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Featured Photos: Scenes from the 2025 Convocation event of Blue Ridge Community College. (Photos by: Rich Keen)
By: Benjamin Rickert
Marketing & Communications Dept.
With the 2025 fall semester just a week away, Blue Ridge Community College faculty and staff gathered Monday, Aug. 11, for the College’s annual Convocation event in the Blue Ridge Conference Hall in Flat Rock. The event, marked by energy and optimism, built unity around the College’s core work to transform student lives and strengthen the workforce through education.
This year’s theme, “Rising Together,” reflected both the resilience of Western North Carolina in the wake of Hurricane Helene, and the power of collaboration in shaping the future of education through Blue Ridge.
President Dr. Laura B. Leatherwood opened the program with an address that celebrated Blue Ridge’s achievements and outlined four core strengths that she said define the institution: listening to the needs of the region, building smart partnerships, serving individuals according to their needs, and delivering education that leads to real opportunity.
“Even in the face of great challenges, we can build and rebuild stronger than before,” Dr. Leatherwood said. “When you work at Blue Ridge, you’re part of a college that’s truly leading the way.”
The program included introductions of new employees, updates on the College’s top rankings and partnerships, and a first look at the new 2025–2030 Strategic Plan. Developed through hundreds of surveys, focus groups, and community discussions, the plan is built around four pillars: Student Success, Employee Success, Community Success, and Institutional Success. The College will continue to develop and execute the plan around practical goals and measurable outcomes.
Highlights of the past year included Blue Ridge’s role in supporting first responding and recovery organizations, the launch of the Healthcare Fellows program, the opening of a $1.8 million state-of-the-art greenhouse, expanded skilled trades training funded by the Lowe’s Foundation, and hurricane recovery initiatives like the tuition-free Level Up construction program.
The event ended on a lighthearted note, as faculty and staff enjoyed a humorous, AI-generated “2000s-style rap song and power ballad” celebrating the new Strategic Plan. The song’s genre and lyrics were inspired by the plan, as well as live crowd-sourced themes submitted by employees.
Faculty and staff waved their arms and danced to the first verse of the song “Rising Together,” that read:
“From the mountains to the valleys, dreams rise in our hands,
We’re building brighter futures, got a purpose, got a plan.
Every class, every skill, every lesson we teach,
Puts success in your grasp, lifts your goals in your reach.
Integrity strong, we hold that line,
Excellence in motion, every student is gonna shine.
Responsibility, we carry that flame,
Adaptability, yeah, we play that game.
No dream too far, no road too steep,
We plant the seeds now, for the future we keep.
Changing lives for the better of our students and their families,
Yeah, that’s how we do it, building legacies.“
Dr. Leatherwood closed Convocation by thanking employees for their dedication to Blue Ridge’s mission.
“As we step into a new year, thank you for being part of this extraordinary team,” she said. “Let’s keep rising together, because our community needs us, and our students deserve nothing less.”
Below is a clip from the convocation ceremony. A presentation of the full song is also available.