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Onondaga Community College will celebrate the accomplishments of its December graduates during a ceremony this Wednesday at 5 p.m. in the SRC Arena. Throughout the week we are highlighting students who are completing their degrees this month. Usually, we tell you their stories, but today Karar Abed is sharing his story with you in his words. He moved to the United States from Iraq with his family in 2016. He worked tirelessly to learn the English language and became an outstanding student at East Syracuse Minoa High School on the way to receiving his diploma in June 2023.

Brady Overtoom immigrated from the Philippines to the United States when he was 9 months old. So when he was presented with the opportunity to assist with the refugee resettlement process at Interfaith Works of Central New York, the decision was easy. "I've learned when given opportunities in life, I want to give those opportunities to others every time I can."

Cari Cordell and Tammy Ponto are inseparable in pursuit of their Onondaga Community College degrees. Both are adult learners with families who work full time for the Syracuse City School District (SCSD) and take OCC classes online. They are also "accountability partners" who depend on each other to power through their demanding life and academic schedules. "We lean on each other multiple times a day. Having Tammy to hold me accountable and to go to with questions makes it a lot easier. It gives you that extra push you need to get through," said Cordell. "We're in contact daily.

The United Nations declared December 3 the "International Day of Persons with Disabilities." Today we meet an Onondaga Community College student whose amazing will to succeed makes her one of the most remarkable and unique success stories on campus.

Josh Barr is amazed by what he is achieving. He's a 40-year-old single father, a recovering drug addict who has been sober for more than a year, and a member of the newest class of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society inductees. "If you would have told me a year ago this is where I would be sitting, I would have laughed at you and said 'absolutely not. You're nuts!'"

Barr spent most of his adult life battling heroin addiction. A brush with the law convinced him he was getting one last chance to turn his life around.

Onondaga Community College creates a significant positive impact on the business community and generates a return on investment to its major stakeholder groups; students, taxpayers, and society. Those are the findings of a study conducted by Lightcast, a global leader in labor market analytics.

Operations Spending Impact

You don't have to be a longtime gearhead to excel in Onondaga Community College's Automotive Technology program. Colden German became interested in cars just a couple of years ago and had his "aha moment" during his final year at Baldwinsville High School. "My senior year was based around figuring out what I wanted to do. I really had no clue. When I decided to put a new exhaust on my car I was like 'wow... maybe I want to do this. I'm going to give it my best shot and push through.'"

Onondaga Community College student Noel Ponthuit is proud of his home country. That's why he represented Rwanda at OCC's World Languages & Cultural Fair. As students stopped by to learn more about his culture, he shared that he was wearing traditional wedding clothing. The color black represented darkness and the white represented moving into the light. "I enjoyed doing this a lot. I want people to know our culture. I want to represent my country. It's a good country, a peaceful country, and they welcome everyone."

Heather Silvia is living a life she never would have dreamed for herself. She's a self-described 'late bloomer' who has risen up to become the Principal of Donlin Drive Elementary School in Liverpool, one of the top-performing elementary schools in all of New York State. She credits her success with the path she was set on as a student at Onondaga Community College. "I don't know what would have happened to me if not for OCC. I didn't believe I could do anything more than bartend. OCC was such a game changer."

When Madi Morse completed her bachelor's degree in Screenwriting in just three and a half years, she was confident she was on the road to a successful career. She had done an internship at a television network in New York City and loved the experience. She had big dreams which wound up colliding with the real world. "For a year I sent out hundreds of applications a month. I had all of this experience! I even applied for jobs at local television stations and was stunned by the low pay. It was all a harsh reality for me."