About nine months ago, Sam Pandossi decided to gamble on himself. He had tried college before but it didn't work out. He had become used to the security of a full-time job in retail and the financial security that went along with it.
Then he heard about Micron, and the new…
A faith-based quote Saray Quevedo's mother shared with her at a young age provides her the daily inspiration to be the best she can be. "'If God is with me, who's against me?' That quote has brought me through everything in my entire life. It's why I have succeeded."
Quevedo is the…
Major: Liberal Arts & Sciences - General Studies
High School: Fayetteville-Manlius, class of 2018
Sean Egan has loved performing for as long as he can remember. "Since I was old enough to talk, I used to put on shows in the living room. I would host a morning talk show and make family…
Major: Human Services
High School: The Heritage School in New York City, class of 2017
When Shania Guzman started taking college classes she was pretty sure she didn’t belong. “I didn’t think OCC or any school was for me. I was eager to go home but that wasn’t an option. That’s when I made…
Shannon Smithson plans to turn her passion for athletics into a career helping others recover from injuries. That's why she's working hard to succeed in Onondaga Community College's Physical Therapist Assistant degree program. "It's really demanding. You have to maintain a certain GPA. I'm…
Think about where you were exactly two years ago and what you were doing.
Then consider Sharif Jafari's story.
In August of 2021 he was in his home country of Afghanistan. The United States military was suddenly withdrawing, leaving the country in chaos.…
It's been just about a year since Shelly Dunham had to make one of the biggest decisions of her life. For 33 years she had worked at Natur-Tyme, a health and wellness store on Erie Boulevard in DeWitt, where she served as Store Manager. In the spring of 2023 the owners informed their employees…
Shyann Shaw is determined to be the change in her community. Her biggest fan is also her favorite Onondaga Community College Professor, Pete Patnode. "He motivates me. He says 'my money's on you. I have a lot of faith in you!'"
Professor Patnode teaches in the Criminal Justice degree…
Siobhan (pronounced shi-VON) Young's success is all the more remarkable when you consider what it's taken her to get to this point. Today she is a high-achieving student who is a semester away from earning her Business Administration degree, a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, a math…
A conversation with a friend introduced Skylor Kelley to the possibility of enrolling in the P-TECH program. "My neighbor was in it and told me about it. I decided to apply, interviewed, and figured why not do it as an alternate way of high school. It's turned out pretty nice."
P-TECH…
Major: General Studies
High School: Baldwinsville, class of 2019
Sunday Joshua has had a remarkable journey around the world. He's a refugee from Lagos, Nigeria who arrived in the United States in 2017 as winter was beginning. "I remember being so cold. I had never been so cold in my life.…
A family piano handed down from generation to generation has helped create the soundtrack of Susanna Southwick's life. Most of the 11 children who grew up in the Southwick's southern Onondaga County home played that piano at one time or another. Southwick remembers her mother noticing her…