Lenore Friend – Page 17

FLCC celebrates Women’s History Month with March 5 talk

Ashley Hopkins Benton will give a talk at the main campus in celebration of Women’s History Month.

Finger Lakes Community College will continue its History, Culture & Diversity speaker series with an event on Thursday, March 5 focused on the fight for women’s suffrage in New York.

Ashley Hopkins-Benton, senior historian and curator of social history at the New York State Museum, will give a Women’s History Month talk, titled “Leading the Charge: The Fight for Women’s Suffrage in New York and Beyond.” Free and open to the public, it will be held from 12:40 to 1:50 p.m. in Room 2775 at the FLCC main campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive, Canandaigua.

Hopkins-Benton has worked at the museum since 2014, and has served as its senior curator for the past four years. Her focus is on women’s history, LGBTQ+ history, immigrant and ethnic history, sculpture and toys. She is the co-author of “Votes for Women: Celebrating New York’s Suffrage Centennial,” “Enterprising Waters: The History and Art of New York’s Erie Canal” and “Breathing Life into Stone: The Sculpture of Henry DiSpirito.”

She earned her master’s degree in history museum studies from the Cooperstown Graduate Program and a bachelor’s degree in art education/art studio at the State University of New York College at Potsdam.
The History, Culture and Diversity series is coordinated by Robert Brown, professor of history at FLCC. After the March 5 talk, spring semester events are as follows:

• Talk commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Korean War, Thursday, March 26, 12:30 p.m., Stage 14, FLCC main campus. Veteran Norman Champagne will share his experiences with the Marine Corps in Korea from 1952 to 1953. His honors include the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, and he serves as historian for the Korean War Legacy Foundation.

• Holocaust remembrance talk by survivor Lea Malek, Thursday, April 2, 12:30 p.m., FLCC main campus auditorium. Malek was 5 years old when her family in Hungary was boarded onto trains headed for concentration camps. Much of her family was murdered. She survived, only to witness the brutality of the Hungarian revolution in Budapest.

The events are free and open to all. Those planning to attend should plan to arrive early for parking; handicap parking is available. For more information, contact Robert Brown at Robert.Brown@flcc.edu or (585) 785-1307.

IC Tech alumni get nod in new book

Two alumni from the instrumentation and control technologies (IC Tech) program are featured in a new book that tells the story of Construction Robotics.

Book cover showing robot arm, hard hat — The cover of a new book about Construction Robotics.

“SAM: One Robot, a Dozen Engineers and the Race to Revolutionize the Way We Build” by Jonathan Waldman explains how Nate Podkaminer and his son-in-law, Scott Peters, developed a brick-laying robot. They call it a semi-automated mason, or SAM, for short.

Construction Robotics was the first company to work with FLCC to get status under the Start-Up New York business development program. Under the partnership, the company agreed to give FLCC’s IC Tech students internships, and if all went well, jobs.

IC Tech was launched in 2010 as an interdisciplinary technology program, coordinated by Sam Samanta, professor of physics. Sam assists each student in finding a co-op, or paid internship, with a local company that often turns into a full-time job.

Kerry Lipp ’13 enrolled in IC Tech after injuries ended his construction career. In the book he is credited with helping develop some of the custom equipment necessary for this first-of-its-kind machine. “Essentially, he put together all the crazy things Scott dreamed up,” the author writes.

Mike Oklevitch, a former Eastman Kodak chemical engineer, also enrolled in IC Tech for a career change and landed a co-op at Construction Robotics. The title of chapter 10 bears his nickname, Mortar Mike, for his work in developing a way to keep the mortar the robot uses at the right consistency to stick to the bricks.

To read a New York Times review of the book, click here.

FLCC announces fall 2019 dean’s list

Finger Lakes Community College announces the dean’s list for the fall 2019 semester. A total of 445 students earned this honor.

To be eligible for the FLCC fall dean’s list, full-time students enrolled in a degree or certificate program must earn a grade point average of 3.5 or higher and have completed 12 or more credit hours. Part-time students are included in the spring dean’s list.

Below are the students listed by county and town:

ALLEGANY

Angelica: Cassidy Mountain

Belfast: Morgan Hamer

Belmont: David Holmes, Christian Stuck

Friendship: Rylea Comstock, Calum Ruxton

Wellsville: Samantha Bailey, Lacey Shuttleworth, Ashley Taylor

BROOME

Johnson City: Rebecca Rayne Continue reading “FLCC announces fall 2019 dean’s list”

New exhibits celebrate alumni artwork at FLCC’s two galleries

Finger Lakes Community College’s two art galleries – Williams-Insalaco Gallery 34 and ArtSpace36 – will showcase the work of accomplished alumni in exhibits set to open later this month.

The Biennial Alumni Exhibition in Williams-Insalaco Gallery 34 will showcase the work of artists Melissa Newcomb ’02 and Dee Westfall ’14, both members of the Keuka College art faculty. The exhibit will open Thursday, Jan. 30 with a 2 p.m. talk by the artists, followed by an appetizers reception sponsored by the FLCC Foundation from 4 to 6:30 p.m.

Newcomb, associate professor of art at Keuka, earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the State University of New York at Oswego and master’s degrees from Oswego and Rochester Institute of Technology. Her vast portfolio includes a six-by-eight foot pen-and-ink mural of the Rochester city skyline, created for the office of Marathon Engineering. She was honored by the college’s Alumni Association with the Outstanding Alumni Art Achievement Award in May 2013.

Westfall, adjunct instructor of ceramics at Keuka, earned a bachelor of fine arts in ceramics at RIT after completing her associate degree at FLCC. The owner of Westfall Ceramics, she has participated in numerous gallery exhibits and has created pieces for commercial facilities and private collections.

Three additional art alumni will be celebrated just a few miles away, at the College’s downtown gallery, ArtSpace36. Jessica Marianacci Valone ’08, Erica Bapst ’98 and Michelle Garlock ’87 will be featured in the exhibit, also set to open Thursday, Jan. 30. A free, public reception and talk by the artists is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 13 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Continue reading “New exhibits celebrate alumni artwork at FLCC’s two galleries”

Bestselling author on organic, sustainable farming gives talk

A seventh-generation farmer who penned a New York Times bestseller about his transformation to organic and sustainable operations will visit Finger Lakes Community College later this month to close out the ninth season of the George M. Ewing Canandaigua Forum speaker series.

Forrest Pritchard will give a talk titled “Sustainable Agriculture: Gaining Ground and Growing Tomorrow” at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 26 in the Student Center Auditorium at the main campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive, Canandaigua.

Pritchard has authored three books. The first, “Gaining Ground, A Story of Farmer’s Markets, Local Food and Saving the Family Farm,” made the New York Times Bestseller list, was named a top read by Publishers Weekly, The Washington Post and NPR’s “The Splendid Table.” His second book, “Growing Tomorrow,” offered a behind-the-scenes visit with 18 sustainable farmers from across the county. His latest book, “Start Your Farm,” was co-written with Ellen Polishuk.

“People often say that local, organic food is expensive, but never take the time to understand why conventional food is so cheap,” he said. “From New York family dairy farms, to our food system at large, we’re learning how our food choices have major consequences. We’ll discuss how local food impacts us all, and how to enact positive change.”

Continue reading “Bestselling author on organic, sustainable farming gives talk”

Student Emily O’Neill honored by Sheriffs’ Association

Emily O’Neill of Canandaigua, a Finger Lakes Community College student, has received a New York State Sheriffs’ Association Institute award.

The Sheriffs’ Association grants a $250 award to one student at each New York community college who demonstrates academic excellence in the pursuit of a career in criminal justice.

O’Neill, a 2016 graduate of Canandaigua Academy, is in her second year and expects to graduate in the spring of 2020. She hopes to transfer to a four-year college, possibly SUNY Oneonta. She remains interested in criminal justice, but is considering expanding her studies to include nutrition and dietetics.

“After high school, I took two years off because I didn’t want to go to school not knowing what I wanted to do,” she said. “Receiving this award is very encouraging. I’m proud of it, and honored that my professors chose me. It’s going to be very helpful with school supplies and such.”

O’Neill was nominated for the award by her advisor, James Valenti, an attorney and associate professor of criminal justice. Valenti and FLCC President Robert K. Nye congratulated her during a visit to the main campus by Ontario County Sheriff Kevin Henderson, a 1984 FLCC graduate, on Dec. 17. Also on hand were Joseph Mariconda, associate professor of criminal justice, and Jason Maitland, chief of campus police.

Emily O’Neill’s success is a result of perseverance, a value at the core of FLCC’s Strategic Plan.

New FLCC Return to Finish program forgives unpaid bills

Mortarboard that says: Mama did it for you — Message on one graduate’s cap during the 2019 FLCC commencement.

Students who left Finger Lakes Community College before graduating and have unpaid bills to the college can now return and get up to $1,200 of those charges canceled upon graduation.

The new program, called Return to Finish, is meant to help students who may have been unable to register for classes due to previous debt. The deadline to enroll in Return to Finish is Jan. 8, 2020.

“We know that many of our students face multiple challenges, from medical and family issues to emergency expenses. Sometimes these issues become overwhelming and lead them to withdraw from college,” said Matthew Stever, FLCC director of admissions. “This program allows students to come back with a way to manage their past debt.”

Data show that financial problems can cause students to withdraw from school. This new policy is one way to level the playing field for underrepresented students, a key element of the FLCC strategic plan.

Continue reading “New FLCC Return to Finish program forgives unpaid bills”

FLCC’s next student-made wine label symbolizes starting point

Image shows new wine bottle label called Foundation — Finger Lakes Community College graphic design student Rachel Graf of Walworth created the label and name selected by her counterparts in the college’s viticulture and wine technology program to be used on their 2019 varieties.

The label chosen for the wine that Finger Lakes Community College students will bottle next spring pays homage to where it all began.

Second-year graphic design major Rachel Graf of Walworth designed the label and name for the college’s 2019 vintage wines. To be called “Foundation,” the wine label features antiqued blueprints of the college’s Viticulture and Wine Center, which opened in Geneva in early 2015.

The name and design symbolize the center’s opening and its role as a starting point – or foundation – for students enrolled in the program.

“I wanted to showcase the hard work of the viticulture students and pay homage to their studies and the center itself for creating these amazing opportunities for them,” said Graf, a 2018 graduate of Wayne Central High School in Ontario, Wayne County. “The blueprints represent the literal foundation for the center itself, and the center represents the educational foundation for the students.”

Graf and her classmates designed labels for a graphic design course taught by Liz Brownell of Victor, professor of graphic design. In what has become an annual tradition, the labels were revealed recently at a gallery-style reception at the Viticulture and Wine Center. The 14 student designers took turns pitching their concepts, touching on themes, color palettes, font choices, as well as what types of computer programs were used to create the designs.

“This project is a chance for the students to have the experience of working with actual clients,” said Brownell. “It’s a boots on the ground approach. In any discipline of study, the teacher can describe what it’s like to work in the field, but when students have the actual experience for themselves it’s a different level of learning.”

Continue reading “FLCC’s next student-made wine label symbolizes starting point”

Sands Family Foundation’s $3 million gift largest in FLCC history

Drawing of building — A concept drawing of the Sands Center for Allied Health

The Sands Family Foundation will donate $3 million to Finger Lakes Community College to more than double its nursing program.

The gift, the largest in the college’s history, will cover nearly half the cost of an expanded wing at the main campus in Canandaigua to be called the Sands Center for Allied Health.

The expansion will enable the college to gradually double the number of students it accepts into its registered nursing (RN) associate degree program. Currently, FLCC has 80 openings for new students each fall.

Older woman posing with two grown sons — Mickey Sands, with her sons, Robert and Richard, in front of a portrait of her husband, Marvin Sands

“With a growing need for nurses in the Finger Lakes region, this generous gift from the Sands family will help FLCC fulfill a critical community workforce need,” said SUNY Chancellor Kristina M. Johnson. “The Sands Center of Allied Health will put many more nursing students on a pathway to providing valuable health services to people right here in New York.”

FLCC will also launch a licensed practical nursing certificate program (LPN), which can be completed in one year. The college anticipates scaling up to as many as 56 LPN openings per year within three years.

Objective 3 of FLCC’s strategic plan calls on the college to meet the needs of high demand sectors in our region. This gift allows FLCC to more than double its nursing program to address the local shortage of health care workers.

Continue reading “Sands Family Foundation’s $3 million gift largest in FLCC history”

Victor teen to share vaping nightmare

Photo shows teenager Giovanni Marino in a hospital bed. — Giovanni Marino, 19, of Victor, spent several days in a hospital intensive care unit because of vaping-related lung illnesses.

A Victor teenager who nearly lost his life from vaping-related illnesses will visit Finger Lakes Community College on Thursday, Nov. 21 to share his experiences as part of the Great American Smokeout.

Giovanni Marino, 19, will give a free, public talk from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in Lecture Hall 2775 on the second floor of the main campus at 3325 Marvin Sands Drive, Canandaigua. The event is part of FLCC’s efforts to promote the Great American Smokeout, a national movement by the American Cancer Society to encourage smoking cessation.

Earlier this fall, Giovanni spent over a week at Thompson Hospital, including several days in the intensive care unit. Months of vaping that began recreationally shortly after he began his freshman year at the University of West Virginia had severely damaged his lungs.

He said doctors told him he developed pneumonia as well as a syndrome that made his lungs look like “shattered glass.”

“Essentially, it was a culmination of everything – the doctors think my lungs were weakened by the nicotine and they also think there was a potential of me having inhaled cyanide,” he said.

The cyanide and other noxious chemicals could have been contained in the vape cartridges – also called “carts” – that Giovanni was buying illegally from the black market.

This event has been organized to coincide with the Great American Smokeout, a national cessation movement by the American Cancer Society. It embodies FLCC’s value of vitality as a means to bring awareness to a serious public health threat.

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