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Stop in for a Winter Warm-up to Spring Semester
Although spring semester at Bucks County Community College launches in midwinter, a new event in early January welcomes new and returning students to cozy up to new opportunities.
“At the Winter Warm-up to Spring Semester, students can meet with an advisor, take placement tests, learn about financial aid, register for classes, and much more,” said Joe Guiffre, Interim Director of Advising at the public, two-year college. “You can get a selfie with Brutus, our Centurion mascot, and sip some hot cocoa, all while getting ready to advance your academic career.”
College staff will be available to help students fill out the free application, choose courses, and navigate the registration and payment processes, added Guiffre. The open-admission college offers associate degrees and certificates, with most credits transferable to a four-year college or university.
The Winter Warm-up to Spring Semester takes place Monday – Friday, January 5-16, in-person and online. Classes begin January 21, February 9 and March 3.
To reserve your spot, visit the academic advising webpage. The times and locations are as follows.
January 5: Noon – 3:30 p.m., Gateway Center on the Newtown Campus, 275 Swamp Rd., Newtown, Pa., 18940
January 6: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., Upper Bucks Campus, One Hillendale Dr., Perkasie, Pa., 18944 and online via Zoom
January 7: 1 – 6 p.m., Gateway Center, Newtown Campus
January 8: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., Gene and Marlene Epstein Campus at Lower Bucks, 1304 Veterans Highway, Bristol, Pa., 19007 and online via Zoom
January 9: 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., Gateway Center, Newtown Campus
January 12: 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., Gateway Center, Newtown Campus
January 13: 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., Upper Bucks Campus and online via Zoom
January 14: 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., Gateway Center, Newtown Campus
January 15: 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., Epstein Campus at Lower Bucks and online via Zoom
January 16: 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., Gateway Center, Newtown Campus
For more information, email advising@bucks.edu or call 215-968-8031.
Gene and Marlene Epstein: Opening Doors for Generations
When philanthropists Gene and Marlene Epstein talk about giving, they do not start with the size of a gift or the recognition attached to it. They start with the question that Gene’s grandmother always asked and has guided decades of their generosity:
“When you have enough to pay your bills and put food on the table you must do everything you can to help those less fortunate.”
This philosophy is now shaping one of the most ambitious scholarship programs in Bucks County history.
Through a new multi-year commitment, the Epsteins have established the Epstein Scholarship Fund, pledging $100,000 a year for 10 years to support 100 scholarships annually at Bucks County Community College. The scholarships are focused on students who may not otherwise envision college as part of their future: students who doubt they belong on a college campus, or who are one financial setback away from saying, “Maybe later,” and never pursuing their dream of higher education.
Gene’s goal is simple:
“I hope these students get an education and better their lives. If that happens, the next generation will be better off too. And that’s how change sticks.”
For Bucks County Community College, the impact is transformative; not only because of the size and scale of the $1 million commitment over the next decade, but because of what it signals.
This is more than generosity—it's community leadership. An investment in Bucks County Community College is an investment in the broader community. Gene and Marlene are demonstrating what is possible when people partner with the College to provide access to education. The Epstein Scholarship Fund helps local residents pursue education that improves their lives and strengthens Bucks County. -Dr. Patrick M. Jones, President and CEO, Bucks County Community College
The Epsteins do not see the scholarship fund as charity. They see it as investment in potential, one that will ripple forward for decades.
A Lifetime Rooted in the Practice of Helping
Gene’s belief in giving back began long before business success, community leadership, or recognition. It began behind the counter of a small candy store in North Philadelphia.
His grandparents, Rose and Max Lipshutz, owned Maxwell Cut Rate, the only Jewish-owned shop in a predominantly Catholic neighborhood. The store sold candy, aspirin, and a handful of household staples. Across the street stood the Church of the Incarnation, where many parishioners struggled to afford even basic food and medicine.
Despite enduring vandalism, including swastikas painted on the storefront, Gene’s grandparents donated to the church regularly. One day, when he was still young, his grandmother explained why:
“When you have enough to get by, everything beyond that should go toward helping someone else.”
That message became part of Gene’s identity.
“It’s in my genes,” he says with a laugh. “Not ‘jeans’ — ‘genes’! My parents and grandparents lived that way. It’s just how we were taught to move through the world.”
Giving With Purpose, Not Just Generosity
The Epsteins’ history of giving spans decades, but it follows a consistent framework:
Identify a barrier that keeps people from stability or opportunity.
Create a practical solution, not a temporary fix.
Require accountability, follow-through, and measurable impact.
If an organization cannot demonstrate effectiveness, transparency, or efficiency, Gene walks away.
“We first look at the end goal,” he explains. “Then we ask: How efficient is the organization? How well is the money being used? And most importantly: what results can actually be seen?”
The results of that approach are evident throughout the region.
Project HOME
The Epsteins’ involvement with Project HOME spans back to the late 1980s when Gene, Marlene, along with their son and daughter, distributed coats, boots, mittens, and socks in Center City Philadelphia with Gene dressed as Santa Claus.
Since then, the Epsteins have supported numerous Project HOME initiatives:
Affordable housing projects, including the Ruth Williams House at the Gene & Marlene Epstein Building, an 80-unit residential building offering stability, community, and support.
Drug treatment and recovery services including the Epstein Street Medicine Program, a mobile health initiative for those unsheltered primarily in Kensington
Job readiness and workforce programs
“It’s not about handing someone something and walking away,” Gene says. “It’s about helping them rebuild a life.”
Wheelz 2 Work
The Epsteins’ focus on practical, life-changing solutions is perhaps best illustrated by one of Gene’s earliest initiatives — Wheelz 2 Work.
Created in partnership with the Bucks County Opportunity Council, the program addressed a simple truth — without reliable transportation, people can’t work, even if jobs are available.
Gene not only designed the program, he also built momentum behind it. He donated the first car, the 50th, the 100th, and even the 500th vehicle, a Jaguar. To encourage car donations, Gene offered the public an additional $1,000 on top of the standard tax deduction if they donated a reliable vehicle. The response was overwhelming.
To date, the program has distributed well over 500 cars to individuals and families who needed transportation to secure employment and stability.
When Bucks entered the initiative into a national competition sponsored by Walmart founder Sam Walton and Students in Free Enterprise (now Enactus), Wheelz 2 Work won first place out of 90 colleges and universities nationwide.
“It proved what we already believed,” Gene says. “If you remove barriers, people succeed.”
Early Scholarship Support at Bucks
Long before the 1,000-scholarship initiative, the Epsteins were already investing in Bucks students.
Beginning in 2007, the Gene and Marlene established the Bridges to Higher Education Scholarships which helped Bucks students access college and stay enrolled. Later, the Epsteins supported a series of 100 scholarships of $1,000 each for students in Lower Bucks County, ensuring more students could remain enrolled without financial strain.
Many of these recipients were:
First-generation college students
Working parents
Adults retraining for new careers
Students returning after setbacks
“The biggest challenges are rarely academic,” Marlene notes. “They’re financial, logistical, or emotional.”
The new scholarship fund continues that legacy, with scale.
It’s also worth noting that the College’s Lower Bucks Campus, which opened in 2006 in Bristol Township, was renamed the Gene and Marlene Epstein Campus at Lower Bucks in 2016 to commemorate a generous donation from the Epstein Humanitarian Fund. After the campus expanded with the construction of the Center for Advanced Technologies in 2022, a new sign was unveiled in 2025 bearing the Epstein’s names.
The Epstein Scholarship Fund: A Vision for Generational Change
Beginning in 2025, the Epstein Scholarship Fund will:
Support 100 students each year.
Prioritize those who may never have pursued college otherwise.
Focus on closing financial gaps that prevent enrollment or persistence.
Gene sees Bucks County Community College, not a four-year university, as the strategic point of access.
“Technical education, workforce programs, robotics, advanced manufacturing, AI - this is what the future needs,” he says. “And Bucks is uniquely positioned to offer that. If we can get students to take the first step, the rest is possible.”
This gift is a catalyst—it expands access, raises expectations, and makes the dream of education real for students who may have never pictured themselves here. -Karen O’Donnell, Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Relations
Encouraging Others to Give
While some donors prefer privacy, the Epsteins believe visibility is essential in order to normalize giving, to lead by example, and most importantly, to inspire others.
Gene learned this lesson from Donald W. Griffin, an influential Princeton alumnus and philanthropist, who told him, “You have to expose yourself if you want others to join you.”
Gene took that advice to heart. At one nonprofit, when donations were matched under the banner of the Gene and Marlene Epstein Humanitarian Fund, giving increased by 18–26%.
Anonymity, he argues, may feel polite, but it doesn’t multiply impact.
“When people see others giving — not just writing a check, but thinking big — it activates something,” Gene says. “It says: that could be me.”
How the Epsteins Measure Impact
For Gene and Marlene, giving is only meaningful if it creates lasting change:
It must solve a real barrier.
It must be efficient.
It must produce measurable progress.
If an organization cannot answer questions, demonstrate outcomes, or remain accountable, Gene redirects his support elsewhere.
“People assume everything in nonprofits is running efficiently,” he says. “But many aren’t. Asking questions isn’t being difficult — it’s being responsible.”
At Bucks, those expectations have accelerated systems modernization, including reporting, stewardship, and accountability measures.
A Gift with a Message: Follow Us
More than anything, the Epsteins hope their gift creates momentum.
“I want people to look at this and say: maybe I can help too,” Gene says. “Maybe not at this scale, but maybe one scholarship. Maybe mentoring. Maybe something else entirely. There are a thousand ways to help.”
Every month, the Epsteins receive handwritten letters from people who have been inspired to give because of them.
“That,” Marlene says simply, “is the reward.”
The Future Starts Here
With the Epstein Scholarship Fund, a thousand Bucks County residents, many of whom never believed college was a possibility, will now get their chance.
Some will start careers in high-demand fields.Some will transfer to four-year institutions.Some will use college to rewrite the trajectory of their lives, and that of their families.
All of them will benefit from one couple’s belief that opportunity should not depend on circumstance, and education should never be out of reach.
We can’t walk past someone who needs help if we’re able to give it. -Gene Epstein
To learn more about the Epstein Scholarship Fund or to support scholarships at Bucks County Community College, please contact the Bucks County Community College Foundation at foundation@bucks.edu or 215-968-8224.
The Holiday Season is Swinging with Bucks Live! Concerts
Bucks County Community College can help you get into the holiday spirit with a pair of swinging jazz concerts as part of its Bucks Live! series of cultural events.
“Christmas is arriving early at Bucks County Community College,” said Peter Chiovarou, Director of Community Programming and College Events. "We’re thrilled to welcome Bucks County’s own pianist Eric Mintel and the internationally acclaimed vocalist Jane Monheit to the Zlock Performing Arts Center this month, bringing their unforgettable holiday performances to our stage.”
First, the Eric Mintel Quartet brings back the soundtrack of your youth with “A Charlie Brown Christmas” at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, December 11. Mintel’s career highlights include two performances by invitation at the White House, several concerts at the Kennedy Center, and a special concert at the United Nations. He’ll be joined by Nelson Hill on sax and flute, Jack Hegyi on bass, and Dave Mohn on drums.
Jazz legend Dave Brubeck said, “As long as music attracts dedicated young musicians like Eric Mintel, jazz will continue to thrive and progress as a voice of freedom!”
Tickets for “A Charlie Brown Christmas” are $20 for adults and $10 for children under age 12, and free for BCCC students with current ID.
Next, Jane Monheit, one of the top blues and jazz artists of 2025, comes to Newtown at 7:30 p.m. Friday, December 19. Known for her soulful blend of classic jazz and contemporary flair, Monheit brings warmth, elegance, and holiday spirit to every stage she graces. With over two decades of acclaimed performances, award-winning albums, and collaborations with some of jazz’s greatest talents, Monheit’s heartfelt interpretations of the Great American Songbook — and timeless holiday favorites —promise an unforgettable evening of music, joy, and sophistication.
Tickets for Jane Monheit’s Holiday Concert are $40 and free for BCCC students with current ID.
All performances take place in the Zlock Performing Arts Center on the Newtown Campus at 275 Swamp Rd., Newtown, Pa., where there is ample free parking. The Zlock lobby bar opens at 6 p.m., offering a selection of beer, wine, soft drinks and snacks (cash only). Learn more and purchase tickets online.
The holiday jazz concerts are part of the Bucks Live! series of innovative programs that entertain, inspire, and enrich Bucks County’s cultural landscape. For a full schedule of Bucks Live! performances, visit the Zlock Performing Arts Center webpage.
Student Earns Top Scholarships through Phi Theta Kappa
Bucks County Community College is pleased to announce that sophomore Madison McCrackin of Grampian, Pa., has earned two top scholarship awards through Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for two-year colleges.
McCrackin, a fire science major who takes classes online from her hometown in Clearfield County, earned the Chime Workforce Scholarship and was named 2025 Coca-Cola Leaders of Promise Scholar. Each award carries a $1,000 stipend.
She recently made the four-hour drive to Newtown, Pa., to attend a scholarship luncheon and thank the donors of another scholarship that she earned in 2024, the Andrew and Elaine Warren Scholarship for students of Fire Science and Emergency Management. That was also a $1,000 scholarship.
The Chime Workforce Scholarship recognizes high-achieving college students who are pursuing career and technical educational opportunities. The Coca-Cola Leaders of Promise Scholarship Program helps new Phi Theta Kappa members defray educational expenses while enrolled in associate degree programs. Scholars are encouraged to assume leadership roles by participating in PTK Society programs and are selected based on scholastic achievement, community service, and leadership potential.
Bucks County Community College Seeks Great Fiction Writers
Officials at Bucks County Community College are seeking entries for the ninth annual Bucks County Short Fiction Contest. The contest is open to Bucks County residents who are 18 years or older; employees of Bucks County Community College are not eligible.
The top three winners will receive gift cards of $200, $100, and $50, and will share their work at a celebratory reading in March on the College’s Newtown Campus. They will be joined by the contest’s final judge, writer John Phillips.
The deadline for submissions is noon Thursday, January 22. Stories must be previously unpublished – including in blogs and online platforms – and must be submitted online. Complete rules and the submissions link are available on the Bucks County Short Fiction Contest page.
A separate contest for high-school students will also be held this spring. See the Bucks County Short Fiction Contest webpage for rules and deadlines.
Author John Phillips, who will serve as the final judge, recently published his debut collection of short stories, “Dress Whites,” by Admission Press. His stories explore the aftermath of the Vietnam War, both for those who served and those who remained at home. As a sportswriter for Reuters, Phillips covered more than 60 world titles. Among other events he covered were the Olympics, World Series, Super Bowl, figure skating, tennis, and horse racing.
The Bucks County Short Fiction Contest receives funding and administrative support from Bucks County Community College’s School of Language and Literature. For further information, contact the contest director, Professor Elizabeth Luciano, at Elizabeth.Luciano@bucks.edu.
Explore Nature vs. Nurture with ‘The Creative Genes’ Exhibition
The show Dec. 3 – Feb. 28 features artists who are directly related; free events include opening reception Dec. 3 and ‘Creative Lineage’ workshops Dec. 13 and 16 Is it nature — or nurture — that sparks creativity? That ageless question will be addressed by the Hicks Art Center Gallery exhibition “The Creative Genes” December 3 through February 28 at Bucks County Community College.
The exhibition presents historic and contemporary artworks and writing from four groups of artists who are directly related as siblings or family members. The pieces are from individual artists, as well as Moravian Archives, the Petrucci Family Foundation Collection of African American Art (PFFCAAA), and the Volta Center for Writing Arts.
The artists all shared their experiences and exposures to positive environments which fostered their creative growth. In addition, writers participating in the “Mapping the Headwaters” workshop at the Volta Center for Writing Arts at the College reveal their thoughts of creative lineage. A booklet compiling the workshop results will be available for free.
Visitors will have a rare opportunity to see pieces drawn from artist studios, archives, and collections specifically for this exhibition, some of which have not been widely exhibited before.
The works in the exhibition provide a deeper understanding of relationships between the concepts of nature and nurture in artmaking from a variety of viewpoints, according to Clifford Eberly, the Hicks Art Center Gallery Exhibitions Associate and the curator.
He said “The Creative Genes” represents his ongoing interest in the necessity to establish safe, creative environments for people to develop positive mental and physical practices through art.
“The absolute key to developing creativity is access to supportive, positive environments,” said Eberly. “You may have parents and grandparents on both sides who were or are creative, but without constructive environments, creativity is less likely to develop. I believe it is vitally important to provide people with tools for creative agency, to improve our collective well-being.”
Participating visual artists include:
Friedrich Renatus Frueauff and daughter Agnes Clara Frueauff
Sisters Bernadette McBride and Constance McBride
Betye Saar and daughters Alison Saar and Lezley Saar
Carl Wagner and son Kenoka Wagner
An opening reception will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, December 3. The reception will feature a poetry reading at 5:30 p.m., led by artist and former Bucks County Poet Laureate Bernadette McBride, whose artwork is exhibited alongside that of her sister, Constance McBride.
In addition, the Hicks Art Center is hosting two Family and Friends Creative Lineage Workshops from 1 to 2 p.m. Saturday, December 13 and from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, December 16. Attendees will be guided to mine their memory to create art and poetry that reflects their connections to relatives and loved ones. Materials will be supplied. Registration is required by emailing gallery@bucks.edu
Admission to all events is free. To learn more, visit the Hicks Gallery web page and follow on Instagram.
The Hicks Art Center is located on the east end of the campus at 275 Swamp Rd., Newtown, Pa., 18940, where there is ample free parking. For directions and a campus map, visit our Newtown Campus web page.
“The Creative Genes” is supported by the College’s Cultural Affairs Committee and presented by the College’s School of Arts and Communication, which offers eight associate degrees and two certificate programs. Through coursework, exhibitions, and community engagement, the school prepares students for careers in the arts and inspires appreciation for creative expression. To learn more, visit the School of Arts web page, email arts.comm@bucks.edu, or call 215-968-8425.
