Alicia Oberlender is passionate about strengthening the Onondaga Community College campus and making a positive impact in her surrounding community. That commitment inspired her to apply for a position on the first-ever National Grid Foundation Youth Advisory Council. She was thrilled to learn she was one of just 12 students selected from across New York, Massachusetts, and Delaware.
Oberlender is eagerly anticipating the council's first meeting next month, where she will collaborate with peers from diverse backgrounds to help shape comunity-focused grantmaking efforts. "I thought it would be really cool to meet with students from other schools and work together. I'm a Meg O'Connell Scholar, so I love community impact and social justice projects. I thought I could bring a unique perspective through that experience, with my American Sign Language background, and a desire to help the deaf community."
A graduate of West Genesee High School, Oberlender has already completed a Mathematics & Science degree at OCC, and she will finish her American Sign Language degree this May. Her leadership and service at OCC and in the broader community are extensive and include:
- Student Trustee on OCC's Board of Trustees.
- Member of the search committee for a new Provost and Senior Vice President.
- Meg O'Connell Social Justice Scholar.
- President of the American Sign Language Club.
- Student Ambassador, giving campus tours to prospective students and their families.
- Member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.
- Participant in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars program.
- SRC Arena concession stand worker for American Food & Vending.
- Crew leader for Micron Chip Camp.
- OCCA Board member.
- Campus Safety Advisory Board member.
As a member of the National Grid Foundation Youth Advisory Council, Oberlender and her colleagues will meet quarterly to help guide grantmaking decisions, develop leadership skills, and drive meaningful community impact. Each student will receive an annual stipend, and collectively manage a $50,000 fund guided by principles of youth participatory grantmaking. This is one of the few youth advisory councils led by a corporate foundation in the United States.
Looking ahead, Oberlender plans to continue her education at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, located on the Rochester Institute of Technology campus. She aspires to become an ASL interpreter and eventually an ASL professor, continuing her commitment to access, equity, and community engagement.
