GCC Foundation Establishes Wanda Gibbs Memorial Scholarship/ Fellowship

(January 2023) The GCC Foundation recently established the Wanda Y. Gibbs “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” Memorial Scholarship/Fellowship, named to honor a lifelong educator, mentor, community activist, and advocate for students who passed away in early July 2022.

With their generous contribution to the Foundation, her daughter, and Connecticut State Colleges and Universities employee Tanya Gibbs-Scott, and her family seek to help Riverside Education Academy graduates. They must have documented merit or financial need and be enrolled in a degree or certificate program at Gateway Community College.

Friends and colleagues are invited to support this exceptional opportunity to decrease barriers for some of New Haven’s most vulnerable students.

“My mother was a gifted teacher and educator who devoted her life to education,” said Gibbs-Scott. “She invested her heart and soul in the young people whose lives she touched. She knew they deserved every opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed, and she would be thrilled to see her legacy continue so meaningfully.”

Born in Albermarle, N.C., Wanda Gibbs relocated to New Haven in 1965. She entered New Haven public schools and completed her under- and post-graduate degrees and certifications at Quinnipiac University, New Hampshire College, Fairfield University, and Southern Connecticut State University. She began her educational career in West Haven. She later joined the New Haven Board of Education, holding increasingly responsible teaching and administrative positions over the years. She was Principal of Riverside Education Academy from 1994 until her retirement. She later returned to education and served as Interim Principal of West Rock Stream Academy and Troup Middle School, and Principal on Special Assignment at Wexler-Grant Elementary School.

“Wanda was a fearless champion for children and her community,” said Thomas Beirne III, GCC Foundation Board Chair. “We’re proud to honor her memory and achievements and to continue her legacy. We invite those who knew her to join us in that effort.”

To donate by check to this scholarship/fellowship fund, mail your contribution in memory of Wanda Gibbs to Gateway Community College Foundation, 20 Church Street, New Haven, CT 06510, or give online at https://gatewayfdn.org/donate.