The old saying of what goes around comes around, came to fruition this fall at MVCC and the Proctor School District. Ark Di, one of the GEAR UP tutors and an MVCC student, is lead-

ing the Operation Christmas Child Project campaign in the local school district.

What makes Di’s perspective so interesting is that he was a recipient of one of these shoeboxes when he was a small child. The Operation Christmas Child Project has volun-teers take one of these makeshift shoeboxes and fill with small gifts. The shoeboxes are then collected and shipped overseas to third-world countries for children, who would otherwise receive nothing at Christ-mas.

With his help, the Utica GEAR UP team participated in TEAM MVCC’s Operation Christmas Child initiative on Nov. 6 at Proc-tor High School. Along with taking a lead role in organizing this event, he shared his story with the students, making it a much more real mission for them.

“He received a green coach bus in his box, and he kept that bus for years,” said Jessica Woolheater, Youth Academic Spe-cialist. “It was his only childhood toy, and it meant the world to him.”

The GEAR UP students come from such diverse back-grounds, that it makes this project more relevant to their lives.

Students and staff had been collecting donations for several weeks and were able to donate 18 boxes to the Operation

Christmas Child Project. Students, tutors and staff organized donations, assembled and filled boxes, and wrote letters or notes to the child receiving the box.

“Students received enough monetary donations to track four of the gifts. They are excited to see where the boxes end up,” said Woolheater.

The following people participated in the event: Jessica Woolheater, Youth Academic Specialist; Michael Fernandez, tutor; Bernadette Leone, Utica Safe Schools/GEAR UP Staff; Magadalei, tutor; Monica Jackson, tutor; Ark Di, tutor; Proctor High School students Edin Muslic, Layla Ali, Zaw Pai, Thu Saw, Joshua Ortega, and Mario Pineda.

Week of November 17, 2014

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Operation Christmas has real meaning for one MVCC student

Oneida County Workforce Develop-ment has pledged $50,000 for scholar-ships towards programs that prepare students for a career in the advanced manufacturing and nanotechnology industries.

Qualified applicants will receive a schol-arship valued up to $2,000 for the Spring 2015 semester at MVCC. Eligible stu-dents must be Oneida County residents, demonstrate financial need, be able to complete their program in two years, and

be enrolled in a qualifying major.Eligible majors include: Semiconduc-

tor Manufacturing, Electrical Engineering Technology, Electrical Service Techni-cian, Engineering Science, Air Condition-ing Technology, Civil Engineering Tech-nology, Computer Information Science, Cybersecurity, Mechanical Engineering Technology, Heating & Air Conditioning Technology, and the Carpentry and Ma-sonry Certificate.

Interested applicants should contact Kevin Siembab at 793-2674 or ksiembab@mvcc.edu.

New Nano Scholarships available to students

MVCC’s Sarah Lam, Director of the Equal Opportunity Center (EOC), was awarded the Outstanding New Continuing Educa-tion Professional Award by the Continuing Education Associa-tion of New York (CEANY) on Nov. 6.

The award recognizes new continuing education professionals by honoring emerging leaders who strive toward the highest levels of personal and professional accomplishment and who excel in continuing education. Lam was recognized for outstanding contributions to Oneida County through her leadership of the Utica-based Educational Opportunity Cen-ter, which helps more than 1,000 area resi-dents per year prepare themselves for college and enroll in local postsecondary institutions.

Lam’s leadership at the Center has made a dramatic change in the lives of the students she serves says Franca Armstrong, Dean of Rome and Associate Vice President for Workforce Development.

“Both personally and professionally, Sarah exemplifies the committed and tireless spirit of service that should be the hallmark of a continuing education professional,” Armstrong said. “Through her dedication and leadership, she has greatly increased the college’s impact on the community.”

The Educational Opportunity Center provides free college preparation services to adults. The Center is located on 524 Elizabeth Street at the MVCC Education Center operated jointly by MVCC and Utica’s Municipal Housing Authority in downtown Utica. The EOC serves all of Oneida County as well as adja-cent communities.

Services provided by the Center include extensive tutoring to prepare people for GED test-taking, post secondary level academics and college entrance exams. The Center places emphasis on academic advisement, mentoring, and personal counseling, and assists students in navigating the higher education system and making informed decisions. Assistance through the college application process is provided, as well as information and help in applying for financial aid.

Walk-ins are welcome, and applications are available at the Center or online at http://www.mvcc.edu/cced. For more infor-mation about the EOC or with questions, call 731-5870.

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Lam presented award for EOC leadership

Rome Rotary, along with Mohawk Valley Community Col-lege, held its International Student Day on Saturday, Nov. 8, at the College’s Rome Campus. The program, sponsored by the Rome Rotary Club in collaboration with Utica College, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, and MVCC, was developed to show Oneida County’s many international students the outstanding opportunities and attractions that Rome has to offer.

Thirty-five students from the three colleges representing 16 countries toured MVCC’s Rome Campus and the Rome community, visiting unique attractions of the Rome area that included the Griffiss Business and Technology Park, Delta Lake State Park, Fort Stanwix National Park, and the Rome Capitol Theatre.

The program began at the MVCC Hangar (site of the Col-lege’s Airframe and Powerplant program), and continued throughout the city to introduce students to the community and some of its high points. In the late afternoon, students visited the homes of Rome Rotary members for a hospitality experience. The program concluded with a dinner served at the Polish Home and a presentation by the Honorable Judge Joan Shkane.

International students gethighlights Rome’s attributes

INTERNATIONAL TOUR - Walt Constantini, Director of the Airframe and Power-plant Technology program, explains to students the differences between jet and propeller propulsion systems.

MVCC Dean of the Rome Campus and Associate Vice President for Workforce Development Franca Armstrong was awarded the Outstanding Experienced Continuing Education Professional Award by the Continuing Education Association of New York (CEANY) on Nov. 6. The statewide award recognizes experienced continuing education professionals by honoring leaders who strive toward the highest levels of personal and professional accomplishment and who excel in continuing education.

Franca, formerly MVCC’s Executive Director for Commu-nity and Workforce Development, was named Dean of Rome in 2014. Her leadership at the college has resulted in highly successful programs designed to strengthen and serve the community. Programs she has developed and overseen have included the YouthBuild construction skills training for low-income youth, the CyberJobs workforce development project, and the state wide recognized Educational Opportunity Center, among others.

“Franca Armstrong models the best of what makes for an outstanding and experienced educational professional,” said Dr. Randall VanWagoner, President of MVCC. “She is unwavering-ly positive and collaborative, maintains an abundant mindset, and maintains a commitment to student success.”

Armstrong presented CEANY award

MVCC announces the appointment of William McDonald as the new director of Community and Workforce Development in the Center for Corporate and Community Education (CCED).

“From efforts in unmanned aerial systems to cybersecurity training, MVCC’s spirit of innovation and service has made the College a regional leader in community and workforce development,” McDonald said. “I am honored to have been given the opportunity to contrib-ute my abilities to this mission of service.”

As the director, McDonald is responsible for the objectives, operations, and account-ability of all functions in the CCED, he will work closely with others to develop commu-

nity partnerships that lead to inter-agency collaborations and strategic community development efforts, develop the CCED’s business plan for each semester, and work with Institutional Advancement to obtain grants to provide funding for CCED programming.

“I believe that Bill is an experienced professional that brings a skill set to MVCC that looks toward building the partnerships that can help our community achieve its vast potential while addressing the needs of all members of our community through

programs and services,” said Franca Armstrong, associate vice president of Workforce Development and dean of the Rome campus.

McDonald’s professional history includes a nine-year stint at Herkimer College. He began working there in 2005 as an interim human resources specialist, and a year later became the assis-tant to the President. In 2007, McDonald was promoted to direc-tor of Continuing Education, a position he held for seven years.

In this position, McDonald’s duties included serving as liaison between Herkimer College and the local business community, developing new markets for community education program-ming, collaborating with regional partners to secure grant funding, and designing and assessing non-credit and contract education programming. He was also involved with several committees.

McDonald is a member of the Continuing Education Associa-tion of New York (CEANY), a member of the Human Ecology Program Committee for the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Herkimer County, and is a former president of Remsen Central Schools Board of Education. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management with a concentration in human resources man-agement from Utica College, and was valedictorian of his class. McDonald is currently pursuing a master’s degree in education.

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McDonald

McDonald to head Community and Workforce Development

Honoring Employees for Years of ServiceWhen you have been protecting faculty, staff, students, and

visitors for 15 years, you have seen a lot at MVCC. That is the case for Tom Collins. He was recently recognized

for more than 15 years of service and dedication to the College as a Public Safety Officer.

“Tom is one of our guys on the front line to keep this a safe campus for employees and students alike,” said MVCC Public Safety Chief Dave Amico.

Collins joined the MVCC Public Safety Office, it was called Campus Safety back then, on April 12, 1999, after serving as a security guard at several other companies. In 1997, Collins earned his associate degree in criminal justice from MVCC. Prior to that, Collins served a distinguished 20-year career in the U.S. Air Force.

While his main responsibilities are to patrol the buildings, grounds, and residence halls on the Utica campus, he has proven to be just as valuable to the College as the “Face of MVCC.” As a Public Safety Officer, he is one of the first people visitors and new students to the College will meet each semes-ter.

His career at MVCC has been exceptional and his co-workers find him a pleasure to work with.

WINGS OF THE HAWK CELEBRATION – It was an evening of showing department pride as the Business Office went out as a group to celebrate receiving the Wings of the Hawks award. The entire department went to Swifty’s Restaurant.

218 students received Veterans Benefits for Spring-2014.

ALSOThere are 23 retirees teaching credit classes

for Fall-2014.

Did You Know?

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You may have noticed the large ban-ner that hung across the Alumni College Center during the week of Nov. 3-7 that welcomed Non-traditional students to celebrate Non-Traditional Student Week. This national recognition week is cele-brated on both two- and four-year college campuses across the country.

Through the efforts of the Adult Learner Services Office in collaboration with Rome Student Services, Kiddie Campus, the Alumni Office, and the financial sup-port of Student Activities and the Return-ing Adult Student Association (RASA), this year’s week was a great success.

Family Fun Night, held on Tuesday, Nov. 4, was well attended. Jeff Boyer, “The Bubble Guy” demonstrated the science and fun behind bubbles. Some lucky guests were called up on stage to play with a chance to be encased in a bubble. Families enjoyed the evening with everyone receiving balloons, kids getting their faces painted by the staff of Kiddie Campus as well as completing a fun bubble-related activity. A highlight of the night was the popcorn being served for the show by the MVCC Alumni As-sociation.

New this year, the Veterans Education Coordinator provided education benefit briefings on the Utica and Rome Cam-puses. Many veterans and their family members are uncertain of the benefits they can receive. Dr. Tae Dawson con-ducted several briefings over a two-day span to inform qualified individuals of their options.

As it has become tradition, Friday night was the Non-Traditional Student

Week Celebration dinner. More than 100 students and guests gathered to take a break from classes and enjoy each other’s company. This dinner is where we have honored both faculty and students. This year was no exception.

Adult Learner Services honored As-sistant Professor Cheryl Plescia with this year’s Spirit of Services Award. Three students who nominated Plescia at-tended that evening and shared with the audience why Plescia was this year’s winner.

Additionally, three students were hon-ored for their entry into this year’s Non-Traditional Student Week Essay Contest. The first place winner, Anthony Clements is an online student working on his facili-ties management degree and couldn’t attend the dinner as he currently resides in Long Island. Christine Proulx, the sec-

ond place winner, was in attendance and read her inspiring essay to the crowd. In third place was April Pendarvis, a Rome student, who, like many adult learners, juggles many responsibilities in her life.

MVCC celebrates 7th Non-Traditional Student Week

FAMILY FUN - Jeff Boyer asking Ryan to step into the ring so that he could be encased in a bubble as a part of Family Fun Night.

It has become an annual tradition that the faculty, staff, and students have wholeheartedly embraced. The annual Veterans Day Food Drive was a huge success with more food collected this year than in any of the years past.

This year, Team MVCC and the MVCC Respiratory Care Club worked together to collect non-perishable food items for the College’s annual drive.

Through the hard work of the students and members of Team MVCC, this year’s drive donated more than 800 pounds of food to the area’s Feed Our Vets organization. The food was neatly packed into 16 boxes. This year’s amount of food easily doubled what was collected last year.

“Team MVCC would like to thank the members of the MVCC Respiratory Care Club for their help promoting and coordinating the food drive, and the members of the college community for their support and generous donations,” said Deanna L. Ferro-Aurience, co-chair of Team MVCC.

Members of the Respiratory Care Club were on hand earlier this week to help load the food into a truck to be delivered to the Feed Our Vets pantry.

Respiratory Care Club helps double food donations to vets