MAYS LANDING — Begun nearly seven years ago as an annual gesture to personally thank its many generous donors, sponsors and supporters, Atlantic Cape Community College and President Dr. Barbara Gaba welcomed 65 guests to Carême’s, the College’s student-run gourmet restaurant on the Mays Landing campus, for the President’s Holiday Reception on November 19.
Gaba, who recently announced her intention to retire from the College effective June 30, 2026 after nearly 10 years in her role as president, thanked those in attendance for their commitment to student achievement in higher education.
“I want to thank everybody for your generosity and the impact that you've had on our students here. Your contributions to our Foundation enable us to create a warm environment for our students and to provide them opportunities. Without these scholarships many of our students would not be able to attend college and your generosity makes a difference,” said Gaba.
Over the past two years the Atlantic Cape Foundation has awarded over 1,300 scholarships worth nearly $1.5 million to the College’s students. Gaba thanked the members of the Foundation Board of Trustees in attendance for their hard work and dedication throughout the year. The students of the Academy of Culinary Arts (ACA), its many chef educators and Director Joe Sheridan were commended for their outstanding contributions, which included delicious hors d’oeuvres, entrée selections, desserts and hospitality service, to the evening’s reception.
Six ACA students, who traveled to Italy this past summer for the annual Marco Polo Study Abroad Program thanks to the generosity of the Foundation and its donors and supporters, were recognized. They stood together, smiling as proud examples of what a student may achieve when afforded the opportunity.
Atlantic Cape Foundation President James Rutala thanked Dr. Gaba for her years of leadership to the College during many challenging times.
“I've been the president of the Foundation through Dr. Gaba’s entire tenure here, so I've had a chance to watch her and she has led through very challenging times. The last 10 years in this area were not easy. We had four casinos close and 20,000 jobs lost in 2014; we had COVID; and we had changing demographics because of economic issues. Dr. Gaba adjusted to all of that in a very calm and planned way. She brought in good people and surrounded herself with people that were experienced, who knew what they were doing, and she gave them the ability to reach out and do their job.
“The Cape May campus is growing; the Atlantic City campus has really evolved, more so into workforce development, and the College has really gotten very involved in the neighborhoods and community in a very deliberate way and that campus continues to grow. It’s all about the people and Dr. Gaba’s leadership. We certainly appreciate all of your hard work, your leadership and you are certainly going to be missed, and we salute you.”
Visit atlanticcape.edu/give to learn more about how you can support Atlantic Cape Community College and its students.
About Atlantic Cape Community College
Atlantic Cape Community College is a Middle States accredited, 2022 Achieving the Dream Leader College and Hispanic Serving Institution proudly serving the residents of Atlantic and Cape May counties. As a comprehensive, two-year community college, Atlantic Cape offers 47 undergraduate degree programs, and 34 certificate and professional series programs at its Mays Landing, Atlantic City and Cape May County campuses. Atlantic Cape is home to the renowned Academy of Culinary Arts, rated the top culinary school in New Jersey, and for more than 50 years, our highly-acclaimed Nursing program. Atlantic Cape also partners with more than 30 colleges and four-year universities to offer students the opportunity to seamlessly earn a bachelor’s degree upon graduation.
