Top Community College in NJ
Raritan Valley Community College has been named the #1 Community College in New Jersey by WalletHub.com, Intelligent.com, and CollegeEvaluator.com. Intelligence.com gave RVCC an extremely high Intelligence Score of 99.37.
#1 Ranking for Sustainability Efforts
RVCC has been rated as the top community college in the United States for its sustainability efforts by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System, measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education. RVCC received a STARS Gold rating from AASHE. This is the 10th year in a row that RVCC has been recognized nationally for its sustainability efforts by AASHE. RVCC is also rated the #1 community college in the United States—with a perfect score—for water use.
Anne Frank Tree Sapling
RVCC is one of six new U.S. recipients of a sapling that was grown from the horse chestnut tree that towered behind Anne Frank’s Secret Annex in Amsterdam. During the Holocaust, Anne and her family hid in the Annex for more than two years, and she mentions the tree in her diary on several occasions. The sapling is a gift of Anne Frank Center USA, and the planting project is being supported through the College’s Institute of Holocaust and Genocide Studies.
ALL In Recognition
RVCC President Michael J. McDonough has been recognized nationally as the “Standout President” by the 2023 ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge. He is one of two recipients in the country honored as a Standout President or Chancellor of a college or university. Dr. McDonough also has been named to the Presidents’ Council of the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge in 2024. In that role, Dr. McDonough joins a group of 13 college and university presidents across the country charged with supporting senior leaders in higher education to foster nonpartisan democratic engagement on their campuses.
The ALL IN Awards highlight exemplary leadership in helping advance undergraduate student democratic engagement, including nonpartisan civic learning, political engagement, and voter participation.
Carnegie Community Engagement Classification
The Pray Family Center for Service Learning and Civic Engagement at RVCC has earned national recognition from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. RVCC is one of 40 U.S. colleges and universities receiving the 2024 Carnegie Community Engagement Classification, an elective designation that indicates institutional commitment to community engagement. RVCC is one of only three community colleges, and the only New Jersey college, to receive this classification in 2024.
PTK Honors
RVCC’s chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society received several top honors at spring 2024 conventions. RVCC’s chapter was ranked #1 for its College Project and Honors in Action Project and also was named Most Distinguished Chapter at the Middle States Regional Convention. In addition, Dr. Sara Banfield and Janelle Bitter were recognized as a Distinguished Advisor Team.
The honors continued at the International Catalyst Convention, where RVCC’s chapter was recognized with the Distinguished College Project and Distinguished Honors in Action Project, as well as the Beta Alpha Award for Continued Excellence. The Beta Alpha prize is awarded to chapters ranked as the top 50 Distinguished Chapters for three years in a row. Advisors Banfield and Bitter again were recognized as a Distinguished Advisor Team, and the chapter was ranked 4th Runner Up to Most Distinguished Chapter.
Newman Civic Fellow
RVCC student Kambiz Roghanchi has been named a Newman Civic Fellow by Campus Compact. Roghanchi joins a group of student civic leaders from 38 states, Washington, D.C., and Mexico who are being recognized for their leadership potential and commitment to creating positive change in communities
Roghanchi volunteers for Myositis Support and Understanding, a nonprofit that aids people with the muscular autoimmune disease, and assists elderly with the Adult Day Center of Somerset County. He also led “Teens for Refugees,” a group of 12 students who welcomed a Syrian refugee family, and served as a translator for Afghan refugees who resettled in New Jersey. In addition, Roghanchi runs a monthly book club, Myositis Reads, and presented an online seminar, “Risk V. Benefit,” addressing his decision to join a clinical trial. He also represented Dermatomyositis patients in a discussion with the FDA on access to treatment.
CNN Hero
RVCC graduate Osei Boateng (Class of 2016) was selected as one of 2023’s Top 10 CNN Heroes for his international humanitarian service. The Ghana native is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of OKB Hope Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to bringing healthcare to the doorsteps of rural and underserved communities in Ghana using a mobile medical unit. After graduating from RVCC, Boateng received undergraduate and graduate degrees from Cornell University.
