RCC Celebrates 3rd Annual Unity In Community Festival

Press release from Rockland Community College:

ROCKLAND COUNTY, N.Y. (April 18, 2023) – Rockland Community College has organized the third annual Unity in Community: Rising as One Festival, which includes events and activities that highlight and honor the collaboration, passion and compassion that boosts RCC’s community spirit. The idea for Unity in Community was conceptualized in 2021 by RCC’s Patricia Maloney-Titland, Program Director of Visual and Performing Arts, Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of the Rockland Shakespeare Company, and a SUNY Distinguished Service Professor.

“The inaugural Unity in Community Festival in 2021 brought our community together during unprecedented times and I’m so proud to see the tradition continue into its third year,” says Dr. Susan Deer, RCC’s Officer in Charge. “The series of events and activities celebrates the talents of our students, faculty and staff and engages the community. The festival is a reflection of how our RCC professional family joins together to strengthen each other. I look forward to performances, readings, speakers, and other exciting programming the Committee has lined up for this year!”

The Festival includes theatrical performances, food festivals, historical event discussions, and more. Events and activities will also highlight the creativity of RCC students, faculty, staff, and the community. This year’s event will kick off with an Earth Day Celebration on April 20th, 12 pm – 2 pm on the College’s Suffern campus. There will be a Grand Reopening Ceremony of the Cultural Arts Center Theatre on April 27th at 7 pm, following much needed renovations, including new seating, carpeting, and curtains. The Ceremony and Ribbon Cutting will be followed by SOMETHING ROTTEN! at 8 pm, presented by the Visual and Performing Arts Department, Campus Players and the Rockland Shakespeare Company. Visit the website for more information and to purchase tickets: https://sunyrockland.edu/event/something-rotten-2/

RCC student art work will be celebrated at the Impulse 2023 – the student art magazine – Launch Party on April 26th at 3 pm. The Art Department and Art Club is hosting “Empty Bowls” where handmade bowls and beads can be purchased to benefit the feeding ministries at Christ’s Church in Suffern, on April 25th, 12 pm – 2:30pm. Open Mic at the World-Famous Casa Jam at Casa del Sol in Nyack on April 20th, 7 pm – 11:30 pm, will feature local musicians, including RCC students and faculty.

The festival will culminate with the Living Out Loud Series with Professor Anita Hill, J.D., on May 7th, 5 pm – 7 pm in RCC’s Cultural Arts Center Theatre. Professor Hill will discuss her award-winning book, Believing: Our Thirty-Year Journey to End Gender Violence. Visit the website to learn more and purchase tickets: https://sunyrockland.edu/event/living-out-loud-series/

About Rockland Community College, State University of New York sunyrockland.edu.

This press release was produced by Rockland Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.