Rowan College at Burlington County Class of 2020 VIRTUAL GRADUATION CELEBRATION PROGRAM You did it! You fnished strong, and you didn’t back down from adversity. RCBC Barons! PROGRAM VALEDICTORIAN RCBC valedictorian ofers hopeful message promoting Shanni Prutchi community over individualism Shanni Prutchi is thoughtful, driven and community- For Shanni, life is about balance. When she’s not minded. She’s also Rowan College at Burlington learning, she’s working as a cybersecurity analyst for County’s 2020 class valedictorian. Tis makes NFI, a logistics and supply chain solutions provider. complete sense when you consider who she is. When she’s not doing either of those things, Shanni loves to learn, and her love of learning she’s giving back to her community. reaches beyond the confnes of the classroom. “My whole life I’ve been taught that there’s always Shanni’s story is a tumultuous one that involves a way you can help people. In every feld, you can many twists and turns. Her college career began do what you enjoy while actively working to help at Rowan University when she had taken a year people. Tat’s the viewpoint I’ve been raised with. between high school and college. She was slated Be the helper. RCBC has prepared us to be helpers, to attend Boston University after graduating high and right now is our time to shine,” she said. school but fell ill her senior year. After deciding she needed to be close to home, she applied and was Prutchi volunteers in her community by ofering accepted to Rowan University. However, after taking technical support services to those who need it and a medical withdrawal three years in, she enrolled in delivering groceries to those who can’t shop for a Security+ certifcation class at Camden County themselves through Jewish Family and Children College that ignited her passion for cybersecurity. Services. As for her future plans, she aspires to be a cybersecurity consultant, performing risk analysis At that time, RCBC had recently introduced the and penetration testing services for Computing and Informatics 3+1 program, and various organizations. Prutchi enrolled soon after she found out about it. “Tere’s no other way to live in a society than “I was able to not only manage my health but also to think about other people,” she emphasizes. make friends, get involved on campus and participate in the community experience,” she recalled. “RCBC has changed my life for the better, and I know it’s done so for many people. It’s also taught me to be a helper and invest in others.” Troughout her time at RCBC, Prutchi engaged in research for Lockheed Martin and PRICE Systems, mentored others through the cybersecurity club and fully immersed herself in the college experience, including enrolling in classes that had no relevance to her major. She also formed lasting relationships with her professors. “Professor Warner has been there for me throughout this entire journey, and Professor Don Cesaretti brought so much knowledge and personal experience to class. He’s given me a really important perspective on cybersecurity,” Prutchi shared. PR ESIDENT’S AWARD RCBC Nursing student and COVID-19 volunteer to earn Timothy Wilkinson President’s Award at graduation Imagine you’re given the option to choose your Unfortunately, Wilkinson’s wife battles a rare, nurse. What are the qualities you’d look for? A calm incurable disease known as idiopathic gastroparesis, demeanor? A gentle nature? A warm personality? a disease characterized by delayed gastric emptying If those characteristics popped into your mind, and increased weight loss. Timothy Wilkinson meets them all. “Dealing with all that, she’s still been my rock A Rowan College at Burlington County 3+1 and my support. She’s pushed me to accomplish Nursing student, Wilkinson is among several everything I’ve been able to,” Wilkinson shared. RCBC students who recently joined the frontlines against the coronavirus pandemic. He now spends Wilkinson plans to continue his education to earn much of his time at the Burlington County Health his BSN and a master’s degree, aiming to eventually Department’s COVID-19 testing site. work in a critical care environment. “When this (pandemic) hit, I realized I had a set “I think I want to end up in surgery, whether of skills that could be benefcial to the community. it’s as a nurse practitioner or nurse anesthetist,” And when the call was put out for volunteers, I Timothy said. think it took me fewer than three minutes to respond,” Timothy recalled. “Since then, we’ve Now, preparing to graduate, he’s set to receive the tested over 2,500 Burlington County residents. It’s RCBC President’s Award which he comments is a been a lot of work, but it’s also been very rewarding. surreal and exciting prospect. Wherever he lands, Tis is exactly what we had been training for.” Wilkinson is well-equipped with the skillset, knowledge and demeanor to make a lasting Wilkinson, of Riverside, chose RCBC’s 3+1 impact in his feld. pathway due to the fexibility and cost-efectiveness of the program. “Te 3+1 program was a perfect ft for me. In fact, I couldn’t fnd a program like it anywhere else,” he shared. Although Wilkinson has always held an interest in nursing, he credits his wife, Christine, for pushing him to pursue his degree at age 28. “Even if I didn’t believe in myself at the time, I had someone who did. It was my wife who convinced me it was a possibility to even go back to school,” Wilkinson recalled. PR ESIDENT’S AWARD RCBC President’s Award recipient aims to make an impact in education Justin Foster Te desire to make a diference compelled Justin “Something that’s stood out to me is the way we Foster to become a teacher. And, when he found form bonds with professors and students,” Foster out that he could achieve that goal at the fraction said. “I’ve especially enjoyed working with Professor of the cost a traditional four-year degree, (Corvena) Denton. She’s been a role model for all he committed to it. of us, and she’s pushed us through every hardship we’ve had in the program.” “When Rowan College at Burlington County announced the 3+1 option in Inclusive Education, At just ffteen years old, Justin’s passion for inclusive that sealed the deal for me. It sold me, and I’ve education was ignited when he few to Missouri been sold on RCBC ever since,” Foster recalled. to work at a special needs camp for the summer. Now, a lifelong learner, education penetrates every Foster, of Lumberton, is one of two students slated aspect of his life. Before the pandemic, he worked to earn RCBC’s President’s Award during this 30-40 hours per week at an area elementary school Friday’s graduation ceremony. Troughout this and swim school to ensure he can travel to various past school year, he’s helped to revive the education countries to experience diferent cultures. In fact, club on campus, and over the past six months, club he’s visited several European countries to date. membership has tripled. Foster is among RCBC’s frst set of 3+1 Inclusive “More than anything, it’s about building a sense Education graduates. He plans to enter the K-6 of community at a community college. We’re not school system after earning his bachelor’s degree. living on campus, but we still see each other as His bright, energetic demeanor will take him far much as we would have in high school,” he shared. in this feld. For Justin, community college is about the relation- ships formed and the interactions with not only his peers but also his professors. 2020 ACADEMIC AWARDS ACCOUNTING ENGLISH Stefan Ceci Mary Katt John O’Keefe ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGIES: ALL-USA AND ALL-NEW JERSEY SOUND RECORDING AND ENGINEERING ACADEMIC TEAM Joseph Gangemi Jane Cheslo ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGIES: Brittney Davis VIDEO/DIGITAL MEDIA AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE/DEAF STUDIES Jacob Heller Jenna Richards FASHION DESIGN ART Ciara Radwell Kyle Johnson FASHION PRODUCT MERCHANDISING BIOLOGY Scott Finlay Susan Glade GURENLIAN STUDENT LEADERSHIP AWARD BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Allyson Prekop Lindaura DeSouza Cristo HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Yana Stepaniuk Patricia Lawhorn COMPUTER INFORMATION SYSTEMS HISTORY Jesse Rosenthal Jacob Roberts COMPUTER MANAGEMENT HOSPITALITY & TOURISM MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS Kaitlyn Simrell David O’Brien HU-FRIEDY GOLDEN SCALER AWARD COMPUTER SCIENCE Corinna Eveland Monika Geczo HUMAN SERVICES ACADEMIC AWARD CRIMINAL JUSTICE Kelly Ahearn Matthew Harris MATHEMATICS CULINARY ARTS Sean Hefernan Arlene Harmon NURSING DENTAL HYGIENE David Paul Eljesa Xhemajli POLITICAL SCIENCE DIAGNOSTIC MEDICAL SONOGRAPHY Russell Kavitsky Emily Rodriguez EDUCATION Nicole Ceballos PSYCHOLOGY SOUTHERN NJ DENTAL SOCIETY AWARD Melisa Ann Posner Jessica Frick RADIOGRAPHY THEATRE Tracy Adams Micah Addison SOUTHERN NJ DENTAL HYGIENISTS’ ASSOCIATION AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNICATION Britney Simmons FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS AND OTHER AWARDS ATHLEA E. ALBERT NURSING AWARD INTERNATIONAL STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP Lorraine Santo Nicole Ceballos ATHLEA E. ALBERT NURSING SCHOLARSHIP MARYANN TOUTANT Katherine Yung MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Ebonee Fraser CIVILITY AWARD Jessica Toomey RCBC FACULTY ASSOCIATION SCHOLARSHIP Susan Farhat DELTA DENTAL FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIP Danielle Barbato STEM INDUSTRY ADVISORY BOARD AWARD Jennifer Gwynn Alexandra Pantry Michelle Pagar Monika Geczo Lianna Roman Monique Rosania THOMAS DEGNAN CHEMISTRY AWARD Colton Miller DOROTHY BRANDT MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP Heather Plasencia VINCENT J. SOLLIMO MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP FRAN R. PLISKIN TRANSFER SCHOLARSHIP Cory Callahan Kathleen Dickinson VISIBLE WRITERS CREATIVE WRITING HECKER AWARD FOR INTEGRITY SCHOLARSHIP IN DENTAL HYGIENE Ciara Radwell Patricia Schueler WILMINGTON UNIVERSITY HUMAN SERVICES CLUB SCHOLARSHIP PRESIDENT’S SCHOLARSHIP Christina House Yunus Boduroglu Kelsey Moss Candidates for graduation as of May 11.