Charlottesville, Va. – March 3, 2022 –Piedmont Virginia Community College (PVCC) Assistant Professor Connie Jorgensen has been awarded the 2022 American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Dale P. Parnell Distinguished Faculty award. Created in honor of former AACC President and CEO Dale P. Parnell, this national designation recognizes individuals making a significant difference in the classroom. As the primary advocacy organization for community colleges, the association represents more than 1,000 two-year, associate degree-granting institutions and six million students. Jorgensen is one of only 29 faculty members within these institutions of higher learning to receive this prestigious award. She will receive her award at the AACC Awards of Excellence Gala in New York this May.

“Once again PVCC has received a national community college award. The PVCC faculty are so dedicated to the success of our students and Connie exemplifies that in everything she does,” shared PVCC President Frank Friedman.

Recipients for this award are selected for their passion for teaching, support for students inside and outside the classroom, participation in college committees and going above and beyond to ensure students are successful in their academic endeavors.

Devoted to the College and her students, Jorgensen teaches political science and directs the PVCC Quality Enhancement Program, Civic Sense: Engaging Students in the Civic Life of Their Communities. The program helps build student leaders who have a strong commitment to democracy and diversity and who engage in the civic life of their communities through collaborative, creative and critical problem-solving. Jorgensen’s efforts and commitment repeatedly result in accolades for PVCC, including successive recognition as one of “America’s Best Colleges for Student Voting,” in Washington Monthly’s rankings, and numerous consecutive designations of PVCC as a voter friendly campus and ALL IN CHALLENGE gold seal recipient. In the 2020 voting report from the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE), conducted by Tufts University, PVCC is noted for a 9.6% campus voting rate increase, which is well above the national average.

Jorgensen also serves on the PVCC Curriculum and Instruction and One-Book committees and is a member of the College Senate. She is also active in national organizations including the Faculty Network for Student Voting Rights, Civic Virginia and the Students Learn, Students Vote Coalition.

“Receiving the Dale P. Parnell Faculty award is a tremendous honor, and I’m so grateful for it,” Jorgensen said. “Working at PVCC has given me the opportunity to collaborate with innovative and inspiring colleagues and dedicated students who motivate me every day.”

Visit www.aacc.nche.edu/about-us/awards/dale-p-parnell-faculty-distinction-recognition-2022/ to learn more about all AACC awards of excellence.

About Piedmont Virginia Community College

Established in 1972, Piedmont Virginia Community College is a nonresidential two-year institution of higher education that serves Central Virginia – principally, residents of the City of Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle, Buckingham, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, and Nelson. PVCC is one of 23 community colleges in Virginia that comprise the Virginia Community College System. PVCC is committed to providing access to a college education for all who can benefit, an opportunity for each student to reach her/his potential and excellence in all programs and services. Visit www.pvcc.edu.