“This is an exciting day for each and every entrepreneur who has dared to dream," remarked Gloucester County Commissioner director, Frank J. DiMarco. “It is with great pride that we welcome you to the official ribbon cutting ceremony for the Rastelli Entrepreneurship Center. Today marks a bold new chapter for Rowan College of South Jersey and a powerful investment in the future of innovation, business, and student success."

Strategically located within the Rastelli Business and Corporate Center on RCSJ's Gloucester campus, the Rastelli Entrepreneurship Center will provide essential resources to help convert ideas into reality. Students will have access to a co-working space, a dedicated meeting room for business planning, and a packaging demonstration area to support product development.

“Today, we recognize more than just the opening of our new Center," stated Dominic Puggi, Ed.D., dean of the Division of Business Studies. “We celebrate the launch of an entrepreneurial hub designed to empower students with the skills, tools, and experiences they need to succeed. Not just in the classroom, but in the real world. And this moment would not be possible without the generosity, vision, and commitment of the Rastelli family."

The Center's opening comes just two years into RCSJ and Rastelli Foods Group's premier partnership, designed to support new program development and provide scholarship assistance to help launch the next generation of entrepreneurial, culinary, and agricultural innovators. This past year, seventeen students received a $2,000 Rastelli Foods Group Business Studies scholarship; with additional scholarship support available for students enrolled in business-related certificate programs through the Division of Career & Technical Education.

The partnership also places a strong emphasis on creating pre- and post-graduation employment opportunities for RCSJ students and graduates, along with mentored internship experiences. One of the Business Studies students recently selected for a Rastelli internship – Bella D., a Gloucester campus Computer Graphic Arts major – spoke as part of the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“I'd really love to thank RCSJ for this opportunity to be here today and extend my sincere gratitude to the Rastelli family for selecting me for this incredible internship which I'll begin this fall," she shared. “Being welcomed into the kind of place where innovation and hard work go hand-in-hand means so much to me. I'm excited to contribute, gain real-world experience, and grow alongside a team that is making a difference."

Bella discovered one more reason for excitement when Lauren Rastelli DeMarco invited her to be the Rastelli family's special guest at the Rowan College Foundation's annual Blue & Gold Gala. The April 24 event will honor Ray Rastelli, the man she was here to introduce, as the Foundation's “2025 Person of the Year."

“It is a true honor and deeply personal privilege to introduce someone who means the world to me, my uncle Ray Rastelli," said Rastelli DeMarco, vice-president of marketing and instrumental figure in the Rastelli Entrepreneurship Center's design and function.

“To the world, he's a renowned entrepreneur, the driving force behind the Rastelli Foods Group, and a visionary who's helped to reshape the food industry. But to me, he's just my uncle. The same man who has always believed in hard work, leading by example, and showing me what it means to truly dream big and never give up." 

With that introduction, Ray Rastelli, founder and president of Rastelli Foods Group, took the podium to share his own entrepreneurial journey. He spoke about the people who supported him along the way – including his brother Tony Rastelli, the company's co-founder and vice-president – and how that support helped him to conquer his fear of failure and fully embrace the realization that "it's not a straight path to success."

“At the very, very beginning, there were lots of people who just believed in me – a 19-year-old kid who had a lot of big dreams, a lot of hustle, and a tremendous fear of failure. And that's what we're going to be able to create here – a safe space where we can believe in people," shared Rastelli. “This is going to be a place where people can dream big. Where they can have bold ideas. It's a place that will be safe for failure."

“True entrepreneurs will never, ever stop learning, they will never stop improving, and they will never stop dreaming," he continued. “Even at 68 I still wake up with ideas every morning. I bring them to my team and most of them think I'm crazy. Some of those ideas stick and some of them don't stick; but unless you dream – unless you have some of those crazy ideas – you as an entrepreneur will never really have the opportunity to do something very, very different."    

Beyond its physical space, the Rastelli Entrepreneurship Center will foster innovation through workshops, seminars, and networking events; connecting students, faculty, and industry professionals to encourage creativity, collaboration, and the life-long learning opportunities which Rastelli espouses. The Center will also be including our community's youngest aspiring entrepreneurs; plans will soon be announced for a summer Rastelli Entrepreneurship Camp for high school students with big ideas.

“We are thrilled at the addition of the Rastelli Entrepreneurship Center, as are our Board, our Commissioners, and most importantly, our student body," remarked Frederick Keating, Ed.D. “And by that, I mean those who are here with us today and those that will pass through these halls and benefit from this Center in the days and decades to come – because Ray saw it. Because he had a vision and Lauren helped to deliver it."

To learn more about RCSJ's premier partnership with Rastelli Foods Group and how it benefits students, visit RCSJ.edu/Rastelli. 

​