Erica Ruscio

During the fall semester,  Ruscio sailed around the Atlantic Ocean on the MV Explorer, an 836-passenger floating classroom, as part of the Semester at Sea program.

“I went to 12 countries, took classes, attended seminars, navigated through unfamiliar cities and new experiences, and discovered new understandings of what it means to be human. It was the coolest thing I have ever done,” said Ruscio.

It also earned Ruscio, an English major from Rushville, the Upperclass Experiential Learner of the Year Award, which recognizes learning from Field Period, co-curricular involvement, and community service.

Nominated by Allison Schultz, international student adviser in the Center for Global Education, Rusico said she has taken learning far beyond the traditional four-walled classroom.

“As an English major, I love books, but they only tell half of the story,” she said. “The concrete experiences can’t be replicated, and can’t be doubled in a book.”

Ruscio said Keuka College and the Semester at Sea program share the same philosophy when it comes to learning: you learn more by doing.

For example, Ruscio said she didn’t just read in a book what South Africa was like, “I explored it myself and made friends there. I didn’t just see a picture of the native people of the Amazon; I spent the night in the jungle with them. I didn’t just read a statistic about poverty in Latin America; I played with the kids in the Argentine slums.”

Ruscio said that she now has more faith in the opportunity to try, take chances, make mistakes, and try again.

“Experiential learning, which embraces the whole person, is what I received from Keuka College and the Semester at Sea program,” she said. “I haven’t just ‘done’ this experience, I’ve become it.”

An active participant in the College’s Arion Players Drama Club and the Women’s Center Advocacy Club, Ruscio also serves as a TeamWorks! facilitator, editor of Red Jacket, and is a writing tutor. She also lends her time and talents to the Literacy Volunteers of Ontario and Yates Counties.

Lydia Watkins

Watkins’ January Field Period at Southtown Veterinary Hospital in Montrose, Pa., solidified her career choice.

The Field Period also helped earn Watkins, a biomedical major from Springville, Pa., the Freshman Experiential Learner of the Year Award. The award recognizes learning from Field Period, co-curricular involvement, and community service.

Watkins, who has known since she was 10 that she wanted to be a large animal veterinarian, was nominated for the award by Andy Robak, assistant professor of chemistry.

“I nominated Lydia because she had a great first Field Period,” said Robak. “She had her first experience working in a small animal veterinary clinic, and built relationships with the people with whom she was working.”

And while the vets at Southtown Veterinary Hospital care for small animals, Watkins still “learned a lot of information about the veterinary field, and I cannot wait to have the V.M.D. in front of my name. By watching the vets, I expanded my knowledge and fine tuned my interests.”

Watkins was able to watch several procedures, including spays, neuters, ACL repair, bone surgery, and a splenectomy. Shortly after her Field Period ended, she was hired as a veterinary assistant. Watkins will work weekends, summers, and other times when classes are not in session.

Watkins said she “loved my Field Period, and now my job, but I still want to work with cows.”

Said Robak: “A lot of students will do similar Field Periods in vet offices, but rarely does it end up in a great relationship like she found. Lydia is also an excellent student, excelling in sophomore chemistry as a freshman, and is well on her way to veterinary school when she graduates.”

Andonucci paints the symbol for lead.

Now, Andonucci has reteamed with Dr. Andrew Robak, associate professor of chemistry, to conduct a new artistic study of some 11 elements of the Periodic Table, creating the letter code for each scientific element with a paint created from the element itself.

Lead in powder form, which Andonucci used to make the paint for the symbol (Pb).

“The overall image is an abstract kind of 3-D Periodic Table and we want it to serve as a permanent reference source in a classroom or lab—it will be a huge art piece,” said the junior visual and verbal art major from Chestertown (near Lake George).

They symbol for carbon, painted with ... carbon.

Using stand-alone 12×12 canvas squares painted with each element, Andonucci will arrange them to hang so that some of the squares appear to be raised and some depressed, creating a more dynamic artwork.

Carbon in particle form.

While some elements, such as arsenic or mercury, would be dangerous to paint with, others, such as barium sulfate, iron oxide, and cadmium have been created already and painted, she said. For example, titanium has been mixed with linseed oil to create the scientific code letters (Ti) for that element  on the table.

According to Robak, all of the pigments Andonucci used to paint the periodic table symbols contain the elements, but are not made from the pure elements. For example, the cadmium pigment utilized a cadmium compound, while the titanium pigment was made from titanium oxide, which is used to make all modern white paints

Egyptian blue in solid form.

Granted, Andonucci has run into a few challenges, such as the three attempts to create the synthetic pigment Egyptian blue, which will be used to represent copper in the table. Historically, pigments were derived from naturally occurring minerals and/or plants. While Egyptian blue was one of the first synthetic pigments made in history, the age of the product and process made it hard to track down anything resembling a specific recipe over the Internet.

“It was on Wikipedia and it wasn’t exact measurements, just percentages, so it was hard to get it exactly right,” she explained. Directions suggested a mixture of sand, natron and copper oxide be baked in an 800 to 900-degree kiln over three to four days. “The first time we [tried,] the oven got above 900 degrees and fried it and it came out black and actually charred. It was a lot of trial and error. We’re up to our third try, but I may try again because it’s not as blue as I wanted it to be.”

Egyptian blue in powder form.

To support her creative work, Andonucci received a $500 Academic Excellence Initiatives grant from the Office of Academic Affairs. Last year, her Art of Chemistry project was also funded $560 from the same competitive grant process.

In September, the Art of Chemistry exhibit was formally presented to members of the Corning Section of the American Chemical Society (ACS) by Robak, who commissioned Andonucci for the project. In addition to the American Chemical Society, Andonucci and Robak’s work drew the attention of Chemical & Engineering News in Washington, D.C., which published a story on the exhibit in its Oct. 1 issue and website.

The former Oneida Area Arts Council (OAAC) recently adopted a marketing plan developed by Keuka College’s Utica-area graduate students that included, among other things, a name change to Oneida Performing Arts (OPA).

The students spent the six-week course researching, developing, and strategizing a new look for OPA. They worked in teams and used local resources, historical documents, and current market trends to devise a new logo, ideas for performance offerings, and different forms of communication—all geared toward expanding its patron base. Throughout the process, the class urged OPA board members to get out of their comfort zone and look for new venues and ideas that would bring the organization into the future.

The non-profit organization was contacted last year by Kim Deruby, adjunct instructor of marketing, who hoped it would serve as a live case study for her class.

Brian M. Carroll, president of OPA, said the organization had been struggling over the years to transition its brand to a more relevant, sustainable market.

“We decided that we could use some help from young professionals who could look at our 50-year history and make suggestions on how to keep the base we have but attract younger people as well. The suggestions we’ve gotten [correspond to] what other bigger organizations who have full-time marketing employees [receive],” he said.

Students who developed the marketing plan and members of the OPA Board.

Deruby said the course curriculum calls for students “to understand a current marketing issue or deficiency, to create a marketing strategy, produce tangible results, and provide insight, guidance, and expertise to the organization,” so the OPA project was an excellent fit and provided students with invaluable real-world experience.

As part of this in-depth, hands-on assignment, the class came up with rebranding ideas that included a new logo, a hand-rendered design by local advertising consultant and Keuka adjunct instructor Cookie Caloia, who conceptualized the students’ rebranding vision.

Other initiatives introduced by the students were performances that would appeal to a younger crowd, electronic press releases, new flyers and print materials, and a summer dinner theater experience at a local restaurant, scheduled Aug. 8. The class also recommended OPA offer  a Mother’s Day matinee, which debuted May 12, and no longer offer shows during the winter months when many of their patrons are away.

In terms of the name change, Carroll said Oneida Performing Arts “is much easier for the consumer to understand.”

“We truly hope these ideas will not only help to get their name out there in the community, but also help to create a general interest from a wider range of age groups,” said student Ryan Blehar, who resides in Verona.

“I am very impressed with all of our accomplishments within our cohort and I have no doubt that everyone is more effective professionally and personally as a result of this project,” said John Prendergast, cohort representative and resident of Utica.

Keuka’s 18-month Master of Science in management degree program is part of the Accelerated Studies for Adults Program (ASAP). Classes meet weekly at Mohawk Valley Community College.

What they didn’t expect was an Empire State history lesson.

The running joke in class is that maps are now a regular part of Joiner’s routine, as students traverse a literary route from east to west across the state, exploring different regions of New York in works that include Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, James Fenimore Cooper’s The Pioneers, the Erie Canal Reader, 1790-1950, and Walter Edmonds’ Rome Haul.

Joiner acknowledged that her dependence on maps has been to emphasize that New York was the only state with geography sufficient for construction of the Erie Canal, and with the canal, linked the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean, bringing commerce and other boons of civilization further west.

“You think the biggest thing that happened to the state was New York City, or you’d think New York City was the heart of the state, but it’s not. The Erie Canal was. I’m not from here so it’s interesting to know,” said junior Annie Smith, a New Jersey native. “I never heard of the Erie Canal, so to see how much went on during the Erie Canal [era] and now in the 21st century … We wouldn’t have Auburn, Geneva, and all those places if it wasn’t for the canal. It played a major part in what’s 20 miles north of us and east or west.”

Sophomore Marie Cozzi calls Long Island home, and said she never realized how much history was prevalent in Upstate and Western New York.

Marie Cozzi pores over historic images of Niagara Falls in a book Joiner passed around the classroom.

“Reading through the stuff, it’s cool to see how the history is [represented] in the novels. I never thought there would be a history of Upstate New York in the books. One thing leads to the next. They all relate to the other.”

Students have learned much about New York state, from the salt mines of Syracuse, to the commercial hub of Rome, where the Black River Canal also linked the Erie Canal to points north, and to the Pan-American Exposition, a World’s Fair-style marvel held in Buffalo.

Recently, Joiner pulled up a PowerPoint filled with maps, photos and even classic paintings of the Niagara Falls “cataract” and city of Buffalo. Students ventured back in time to 1901, the year in which Lauren Belfer’s “City of Light” is set. At the time, Buffalo was the nation’s eighth-largest city. The Pan-American Exposition  was built on 350 acres in what today is a portion of  Delaware Park. According to Joiner, the focus of the international event was to show off the wonders of electricity, particularly by showcasing the Exposition grounds and buildings at night, powered by energy harnessed at the nearby Falls.

Dr. Joiner points out the 1901 PanAm Exposition map laid over the current city of Buffalo.

“It doesn’t even look like Buffalo, does it?” Joiner asked, highlighting several ornate features including red-roofed European-style buildings, water fountains, gardens, pillared facades and more. “This is the backdrop of what’s happening in the novel.”

Much like the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, which was plagued by a bombing, the Exposition holds a mixed legacy. President William McKinley was assassinated there in September 1901.

Students review a portion of the novel's environmental debate before choosing sides in a class discussion.

Moving into photographs of Niagara Falls, its natural power and, at the turn of the century, its first hydro-electric power plants, Joiner assigned a brief writing exercise. Students examined the debate between two primary characters in the book– Daniel Henry Bates, who argued for environmental preservation, and James Fitzhugh, chief engineer of the Niagara Frontier Power Project, who pushed for industrial development – and chose sides. Contrasting the characters’ claims of job creation and clean energy versus near-religious arguments that attempts to tame the waters invite the punishment of God, Joiner asked students, “Does any of this sound familiar right now?”

Freshman Tom Fowler spoke up: “It’s the same argument with [hydro]fracking; there’s just no middle right now.”

“This was the first environmental fight in our country and [Belfer] was using it as a backdrop for this story,” Joiner said. “This is [published in] 1999, looking back on 1901 and speaks to the present moment in New York state.”

Later this summer, Joiner will use Belfer’s novel and two others for a presentation at the Association for the Study of Literature & Environment (ASLE) Conference, contending that the works show there can be no marriage between industry and the environment.

The Niagara Frontier Power Project, seen in this historic photo, takes center stage in the novel, "City of Light."

After students complete the Belfer novel, they will move back east across the map to Albany, where the final novel, William Kennedy’s Ironweed, is set. In this way, Joiner  hopes to bring the class back to a centralized locale and capital of the state. In addition to teaching traditional components of literature, Joiner said her goal has been to hear students say “‘Wow, I never realized this was here!’

Freshman Braegar Taaffe has noticed the effect of history on the people of the state and how different cultures sprang up in various locales.

“It’s interesting to see New York culturally developed and the advancement of pioneers, to Erie Canal and Buffalo,” he said.

By Dr. Sander A. Diamond, Professor of History

At approximately 8:50 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001, the first of two planes slammed into the World Trade Center. The Age of Terrorism had arrived on our shores.  On April 15, we were once again reminded that despite our best efforts to insulate ourselves from terrorism, we live in an age where our safety is conditional.

The perpetrators of the Boston attack, brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, were born in Chechnya, which is located in the North Caucasus region of the Russian Federation. Exactly when and why the older brother, Tamerlan, became a terrorist is a key element in the investigation.  What we do know is Chechnya and Dagestan are the epicenters of Islamic Jihadism in the region. Their geography places them closer to Tehran than Moscow to the far north. During the Second World War, when the fate of Russia was conditional and the Battle of Stalingrad was raging in the winter of 1942-43, Moscow alleged that some in Chechnya were on the wrong side. Their punishment was collective. Stalin uprooted them and shipped them to Siberia only to return in the 1950s. Decades later, when the USSR imploded, Chechnya attempted to leave the Russian Federation and an insurrection was put down with the full might of the Russian military. Chechnya terrorists responded by blowing up a subway train in Moscow while the so-called Black Widows seized a theater with 800 people in it and threatened to blow it up.

Meanwhile, in the years that followed, some of the people of Chechnya and Dagestan have turned to Islamic extremism. Perhaps Tamerlan was predisposed to the Jihadist mindset before he arrived on our shores, concluding that however different Russia and the United States are, they share a common hatred of Muslims. Others suspect he was in contact with the Islamic extremists and was, in the words of the FBI, radicalized during a six- or seven-month stay in the region not long ago. We also know that his computer is filled with materials downloaded from radical Islamic sites, so perhaps he and his brother were radicalized on the web. Whatever the case, one does not become a terrorist overnight.

By the same token, terrorist acts are not spur-of-the-moment decisions. In the case of the Boston bombers, they bought fireworks, dismantled them and used the black powder to build bombs.  They also planned to use pipe bombs in Times Square. For seasoned terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda with its numerous so-called franchises, leaders place a high value on bleeding their victims in the financial sense. For bin Laden and his cohorts, Sept. 11 was a nickel-and-dime operation. What we have spent repairing the damage and trying to protect ourselves for future attacks is beyond comprehension. The Tsarnaev brothers spent perhaps $200 building the bombs.  When the cost of finding them, the commerce lost in Boston for several days, and the hospital bills are finally added, the total will be staggering. Given the cost of health care, the $20 million fund that has been established to help cover hospital expenses for those injured may be peanuts, barely making a dent in the final tally. For many of the survivors, the costs of restoring their health over a lifetime will also be staggering. As for the coming trial of the younger brother, the cost will be in the millions.

What appears to link all terrorists is a deep hatred of their perceived enemies and what they represent. For them, killing is a perfectly rational act in keeping with their religious or ideological beliefs. Their victims, not them, are the incarnation of evil.

She’s also an award-winning social work student in the Accelerated Studies for Adults Program (ASAP) at Keuka College.

Rosato, center, with her three children

The Canandaigua resident was named one of six student Social Workers of the Year at a regional chapter event for the National Association of Social Workers. The NASW award recognizes social work students in the New York State Chapter’s Genesee Valley Division who have made significant contributions in the field.

Stephanie Craig, associate professor and chair of the Division of Social Work, said  Rosato “is an amazing student and person. She represents the profession very well.”

A desire to help people is what drives Rosato to work toward prevention of some of the personal experiences she went through as a child.
“I have a lot of empathy … and can now help others,” she said. “I think all my experiences in life, some by [my] choice, some not, have guided me into the person that I’ve become. Keuka has taught me this program, all parts of myself, and I think that things are coming together great.”

Rosato received an associate degree in criminal justice at Finger Lakes Community College, and opted to continue her education by pursuing a bachelor’s degree in social work at Keuka through ASAP (FLCC is a host site for ASAP classes). She believed the two degrees would make her more marketable.

In her role as a mediator, where she has worked part-time for the past three-and-a-half years, Rosato serves the mentally ill in various ways. For example, she advocates to keep housing for the patient when a medical procedure is needed and they have no other advocate. Much of the work happens in an informal court process before a group known as the Surrogate Decision-Making Committee, Rosato said.

At the county jail, Rosato volunteers in two areas. First, she serves in the storybook program, which enables inmates to send a digital storybook to their children that will play back with the inmate’s voice reading the book aloud.  And just last year, she began serving with a new pilot program, Transition Circles, which provides an opportunity for women inmates to work through a facilitated dialogue with friends and family members they selected. In conversation held around a circle, the inmate hears about her strengths, how relationships fractured by her behavior could be repaired, and what needs to be in place for a successful reentry into society, work and home life. According to Rosato, that program was started about a year ago in the county.

For the past six years, Rosato has also volunteered for FLACRA, (Finger Lakes Addictions Counseling & Referral Agency) in Clifton Springs, bringing baked goods to residents in one of FLACRA’s halfway houses during the holiday season.

Rosato will graduate at the end of this month and said her Keuka degree has provided her with “a lot of insight in different areas” and that she believes her future career will include working with youth. She plans on taking civil service exams after graduation and said she also plans to pursue a master’s degree in social work once Keuka adds that degree to its roster of options.

Rosato, right, receiving the NASW award.

As for her NASW award, Rosato said it was a surprise to learn she had won, and she enjoyed receiving the award with her parents, daughter, a sister, a niece, and some friends in the audience.

“I’m kind of a perfectionist and I push myself hard,” Rosato said.

Mike McKenzie's grandfather took this photo of a dust storm bearing down on Manter, Kan.

Mike McKenzie couldn’t figure out why his mother never returned to her childhood home in western Kansas.

“My brother and I tried numerous times to get her to go back,” said McKenzie, associate professor of philosophy and religion. “We thought it would be fun for to see the place and some of her friends. I just didn’t get it.”

He got it after making the trek to Johnson, Kan., himself.

“It’s an utterly exposed place,” recalled McKenzie. “You’re exposed to winds and weather on all four sides.”

And that made life tough for Maxine Carter, her mother; father, who was a wheat farmer; and sister—especially in the 1930s  when the Dust Bowl, a period of severe dust storms, caused major ecological and agricultural damage on the Southern plains.

The Dust Bowl lasted 10 years and made activities typically taken for granted—breathing and eating—a challenge. Children wore dust masks and women hung wet sheets over windows to keep the dust out of their homes. Crops were blown away.

So powerful were these rolling waves of dust they would “obliterate the sun,” recalled McKenzie’s mother.

And it wasn’t just dust storms that the young Maxine Carter was forced to survive. Tornadoes, ice storms, and blizzards would “force kids into storm cellars and they wouldn’t know if their farm or home was still standing until they came out,” said McKenzie.

Maxine Carter was born in 1922 and moved to Oregon in 1936. She will never return to Johnson or Manter, Kan., where her family lived before heading to the Pacific Northwest.  And her son now understands why.

Maxine Carter and her family lived in this house in Johnson, Kan., before moving to Oregon. The photo was taken from an upper floor at the old Stone School, the only point of elevation in the town.

“My mother had a good home life growing up but a scary place,” he said. “I understand why she doesn’t have fond memories of her early life in Kansas.”

While acknowledging the highly personal nature of this story, McKenzie saw it has a perfect fit for his Environmental Ethics class that he his teaching this semester.

“The Dust Bowl is the greatest environmental disaster in this country’s history, and I decided to do a large segment on it in my class,” he said.  “I couldn’t bring my students to Kansas so I am bringing Kansas to them.”

McKenzie teamed with Troy Cusson, instructional design manager in the Wertman Office of Distance Education (WODE), to create a video that features an interview McKenzie did with his mother in January as well as photos his grandfather took in western Kansas in the 1930s.

The Dust Bowl exhibit in Lightner Library brings 1930s Kansas to life.

And, he partnered with John Locke, director of instructional design and multidisciplinary studies in WODE, to construct a Dust Bowl exhibit in a Lightner Library display case.

“Students and others will see artifacts from the Dust Bowl and the display case itself looks like a farmer’s cabin from the 1930s,” said McKenzie. “There is even some actual Kansas dust.”

One of Locke’s biggest challenges was to find a way for people to view the video (it runs on a loop and headphones are available for listening) without impinging on the “rustic” quality of the display. So, he built cabinet and gave it a “rough finish to create an aged look.”

He also created a “window into a dust storm” by backlighting an image of a 1930s dust storm.

“John did a terrific job of bringing 1930s Kansas to life,” said McKenzie.

To further enhance his students’ knowledge of the Dust Bowl, McKenzie is planning a field trip to nearby Hunt Country Vineyards “to see how a modern farmer (Art Hunt) employs sustainability in his day- to-day operations. The class will engage in some hands-on activities and get to see good farming practices put into use, as contrasted with those on the high plains of the 1930s that helped spawn the Dust Bowl.”

Finally, McKenzie recently screened Ken Burns’ The Dust Bowl.

“Everyone loves stories,” said McKenzie. “Ken Burns tells a story and that is what we did. It’s a story about my mom. It’s personal, but at the same time it’s educational.”

Prior to delivering the 25th Annual Carl and Fanny Fribolin Lecture, Dr. Andrew Delbanco conducted a Q&A session with faculty, staff, students, and the media. Members of the Tabula Rasa student organization helped organize the session, including Ross Gleason and Sarah Marquart. (Photo by Stephanie Lockhart '15)

One of the College’s enduring traditions, May Day Weekend, got off to an auspicious start with a talk by Dr. Andrew Delbanco, recipient of the 2011 National Humanities Medal, Friday night (May 3).

Delbanco delivered the 25^thAnnual Carl and Fanny Fribolin Lecture after conducting a Q&A session with students, faculty, staff, and the media earlier in the day.

The lecture series carries the names of Geneva resident Carl Fribolin, an emeritus member of the College’s Board of Trustees and recipient of an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree in 2004, and his late wife.

College President Dr. Jorge L. Díaz-Herrera thanked Fribolin for his longtime support of the series and wished him an early happy birthday. Fribolin will celebrate No. 95 next month.

College President Jorge L. Díaz-Herrera congratulates Jeremy Hourihan '08, who recieved the Recent Graduate Award, and Juanita Rotz Hawkins '67, who received the Professional Achievement Award during Honors Convocation (May 4). (Photo by Stephanie Lockhart '15)

Delbanco is Mendelson Family Chair of American Studies and Julian Clarence Levi Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University.  He was awarded the 2011 National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama “for his writing that spans the literature of Melville and Emerson to contemporary issues in higher education.”

May Day Weekend activities will continue through Sunday.To view the full schedule of events, go to: http://life.keuka.edu/files/2013/04/2013_May-Day-Schedule-1.pdf

Josh Beaver

 Josh Beaver, a senior political science/history major from Terre Haute, Ind., nominated by Chris Leahy, associated professor of history:

Beaver said he has had numerous chances to explore potential career paths though Field Period, and he knows firsthand that it works.

“I came to Keuka knowing I wanted to be a doctor, but through coursework and Field Period, I figured out that was not the path for me right now,” said Beaver. “At the end of my junior year, I changed my major to political science/history, a passion second to science. What a difference. My grades are better, I feel less stressed, and have a smile on my face.”

Beaver completed his January Field Period at Vigo County Historical Society Museum in Terre Haute and it helped him realize he made the right choice switching his major.

“I was an assistant curator during my time at the museum” said Beaver. “I conducted research to help prepare for a new exhibit on the evolution of the transportation system in Terre Haute and the Wabash Valley in Indiana.”

He had the opportunity to work as an archivist, working to find photos, newspaper clippings, old documents, and selected items to go into exhibit.

“I also conducted grant research, and realized this Field Period solidified what I want to do with my career,” said Beaver. “In addition, I was able to design the cabinet layout and write the text to accompany the exhibit’s artifacts.”

Beaver participates in Celebrate Service… Celebrate Yates, Spiritual Life Advisory Board (SLAB), the Multicultural Advisory Group, and spent three semesters as a member of Student Senate.

Lydia Watkins

Lydia Watkins, a freshman biomedical major from Springville, Pa., nominated by Andy Robak, assistant professor of chemistry:

Lydia Watkins has known since she was 10 that she wanted to be a large animal veterinarian. But for her first Field Period, she shadowed the vets at Southtown Veterinary Hospital in Montrose, Pa., a small animal clinic.

Watkins was able to watch several surgeries, including spays, neuters, ACL repair, bone surgery, and a splenectormy.

“I learned a lot of information about the veterinary field, and I cannot wait to have the V.M.D. in front of my name,” said Watkins. “The practice moved to a larger space and I went home for spring break to help them officially open the doors. While I was there, I was hired as a veterinary assistant.

“By watching the vets, I expanded my knowledge and fine tuned my interests,” she said. “And while I loved my Field Period, and now my job, at Southtown, I still want to work with cows.”

Logan Ackerley

Logan Ackerley, a junior political science major from Liberty, nominated by Sander Diamond, professor of history:

Like many students at Keuka, one of the reasons Logan Ackerley enrolled at the College was Field Period.

“My first two Field Periods were disappointing, and I began to dread having to look for a place for my third one,” said Ackerley. “But then I took Europe in the World with Dr. Diamond, which reminded me why I chose my major. It made learning interesting again, and I once more began to see Field Period as the opportunity it was meant to be.”

So Ackerley thought of possible Field Period sites and found the Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York City.

“I assisted a museum educator with activities for special needs high school students,” he said. “I was nervous because I had never worked with special needs students, or any students older than elementary school. But this became one of my most significant tasks, especially because I was asked to take over that program while I was there.”

This experience gave Ackerley “great knowledge about how a museum department works. My Field Period allowed me to develop not only professionally, but personally as well. It made me think critically, solve problems creatively, and gave me a level of motivation I’ve never had before. It also confirmed my career goal to become a museum administrator.”

Ackerley is involved with the Arion Players Drama Club, serves as treasurer of the Political Science and History Club and C.H.A.O.S. Club, and performed a monologue from The Diary of Anne Frank during Keuka College’s Fine Arts Night.

Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, a junior biology major from New Berlin, nominated by Andy Robak, assistant professor of chemistry:

According to Alex Morgan, Keuka College takes the ideas of experiential learning and amplifies its importance with Field Period.

“As a biology major with a concentration in biomedical studies, I plan to become a doctor,” said Morgan. “I have taken the opportunity of Field Period as a path to explore different areas of the medical profession so I can narrow down which I’d like to pursue.”

Morgan spent his Field Period at the Bassett Clinic, a family medicine clinic in Sherburne with Dr. David Haswell, who Morgan said would often quiz him on information pertaining to a patient.

“I was able to see ordinary medical cases, as well as cases of walking pneumonia, Necrotizing fasciitis, a rare flesh-eating disease, infantile projectile vomiting, flu, prostate and testicular exams, suture removals, and pap smears,” said Morgan. “I was also able to listen to a patient’s carotid artery through a stethoscope.”

Morgan serves as president of Rotaract, and is a member of the President’s Leadership Circle, Keukonian, and Chemistry Club.

Crystal Billings

Crystal Billings, a sophomore social work major from Groton, nominated by a former Follett (College bookstore) employee:

Crystal Billings worked at the Red Cross Homeless Services Program in Ithaca for her January Field Period, and said the fast-paced, multi-faceted environment gave her the opportunity to work with a broad spectrum of clients.

“Going into the Field Period, I was not quite sure what to expect,” admitted Billings, who worked at the shelter and Friendship Center, a place where people could drop in during the day. “I thought I would serve food and answer the phone, and learn how a homeless shelter operates and what resources it provides.”

However, the experience was “so much more than that,” she said.

“I did different things each week, including covering for my supervisor in the office, helping with the children’s Christmas party, and working with parolees, including a man who had murdered three people,” she said. “I also provided direct client services, interacted with shelter residents and the chronically homeless, and dealt one-on-one with several clients who suffer from mental illness and substance abuse.”

Because Billings learned she was able to work with those on parole, she now wants to try a Field Period working with adolescent parolees at a school near her hometown.

During her Field Period, Billings saw the great need at the Red Cross, and wondered what she could do to help. An active Zumba participant on campus and at home, she thought a Zumba-thon would be the perfect idea.

“I organized and promoted the Zumba-thon, and I hoped to make $50, but realized $115,” she said. “I was proud of myself and excited to give back.”

Billings said working at the Red Cross Homeless Services Program helped her help others, “which is what I truly want to do with my life. This was an amazing experience and I wish I could have stayed longer.”

An active participant in the Association of Future Social Workers (AFSW), Billings has also been a member of the Arion Players Drama Club.

Courtney Ray

Courtney Ray, a junior social work major from Cato, nominated by Stephanie Craig, associate professor and chair ofsocial work:

Ray has always known she wanted to help people, and why she chose social work. But she was unsure which area of the field to pursue until her January Field Period, when she worked at LCSW Counseling Solutions under Stephanie Gregory, a counselor.

“I believed I would gain more knowledge about counseling, and I did, but the entire Field Period went above my expectations,” said Ray. “Stephanie asked for my opinion and feedback on several functional behavioral assessments, a problem-solving process for addressing student problem behavior. I was also able to sit in on evaluations, counseling and therapy sessions, as well as gain intervention knowledge.”

While Ray was an observer during the counseling sessions, she and Gregory would process what went on after they ended.

“This allowed me to connect and understand what the client may be going through,” said Ray. “It’s what I liked most about my Field Period because it felt like this is where I belonged.”

The process of therapy has always interested Ray, and she said being able to “connect with a complete stranger by helping them through whatever is going on in their life is meaningful. After sitting through these sessions, I can see myself going into the marriage and family side of counseling.”

Ray is active in Peace Club, Up ’til Dawn, Association of Future Social Workers (AFSW), Big Brothers, Big Sisters, and serves as a peer advocate.

Shane Devlin

Shane Devlin, a sophomore childhood studies education major from Manchester, nominated by Pat Pulver, professor and chair of education:

Shane Devlin spent his January Field Period in a self-contained special education classroom of nine students in grades 3-5 at Kelley Intermediate School in Newark. After working with teacher Kristen Nardozzi, he realized one of his Field Period goals: what it’s like to work with students with special needs.

“They don’t always get the right answer the first time, so it takes more time and a better explanation to get those key ideas,” he said. “I found I liked working with smaller groups, as I was able to gain a better understanding of the disabilities each student had. The spectrum ran from ADHD to autism, to speech and hearing impairments.”

He was able to work with students on math assignments, and one particular student with ADHD.

“I worked one-on-one with him and while I found the lessons challenging because he couldn’t sit still for long, I remembered it was not his fault and I learned to be more patient,” said Devlin.

A resident assistant, Devlin also serves as a Student Senate representative, and is a member of the cross country team.

Ashley Larimore

Ashley Larimore, a senior organizational communication major from Horseheads, nominated by Anita Chirco, professor of communication studies:

One of the reasons Ashley Larimore chose Keuka was because of the Field Period experience.

“I trusted that completing an internship five months into my freshman year would give me the opportunity to see if organizational communication was indeed right for me,” said Larimore. “Little did I know at the time that my first Field Period would do much more than reveal I had chosen the right major. It led me to a job offer in the admissions office, three months before graduation.”

Four years later, Larimore’s other three Field Periods have equally had a major impact on her. For her final Field Period, she split the required 140-hours into two 70-hour Field Periods, one in the College’s marketing department and one with Java-Gourmet, a local small business that sells coffee, spice rubs, marinades, and chocolates.

“As a student ambassador in admissions, I am familiar with the arsenal pieces the College sends to interested students,” said Larimore. “But they are outdated and need to be revamped. While in Keuka’s marketing department, it became my job to help create these pieces, both in print and digitally. I learned the importance of editing and developed my design skills as I revamped some marketing pieces. This Field Period experience enabled me to refine my writing skills, and develop my familiarity with InDesign.”

“Working at Java-Gourmet allowed me to refine my social marketing and media skills, as well as learn webpage management and networking skills,” said Larimore. “I also was able to take some of the products home to use in recipes and document my success on social media, as well as update the company website.”

Larimore is involved in Sigma Delta Tau, the international English honor society; Sigma Lambda Sigma, the service, leadership, and scholastic honor society; is president of Lambda Pi Eta, the national communication honor society; and is a member of the President’s Leadership Circle, Students Helping Students, and Center for Spiritual Life. She is also a member of the Student Judicial Panel and mentor.

Erica Ruscio

Erica Ruscio, a senior English major from Middlesex, nominated by Allison Schultz, international student adviser in the Center for Global Education:

During the fall semester, Erica Ruscio sailed around the Atlantic Ocean as part of the Semester at Sea program on board the MV Explorer, an 836-passenger floating classroom.

Ruscio said the philosophy of the Semester at Sea program and Keuka College are one in the same—it all comes down to experiential learning.

“I went to 12 countries, took classes, attended seminars, navigated through unfamiliar cities and new experiences, and discovered new understandings of what it means to be human. It was the coolest thing I have ever done,” said Ruscio.

Through co-curricular involvement, community service, and exploring the world, Rusico said she has taken learning far beyond the traditional four-walled classroom.

“As an English major, I love books, but they only tell half the story,” she said. “The concrete experiences can’t be replicated, and can’t be doubled in a book.”

For example, Ruscio said she didn’t just read in a book what South Africa was like, “I explored it myself and made friends there. I didn’t just see a picture of the native people of the Amazon; I spent the night in the jungle with them. I didn’t just read a statistic about poverty in Latin America; I played with the kids in the Argentine slums.”

Ruscio said that she now has more faith in the opportunity to try, take chances, make mistakes, and try again.

“Experiential learning, which embraces the whole person, is what I received from Keuka College and the Semester at Sea program,” she said. “I haven’t just ‘done’ this experience, I’ve become it.”

An active participant in the Arion Players Drama Club and the Women’s Center Advocacy Club, Ruscio also serves as a TeamWorks! facilitator, editor of Red Jacket, and is a writing tutor. She also lends her time and talents to the Literacy Volunteers of Ontario and Yates Counties.

Amanda Markessinis

Amanda Markessinis, a freshman organizational communication major from Albany, nominated by Anita Chirco, professor of communication studies:

Amanda Markessinis spent her January Field Period at the Times Union newspaper in Albany, and said the hands-on learning experience she acquired from this Field Period went beyond what she expected.

“By being immersed in the journalism industry, I learned how it works, the different jobs at the paper, and whether or not I believed I fit in this job,” said Markessinis. “I worked with Jennifer Gish, a features editor and sports writer, who wanted me to experience the journalism career to the fullest. So every day she would present me with new tasks.”

Gish had Markessinis craft interview questions, write blog posts, work with other reporters on stories, and set up interviews for her own stories.

“I wrote a ‘dos and don’ts’ for exercise in the health section of the paper during my first week,” said Markessinis. “Working and being treated like a professional made me want to do my best, and gave me insight into what I can expect if I were to pursue a career in journalism.”

She said her experience at the newspaper taught her more than just the basics of journalism—it shaped her future.

“Now, not only am I a better writer, I am also more familiar with my strengths and weaknesses,” said Markessinis. “I have not only added to my resume, I have reevaluated my goals and the directions of my career path. This Field Period taught me that while I like aspects of journalism, I don’t want to go into the field.”

Markessinis participates in Enactus, For the Kids, and was a leader at the Center for Spiritual Life’s winter retreat.

Sierra Lynch

Sierra Lynch, a junior psychology major from Watervliet, nominated by Athena Elafros, assistant professor of sociology:

Lynch completed her January Field Period at Sunmount Developmental Disabilities Service Office Center for Intensive Treatment (CIT) in Tupper Lake.

Lynch’s activities included observing people with anger management issues, attending training sessions, writing lesson plans for the sessions, and witnessing the behavior of those on the CIT unit, including sexual assault perpetrators, who may also have been victims.

“This experience taught me about psychiatric examination, the field I wish to pursue, by forcing me to see another perspective,” she said. “I want to work with inmates who have mental health problems, and this Field Period gave me that opportunity.”

She said she came to realize her potential through her experience, which she has used in and out of the classroom.

“I learned about different perspectives and ways to handle situations I came across, and will come across. And, I learned to clearly communicate my ideas,” said Lynch.

But she admits she had a hard time hearing the personal stories of the consumers, which are what those at CIT are called.

“During my last week there, the consumers started to open up and tell me about themselves,” said Lynch. “Some of the stories ripped me apart because of the terrible things they had been through. Even still, this Field Period confirmed I do want to pursue a career in psychiatric examination.”

An Academic Success at Keuka (ASK) notetaker, Lynch also works in the ASK Center, is a member of the Arion Players Drama Club, Psychology Club, and Sociology, Criminology, and Criminal Justice Club.

Thanh Thi Hoang Do

Thanh Thi Hoang Do, a senior management major from Hanoi, Vietnam, nominated by Patricia Speers, ESL academic skills counselor in the Center for Global Education:

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C., served as a classroom for the month of January for Thanh, who served as an intern in the human resources department for the Court.

“Human resource management will require me to deal with many different types of people in my career,” said Thanh, “and luckily, the U.S. is an excellent place for me to get that experience because of its diverse population.”

While she didn’t have much to do with the court cases, Thanh completed research and created a training session with her supervisor’s guidance. In addition, she co-facilitated the session with another intern. She also created and updated personnel files, screened resumes, and scheduled interviews.

“I believe Keuka College has prepared me with the knowledge to help discover the outside world, and I am impressed by the Field Period program,” said Thanh. “It helps me combine my class lesson with the work environment. My last Field Period made me more mature, professional, and experienced. Applying the knowledge that I received at Keuka in the business setting was a great opportunity for me.”

Thanh has a work study position in the Center for Global education, was in the fashion show, serves as treasurer of the International Club, participated in Celebrate Service…Celebrate Yates, and is a transfer student mentor.