Donald Mawhinney has been a member of Onondaga Community College’s Board of Trustees since before the College opened its doors to students. Mawhinney was appointed a founding trustee in 1961 one year prior to classes starting in the College’s Midtown Plaza location. Fifty-five years later, on June 21, 2016, Mawhinney attended his final meeting as a member of the Board of Trustees.

During the meeting a resolution was passed in Mawhinney’s honor saluting his extraordinary service to the College and its students.

Kelly Kinahan grew up and went to school in Liverpool, NY where she graduated in 1991. While growing up she took after her father and enjoyed drawing, which would ultimately lead to her love for design and began architectural design classes as early as 11^th grade. After high school she would attend Philadelphia University for 2 years before returning home to Central New York where she went to work and had her daughter, Alyssa.

For most toddlers the primary focus of each day is playing with friends, honing their ABCs, counting skills and snack time. In other words, choosing a career is usually not one of their top priorities, but for Cassidy Lynn ’08 she knew what she wanted to do right away. “From the age of four, I told my parents I wanted to be a singer,” she said. From that point on she would play whatever records her mom and dad had on hand and sing, while also performing with the Syracuse Children’s Theatre and Choir.

The idea first came to him a few years ago. Glenn LaPoint was chatting with friends at a Syracuse University football game when the topic of a college education came up. His friends knew he had gone to OCC and assumed he had his degree. "I told them, 'Technically I never finished. I thought I only had a few classes to go,'" said LaPoint. "That's when I started a bucket list and began thinking about going back."

His friends assumed he had his degree because of his accomplishments.

Michele Hasper needed to do something different. She’d spent 20 years working as a restaurant general manager and was ready for a new challenge. “I decided I needed a change,” said Hasper. “I decided to attend OCC and start a new career.”

Hasper chose the College’s Health Information Technology (HIT) program. Students who successfully complete the coursework are eligible for employment supporting patient care providers to help ensure complete and accurate medical records.

On the surface Zachary Skinner ’03 is a budding local artist who has degrees from Onondaga Community College, SUNY New Paltz and the Art Institute of Chicago. He has already been selected to participate in two art-in-residency programs in Connecticut and Wyoming while owning his own photography and video production business in Beacon, NY. He just landed his first solo gallery exhibit at the Gallery at the Ann Felton Multicultural Center.

You’ve no doubt heard about a jack-of-all-trades, but for Dr. Daryll Dykes ’83, he is a doctor, literally, of all trades. The OCC grad recently completed his Juris Doctorate (J.D.) in 2014, to go along with his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) to complete an impressive triumvirate of advanced degrees and become one of the foremost spinal surgeons in the world. As impressive as this achievement is, examining his journey is almost, if not more, inspiring.

Jesse Peplinski is a self-starter whose passion is working with computers. The Liverpool High School graduate came to OCC in the fall of 2013, enrolled in the College’s Computer Science major and two years later received the Curriculum Honor Award before graduating. Peplinski is pictured at the top of this story receiving his award from OCC President Dr. Casey Crabill and Timothy Stedman, Chair of OCC's Computer Studies department. “Jesse carries himself with a maturity beyond his years,” said Stedman. “His drive and focus are exceptionally rare.

Stella Barbuto Penizotto’s affiliation with Onondaga Community College started with her first class in the fall 1988 semester and has grown stronger in the 25 years since she graduated. “The things I learned at OCC laid such a strong foundation for me,” said Penizotto.