Oct. '25 News Blog
News briefs from the HCC campus and beyond
Click here to see our past - and future - news blogs ...
Ready for a Closeup
If you were on the second floor of the Campus Center Tuesday morning (Oct. 21), you might have seen what looked like a movie crew carrying cameras and a long boom microphone following a few people through the cafeteria on their way to the Thrive Center and Food Pantry. Close. It was actually a video crew from the Wall Street Journal on campus filming a feature piece on food insecurity. The team is working with Hyundai Motor America, which has been a financial supporter of the Thrive Center over the past few years, along with HCC Foundation board member Gary Rome, owner of Gary Rome Hyundai. The six-person video crew recorded HCC staff members Amanda Sbriscia, vice president of institutional advancement, and Julie Phillips, director or development, as they talked to Lori Chatel, Gary Rome’s executive assistant, about the college’s efforts to combat food insecurity. (We'll let you know when the story comes out.) PHOTO: Sbriscia talks about Thrive's new refrigerated lockers.
Not All Mugs That Wander Are Lost
If you ever find a piece of pottery half buried in the sand of a Provincetown beach, there’s a good chance it was left there by HCC Physics Professor Robert Greeney. A small label from “Wandering Mug Pottery” will leave no doubt: “Take it, leave it, use it, give it away. Let the piece wander the world.” A writer recently discovered one of Greeney’s creations in a Provincetown playground and wrote a story about it for the Provincetown Independent, “A Potter Lets His Work Wander.” Greeney, who has a ceramics studio in his Amherst home, estimates he has let wander about 100 pieces of pottery over the years, and Provincetown is one of his favorite places to visit. The objective, he told writer Beth Greenfield, is “spreading playfulness.” “This is a mug. You found it. Have a relationship with it,” he said. Greeney’s wandering pottery project was inspired by an HCC student who took one of his mugs to Paris and left it there for someone else to find. He said he gets a thrill whenever he receives a message from someone who has found one of his pieces. “One-on-one feedback is joyful for me,” he told Greenfield. He told us that, while there is a lot of science involved in ceramics, pottery and physics are vastly different. “I think ‘counterpoint’ or ‘complement’ is a better term than ‘escape,’” he said. “Physics is a very mental/cerebral experience, whereas ceramics is a much more visceral/physical experience.” When contacted for this blog piece, Greeney said he preferred not to say too much more. He wanted to keep the focus on the college. “HCC is a place of diverse people with broad and diverse interests,” he said, “where generosity, sharing, collaboration, and community are important.” PHOTO: HCC Physics Professor Robert Greeney at work in his home ceramics studio.
The Green Thread
According to East Asian mythology, an invisible thread connects people destined to meet. At Holyoke Community College, “The Green Thread” is a new monthly podcast highlighting the educational journeys, achievements, and insights of HCC alumni. “At HCC, we believe these meaningful connections shape our alumni’s journeys long after graduation,” said Natalia Castagno, assistant director of alumni relations and co-host of The Green Thread podcast along with Patrick Labelle, manager of the college radio station, WCCH-103.5 FM. “We’re inviting alumni to share their stories – exploring the connections, experiences, and threads that tie them to their alma mater, their communities, and one another.” Episode 1 debuted Oct.1 on Spotify. The first guests were alum Myke Connolly ’04, founder of the multimedia company Launch and Standout, and his son, HCC communications major Mikey Connolly, founder of the Realistic CEO podcast, an interview show he started in high school. During their half hour interview, the Connollys discuss entrepreneurship, having a millionaire’s mindset, starting the day with an attitude of gratitude, resilience, and their experiences at HCC. “The beauty of this school … people just let me be me … they embraced me, and I felt normal here," said Myke Connolly, who had immigrated to the U.S. from the Bahamas. "I felt like I belonged here. It was always a welcoming environment. I know I wouldn’t be the man I am today if I wasn’t for HCC. It’s been a pivotal part of everything I’ve done.” Listen here, The Green Thread, Episode 1 … PHOTO: In the WCCH studio with Green Thread postcast hosts Pat Labelle, far left, Natalia Castagno, far right, and Green Thread guests Myke Connolly '04, second from left, and Mikey Connolly
Trusty Trustee
As a new student who had recently relocated from California, Barney Garcia ’24 didn’t waste any time getting involved at HCC. During his first year, he joined Student Senate, restarted the Emerging Business Leaders Club, and got a job in the Business Office. In his second year, 2023-2024, he served as student trustee. "I felt like folks here already knew me, as if it was a familiar place I'd been before,” Garcia said back in 2023. “I was taken away by the liveliness of the faculty and staff and all the different clubs and support services. That was heartening, and it motivated me.” Still not one to lurk, Garcia, 22, was recently elected student trustee at Westfield State University, where he is completing a bachelor’s degree in political science and public administration. He is also co-founder and president of the Queer Straight Alliance at Westfield and the commuter representative on the Student Government Association. Outside of that, he maintains a strong connection to HCC, where he works part time in the Facilities office. “Something that I always tell people is that I really struck gold,” he said. “I think coming to HCC was the best decision I've made. I don't feel I could have gotten the same level of opportunities anywhere else.” PHOTO: Barney Garcia '24, during his student days at HCC
