Lenore Friend is the director of public relations and communications at FLCC and the college's liaison with Finger Lakes TV. Contact her at (585) 785-1623 or Lenore.Friend@flcc.edu.
Lauren Smith, who graduates in December with a degree in creative writing, spent three months as an intern with BOA Editions, a publisher in Rochester. Photo by Rikki Van Camp
It was just five days in Vermont, but second-year student Emma Perrone returned from her poetry retreat with Bianca Stone more devoted to her creative writing program.
“I’ve never felt more present in my life than in those few days,” she said. Perrone wrote and listened to poetry as part of a small group led by Stone, whose poems, poetry comics and essays have been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic and other magazines.
Lauren Smith, who finishes her associate degree in creative writing in December, had a different experience but a similar response. Lauren interned for BOA Editions, a not-for-profit publisher of poetry and other literary works in Rochester.
“I learned how much there really is to the publishing process, and how much I love proofreading and editing,” she said.
Both found a renewed commitment to their field of study through what is generally known as applied learning, or learning by doing. Research shows applied learning can increase students’ engagement in their studies and even boost their later earnings. Jon Palzer, professor of English and coordinator of the creative writing program said he noticed a change in both students this fall.Continue reading “Beyond the classroom: Applied learning options for creative writing”
John Foust, chair of the environmental conservation and horticulture department, talks to visitors at a previous open house. Photo by Rikki Van Camp
About 40 professors typically take part in open houses at FLCC so prospective students can meet the people who will teach them, and in some cases, become their advisor.
What percentage of courses in a program are offered online, face-to-face, or only in one modality or another?
How much time – per day – should be reserved for homework and coursework?
What kind of everyday work does the program require? Reading, essays, lectures, presentations, workbooks, productions, field journals?
Richard Walsh, who coordinates the sports studies program, speaks to a prospective student and parent. Photo by Rikki Van Camp
Richard Walsh, assistant professor of business and coordinator of the sports studies program, suggests students think about end goals.
“Go to every table. Ask what job skills are needed. Ask how many graduates have job offers before they graduate, or shortly after graduating.”
Another question he recommends: “Are there additional courses they could add to a program to boost hiring chances?”
Find out if a program requires an internship and whether a program or class offers opportunities for on-the-job experiences early in their studies.
With so many faculty in one area, he recommends finding out what their expectations might be. “What goals do you, as the instructor, have for this class? What’s your idea of being a successful student in your class?”
John Foust, chair of the environmental conservation and horticulture department, encourages students to share a little about themselves so faculty can provide the most relevant advice. Do they plan to transfer? Are they transferring credits into FLCC? Do they have military service?
“I would suggest that students visit all the tables and keep an open mind. My advice would be to find something that makes sense to them as a vocation but also find something they’re truly passionate about,” he said, adding a few questions he recommends:
What is it like to be working as a professional in the field?
Christine Parker, associate professor of biology, leads a class in the holography lab on the main campus. Photo by Rikki Van Camp
FLCC uses both virtual reality and mixed reality in educational programming. The technologies are similar with a few key differences.
Mixedreality
In 2018, the College began using three-dimensional holography to enhance the teaching of human anatomy and physiology, a required class for several programs: nursing, kinesiology and human performance, health care studies, physical education and exercise science, and nutrition and dietetics.
Under the guidance of Christine Parker, associate professor in biology, students wear Microsoft HoloLens visors in labs. The headset uses the HoloAnatomy Software Suite developed by Case Western Reserve University in conjunction with the Cleveland Clinic. This software enables students to view highly detailed, three-dimensional images of human organs individually and as part of body systems.
Holograms give the viewer a three-dimensional image while allowing them to see the rest of the room.
The university’s software allows the HoloLens to project a holographic image that everyone wearing the visors – students and their instructor – can see. The instructor can rotate the image, zoom in on a particular section or zoom out to show the class how structures function and interconnect.
In the labs, students work collaboratively in groups and view the same holographic image. Christine moves about the room, joining each group and pointing out features. Students can still see each other and the rest of the room behind the image.
They cannot manipulate the image though they can walk closer to it and even poke their heads inside to get an internal view of a particular structure. This is helpful, for example, to understand how the flow of blood proceeds through the human heart and then out to the general circulation. This three-dimensional approach helps students visualize key physical relationships between body structures.Continue reading “Mixed reality vs. virtual reality: What’s the difference?”
An encounter with a professor leads to a career in the positioning, navigation and timing industry.
In the mid-2010s, Kevin Stottler ’20 was working for a company that made encoded plastic cards. Think hotel key cards, gift cards, ID cards.
Kevin Stottler ’20
He wanted something more engaging, but this was before the Great Resignation when job interviews were harder to come by. “I think without a degree I was having trouble getting traction with other employers,” he said.
Kevin decided to contact Sam Samanta, coordinator of the smart systems technologies program, whom he had met at a job fair at the Victor Campus Center about six months earlier.
“I was like OK, I need to get some more stuff on my resume here to have a leg up looking up for more challenging jobs.”
In less than two years Kevin had an internship, then a job with Orolia, a manufacturer of positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) systems in Rochester that serves a wide range of industries. “Anything that needs precise time to work,” he explained, “data centers, telecommunications systems, banks, broadcast networks, and there’s a bunch of defense applications.”Continue reading “Well-timed: Kevin Stottler’s story”
Justin Castronovo ’19, shown at the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) shipyard in Philadelphia, works on the Aegis Ashore land-based missile defense system.
Naval personnel operating ballistic missile defenses need to know the status of those systems at a glance.
That means someone has to figure out how to collect, aggregate and present a range of data in an easy-to-understand visual format on a computer monitor or touch screen.
Such readouts are called human-machine interfaces, or HMIs. For Justin Castronovo ’19, building them is his dream job.
Justin is a graduate of the instrumentation and control technologies program, now known by a more straightforward name: smart systems technologies. He is a civilian contractor at the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) in Philadelphia where he works on the Aegis Ashore land-based missile defense system.
“The human can’t just go to the chilled water system and get all the data from it,” he explained of the complex machinery. “There has to be some in-between way to get all that data in a reasonable format for a human to look at quickly and say, ‘Hey we’ve got a high-pressure alarm at the chilled water system.’”Continue reading “Cal-Mum grad finds dream job in HMI development”
Adam Keuer ’13 is the assistant IT director at the Mozaic human service agency in Waterloo and a 2013 graduate of the networking and security associate degree program, now called networking and cybersecurity. Photo by Jan Regan
As assistant IT director for Mozaic in Waterloo, Adam Keuer ’13 enjoys designing the computer networks that help his colleagues at the human service agency get their work done.
“I have always been a very logical thinker,” he said, referring to the tasks involved in getting computers to talk to each other efficiently and securely. “It feels like home for me.”
Home took a while to find. Adam logged a years-long trek through three majors at two other colleges and a detour into retail management before finding his way to FLCC’s networking and security program.
Jeff Dugan, assistant director of online learning, sat down with retiring humanities professor Christopher Parker to talk about his transition from only teaching in person to becoming a leader of online education. “Teaching online was like the last thing I ever thought I was going to do,” Christopher began. “I don’t know how it happened that I went from being absolutely against it in every imaginable way to now doing it only online … Now that I look back on it, it was a very obvious transition for me.” Click the image above to watch the full fascinating discussion.
An NBC television affiliate in Washington, D.C. featured Corrigan Herbert ’17 as part of a Women in Wine feature. Click here to watch the segment.
An NBC affiliate in Washington, D.C. interviewed Corrigan Herbert ’17 in May as part of a Women in Wine series that also included a hobbyist winemaker turned entrepreneur.
“They’re both paving the way for future women interested in the industry,” News 4 reporter Juliana Valencia said to open the segment.
“It was a little nerve-wracking for me,” Corrigan, 25, said of the TV interview. ”It’s cool that they’re highlighting women. It’s definitely a male-dominated industry.”
Corrigan Herbert ’17
At the time of the interview, she was the vineyard manager at Sunset Hills Vineyard in Purcellville, Va. “I was in charge of five different farms, and I had 13 employees and lots of equipment to keep track of and lots of coordination to do,” she added.
Corrigan initially thought she might study French, but she also liked science and wanted a program with a clear career path.
In addition, she added, “My brother went into landscaping, and he works for Cornell as an apple researcher, so he led me towards an interest in plants and being outdoors. I am definitely more of a botany person.”
Finger Lakes Community College uses advisory boards to help ensure its programs and services remain responsive to community needs. Many academic programs have advisory boards, and each of the campus centers in Geneva, Newark and Victor has a group of community leaders and FLCC employees who meet regularly. Conversations can lead to new programs.
A case in point is the upcoming Science and Technology Career Expo at the Victor Campus Center, scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 20, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. For a downloadable event flyer and directions, see the FLCC events calendar.
Newark Campus Center,
The idea came out of a conversation with local school district officials who talked about the need for more career events for middle schoolers. While open to all middle and high school students, the Oct. 20 event will specifically target students in their early teens, who are just beginning to think about life after high school.
Victor Campus Center on Victor Heights Parkway, off Route 251
Students will have an opportunity to discuss science and technology careers with FLCC faculty, staff and alumni. They will also hear from local businesses and tour the campus center’s labs and classrooms.
Anyone interested in serving on an FLCC campus center advisory board can contact Carol Urbaitis, vice president of enrollment management, at Carol.Urbaitis@flcc.edu.
Nita L. Schumacher of Clifton Springs, a 2021 Midlakes graduate, is the new student representative on the Finger Lakes Community College Board of Trustees.
Schumacher, an environmental science major, will serve a one-year term through June 2023. She succeeded Sophia Parshall, who is currently the president of the Student Corporation.
“I decided to run for student trustee because I believe I could represent the voice of the students accurately, considering I interact with a wide range of students daily through clubs, sports, classes, and recreation,” she said, adding that she is a member of the logging sports team and an officer of the Conservation Club.
After graduation in spring 2023, Schumacher plans to transfer to SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry to major in wildlife science.
“I chose environmental science because it offered flexibility,” she said of her FLCC degree. “This major is considered a transfer degree as it requires you to take many core classes you would need once at a four-year,” she said. “I also noticed many jobs recognized an A.S in environmental science as an acceptable degree. I was not sure what type of career I wanted but I knew I wanted to transfer and change to a major specific to my career path. This major offered the flexibility and stability I desired.”
The FLCC student trustee is a full voting member of the 10-person board. The College has had a student representative on its Board of Trustees since fall 1975.
