Twenty-five years after graduating from high school, Alexis Riccardo is in her first semester at Onondaga Community College and loving the experience. The 43-year-old mother is an Engineering Science major and an officer in the Student Association. She's made a seamless adjustment to life as a college student.
Onondaga Community College's chapter of international honor society Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) welcomed more than 140 new members during its fall induction ceremony. The event was held October 24 in Storer Auditorium.
Peter Raymond-Smiedy, '17 never expected to be where he is today. A decade ago he was struggling through his senior year at Syracuse's Fowler High School. "I wasn't the best student. I had no concept. I didn't have the best grades." Now he's in his first semester of graduate school at Syracuse University where he's pursuing his Ph.D. in Biology. He credits Onondaga Community College and its faculty with playing a critical role in his success. "OCC is the reason I'm where I am right now.
Tricia Buttiglieri's road to a college degree began in the summer of 2018 when her husband was driving to work and spotted a billboard advertising OCC's new Weekend College. "He called me, told me about it, and said I should check it out. That night when I got home from work, I went to the OCC website, applied, and it started the ball rolling right away."
Onondaga Community College has been named to the Princeton Review's 2019 Guide to Green Schools. The Princeton Review created the list based on sustainability-related policies, practices and programs. It's the second consecutive year the College has received this honor.
OCC's sustainability-related features recognized by the Princeton Review include:
Last fall on the first day of classes, Biology Professor Justin Fiene made his students an offer. He was looking for someone who could use a series of wildlife photos he had taken with a trail camera and turn them into a children's book. Princess Figueroa, who was in her first week of classes after coming to OCC from Liverpool High School, immediately jumped at the opportunity. "In high school I took a class on child development and I thought I could use what I had learned to make the book simple and easy for children to understand. I knew how kids think," said Figueroa.
