Tooling, Inc., Service Center Metals, Shaw Maintenance,
Short Run Stamping, Smurfit Stone Container, Telamon Corporation, Virginia Association of Roofing Contractors, and Wyeth
38 Pharmaceuticals.
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