Rev. Marlowe Washington to Deliver Baccalaureate Address

Published May 14 at 8:55 a.m. by Doug Lippincott.

The Rev. Marlowe V.N. Washington, pastor of Christ Community Church in Rochester and a social justice and human rights advocate, will deliver the baccalaureate address at Keuka College Sunday, May 27.

One of the College’s commencement day traditions, baccalaureate begins at 9:30 p.m. in Norton Chapel.

Born in the Bronx, N.Y., Washington earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from St. Francis College in Brooklyn. He attended Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey, but received a Master of Divinity degree from New York Theological Seminary in Manhattan. (more…)

Barbara Miller to Receive Honorary Degree

Published May 10 at 5:02 p.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Fifty-six years after earning her first Keuka College degree, Barbara Miller will receive another at the College’s 104th commencement Sunday, May 27.

This time, Miller will be awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

It will mark the third time she has been honored by her alma mater since graduating in 1956. Miller received the Keuka College Alumni Association’s Professional Achievement Award in 1974 and its Effective Use of Retirement Award in 2009. (more…)

Joyce Cohen to Deliver Commencement Address

Published May 2 at 9:27 a.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Joyce Cohen, a 1967 graduate of Keuka College and a leading figure in the field of career development and life planning for more than 25 years, will deliver the commencement address at her alma mater Sunday, May 27.

Keuka’s 104th commencement will begin at 12:30 p.m. on the Norton Chapel lawn.

Founder and president of Unconventional Wisdom LLC, a life planning consulting agency, Cohen is an experienced consultant, workshop facilitator, life coach, outplacement counselor, and creator of updated credentials. She has worked with more than 350 companies, universities, and government agencies in this country and abroad. (more…)

Hanoi Students Join Alumni Ranks

Published Dec. 20, 2011 at 9:33 a.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Nineteen Vietnamese students joined the Keuka College alumni ranks as the College held its first graduation ceremony at Vietnam National University (VNU) in Hanoi Sunday, Dec 18.

The graduation was held at the Fortuna Hotel in Hanoi and was attended by top officials from VNU and its International School, including Vice President Nguyen Huu Duc, Rector Professor Do, and Vice Rector Dr. Tu. Keuka President Dr. Jorge Díaz-Herrera and Vice President for the Center for Professional Studies and International Programs Dr. Gary Smith also took part in the ceremony.

“I am honored to preside at this ceremony that recognizes in formal spirit the educational accomplishment and personal growth of students who have completed, in partnership with the International School at VNU, Keuka College’s Bachelor of Science degree in management,” said Díaz-Herrera. (more…)

The Ethical Fork in the Road

Published Dec. 11, 2011 at 4:37 p.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Referring to the “constant parade of stories describing violations of individual and institutional integrity,” former RIT President Dr. Albert J. Simone today (Dec. 11) said the individuals involved “took the wrong branch when they came to their ethical fork in the road.”

“I am sure there are many more individuals who took the proper branch; unfortunately, we do not hear very much about these individuals,” added Simone, who spoke at Keuka College’s mid-year conferral of degrees. “The individuals who took the wrong branch are newsworthy and that is what the media tend to highlight.”

Simone assumed the graduates had come to this fork in the road “several times already” and during the course of their lives and careers will come to it “numerous times. (more…)

His Energy Comes From Commencement Smiles

Published Dec. 1, 2011 at 10:46 p.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Editor’s Note: The Keuka China Program (KCP) is a bona fide success story. From modest beginnings in 2002, KCP now enrolls some 3,000 students at four major universities [Tianjin University of Science and Technology (TUST), Jimei University (JMU), Wenzhou University (WZU), and Yunnan University of Finance and Economics (YUFE)] and five separate schools in China. Not only does Keuka College boast the largest enrollment of any American college or university operating in China, but the College’s alumni ranks have swelled by some 6,000 thanks to KCP. One of the key authors of the KCP success story is Administrative Chancellor for China Campuses Dr. Michael T.C. Hwang. It was Hwang and President Emeritus Dr. Joseph G. Burke who spearheaded the development of KCP and to mark the 10th anniversary of the program, I talked with Dr. Hwang about his personal and professional attachment to KCP.

KM: What was it about Keuka College that convinced you that this partnership could work?

MH: We had the same mission and vision to create excellent educational opportunities for Chinese students. I discovered that Keuka College was student-centered and valued experiential education, which meshed with the focus of my professional career. Our partner relationship is interdependent; like “I need you as much as you need me.”

KM: Back in the formative stages KCP, did you ever envision that Keuka College would one day be the largest provider of an American education in China?

MH: No, but I am not surprised that it has. Keuka came into China at just the right time. It is a trend of the times.
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Simone to Speak at Mid-Year Conferral of Degrees

Published Nov. 28, 2011 at 12:05 p.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Dr. Albert J. Simone, president emeritus of Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), will deliver the address at Keuka College’s mid-year conferral of degrees Sunday, Dec. 11.

The ceremony begins at 1 p.m. in the Weed Physical Arts Center gymnasium.

Simone served as RIT’s 8^th president (1992-2007) and during his tenure numerous academic programs were established in response to changing global needs and opportunities in areas of RIT’s strengths. The Albert J. Simone Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, established in 2007, recognizes his contribution to academics and strong support of local business. (more…)

General Peter Pace Challenges Keuka Graduates

Published May 29, 2011 at 4:40 p.m. by Rachel E. Dewey.

Thanks to his eighth-grade English teacher, General Peter Pace, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, learned that conduct was part of his grade in life. That teacher was the late Marion Cutler, a 1952 Keuka graduate.

“Ms. Cutler taught me the difference between capability and conduct,” said Pace.

Years later, serving as a Marine in Vietnam, pausing to consider his conduct prevented Pace from ordering an airstrike that would have decimated a village of innocent women and children.

“Take time to set your moral compass,” Pace urged Keuka graduates during the 103^rd commencement Sunday. “You will be morally challenged when, emotionally, you are least prepared to deal with it. Decide for yourself what you and will not do … so that when a challenge does come, you take the three to five seconds to think through (it).”

After giving him a “D” in the first quarter of his eighth-grade English class for “always mouthing off with some kind of joke,” he said, Cutler’s face would pop into his head in later years when tempted to say something inappropriate.

“The way you conduct yourself impacts everybody around you,” said Pace, who was awarded an honorary doctorate Sunday, along with the late Cutler, who died in March. Pace accepted his award “on behalf of the 2.4 million (soldiers) in our armed forces that make days like today possible.”

The Sunday ceremony was the final one for College President Joseph G. Burke, who is retiring after 14 years. Burke was awarded the title President Emeritus by Melissa Brown, Class of 1972, and chair of the College’s governing board.

Other commencement highlights included:

• 

  Slocum, at podium, gives his acceptance speech shortly after being conferred the Doctor of Humane Letters degree by President Joseph G. Burke.

  An honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree was presented posthumously to Marion Cutler. Cutler was one of General Pace’s favorite teachers growing up in New Jersey. The two exchanged letters often after Pace assumed his Joint Chiefs’ responsibilities and remained close up until Cutler’s death in March.

• George Slocum, who celebrated his 50^th anniversary of employment at the College in April, also received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree and a standing ovation from students, faculty and staff. Though Slocum is “retiring” from the College, he will continue to hold down his part-time job cleaning at the U.S. post office in Keuka Park, where he has also worked nearly 35 years.
• Three students (Stephen Ingram, Elaine Bailey, and Michael Fenton) from the D.R.I.V.E. (Diversity, Responsibility, Inclusion, Vision, and Experiential learning) received an Award of Higher Education at commencement. In the program, Keuka College students serve as peer mentors to young adults with intellectual disabilities as they assimilate into the college environment and explore their personal goals. D.R.I.V.E. is a collaboration between Keuka College, Penn Yan Central School District, and Yates County ARC.
• Rita Gow, assistant professor of accounting, received the 2010-11 Professor of the Year Award.
• Retiring faculty members Diane Burke, professor emerita and chair of education, and Helen Clancy (nursing) were honored.

View More Commencement Photos

Class Act

Published May 27, 2011 at 2:35 p.m. by Doug Lippincott.

Keuka College’s Class of 2011 will receive degrees at the College’s 103rd commencement Sunday, May 29.

The ceremony is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m. on the Norton Chapel lawn (Weed Physical Arts Center in case of inclement weather).

General Peter Pace, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will deliver the

commencement address and receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

Pace was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., and grew up in Teaneck, N.J. Among his junior and senior high school teachers, one of his favorites and the one who had lasting impact was Marion Cutler, a 1952 graduate of Keuka College, who died March 24.

“He was my student in English 8 and in my ninth grade group guidance class,” recalled Cutler in a letter to classmates on the occasion of her 50^th Keuka reunion. “Even then I knew that his bright future was assured because he exhibited only the best qualities.”

Cutler and Pace, who retired from active duty in October 2007 after more than 40 years of service in the United States Marine Corps, stayed in touch over the years and were scheduled to be reunited at Keuka’s commencement. Cutler was also slated to receive an honorary degree but died March 24. The degree will now be awarded posthumously.

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“Dr.” Slocum: 50 Years and Counting

Published May 25, 2011 at 4:41 p.m. by Rachel E. Dewey.

Don’t expect George Slocum to settle in to a rocking chair anytime soon.

The Keuka College maintenance man may technically be retiring Sunday after 50 years of employment on campus but the word “retirement” is hardly in his vocabulary, let alone his character. He’s held his second job, a part-time shift cleaning the Keuka Park post office after working 7 – 3:30 daily on campus, for close to 35 years.

In fact, Slocum intends to keep his part-time job after he “retires” this weekend. He said he has plenty of projects to do on his own house, in addition to assisting his wife, Joyce, who underwent hip surgery in January. But taking it easy?

“I’ll see how my health goes,” he allows. “But yeah, if you don’t stay busy, you’ll get old in a hurry.”

Slocum does a lot of walking on the job – delivering mail and packages across campus, heading to his home on Assembly Avenue each day for lunch, and the multiple trips a handyman makes for tools and projects. But he’ll take a more imposing walk Sunday: to the front of the stage, to receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at Keuka’s 103^rd Commencement.

“It’s a very, very high honor for me,” said Slocum, whose formal schooling ended after graduation from Penn Yan Academy. “Back then, farm boys didn’t go to college.”
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