RCSJ Cumberland celebrates 400 graduates in first ceremony for president Rickards

Rowan College of South Jersey’s Cumberland Campus sent about 400 graduates into Cumberland County’s next workforce phase, marking the first commencement led by President Dr. Brenden Rickards. The seventh annual ceremony on May 14 at 6 p.m. awarded degrees and certificates to the Class of 2026, with families, friends, local officials, faculty and staff filling the campus to celebrate a class that will matter far beyond graduation night.

For Rickards, who was named the college’s second president on Jan. 20 after serving as interim president and chief academic officer, the ceremony doubled as an early public measure of how RCSJ plans to serve Vineland and the rest of the county. His inauguration is scheduled for Sept. 29, but the more immediate question is what happens after the caps and gowns come off: who stays, who transfers, and who steps straight into local jobs.

Marisol P., a first-generation student and the commencement speaker, gave the evening its clearest personal note by praising classmates for hard work and perseverance. Her presence reflected the college’s broader role in Cumberland County, where RCSJ–Cumberland is one of the key gateways into higher education, workforce training and transfer pathways. For some graduates, that means moving on to a four-year school. For others, it means staying in the county and entering work without leaving home.

That local choice matters in a county where health care, retail trade and manufacturing remain major employers. RCSJ says its Workforce Development operation serves both the Gloucester and Cumberland campuses, and its Nursing & Health Professions division offers degree and certificate programs aimed at in-demand healthcare careers. The county’s own Division of Employment & Training, at 3322 College Drive in Vineland, is part of a workforce system built to connect job seekers with employment and training opportunities.

The college had already laid out the logistics around the ceremony, requiring Cumberland graduates to RSVP by May 1 and return on May 13 for a graduation barbecue and mandatory rehearsal before the May 14 event. Gloucester’s ceremony followed on May 15 at 11 a.m., but in Cumberland the larger story was the pipeline itself: a class of roughly 400 graduates now positioned to fill local openings, continue their education, or bring new skills back into the county’s economy.