Atlantic Cape Community College’s Court House campus, which opened in 2005, is opening its doors on Saturday, Oct. 11, for a public celebration of its 20th anniversary.
Planned activities will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will include an opening ceremony, live music, salsa dance lessons, food trucks, vendors and Zoo-to-You presentations by the Cape May County Zoo. All events are free.
Krista McConnell, director of Cape May County Campus and Community Outreach for Atlantic Cape, said this is a community event for families and a chance for anyone to experience the campus.
“It’s a family fun event, but the building, also, is a large part of the community,” McConnell said. “It’s definitely a college, but it provides other services for the community.”
The event is being co-sponsored by the Puerto Rican Action Committee, which also is highlighting Hispanic Heritage Month at the college. The event will feature a Hispanic band and DJ.
McConnell added that free food, including Hispanic food, would be featured.
“We have been trying to find a meaningful way to partner with PRAC [Puerto Rican Action Committee], and this is a more organic way, given the timing,” she said.
McConnell said opening the campus was a “heavy lift,” but with the 20th anniversary celebration the college is seeing positive signs, including the return of the culinary arts program. She said that after two years off, the program has enough enrollment – up double digits for the fall semester – to be offered at the Court House campus.
Rep. Jeff Van Drew, who as a county freeholder fought for a Cape May County branch of ACCC, said not everyone was onboard with the project when it was floated.
“There were plenty of people who thought it couldn’t be done, but we proved that when there’s a will, there’s a way,” Van Drew said. “I’m proud to see what it has become, and to see it thriving 20 years later. The things we promised back then have come to life, and it’s rewarding to see the students and the community benefit from it.”
The campus is at 341 Court House-South Dennis Road in Cape May Court House.
