Community Colleges: 2025 Year in Review & 2026 Trends to Watch

Dr. John Rainone - President of  Mountain Gateway CC 

On July 8, 2013, Dr. John J. Rainone became the fourth president of Mountain Gateway Community College. He brings over 35 years of experience as a teacher, administrator, and chief executive officer to this College.

Dr. Rainone received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Southern New Hampshire University and earned a doctoral degree from Nova Southeastern University. He is a first-generation college student and the first member of his family to earn an advanced degree. He is also a graduate of the League for Innovation Executive Institute and completed the Harvard University Seminar for First-Year Presidents.

A native of Providence, Rhode Island, he served in business and education as the training and education administrator for the New Hampshire Technical College at Manchester. He was on the founding team to build the newly created York County Community College (Maine) where he served the college for 18 years in various senior-level positions in workforce development, academic affairs, finance, and institutional advancement.

A passion of Dr. Rainone’s is teaching, and he brings over 33 years as an adjunct faculty member at the undergraduate and graduate levels in the areas of business research methods, teaching at the college level, nonprofit management, organizational behavior and leadership and fundraising and development.

Dr. Rainone serves as the Immediate Past-Chair of the Rural Community College Alliance Board of Directors and has served as a Board of Director for the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), Chair of the Commission on Small and Rural Colleges, and a member of AACC's Task Force on Apprenticeships. He is the immediate past Chief Volunteer Officer for the Alleghany YMCA, and immediate past Chair of the Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce & Tourism. He is a member of the Western Virginia Workforce Board, Virginia Foundation for Community College Education, Valley Innovations Council, Roanoke Regional Partnership, Alleghany Highlands Economic Development Corporation, and the Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Planning Commission. He is also the past Chair of the Board for Lewis-Gale Hospital Alleghany, is an honorary board member of the Historic Masonic Theatre, and a 25-year member of Rotary International. Rainone also serves as the Virginia Community College Statewide Chair for Phi Theta Kappa International (PTK) Society.

In 2016, Dr. Rainone was awarded the “Emerging Leadership” Award from AACC as well as received the “Giving Back” Diversity Leadership Award from Insight into Diversity magazine. In 2021, Rainone was named "Entrepreneurial President of the Year" by the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship.

In addition, he received the Alumni Distinguished Service Award from Southern New Hampshire University, was recognized by the Seacoast (Maine and New Hampshire) Media Group as a “Mover and Shaker”, and as the Rotarian of the Decade by Rotary District 7780. In addition, Rainone has raised over $60 million in his career as a chief advancement officer and executive.

He is an honorary member of PTK and has held the distinction of being a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) since 2007.

Dr. Christopher M. Reber - President of Hudson County CC

Dr. Christopher M. Reber has devoted his entire career to higher education.  On July 1, 2018, he became the eighth president of Hudson County Community College (HCCC) in Jersey City, Union City, and Secaucus, New Jersey.  Located in one of the most densely populated and diverse areas of the United States, HCCC serves more than 24,000 credit and noncredit students and 1,000 employees annually on three urban campuses near New York City.

Dr. Reber is leading and supporting the College’s engagement in local, regional and national partnerships that support transformative, life-changing opportunities for students and the community.  He is committed to transparency and the full participation of students, faculty, staff and community members in the life of the College.  Dr. Reber continues to lead for excellence and outcomes that have attracted local, statewide and national recognition.  The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) named him Community College CEO of the Year in 2024.

Dr. Reber has led the development of the Hudson County Community College 2024-29 Strategic Plan.  Entitled “The Community’s College: Embracing Our History, Shaping Our Future,” the plan is focused on HCCC’s mission to provide its diverse communities with inclusive, high-quality educational programs and services that promote student success and upward social and economic mobility. The College’s values are anchored to its growing culture of care, which has resulted in students coining the phrase, “Hudson is Home!,” the College’s tagline.

Prior to arriving at HCCC, Dr. Reber served as president of Community College of Beaver County (CCBC) near Pittsburgh, PA, where he led new initiatives in support of a student-centered learning environment; institutional engagement and excellence; strategic enrollment management; regional partnerships; and a culture of planning, assessment and improvement.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Reber served for 12 years as Executive Dean of Venango College of Clarion University of Pennsylvania, where he supported the development of new programs and stackable credentials including certificates, associate degrees, applied baccalaureates and graduate degrees.  Dr. Reber led the development and approval of Clarion University’s first doctoral degree in nursing practice.

Dr. Reber’s career also includes 18 years at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, where he served as the Chief Development, University Relations and Alumni Relations Officer during a successful $50 million capital campaign within a $1.3 billion university-wide campaign; and as Chief Student Affairs Officer during a period of significant college growth.  

Dr. Reber holds a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson College, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa; a master’s degree from Bowling Green State University, where he was named Graduate Student of the Year; and a Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh.  He also holds a post-graduate certificate from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education.

Dr. Reber lives in Kearny, New Jersey, with his husband, Kerry Stetler and their two Boston Terriers, Greta and Gilda.  He is the father of Jonathan Reber, 29, an avid fly fisherman living in Colorado and pursuing a degree in automative technology at Front Range Community College; and Katherine Reber, 27, a recent graduate of University of Cambridge (UK) and Kenyon College, who is currently pursuing doctoral studies in English at Duke University.

Dr. Anne M. Kress - President of Northern Virginia CC

Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), one of the largest community colleges in the nation, serving more than 70,000 students across six campuses. A champion for student success, she has over three decades of experience in higher education leadership.

Dr. Kress is actively engaged in national and regional policy and advocacy efforts. She is vice chair of the American Council on Education board, serves on the board of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metro Area, and is a member of the Virginia Council of Presidents. She serves on the boards of multiple Greater Washington and Virginia organizations, including the Capital Area Food Bank, Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Northern Virginia Technology Council, and Leadership Greater Washington. She is also a member of the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., the Greater Washington Board of Trade, and M&T Bank’s Greater Washington Directors’ Advisory Council.

Dr. Kress has testified before Congress on issues impacting community colleges and participated as a negotiator in federal rulemaking on higher education policy. Her leadership has been recognized with the 2024 Association of Community College Trustees Outstanding CEO Award for the Southern Region. She has been named to lists of the Virginia Business 500; Washington Business Journal Power 100; Washingtonian 250 Most Powerful Women; and 50 Most Influential Northern Virginians.

Dr. Kress earned bachelor’s degrees in finance and English, a master’s in English, and a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration—all from the University of Florida.

Dr. Tracy Kruse - VP of Development & External Affairs at Northeast CC

As vice president of development and external affairs, Dr. Tracy Kruse oversees the college's resource development, grants, alumni, and state and federal governmental relations activities. Additionally, she serves as the executive director of the Northeast Community College Foundation, working directly with a 23-member Foundation Board of Directors, as well as executive director of the Community College Alliance for Agriculture Advancement, a national 501c3 dedicated to supporting growth in agriculture programming at two-year institutions. Kruse leads a division that has raised nearly $100 million to support scholarships, programs, facilities, and other grant-funded initiatives since joining the team in 2013.

She has nearly 30 years of experience in marketing, communications, fundraising and advocacy. Prior to joining Northeast, she was employed at Northeast Iowa Community College as executive director of external relations. Kruse earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations and Communications, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Northern Iowa and a Doctor of Philosophy in Education Leadership and Policy from Iowa State University. 

Kruse has served in multiple volunteer capacities nationally, including currently as president-elect of the National Council for Workforce Education (NCWE); and she recently served as an advisory member for the U.S./Canada Regional Council for CASE (The Council for Advancement and Support of Education). Locally and statewide, she is a board member of the Nebraska State Chamber, serving both as chair of the education policy council and chair of the Leadership Nebraska Advisory Council. She also serves on the governmental affairs council for the Norfolk Area Chamber of Commerce and is a committee member of the Norfolk Area Community Foundation Fund. She received the 2024 AACC Rising Star – Executive Award and was the recipient of the Community Engagement Award from the Rural Community College Alliance in 2025.