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Wilo Matan is determined to make a difference in the world. She's a native of Kenya who came to the United States five years ago and is pursuing a degree in Human Services. "There's so much injustice back home and there's no one to help or advocate for people. Everyone is on their own. I thought I could major in Human Services and help my people by for advocating for them. I want to give back."

Life on the OCC campus has changed significantly since the arrival of COVID-19. Dr. Sean Vormwald has played a significant role in most of it. "I think the fall semester went really well. The steps we took ahead of time to put the measures in place like masks, social distancing, and disinfecting all helped as well. I was pleased we were able to make it through without having to go remote before Thanksgiving with relatively low numbers. We didn't have a significant outbreak."

Judah Bailey is on the right path and he credits the military with helping him find his way. "It's taught me delayed gratification. I know it's important to work for something and not expect results immediately. I know the value of the compounding interest of things. You have to get up, train every day, and work hard so you graduate."

Professor Buffy Quinn's passion for using drones to make maps brought a new degree program to OCC and recently landed her a voice in a national discussion about the use of drones in STEM education. Quinn recently participated in the National Center for Autonomous Technology's panel discussion on the topic. "We had great response with lots of questions from people all across the country. It was fun to discuss lessons learned and that we were doing innovative things to get students experience in this very high tech field and get them into really good jobs."

Each year Onondaga Community College's chapter of international honor society Phi Theta Kappa works on an Honors In Action project. Students research a societal issue, then put their research into action to help solve the problem.

Onondaga Community College will award associate degrees to more than 300 students this month, and a handful of those recipients will be students who started taking classes here in high school as part of the P-TECH program. Because of how early they started and how well they have done, they are earning their degrees in just three semesters. "Finishing early gives me more time to explore what I want to do," said Eliza Velazquez who will receive her degree in Electrical Technology. "Time passes by really quick. We started coming here in 2017.

You think 2020 has been an interesting year for you? Consider what Thanh Nguyen has experienced. In January she left her home in Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam to come to Onondaga Community College. By mid-March, all classes became virtual due to COVID-19. "When I was in Vietnam I was involved in many activities and I expected that here. I cried a little bit when I wasn't able to do anything."

Optimism has been a rare commodity in 2020, but Jacqueline Gayle's eternal optimism has led her to a new career path which she is starting at Onondaga Community College. "This is a great college. The love and support I get from my professors and the school overall is wonderful."