Michael R. Gorman, PhD, became Salem Community College’s eighth president on August 1, 2015. The SCC Board of Trustees elected the Carneys Point, N.J., resident after a nationwide search.
At Salem Community College, Dr. Gorman has worked to improve and expand programs and partnerships. He has become “the face of the College” in the greater community, spreading the message that SCC provides an affordable, high-quality, empowering educational opportunity.
Dr. Gorman supports several initiatives in Salem County including the Business Education Committee and the Economic Development Council. He serves on the boards of the Salem County Vocational-Technical Schools’ Educational Foundation, Stand Up for Salem, the Salem Medical Center, and the Salem County Chamber of Commerce. He chaired the Chamber’s board until December 2019. He is also president of the Rotary of Penns Grove.
He was honored with the 2017 Salem County Vocational-Technical Schools’ Educational Foundation Leadership Award. The $25,000 raised that evening created a scholarship in his name. The first Michael R. Gorman Scholarship was presented in June 2017 at the Vo-Tech’s honors ceremony.
Previously, Dr. Gorman served as superintendent of the Pemberton Township Schools in Burlington County, N.J., for eight years. Under his leadership, the district became the first academic community in the state to obtain Middle States Association of Schools district-wide accreditation. In addition, he nurtured enrollment growth through school-choice programs and unique school options with the military communities from the Joint Base McGuire/Dix/Lakehurst which have boosted enrollment. He opened the Pemberton Early Childhood Center in 2011, which now serves more than 600 students. In 2014, he was honored as the Superintendent of the Year for Burlington County and Central New Jersey.
Prior to overseeing Pemberton’s schools, Dr. Gorman was superintendent of Glassboro Public Schools (2002-2007) and deputy superintendent of schools at Salem County Vocational Technical Schools (2000-2002). While at Salem County Vocational Technical Schools, working with the academy programs, he fostered an alignment with Salem Community College through the College Acceleration Program. He helped several students obtain their Associate Degree in tandem with their high school diploma. Dr. Gorman started his administrative career as an assistant principal for four years at Woodstown High School and principal of Pennsville Memorial High School for 15 years.
He holds a Doctorate in educational leadership from Widener University, a Masters of Education from Temple University, a Bachelor’s degree from Widener, and an Associate degree from Burlington County College.