Camden County College officially opened the Cougar Esports Arena at the Williams G. Rohrer Center in Cherry Hill on January 27.

The 1600 square foot state-of-the-art Cougar Esports Arena was constructed to host in-person intercollegiate esports league activities and academic programming. There are currently 12 Cougar Esports teams: Valorant, Rocket League, Counter Strike: Global Offensive, League of Legends, Super Smash Brothers, Madden Football, Apex, Hearthstone, Call of Duty: Warzone, NBA 2K23, Overwatch 2 & Rainbow Six: Siege, competing in 2 intercollegiate leagues (NACE and NJCAAe) supporting over 50 student-athletes and broadcasters.

Camden County College’s new Cougar Esports program gives College and local community members the opportunity to play video games competitively while providing dedicated career pathways in esports-related fields. The popularity of professional esports is now surging, and today millions of followers are watching esports events on live, streaming platforms. Cougar Esports is excited to support these efforts and help prepare our students for the esports jobs of tomorrow, today.

The College will offer an Esports Production Associate of Applied Science degree int the Fall 2023 Semester. Camden County College will be the first in the region to offer a 2-year Esports Production degree. This degree was designed with Horizon AVL Esports Integration, a Blackwood-based company that has worked with over 100 institutions nationwide for esports integration. Program goals include preparing students for careers in the esports industry, developing production skills in esports, understanding the business of the esports industry, and discussing social in esports. The degree will prepare students for career opportunities in esports event planning, networking, cybersecurity, video, and audio production.

The Cougar Esports teams have competed against several 2-year and 4-year colleges and universities. Notable matches so far have included – Cornell, Marquette, U. of Miami, West Virginia, DePaul, Drexel, Iowa State, Florida State, Randolph-Macon, U. of Cincinnati, Rochester Institute of Technology. Playoff appearances over the past year have included Smash, NBA2K, CS:GO, COD, Rocket League & Valorant. A variety of matches and events are streamed live weekly via Twitch.

Upcoming events at the Cougar Esports Arena include the annual Camden County Cougar Esports High School Invitational, and a variety of esports camps and boot camp opportunities this summer. The arena will host monthly open houses for the public to tour the space and to learn more esports.
 

Left to right – Cherry Hill Mayor Susan Shin Angulo, Commissioner Melinda Kane, Commissioner Al Dyer, President Lovell Pugh-Bassett, Congressman Donald Norcross, Vice President David Edwards, Board of Trustees Member Jessica Stewart, Assemblyman Bill Moen, Board of Trustees Member Anthony Maressa

Dr. Lovell Pugh-Bassett was installed as the sixth president of Camden County College on October 14, 2022. She is the first person of color to lead the College in its 56-year history.

“This is an important day in the history of Camden County College, and I congratulate Dr. Pugh-Bassett on her installation,” said Commissioner Deputy Director Ed McDonnell, liaison to Camden County College. “Her strong background, wealth of knowledge, and powerful skill sets make her uniquely qualified to serve as the College’s next president.”

Dr. Pugh-Bassett has served as the Vice President of Institutional Effectiveness, Advancement, and Strategic Initiatives at Camden County College since August of 2019. This marked her return to higher education after 20 years with the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), having served in a number of capacities culminating in the role of Camden County Executive County Superintendent of Schools.

“Her presidency is not only historic for the College, her exceptional leadership skills and dedication to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in education will greatly benefit Camden County College for years to come,” said John Hanson, Chair of the College’s Board of Trustees. “Throughout her career she has worked hard to ensure that all voices are heard in every role she takes.”

Dr. Pugh-Bassett’s professional introduction to education began in higher education where she served as an instructor and program coordinator for the Math/Science Upward Bound Program at Temple University. After years with Temple, she served as the program director for Upward Bound at the Community College of Philadelphia and transitioned to her work in K-12 at the NJDOE.

“Camden County College not only provides the most affordable education in the region, it is also a great community partner, as demonstrated during the pandemic. When the county needed a location for our vaccination center, the college stepped up right away,” said Commissioner Virginia Ruiz-Betteridge. “I am confident that Dr. Pugh-Bassett will build on those community partnerships and create new ones.”

Her philosophy of leadership and education is the idea of merging education with advocacy. Her mission can be summed up appropriately as, “I slept and I dreamed that life is all joy. I woke and I saw that life is all service. I served and I saw that service is joy.” Dr. Pugh-Bassett believes that her positioning at Camden County College reflects the essence of her core commitment to community and considers herself fortunate to yet again be given an opportunity to work and serve. She believes that it is, after all, the inherent mission of a community college in its service to its community.

“There is a part to play for all of us in impacting and changing the lives of those we serve. We can only dream that we are able to have an opportunity to use our gift to impact our work,” Pugh-Bassett said. “I am fortunate that my gifts don’t force me to silo my contributions into separate buckets. At Camden County College I am able to merge my passions so that my advocacy can manifest itself in my professional universe.”

Camden County College is one of the largest community colleges in New Jersey and ranks among the top nationwide in terms of associate degree graduates. Thanks to its technology-rich physical resources – located in Blackwood, Camden and Cherry Hill – and its highly-qualified, dedicated employees, the College has created a tradition of quality education and a reputation of agile, responsive service. Camden County College sustains a vibrant academic community characterized by imaginative teaching, caring student services, energetic management and collegial discussion of diverse ideas and opinions. Register for classes at www.camdencc.edu

View the Installation

Camden County College marked twenty-one years since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Members of the College Community gathered to honor the civilians, first responders, and service members who lost their lives on that fateful day and in the subsequent War on Terror.

Members of local Police and Law Enforcement Agencies, Fire Departments, EMS Squads and United States Military Personnel traveled in procession around the Blackwood Campus on Friday, September 9 at noon. The procession ended at the flagpole in front of Taft Hall for a flag raising ceremony by the Camden County Police Academy Cadets.

Reflections on 9/11 from Dr. Pugh-Bassett

I will never forget the day I received a call from my mom who worked only blocks away from the World Trade Center telling me that a plane had crashed into the first tower. My heart sunk, I was still, without words, without the ability to grapple with a reaction. The best I could do was to hurriedly rush back to my cubicle and google a news report to see the images in real time. Then the second plane hit. At that moment my mom, who was evacuating, and was supposed to call me back when she got to safety, could not be reached. The phone lines were down. My dad, who also worked close to the towers could not be reached.

As the central point of contact for most in the family, it was no surprise that everyone seemed to be trying to reach me at once to find out any intel I had on my mom and dad. I gave the information that I could give as I attempted to calm frantic family members only to get a call from my cousin who advised me that her fiancé was on the plane. No words could describe the feeling I felt at that moment. Now three family members impacted, one of whom we were convinced had perished, are unaccounted for and I am in Trenton watching my home town, the city that shaped who I am, go up in flames.

It wasn’t long before I realized that I was experiencing significant trauma and panic but I had to pull it together. I had to create a phone chain where I was the central point of communication so that we can ensure that all family members got the information they needed as soon as we could get it. My mom finally called to let me know she was safe. I finally found my dad. And my soon to be cousin-in-love…. well, he missed his flight and ended up in Chicago. My anxiety quickly shifted from the worry of my family to the compassion for my beloved city. The skyline will never be the same again. 9/11 is very personal to me.

As I watched the story unfold, I heard reports of hundreds of thousands of first responders including EMT, Paramedics, Police and Fire, along with National Guard personnel who sprang into action, traveling hours – days even, to pitch in to help. Some perished that day, some succumbed to their sacrifice days, months and years later. Some were on the scene immediately and others helping with the aftermath. All collectively weaving into the fabric of the humanity of who we are.

To commemorate the service of those who responded, some of whom paid the ultimate price on 9/11, we are asking you to join us and those first responders who serve our campus community on 9/9/22 along the Alumni Drive for a moment of silence to honor all those who perished, those who perished in service, those who served whose lives will be forever changed, their families, their friends and their loved ones. We stand to honor the homes that were broken, the friendships that were lost, the businesses that never recovered, the city that finally “slept.” We ask that you step out of your offices and classrooms to respect the business owners that never were, the lawyers that would’ve been, the mothers that never bore. We will honor them all by quietly gathering together in remembrance of that day.

Dr. Pugh-Bassett, President
Camden County College