Metallica Donates $25,000 to Rockland Community College

SUFFERN, NY – Rockland Community College (RCC) has been awarded a $25,000 grant from Metallica’s All Within My Hands (AWMH) Foundation for 2025. The philanthropic organization was founded by the legendary band, which started as a garage metal band in 1981 – and currently on a 2 year tour in support of their latest album. This funding is an extension of the Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI), a program dedicated to supporting workforce education across the United States.

The philanthropy arm of Metallica, the All Within My Hands Foundation – is aimed toward supporting workforce education, the fight against hunger, and critical local services.

This latest grant builds on the $100,000 that RCC received in 2022 from AWMH, which was used to subsidize tuition for students enrolled in the CDL Class A Commercial Driver Training program. The newly awarded funds for the 2024-2025 academic year will be used to provide scholarships for students in the CDL program and to expand opportunities in RCC’s manufacturing workforce development programs.

Since its inception in 2019, the Metallica Scholars Initiative has grown significantly, now supporting more than 25 fields of study across various colleges.

Originally focused on manufacturing programs, the initiative has expanded to include courses in construction, healthcare, and engineering. To date, AWMH has invested over $10.5 million in workforce education, reinforcing its commitment to helping students secure meaningful and well-paying careers.

“By the end of 2024, we estimate that we will have helped more than 50 students with a wide range of backgrounds and ages gain skills to assist in finding meaningful jobs and careers thanks to the funds from this grant,” said Keirsten Gordon, Director of Workforce Innovation and Community Partnerships at RCC.

Metallica Scholars are often non-traditional students, many of whom support families or are the first in their families to pursue higher education. The partnership between AWMH and the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) aims to bridge the talent gap in the American workforce while making education accessible and affordable through the community college system.

All Within My Hands – Originally a Metallica Song from 2003

All Within My Hands is an 8:45 song on Metallica’s studio album “St. Anger”, which was produced during a challenging two years in the band’s history. It is not widely considered amongst its primary fan base as highly recognizable as the legendary songs Enter Sandman, Nothing Else Matters, Seek and Destroy, and countless other metal classics the band has produced since its inception in 1981. While the album St. Anger was also not always regarded as its best studio effort, the controversial rawness of its sound combined with the emotional vulnerability of the lyrics for a prominent metal band have been re-examined over the past several years by various fans across the world.

Subsequent albums – including Death Magnetic, Hardwired to Self Destruct, and the current album 72 Seasons – have been created in part with the intent to reach out to new generations of fans.

Metallica is currently in the midst of a grueling two-year M72 tour, in support of its latest album, 72 Seasons. A Spotify of the latest album is below.

Metallica supports a huge music economy in each city it plays, employing a crew of approximately 160 roadies, sound engineers, lighting engineers, and other workers. In addition, Metallica’s arrival typically employs up to 800 local workers in the weeks leading up to the shows – ones which have occurred worldwide on this latest tour effort.

Listen now: Metallica’s Newst Album, 72 Seasons on Spotify

Rockland Community College, located in Suffern, NY, has for decades stewarded a mission to provide purpose-driven educational opportunities, empowering students from diverse backgrounds to transform themselves and their communities. The college offers a range of programs, from workforce training to academic degrees, with a focus on ensuring graduates are prepared to meet the demands of high-demand industries. The college has had a difficult several years, with enrollment suffering through COVID – as well as several fiscally ineffective Presidents, as well as allegations of prior excess VP roles in the Executive Division of the College.

In 2024, Beth Coyle, Ed.D. – a longtime member of the SUNY Rockland administration, took over from former Presidents Lester Rapalo and (prior) Michael Baston as Officer in Charge, aiming to bring the college back to its former stature as one of the County’s leading providers of quality college education, alongside STAC and Dominican Universities. The college recently enacted phase three of a plan to cut spending.

Recently, the college proactively sent to Rockland News upon request the past six years of public financial records, with an intent of providing a greater degree of transparency, as well as (presumably) to find new paths forward. A report on these numbers will be provided in a future article, once all information is properly analyzed.

Rockland Community College also has a rich history of musical concerts in its onsite fieldhouse venue, which in turn inspired a generation of local musicians that attended both the concerts, and the college itself.

In the 1980’s and 1990’s several very prominent musical names have performed at the venue, which at the time was a huge draw to the college. These names include:

• Billy Joel (1977)
• Meatloaf (1978)
• Genesis (1978)
• Heart (1978)
• The Monkees (1986)
• The Gin Blossoms (1996)
• No Doubt (1996)

For more information on Rockland Community College and its programs, visit www.sunyrockland.edu. For more information on Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation, visit www.allwithinmyhands.org