Portrait of Iain Pangburn

Young business owner was learning to weld before he could drive

Iain Pangburn was born and raised in Grants Pass. His early education was mostly homeschool and charter schools, but when he was 15, he got tired of the high school curriculum and took a placement test at Rogue Community College. At first, he pursued welding. Iain had always liked the idea of building things and knew he didn’t want an office job. After meeting a...

whitney

After losing her home in Almeda fire, mom-to-be pursues two degrees to build a better future for her family

For 14 years, Whitney Barnard has worked in design. Now, she’s at Rogue Community College in order to get into a more highly-paid position. She knows she needs a design and digital media degree to get promoted, but also has leadership aspirations. That’s why she’s pursuing two degrees at once at Rogue: one for design and digital media and one for business and marketing to...

Portrait of Marcus Cox

RCC Veterans Services helps ease the transition from military to college student

Enrolling in college can be daunting, even to a U.S. Marine. After four years in the service, Cpl. Marcus Cox was ready to hit the books but felt overwhelmed by the admissions and registration process. Navigating college almost seemed like too much for the young veteran. “In the service, you’re always told where and when you gotta show up,” he explained. The connection Cox found...

Gene DuPuy

Sea Grant Fellow tutors RCC students in science; they started college at RCC

Genevieve DePuy was 15 years old when they took their first class at Rogue Community College. It was an online class—a decade ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic. “I liked the flexibility,” Gene said, “I could go to high school and then come home and take my RCC class online at my own pace.”   Over the next three years, RCC’s flexibility remained a huge draw for...