MAYS LANDING - The Atlantic Cape Community College Foundation recognized six alumni during the annual President’s Distinguished Alumni and Young Alumni Awards Dinner Thursday, April 3 at Carême’s.
Honored this year were Distinguished Alumni Award recipients Dr. Karen Brundage-Johnson ’15 and Raymond Williams ‘72; Community Service Award recipients Walter Johnson, III ’93 and Regina McCann Larsen ’74; and Young Alumni Achievement Award recipients Alana Maldonado ’18 and Chef Kyle Timpson ’16.
“This year’s President’s Distinguished Alumni Award honorees all represent our mission and serve as exemplary role models for our current and future students,” foundation Executive Director Jean McAlister said in a release. “We continue to work diligently to increase membership in our Alumni Association, a network of former Atlantic Cape students that want to build and maintain lasting relationships, engage with current students, and serve as ambassadors of Atlantic Cape and its mission.”
The President’s Distinguished Alumni Award was established in 2010 to recognize Atlantic Cape graduates that have differentiated themselves through a combination of professional, academic and community based accomplishments, and have also remained committed to supporting the college, its mission and students. The Distinguished Alumni Award Selection Committee reviews all candidates and selects the award recipients.
Atlantic Cape President Dr. Barbara Gaba acknowledged the importance of the College’s alumni and congratulated this year’s six Distinguished Alumni recipients.
"These six highly accomplished and inspiring individuals join our growing list of Distinguished Alumni who continue to serve as wonderful ambassadors of Atlantic Cape while doing great work, both professionally and philanthropically, in their communities. We are proud to honor your many achievements tonight and hope you will continue to be involved with the Foundation and the Atlantic Cape Alumni Association," Gaba said.
Brundage-Johnson holds a BA in Psychology, a MS in Management and a PhD in Education Administration. Her relationship with Atlantic Cape began in 2003 when, as Director of Human Resources at Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, she was a key partner and decision-maker in developing many successful training and education programs for Borgata team members through Atlantic Cape’s Continuing Education Department.
“Atlantic Cape has just been a wonderful place for me to invest my time to get additional education and to also support the College with all of its activities and programs,” Brundage-Johnson said. “It's just been wonderful working with everyone here who have always been very supportive. We spend a lot of time reaching out in the community to support students and to offer other programs that help to develop our community.”
Williams attended Atlantic Cape after serving in the military during the Vietnam War. He earned an AS in Business Administration in 1972, a BS in Business Studies and Finance from Stockton College in 1974 and an MBA from Monmouth University in 1979. He is an active supporter of veterans in our area, working for the Atlantic County Veterans Action Center, serving as a key member of the Veterans Peer Council and conducting fundraising events in support of veterans’ initiatives.
“After my service in Vietnam, I enrolled here at Atlantic Cape. My lovely wife, Maria, and I decided to raise our family in Atlantic County,” Williams said. “Life is good, but we would not have had the opportunity if it wasn’t for the College and the great professors that we had here in the 1970s.”
Johnson, III earned his AA degree in Liberal Arts in 1993. Since then, he has built an impressive career as an educator with over 20 years of teaching experience. His leadership and commitment to education are evident in his 13 years of service on the Atlantic City Board of Education, where he has held roles as both president and vice president and continues to serve as vice president.
“I will say that if it wasn’t for Atlantic Cape, I am not certain how far my education would have gone. It just offered so many options for me to get through my education. I took my classes and summer classes, and it worked,” Johnson said. “As an educator, I always promote Atlantic Cape as a stepping stone to move forward in any potential careers you have due to the fact that the College has all of these options for the students.”
McCann Larsen, who was unable to attend the event, graduated in 1974 with an AAS degree in Nursing and a proud member of the Buccaneers women’s basketball team. After graduating, she worked at Burdette Tomlin Memorial Hospital in Cape May Court House. Later, McCann Larsen continued taking courses at Atlantic Cape to attain additional professional credentials while also pursuing a bachelor of arts degree and School Nurse Certification at Glassboro State College (Rowan University), which she earned in 1996.
McCann Larsen’s brother, Tom, accepted the award on her behalf along with five other family members in attendance. Nine members of the McCann family siblings have graduated from Atlantic Cape over the years.
“Regina drug all of us through Atlantic Cape. We all ended up getting degrees and everybody in the family went on to getting a four-year degree. The University of Pennsylvania, Temple University, LaSalle, St. Joseph’s, Glassboro/Rowan University, Trenton (The College of New Jersey). The whole family went to school at Atlantic Cape and is, without question, the best thing that ever happened to us,” Tom McCann said.
Maldonado began attending Atlantic Cape when she was 15 years old while she was a student at COMPACT Alternative High School in Cape May Court House. She continued her education at the college after graduating high school and took a part-time job as a library assistant. In 2018, Maldonado earned an AS degree in Human Services, graduating magna cum laude. She went on to Rutgers University to pursue a BA in Social Work and will graduate this May.
“Prior to Atlantic Cape, I experienced a lot of challenges in my childhood. I experience mental health challenges, poverty and had basically given up on myself. I did not believe there was a future ahead of me. I did not believe I was smart and I did not have any self-esteem,” Maldonado said. “It wasn’t until I was in a college classroom at Atlantic Cape, a classroom full of knowledge, full of adults, that I started to believe that I could be more. Atlantic Cape provided a safe space for me because I spent hours and hours in the library studying, and it influenced me to get to the place I am today.”
Timpson, a Cape May County native who was unable to attend this event, graduated from the Academy of Culinary Arts and earned two certificates, one in Culinary Arts and the other in Baking & Pastry. He was recently crowned the winner of Hell’s Kitchen Season 23 where he was awarded $250,000 and the head chef job at the Hell’s Kitchen restaurant at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, CT.
The Distinguished Alumni Award is presented to Atlantic Cape graduates who have made significant contributions in their professional field, community and/or through humanitarian service. The Young Alumni Achievement Award is bestowed upon a graduate who is 40 years or younger and has excelled in his/her profession, made positive contributions to his/her community and remained connected to the college while supporting its mission and values.
