Press Releases, June 2008
HCC
Award Dinner Honors Distinguished Alumni
Longmeadow and Amherst residents to be feted
June 4, 2008
HOLYOKE – The
Holyoke Community College Alumni Association will hold its 31st annual Alumni
Award Dinner and Scholarship Benefit on June 5 at 5 p.m. at the Kittredge Center
for Business and Workforce Development, at the PeoplesBank Conference Center,
third floor.
IBM executive Sheila Donohue
(class of 1981), of Longmeadow, and Mass Fair Housing legal counsel (and former
legal counsel to the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination) Jerry
Levinsky (class of 1973), of Amherst, will each receive a Distinguished Alumni
Award.
The event is open to the public. Tickets are $40 per person and sponsor tickets
are $55 and up. Persons wishing to attend are asked to call Joyce D. Desorcy,
Annual Fund Coordinator, at (413) 552-2704.
Holyoke
Community College Foundation awards Scholarships
June 4, 2008
HOLYOKE – Holyoke Community College recognized more than 100 area students with scholarships and awards for academic excellence and community service. The recipients were recognized on May 22 when the college held its annual awards night. The following local students are among the recipients:
Lyudmila Melnichuk -Elaine Marieb NDNC Scholarship
Nataliya Rozhko - Westfield Bank Scholarship
Dannys Solis - Frances H. Gosselin Scholarship in Nursing
Xueling Tang - PIMA Scholarship
Caroline Carlisle - James F. Connors Scholarship
Sekou Haba - Doris M. Kemble Nursing Scholarship & Rosemarie Cataldo Fitzpatrick Scholarship
Meihua Ji - Doris M. Kemble Nursing Scholarship & Edward F. & Catherine C. Moriarty Memorial Scholarship
Mary Michelle O'Sullivan - Mickey & Jennie Jedziniak Memorial Scholarship
Michael Pinheiro - Michael J. Kittredge III Scholarship
Leonette St. Cyr - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Adebayo Adeyemi - Yadavendra Sharma Scholarship
Megan Black - Doris M. Kemble Nursing Scholarship
Christina Patch - Jan Alicia Nettler Scholarship
Mariana Silva-Buck - William Dwight Scholarship
Cody Herzig - Frank and Elena Cataldo Scholarship
Stefanie Sudyka - Marguerite I. Lazarz Scholarship
Jacob Reed - Joseph V. Gosselin Scholarship
Kaitlyn Coleman - Kenneth J. Murphy Sr. Scholarship
Cristina Demelo - John DiNapoli Scholarship
Kim Nguyen - Chicopee Savings Bank Scholarship
Vadim Popovichenko - Victor E. Thomas Scholarship
Jennifer Farquhar - Bruce V. Quagliato Scholarship
Silvia Kaplan - Berkshire Bank Scholarship
Tatiana Shannon - Paul Buckwalter Scholarship
Shaun Cote - Spencer C. Bridgman Scholarship
Elizabeth Dickinson - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Kelsey Wallace - Delaney House Scholarship
Yvette E. Laporte Scholarship
Matilda Asselin - Mischa Barowsky Scholarship
Julie Beckley - Nathan Kaplinsky Scholarship
Alex Bejarano - Franklin Morris O'Connell Scholarship
Christian Bermudez - Joseph and Angela Wright Scholarship
Rory Casey - James Joseph O'Connell Scholarship
Josvette Colon - Donald Taber Art Scholarship
Yamaira De Jesus - John and Anne McHugh Scholarship
Azamat Djumabaev - Paul Buckwalter Scholarship
Lori Goshea - Franklin Morris O'Connell Scholarship
Yvette Graveline - Ellen Lynch Scholarship
Mackenzie Gray - Mutt & Jeff Scholarship
Elizabeth Montmeny - John Taupier Scholarship
Yarenis Oliveras - Hasbro, Inc. Scholarship
Angie Otero - Holyoke Gas & Electric Scholarship
Carlos Pagan - Jacob and Adeline Barowsky Scholarship
Jose Pagan - Ruth McIntyre Scholars Awards
Manuel Pintado - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Heriel Rivera - John and Anne McHugh Scholarship
Sofia Rodriguez - Ruth McIntyre Scholars Awards
Carmen Semidey - Hasbro, Inc. Scholarship
Vannareth Tea - Holyoke Gas & Electric Scholarship
Marangelly Vargas-Gonzalez - Frank and Elena Cataldo Scholarship
Philip Warren - Mary and Neil Sheehan Scholarship
Stephanie Wood - Judith Kramer Goldberg Scholarship
Deborah Brown - Elaine Marieb NDNC Scholarship
Nichole Reynolds - Vincent and Patricia McElroy Mem. Award
Patricia Gigone - Claire Gingras Doherty Award In Nursing & Doris M. Kemble Nursing Scholarship
Jennifer Volker - Kathryn "Kitty" Broman Scholarship
Timothy Coyle - James Joseph O'Connell Scholarship
Salah eddine El Khallouki - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Kathryn English - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Audrey Figarella - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Timothy Miner - Fontaine Family Fund Scholarship
John Walsh III - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Jill Adkins - Anabel B. Murphy Scholarship
Mary Ann Donze - Fund a Future Scholarship
Raul Garcia Jr. - Sobon Family Fund Scholarship
Colton Murphy - George E. Boudreau Scholarship
Alexander Rojas - Ruth McIntyre Scholars Awards
Laura Mowry - James F. Connors Scholarship
Benjamin Woloss - Hazen Paper Company Scholarship
Jennifer Diamond - Providence Hospital Scholarship in Nursing
Jessica Henry - Israel and Matilda Goldberg Scholarship
Maearilyz Arroyo - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Delania Barbee - James F. Connors Scholarship
Sheril Cooley - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
GayeMarie Duncanson - Hasbro, Inc. Scholarship
Ebony Emanuel - Dr. Richard Leon Provost Psychology Scholarship
Leonid Maklyakov - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Jaime Mersincavage - David M. Killeen Scholarship
Audrey Ortega - Carolyn Fontaine Scholarship
Ana Santos - Hasbro, Inc. Scholarship and Hispanic Resources (?)
Carla Velez - Bess Kaplinsky Scholarship
Tasia Williams - Ruth McIntyre Transfer Scholarship
Melissa DeFino - Mary and Neil Sheehan Scholarship
Janine Hojnoski - Donald Taber Art Scholarship
Caitlin Jenkins - David and Bette Bartley Scholarship
Roderick Klich - Yadavendra Sharma Scholarship
Bich Pham - Fontaine Family Fund Scholarship
Carmen Poirier - President's Grant in Aid Fund
Julie Warren - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Virginia Young - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Michelle Grasso - Bernice Lebel Scholarship
Felicita Cintron - Hasbro, Inc. Scholarship
Roxanne Cyrankowski - Elaine Marieb NDNC Scholarship
Kevin Doyle - Arthur W. Knapp Scholarship
Valeria Gutul - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Sara Hampton - NewAlliance Scholarship
Shannon Matson - Anthony J. Pellegrino Scholarship
Oleg Merkulov - Richard R. and Janice D. Nickerson Scholarship
Nicholas Meszaros - Carol Hardy Business Scholarship
Oxana Nesmelova - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Nancy Quinones - Maurice A. Donahue Scholarship
Jodi Roberts - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
Robert Smart - Stephen Pollock Scholarship
Carol Vitkauskas - Virginia Barrett Memorial Scholarship
Wendy Wheatley - John and Shirley Fallon Scholarship
January Zomek - LouEllen Dabbs Scholarship
Colleen O'Connor - Berkshire Bank Scholarship
Sophie Chen - Elaine Marieb NDNC Scholarship
Tammy Rabbett - Doris M. Kemble Nursing Scholarship & Rozalia & Gladys Szczur Nursing Scholarship
Jill Carter - Elaine Marieb NDNC Scholarship
HCC
announces Marieb and other awards
Hampshire and Hampden County residents among the recipients
HOLYOKE – Holyoke Community College recently recognized three staff members with awards that celebrate their outstanding contributions to the college.
Elaine Marieb Faculty Chair for Teaching Excellence Award
Dr. Kim Hicks, of Northampton
Named after retired HCC anatomy and physiology professor Elaine Marieb, the award was established 1990 and is given out annually to a faculty member for excellence in classroom teaching. Recipients receive a cash award to support activities that will further enhance their professional skills. It is the highest honor bestowed by the college on faculty.
Kim Hicks has said, “The purpose of knowing things is to make something of what you know. And the first thing you make is yourself.” For the past decade, Dr. Hicks has encouraged her students to reshape the world as well as their own lives. Her office overflows with books that address issues of race and ethnicity, power and privilege, and the struggle to make a more equitable society. Kim’s respect for the diverse experiences and perspectives of her students makes hers a classroom that fosters self expression and nurtures intellectual growth.
Outstanding Classified Staff Member Award
Elaine Madra, of Chicopee
Characterized by the selection committee as “a tireless and capable worker, possessed of unlimited patience and depth of knowledge of HCC,” Elaine Madra, Clerk III, has been employed at the college since 1986. Those seeking information at the Student Records office can depend on Elaine’s gracious and professional assistance. A generous and dedicated volunteer at HCC and in the community, Elaine is HCC’s Outstanding Classified Staff Member for 2008.
Outstanding Non Unit (NUP) Professional Staff Member Award
Diane Mango-Cahill, of Williamsburg
Responsible for securing needed funding for HCC and for launching a number of successful student-centered programs, Grants Manager Diane Mango-Cahill has been making HCC an outstanding place to work and learn since1993. Lauded by the selection committee as “the absolute go -to person for accurate, up-to-date information on grants and federal and state regulations,” Diane was a natural choice for the 2008 Outstanding Professional Staff Member Award.
Adult
immigrants celebrate a year of achievement
HCC’s Ludlow Area Adult Learning Center Open
House recognizes effort
June 23, 2008
LUDLOW— They come from 18 different countries and speak nearly as many languages, but they have this much in common: they’ve invested long hours at night learning English, acquiring computer skills, and pursuing opportunities for a better life for their families. Now it’s time to celebrate their achievements and progress at Holyoke Community College’s Ludlow Area Adult Learning Center annual Open House, Wednesday, June 25, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at 221 East Street in Ludlow.
Center participants will share food, fun and traditions from their native cultures as they celebrate a year of accomplishments in their new country.
The Center serves adult immigrants in Ludlow, Indian Orchard, and the surrounding area, providing ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) classes at the beginning, intermediate, and high intermediate levels. As part of their instruction, students learn basic computer skills and receive help finding jobs and pursuing educational and career goals aimed at improving life for their family and community.
The Ludlow Area Adult Learning Center is a community-based program of Holyoke Community College, with additional funding from the Massachusetts Department of Education and the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts
Flores appointed chair of HCC’s Board of Trustees
June 25, 2008
HOLYOKE – The Board of Trustees of Holyoke Community College is proud to announce the appointment of Heriberto Flores to chair the college’s board of trustees.
A college trustee since 2002, Flores is the executive director of the New England Farm Workers’ Council, a private, nonprofit agency providing education, training and other assistance programs for low-income migrant farm workers and their families. He is a Vietnam veteran with a long and distinguished career in community service as a past or present member of the MassJobs Council, the Western Massachusetts Judicial Nominating Committee, the Northeast Latino Economic Council, the Federal Reserve Consumer Advisory Council, and the boards of the Pioneer Valley United Way and the Pioneer Valley Private Industry Council. As president of the North End Educational Development Fund, Inc., he administers the largest Hispanic scholarship fund in New England.
“Herbie’s numerous accomplishments serve as an example to HCC students, and potential students, of what one person can achieve,” said HCC President Bill Messner. “As a trustee, he has worked to increase the numbers of Latino students pursuing higher education at HCC. I know that, as board chair, he will continue to serve the college admirably and strengthen the bridge to education and success for the region’s Latino community.”
“HCC is a vital resource for Western Massachusetts,” remarked Flores. “My mission is to keep working with the board to continue improving an already outstanding institution.”
In addition to serving on the board
of Holyoke Community College, Flores has served on the board of trustees of
UMass and the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education in Rhode
Island. He earned a bachelor’s degree in education in 1973 and a M.Ed.
in 1991, both at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and has been awarded
honorary doctorates at UMASS and Westfield State College.