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.”
FLCC held a ribbon-cutting on Aug. 25 for the Sands Family Center for Allied Health, a $7.2 million renovation and expansion of its nursing wing. Photo by Tim Wilkes
Finger Lakes Community College celebrated the opening of the $7.2 million Sands Family Center for Allied Health, a renovation and expansion of its nursing wing, at the main campus today.
With the expansion, the college will accept new students in both the fall and spring semesters. The application for the spring 2023 semester is currently open through Oct. 15. FLCC will also launch a licensed practical nursing program, starting in fall 2023. (Editor’s Note: The LPN launch may be delayed to 2024; please watch this blog for an announcement of the opening date for applications. )
“The Sands Family Center for Allied Health reflects a true team effort among the Sands Family Foundation, Thompson Health, Ontario County and the college,” said FLCC President Robert Nye. “We were united in our mission to fill a critical community need for nurses at our hospitals, medical offices and skilled nursing facilities.”
Richard Sands, representing the Sands Family Foundation, joined college and community leaders for a ceremonial ribbon cutting. The Sands Family Foundation contributed $3 million to the project.
“As important as today’s ribbon-cutting is, I am already thinking about the impact this center will have on our community,” Sands said. “Five years from now, hundreds of students will have passed through these halls and taken their places in our medical facilities where their compassion and skills are so needed.”
Finger Lakes Community College will expand its rural outreach program by offering manufacturing and computer courses this fall at the Clifton Springs Library and Macedon Public Library.
“As the library director and vice president of Wayne County Business Council, I am acutely aware of patrons who would like to improve their earning power and businesses who are looking for people to fill mid-level positions,” Stacey Wicksall said of her library’s decision to join the project.
The Macedon Public Library is now a host site of FLCC’s rural outreach program. Photo courtesy of M. and R. Kelsey
“These are the sorts of positions that require some training beyond high school, but not a four-year degree. The FLCC GRIT program makes it possible to connect the two by offering convenient and rapid certifications in the skill areas local businesses urgently need, and it can all be done while at the library,” she added.
GRIT is the name of the outreach project and stands for Growing Rural Infrastructure Together. It is part of a national pilot project to overcome barriers to education in rural areas.
Clifton Springs Library is a new host site for FLCC rural outreach program.
GRIT began in January 2022 with manufacturing courses at the Bloomfield Central School District Operations Center and the Yates County Workforce Development Office in Penn Yan. Both the Bloomfield and Penn Yan locations will continue to offer classes. FLCC will also offer the same courses at its Geneva and Newark campus centers, for a total of six sites, including the libraries.
Classes run from Sept. 6 to Dec. 15, and grant funding is available to cover costs for most students.
Classes will be offered via videoconference using technology that allows for real-time interaction among the instructor, all six class sites, and students who prefer to join from home.
Finger Lakes Community College’s downtown gallery, ArtSpace36, will open a soft sculpture exhibit by Anna Warfield on Friday, June 17.
Hours are Thursday through Saturday from 2 to 6 p.m. at the gallery at 36 S. Main St., Canandaigua. The show runs through Sept. 30. A closing reception will be held in September.
Warfield uses words made with fabric to turn ideas about femininity around.
In her artist’s statement, she writes: “In working with both fiber and text, I address complexities in sexuality, femininity, ownership, language, and voice. The materials serve to further complicate the picture. Beyond employing ‘women’s work’ in the service of an unabashedly feminist voice, the fibrous materials also initially cause the works to read like comfort objects – squishable and soft – before revealing themselves to be explicit, demanding, or contorted.”
Warfield holds bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and communication, both from Cornell University, where she has been invited back multiple times to guest lecture. In 2019, Warfield was recognized by the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce for her work in the arts and notable impact on the wider community as a young professional with a HYPE Award.
For information about the gallery, visit ArtSpace36.com.
Jeremiah Naused was recognized as a recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence at the Finger Lakes Community College commencement in May.Autumn Dushnick was recognized as a recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence at the Finger Lakes Community College commencement in May.
Five Finger Lakes Community College employees and two students were recognized during commencement in May as recipients of SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence.
Recipients were as follows:
Autumn E. Dushnick of West Sayville, Suffolk County, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Student Excellence. Dushnick is a 2022 nursing graduate who served as the director of the Student Corporation Activities Committee for 2021-22. In this role, she brought together students, faculty, and staff through social and educational events. In the fall 2021 semester alone, the Activities Committee hosted 40 events and made 1,623 connections with students. In addition, Dushnick raised funds at the start of the pandemic to provide food for health care workers.
Jeremiah Naused of Romulus, Seneca County, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Student Excellence. He is a 2022 FLCC graduate with a degree in liberal arts and sciences and plans to become a physician. Naused served as the Student Corporation president for 2021-22, helping to reactivate student organizations following the first year of the pandemic and promoting the rollout of the TimelyCare App among students. TimelyCare gives students 24/7 access to health services, including mental health services.
Kathleen Schwartz received a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service.
Kathleen Schwartz of Gorham, Ontario County, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service. Schwartz, who has served FLCC for three decades, recently retired as senior clerk for the Academic and Student Affairs division. Schwartz was nominated for her willingness to serve on college committees, mentor other employees and take on new tasks to help improve programs and processes.
John Foust received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching.
John Foust of Stanley, Ontario County, professor of environmental conservation and horticulture, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. With 23 years of service to the college, Foust was nominated for his work in developing courses and learning opportunities for conservation students, in particular, in the field of fisheries. He has been a part of research collaborations with local and regional institutions, including a biological survey for invasive species in Loon Lake, Steuben County, and he uses data on student learning to drive improvements in his teaching practices.
FLCC President Robert Nye presents Michael Van Etten with the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching at commencement in May.
Michael Van Etten of Canandaigua, Ontario County, assistant professor and program coordinator of world languages, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Van Etten is the author and designer of the Language Education Access Foundation, which provides a wealth of teaching resources for a variety of languages and a series of low-cost online textbooks. He is a pioneer in the use of technology to teach language, a strong proponent of experiential learning, and has served as a coach and mentor for the FLCC eSports program.
Lacey McKinney, associate professor of art, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities
Lacey McKinney of Liverpool, Onondaga County, associate professor of art, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities. A faculty member since 2013, McKinney has exhibited her work at galleries in New York, North Carolina, and Washington. Her solo exhibition Reconfiguration was featured in 2020 – 2021 at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse. Her art has been selected for publications that include The Post Standard in Syracuse, Artnet News and huffingtonpost.com. She has been instrumental in the launching of the ArtSpace36 gallery in downtown Canandaigua.
FLCC President Robert Nye presents Jeremy Tiermini with the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Faculty Service at commencement in May.
Jeremy Tiermini of Canandaigua, Ontario County, professor of health science and human performance, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Faculty Service. Tiermini was recognized for his contribution to development of the online learning program at FLCC. He has served on several college committees that develop policy and programming and guide the overall direction of the institution. Tiermini also serves as co-chair of the college’s Guided Pathways program, designed to improve opportunities for student success.
Nursing instructor Tiffani Leyden monitors a nursing simulation exercise from behind a one-way mirror in the renovated Finger Lakes Community College nursing wing. Leyden, who also recorded the session, later debriefed with students about their response to the symptoms a computerized manikin presented during the exercise.
Finger Lakes Community College has received a $1.5 million grant to add an additional science lab to the Sands Family Center for Allied Health now under construction at the main campus.
FLCC broke ground on the $7.2 million expansion and renovation project in June 2021. SUNY later notified FLCC that the College would receive $1.5 million through the SUNY Workforce Development Initiative, which funds projects designed to train people for high-demand jobs. The state has identified health care, and nursing in particular, as a top priority.
The project is opening in stages. The renovated area on the third floor of the main campus, which features a new nursing simulation lab, opened in August 2021. The expansion includes more nursing lab and instructional spaces and a fourth floor lobby; it will open in summer 2022.
Our students are already experiencing an enhanced educational experience in our newly renovated nursing space. The expansion, now nearly complete, and this additional science lab will provide even greater flexibility and capacity as we prepare students for health care careers,” FLCC President Robert Nye said.
The additional 1,800-square-foot science lab and instructional space will be built next to the new lobby and open in 2023. The lab will be equipped with HyFlex technology allowing for simultaneous in-person and remote instruction to support students in health care programs.
When complete, the Sands Family Center for Allied Health will allow FLCC to accept 50 percent more students in the two-year registered nursing program and launch a one-year licensed practical nursing program.
With the new facilities, FLCC will be able to accept students into the registered nursing program in both the fall and spring. The application for the first spring class, in January 2023, will open in early May on the College website at flcc.edu.
The College will also use the center to provide certificate training for nurse assistants, home health aides and phlebotomy technicians. A federal grant currently covers most or all of the tuition for these three short-term certificate programs. Anyone interested in enrolling can learn more at flcc.edu/reimagine or (585) 785-1670.
The Sands Family Center for Allied Health is named for the chief donor, the Sands Family Foundation, which contributed $3 million to the project.
In addition to the Sands Family Foundation gift, the FLCC Student Corporation has pledged $250,000 while the FLCC Foundation and the FLCC Association will each contribute $200,000. These gifts were matched by New York State. The additional grant brings the project total to $8.7 million.
Rick Hill, instructor for the Finger Lakes Community College Certified Production Technician program, works with student Sean O’Rourke as he views a simulation using a virtual reality headset on April 23 at the Bloomfield Central School Operations Center. The college has received $523,700 to cover student costs for CPT and 10 other programs.
Finger Lakes Community College has received $523,700 in federal funding designed to cover most or all of the cost for individuals who want to train for careers in manufacturing, construction, information technology and health care.
The funding comes from the Reimagine Workforce Preparation Training program, meant to encourage people to switch to careers in high demand fields without taking on debt. The lengths of the training programs range from six weeks to nine months.
“We live at a time when people need to switch careers more often to keep up with economic change. This grant eliminates a major hurdle for most people to switch careers for greater pay, advancement potential and job satisfaction,” said Todd Sloane, FLCC’s director of workforce development.
Courses offer training in the following areas:
Health care: enhanced phlebotomy, certified clinical medical assistant, certified nurse aide, home health aide, pharmacy technician, patient care technician
Training is offered at several locations and work for some programs can be completed online. The certified production technician program, for example, is currently offered simultaneously in Bloomfield and Penn Yan two evenings per week with the instructor conducting in-person labs on certain Saturdays. Students in the class learn manufacturing techniques using virtual reality headsets, in addition to learning how to use hand-tools.
The College offers a regular series of information sessions at flcc.edu/workforce.
FLCC staff can provide coaching in selecting and succeeding in a program, along with assistance in finding a job upon completion.
Liz Keyser became the new winemaker at a West Coast winery in February.
At FLCC, Liz Keyser discovered her intellectual curiosity and the kind of community a wine region could be.
Liz Keyser has harvested grapes on the southern coast of Australia and the Willamette Valley region of Oregon and worked as an assistant winemaker in Napa Valley.
Now, as the new winemaker at Rocky Pond Winery in Washington, she feels she has returned, in a sense, to her roots in the Finger Lakes some 2,500 miles away.
Amid the vineyards rising from the Columbia River, Liz, 34, has found the same mix of wine-making potential and community she enjoyed while enrolled in FLCC’s viticulture and wine technology program.
“That was always one of the things that really resonated with me about the Finger Lakes. There is that sense of community and a free-flow of knowledge from winery to winery,” she said, explaining that she found Napa Valley to be as competitive, but more secretive. “In the Finger Lakes, you’re pushing each other to get to the better spot, and it’s done with an open source mentality.”
Students, in particular, benefit from the region’s healthy mix of collaboration and competition, she added. Liz felt free to strike up conversations with adjunct instructors who had day jobs at local wineries and fellow students interning across the region.
Gina Lee, coordinator of the viticulture and wine technology degree program, agreed with Liz’s assessment of the Finger Lakes wine community.
“It amazed me after starting this program how much knowledge, equipment, and help that industry members give each other throughout the year,” she said. “The industry is so supportive of us here on the academic side also. It truly makes me proud to be a part of it.”
Liz’s interest in wine began after she graduated in 2010 with a marketing and communications degree from Miami University. She went back to Westchester County, where she grew up, and found work with a wine retailer. The job led to an invitation to join a California wine harvest in 2013.
“I just had a phenomenal time,” Liz said. “I was fully intending on returning to New York and continuing on with my cush wine-buying job, but I fell in love with wine production and knew that I had to stay on this side of the wine industry.”
She did some research and made a big decision.
“I think I shocked everybody in my family by saying, ‘Hey, I’m gonna go to this random community college in upstate New York,’” she laughed.
Liz felt some apprehension returning to school in her late 20s without a strong math and science background. She was relieved to find, as with many applied programs, the math and science skills are woven into their application.
“It was done in a way where everything was so supportive. Teachers really expect you to be honest about your background and what your base understanding is. But they really bring you through it to where your coursework is digestible,” Liz said.
“For the first time, everything was: ‘I want to learn more, I want to dig deeper.’ It was the first time I felt any real intellectual curiosity, and I knew that was the right choice for me,” she added. “Rob Wink’s plant physiology course, that is some of the most intense studying of my life and some of the most rewarding as well. It was the first time I had to sit down and throw myself at studying.”
While a student, she worked at Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard & Winery in Dundee and developed a curiosity about other wine regions from Paul Brock and other faculty. After completing core classes, she went “harvest hopping” with classmates Greg Taylor ’16 and Bruce Stebbins ’17 to Hardys Tintara in McLaren Vale, Australia, and A to Z Wineworks in Newberg, Ore. These experiences only made her more committed to vineyard management and wine production.
“No harvest is ever the same, you always can do something a little bit different, a little bit better. It’s such a beautiful process, working with a natural product. It’s going to humble you year over year, and it’s going to make you want to come back,” she said.
Her first permanent, full-time winemaking job was as assistant winemaker at HALL Family Wines in St. Helena, Calif. She spent five years there before her friend and mentor Steve Leveque, an established winemaker on the West Coast, told her about Rocky Pond.
Liz was ready to take ownership of the winemaking process and drawn to this particular region in Washington state.
“The land itself is absolutely inspiring,” she said. “The vines themselves look so perfect and there’s so much potential wrapped up in these vineyards. Rocky Pond has a vision for the Columbia Valley becoming a wine region. In a way, it kind of reminded me of the Finger Lakes.”
Liz particularly likes the idea that she can be part of creating an identity for an up-and-coming wine region and re-create some of the experiences she had at FLCC.
“It was a really special time in my life,” she said. “I am thankful for it every day.”
Note: Alumni, please share your news with us, including new jobs, promotions, awards, marriages, children or an amazing life experience. Use our form to stay in touch.
Gary Parmelee ’14 experiments with a dessert at FLX Hospitality.
In the spring alumni magazine, three culinary alumni talk about building careers in a creative, demanding field while finding time for friends and family.
What does Gary Parmelee like to cook?
“Anything that I don’t know how to cook,” says Gary, a 2014 culinary arts graduate and the production manager for FLX Hospitality. “I like to fully immerse myself. Right now, I am really, really big into baking bread, so I’ve got every one of my bread-baking books out. I’m learning about sourdough, and I’ve got bagels proofing right now.”
It is a winter afternoon and he has time to experiment. Gary is a culinary arts professional on vacation, which runs counter to the industry stereotype of never-ending hours, hot kitchens and irritable chefs. The Finger Lakes food and beverage landscape is in flux, expanding to serve the demand for local, artisanal foods and contracting with pandemic restrictions and labor shortages. Amid it all, three culinary alumni have achieved greater work-life balance, and they hope it becomes a long-term trend.
These days, Gary works mostly 9 to 5, coordinating prep for the FLX Hospitality family of businesses. This includes the farm-to-table restaurant FLX Table and FLX Fry Bird, serving specialty fried chicken. Another alumna, Sabrina Miller ’15, owns Sabrina’s Bake Shoppe, a short walk from her three children’s school in Penn Yan.
Kurt Hass ’19 of Cohocton, says his job as resident director for AVI Food Systems, the dining vendor for Genesee Community College, leaves time for family. Drawn to culinary arts for its creativity and community, all three put in the hours and endured COVID disruptions to arrive at a place where they can combine their passion and personal lives.
Discovering culinary
Kurt Hass ’19 is now the resident manager for the food service vendor at Genesee Community College.
Gary grew up in Geneva around food. His mother worked in food service and his grandma whipped up everything from pasta to tenderloin to homemade chicken soup. After high school, he went to SUNY Alfred for architecture but found it tedious.
Then, he started cooking for his lacrosse team.
“I thought, ‘I really enjoy this and all these people are pitching in money and want me to cook a meal, and they’re really thrilled about it and want me to do it often.’”
Gary switched gears and transferred to FLCC.
Kurt discovered his penchant for cooking later in life. After serving with the Marines, he worked in CNC (computer numerical control) machining for the aerospace industry and took an interest in barbecuing.
“I had a smoker in the backyard, and some friends and I started doing some barbecuing, and I found out that I have somewhat of a knack for doing this,” he says. He entered Kansas City Barbecuing Society (KCBS) competitions and started winning.
“My wife, Sharon, is basically the one who pushed me to go to culinary school at 41 years old. She’s the one that saw the passion, saw the desire, saw the drive and encouraged me to pursue it.”
Sabrina had been making elaborate pastries for family and friends for years. Her shop’s Facebook account features photos of sugar-cookie cutouts shaped like Keuka Lake and a Harry Potter-inspired birthday cake (Slytherin house).
By 2013, she was 28 and a divorced mom with twin boys and a baby girl. Sabrina felt she needed to do something for herself and discovered the culinary arts program, which had opened two years earlier. “When I saw culinary, I thought it was the best of both worlds. I could go ahead and prove to myself that I could manage college while doing something I love.”
Going to school
Still, college could not be all passion without practicality. Gary was working full-time, and Kurt and Sabrina had children.
“I was able to take full-time classes and still be able to navigate my kids’ school schedule,” Sabrina says. “Having the night classes helped. You can jam a lot of credit hours into a little bit of time.”
Sabrina Miller ’15 owns and operates Sabrina’s Bake Shoppe in Penn Yan.
One of Sabrina’s twins was diagnosed with cancer at age 5. He was 18 months into his treatment when she enrolled.
“I was working part-time four days a week, and then had the cakes, and I cleaned houses on the side while dealing with CJ’s treatment,” she explains. “There would be weeks when he was immunocompromised, and he needed me at home. Chef (Associate Professor Jamie Rotter) would let me make up assignments as much as possible and do things online.”
CJ, now 15 and in remission, joins brother Logan and sister Bella, 11, at the bakery after school.
Gary, too, says night classes were integral to his success because they allowed him to hold down a job. The program also requires 600 internship hours, and Gary’s assignment at the New York Wine and Culinary Center led directly to full-time work.
“I was there on Saturday nights and working the line and putting out banquets … the requirement to do an internship and fully dive into a Saturday night in a restaurant is probably why I am where I am today,” he says.
The culinary center hired Gary even before graduation, and he spent six years as a chef there before moving on to be the chef at FLX Table in 2018.
“What I loved most about being a chef is the ability to engage with the guests. Ninety-eight percent of the time you are chatting with guests that are having a really nice time, and they want to know more about you,” he says. “It opens the conversation up to you learning about them.”
Looking back, Gary also appreciates the ServSafe food safety certification he earned as part of the program. “An unbelievable amount of knowledge comes from being able to take ServSafe,” he adds.
Kurt interned at Bully Hill Winery and the Waterfront Restaurant in Hammondsport. “The internship was critical. It gives culinary students a taste of the real world. In a restaurant you’ve got a customer waiting on you versus a lab where you have the rest of your teammates helping you,” he notes.
“The other big part was the business classes, how to basically run a successful business out of culinary versus just how to cook. Jamie and Patrick (Rae) have put just as much information into that two-year program as they possibly can.”
Thriving, then surviving
By the close of the 2010s, the Finger Lakes food and beverage business was humming. Craft brewing was well-established and distilleries were opening. Real Eats, maker of vacuum packed, prepared meals, opened in 2017 in the Geneva Enterprise Development Center.
In 2018, Wine Spectator magazine recommended FLX Table, where Gary was preparing meals, as a stop between tastings in the Finger Lakes, and Wine Enthusiast podcaster Jameson Fink praised the growing family of FLX businesses.
Sabrina opened her bakery in April 2019 following a serendipitous visit to her chiropractor, who had just bought the Arcade building with a vacant storefront in Penn Yan.
After graduation in 2019, Kurt helped friends open Station 26 bar and restaurant in Cohocton then jumped at the chance to serve as executive chef for AVI at the FLCC main campus.
Then came March 2020 and everything changed.
Gary was furloughed during FLX Table’s temporary closure. FLCC shut down its cafe, prompting AVI to move Kurt to Alfred University. Sabrina scrambled to adjust by setting up times when people could window shop for baked goods and pay using a touchless card reader.
After getting through 2021 in what she called “survival mode,” Sabrina is considering expanding her menu, perhaps adding breakfast sandwiches.
Kurt feels fortunate to be part of a company that kept him working. From Alfred, he spent a few months at Keuka College before landing at GCC. He still sees restaurants struggling with COVID protocols and labor shortages. Workers with more choices are opting for jobs with better hours or benefits.
“I think if restaurants want to continue to succeed they’re going to have to change the way that they do business,” he says. “The 70-hour work weeks are going to end up being a thing of the past.”
“A lot of people are starting to set boundaries and ask for a little more work-life balance,” Gary adds. “People are begging for a normal life with something they love.”
Jamie agrees balance is possible, but both employees and employers will have to work at it.
“Balancing a career in any facet of the culinary arts industry takes dedication and discipline. If you don’t gain that balance, the work can burn you out. Many employers are more cognizant of this potential for employee burnout as well as its toll on the bottom line,” he says.
“It’s tougher for chefs; they can’t just walk away and take the time when things get rough. Employers are starting to figure this out, and slowly but surely many are beginning to adjust the way that they do business.”
Changes ahead
Underneath the current turmoil, the food and beverage industry holds promise for people to make a living and have a life. Jamie, the culinary arts program coordinator, stressed the range of opportunities with high school counselors at an event at New York Kitchen in December 2021.
“When you think of culinary arts, the first career that comes to mind is restaurant chef. It’s a good career choice … but that is really just the beginning. Our message to students is that culinary offers a wide range of careers and lifestyles. You can be a chef without having to work every Saturday night,” he told the room.
“Culinary is a great gig, and you have to really love it to do it, but there are outlets to express your creative ability through food,” Gary agrees. “You can work in a commissary space, you can sell food to kitchens. Or you can do food production for a place like Real Eats.”
That said, he adds, the culinary field is demanding and the hours can be long.
“Everyone can tell you, ‘Oh you don’t want to be a chef. You’re not going to be here for Christmas,’” he begins. “I proved them wrong. I went in and I did it and, granted, they were right and I was right.
“There are definitely things I missed out on, but I am able to enjoy those things now because I put the work in, formulated my own opinion and decided this is what I want to do. You do have to pay your dues, but the more you learn, the easier you make your life.”
Sabrina strives to find a balance between building her business and remembering the reason she got into it.
“Don’t be scared of long hours. They will pay off. If it’s something that you enjoy doing, it doesn’t become a job,” she says. “Make sure you leave time to be your own creative self. Filling orders for other people all the time pays the bills, but it doesn’t necessarily help with the creative part of it.”
Kurt, who has a managerial role in food service, still fires up a grill or smoker any chance he gets.
“My favorite days are the days I get to put on the white chef’s coat and actually cook again. Every chance I get, when the weather is nice, I like to barbecue at home or at a friend’s house. That’s definitely where my love comes from.”
Note: Alumni, please share your news with us, including new jobs, promotions, awards, marriages, children or an amazing life experience. Use our form to stay in touch.
For the eighth consecutive year, Finger Lakes Community College has received the Military Friendly School designation from VIQTORY, a veteran-owned media company that recognizes employers and colleges showing strong recruitment and retention rates among military veterans.
This is the College’s first year achieving gold status. Of the 1,800 schools that applied for the Military Friendly designation for 2022-23, 282 earned gold awards for their leading practices, outcomes, and effective programs.
“The process established for the Military Friendly designation is rigorous and guided by an advisory council of higher education professionals who oversee veteran services. I am very proud of the gradual improvements our dedicated faculty and staff have made to our comprehensive veteran services to reach gold status this year,” said FLCC President Robert Nye.
FLCC scores highest in standards for culture and commitment to veterans and standards for graduation and career outcomes. The College assists students in obtaining the maximum number of credits for their military service, based on training, coursework and occupational specialty. It also helps veterans secure benefits for themselves and their families and provides opportunities to connect with other student veterans and local veterans’ services.
VIQTORY uses public data sources and information from a survey completed by the school and personal data from surveys of veterans to establish its scores. It measures a school’s ability to meet thresholds for retention, graduation, job placement, repayment, persistence, and loan default rates for all students and specifically for student veterans.
FLCC is one of nine New York community colleges that received the designation and one of four to achieve gold award status. More information about FLCC’s veteran services is available at flcc.edu/veterans.
