Alamance Community College’s trustees voted 10-0 Monday night to name a portion of the student commons area inside the Main Building on ACC’s Graham campus as “The Dr. Algie Gatewood Atrium,” in honor of the former president’s contributions to the community college during his 10-year tenure.
Gatewood retired as president of ACC on June 30 of last year. The then-president of the Cascade Campus for Portland Community College, Gatewood returned to his native North Carolina in 2013, becoming ACC’s first black president.
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Within his first year at ACC, Gatewood secured $15 million in funding to build the Advanced Applied Technology Center, which fronts Jimmie Kerr Road at the Graham campus, and later shepherded a $39.6 million bond package to passage in November 2018.
Gatewood later oversaw the construction of a 33,000-square foot, three-story Biotechnology Center of Excellence that stands at the northwest tip of ACC’s main campus; a new student services center; a public safety training center now underway in Green Level; and numerous other renovations to the Graham campus that were funded by the 2018 bond package.
He also helped to establish 19 new curriculum programs at ACC, as well as initiatives that Gatewood had said aimed at reaching traditionally underserved populations, such as: he Medical Bridge: Minority Males in Medicine summer program for middle and high school students in the Alamance-Burlington school system; the Alamance Juvenile Opportunity Bridge (AJOB), a diversion program for first-time juvenile offenders, in conjunction with ABSS and Alamance County court officials; and the Minority Male Success Initiative, in conjunction with the state’s Community Colleges System. He was also instrumental in securing millions in grant funding and special allocations for ACC, including from the state and federal governments, during his tenure as president.
ACC’s trustees subsequently hired Dr. Ken Ingle to succeed Gatewood as president. Ingle, who previously served as the Chief Officer of Information Services at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, took over as ACC’s president earlier this year.
Near the conclusion of their meeting Monday night, ACC’s trustees entered into a closed session for approximately 10 minutes to discuss a potential “naming tribute. After reconvening in open session, they voted unanimously to approve the naming of the Student Commons in Gatewood’s honor.
Ingle confirmed for The Alamance News that the trustees will host a special event at the college to unveil The Dr. Algie Gatewood Atrium, though the date is yet to be determined. The tribute will likely feature images and other mementos of milestones reached during his tenure as ACC’s president, Ingle elaborated.
Prior to his retirement in June 2023, Gatewood told the newspaper that he planned to continue living in Alamance County.
ACC trustees Mark Gordon and Sylvia Munoz were absent from the meeting Monday night.
