success

Mentor Moment with Instructor Angela Kunz.

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Angela Kunz surrounded by a fashion class

     On a warm and sunny autumn afternoon, I had a candid conversation with Fashion Design Adjunct Instructor Angela Kunz (or Mrs. K as she prefers to be called by students) on SUNY Ulster’s beautiful campus. We discussed what advice she has for students entering the field of fashion merchandising, design, and the evolving work force as a whole.

Follow SUNY Ulsters Fashion Department on Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/SUNYUlsterFashionDesign/
Follow SUNY Ulster Fashion Club on  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FDCSUNYUlster/

“What led you to a career in fashion instruction?”

“After studying fashion at Pratt Institute in Lower Manhattan I began working in the fashion industry in the 1990’s.”

After living in New York City and achieving what she thought was her ‘dream’- the success of celebrities and the members of popular television shows wearing her designs, Mrs. K felt herself dealing more with the business side of the industry and less with the creativity side that she loved. “I began feeling completely drained and unfulfilled – that’s when I moved up to the Hudson Valley and began to ask myself “How can I keep fashion in my life without being directly involved in it?””

A few years after moving to and working in the Hudson Valley an adjunct position in the Marist College Fashion Department opened up and as Mrs. K put it  “-it was a manifestation of working adjacent to the fashion industry and with students!”

“Would you change anything about how you got to where you are?”

Mrs. K quickly responded “No!-everything happened in a perfect transition right where I wanted to live and work-It’s all about finding the balance.”  

 “What would be your top advice to someone thinking of entering the fashion industry?”

  “Be willing to fail, and do not settle! Look at your options and find a way to keep your truest dreams alive, and always aspire to reach your full potential.”  

 “4 words you would use to describe a leader in your field?”

 Mrs. K paused and after a moment she said “Innovative, passionate, and simultaneously endlessly motivated about the field, and finally someone who is dedicated.”   

Mentor Moments highlights the mentors that help to make our college great!
Have a mentor you want to feature? Email Terriann at (smitht36@my.sunyulster.edu)

Stories of SUNY Ulster — Marla Gruner: Family Woman, Educator, Library Scientist

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The Stories team recently got an opportunity to conduct an interview with SUNY Ulster’s own charismatic librarian: Marla Gruner. Invariably seated at the help desk, Marla is known for her pleasant helpfulness and the sagacity of her assistance. Entering her office, we are delighted to the smell of fresh coffee, photographs of her two adorable children, and a glowing presence ready to talk.

“I was an English major in college, and I realized there wasn’t a whole lot I could do with an English degree *Laughs*. So I thought, what are my options? I talked to my advisors and they were iffy about it, and I think I took a career quiz and found out that I could go on and get my masters in library science very easily, and I had also worked in a public library when I was in high school and I liked it! It’s not a thrilling story or anything, I was just fortunate enough to have a direct line to working in this field, sort of a straight path…Mostly it’s the people here that I like working with, there are a lot of energetic, fun people to work with. It’s a small community, and unfortunately a lot of people come here from disadvantaged circumstances, so I really enjoy being able to help them in any way; be it finding a book or navigating the site…I’m teaching at F.Y.E. this semester, so I feel like I’m really able to branch out, talk to people and meet more students — that’s one thing about the library is you don’t always necessarily get to know the students very well, you don’t see them as much as their professors might per se. I feel like this is a great opportunity to know more students better…So, yeah, I just really like the community college environment and feel, and with my job specifically, I’m able to do a lot of things in the library, whereas at a larger institution, there might be like ten librarians. So I get to do the job of ten *Smiles*, but in all seriousness it is wonderful and I enjoy it.”

Interesting Tidbit: When asked about the slow decline of the print book and nationally declining book circulation rates, Marla says she is not concerned. She envisions the library of the future as more of a meeting place and help center, as well as a massive digital database. Forever the optimist, Marla is as much a librarian as she is a friend to the campus at large. The next time you find yourself in the library, keep an eye out for Marla and her infectious smile!

10 Tips For First Semester Success

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Campus Connect leaders giving a thumbs up with new students

Welcome, SUNY Ulster incoming freshmen! Many of you are probably both excited and nervous about your first semester at college. With a little effort, your first semester (and all of the following) can be successful. Here’s a few tips to help you on your way!

#1: Check Your SUNY Ulster Email

Once you’re enrolled, all important emails from Ulster will come to your @my.sunyulster.edu address. It’s how your professors get in touch with you, as well as one major way to get campus alerts and financial aid notifications. Other students and staff will often use it to contact you as well. Faculty are legally bound to contact you through Ulster email, so do your part and help them (and yourself, since nobody wants to show up for a cancelled class) by checking it at least once a day.

#2: Attend Campus Connect

This one is mandatory, actually, but there’s a reason it is! Campus Connect is the SUNY Ulster orientation, and it offers the opportunity you need to find out all about being an Ulster student, from where different offices are to what career and internship options are available. It’s also a great way to meet the SUNY Ulster community. When you attend, you should also plan to look around campus and find the rooms your classes will be in this semester.

#3: Understand Your Finances

Federal financial aid is a big part of everyone’s SUNY Ulster life, but what about all the other resources? Think about financing beyond just FAFSA, because there’s also local scholarships, the College Scholars Program, and, now, the Excelsior Scholarship. Don’t miss out on any opportunities! Plan ahead; even though federal aid may cover Ulster at the moment, if you transfer to another school, scholarships can be extremely helpful.

#4: Explore Ulster and Portal Resources

Make sure you know where everything is! Campus Connect is an excellent start, but take some time during your first few weeks of class to explore the campus and browse the portal. You can find a lot on the portal and Blackboard if you figure out how to navigate them and get a general idea of where everything is, which is especially important for taking online classes. Touring the campus is important for knowing where you can get food, hang out, use computers, and get information from different offices.

#5: Create A Schedule and Get Organized

If you have a schedule that includes both classes and work, make sure you budget your time! It’s recommended that you set aside 2-3 hours each week for every credit hour to give yourself time for assignments and studying. That’s 30-45 hours a week beyond classes, jobs, and family time if you take the average workload of 15 credits. For the first semester, it’s especially important to have this time available, since you’re still finding your own speed with college work. If you plan to set this much time aside and use it wisely, you should find yourself on track throughout the semester.

#6: Attend Class and Pay Attention

Establishing good habits when you begin college will benefit you for the remainder of your college life. Possibly the most important habit you can adopt is to attend class and pay attention. Students who drop out tend to not have attended their class, or, if they do attend, spend the entire class period using their phone. Remember that doing these things frequently not only gets you dropped from the class, but also means you’re missing important material that will be in essays and exams. Paying attention usually means better grades, and getting better grades means many more opportunities are available to you. Focus on your class for the hour that you’re in it.

#7: Get Involved

Make friends early on! There’s so much to be said for having a few people that you love to spend time with at Ulster. On a winter morning when it’s 5 degrees outside and the thought of your math class isn’t quite incentive enough to get out of bed, knowing you get to see your friends can be the push you need. Joining a SUNY Ulster club and participating in campus activities is a great way to meet new friends. You can also just start a conversation with someone in class or a group that looks interesting in the cafeteria. There’s plenty of options if you make an effort!

#8: Try to Plan for the Future

Obviously, your first order of business is to get acquainted with SUNY Ulster life, but it’s never to early to explore career and internship opportunities. At the very least, get to know your advisor, and be ready to plan next semester’s classes.

#9: Connect with Your Professors

Your professors aren’t just there to teach classes and go home. Most will have office hours you can go to when you need help for a class. If it’s a professor in your major, connecting is twice as important, since they can advise on job opportunities, colleges, and anything else related to your career. One or two will end up giving you your letter of recommendation if you transfer, so get to know them early on.

#10: Have Fun!

This goes without saying, but it’s important to enjoy your time at Ulster. College isn’t endless studying and suffering; you’ll meet interesting people and learn really cool things in classes and on campus. Relax once in a while and just enjoy being a student!

Almunus Fulfills Dream of Helping Immigrants

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Victor Cueva, 2009, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor at a NYC Bar Association event.

Victor Cueva, Liberal Arts Humanities and Social Science ’09, is eager to give new immigrants in the Hudson Valley the help his family did not receive when they came to Kingston from Lima, Peru more than a decade ago.

Cueva, who recently earned his juris doctorate degree from Yeshiva University’s Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, is fulfilling his dream of helping immigrants with legal services as a fellow in the Immigrant Justice Corps, an ambitious, still-developing fellowship program begun in New York City last year.

Cueva will work in Catholic Charities’ Poughkeepsie and Newburgh offices part of the week, and the other days in Manhattan at 26 Federal Plaza, New York’s immigration court, serving clients from the lower Hudson Valley region.

His achievements were recently included in a New York Times article on the Immigrant Justice Corps.

After graduating from SUNY Ulster, where he was a former Admissions Ambassador and played soccer for then-coach Hall of Famer George Vizvary, he graduated summa cum laude from the State University of New York at Albany. He attended Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law as a select number of E. Nathaniel Gates scholars.

Cueva, 25, fondly remembers SUNY Ulster as a close-knit college community with professors who both challenged and supported him academically, and other international students and fellow soccer players who became his friends.

“Never give up. Perseverance is a great quality to have and SUNY Ulster helped me develop that quality,” he said.

For his success story, click here.

Fine Arts Student Wins Scholarship to SVA

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Chelsea Stingel standing in front of painting of flowers

From a young age, Chelsea Stingel wanted to be an artist. But she knew that to get into one of the leading art schools in the country that offered larger scholarships, she would have to build her portfolio.

SUNY Ulster’s Fine Arts Program helped her do just that, earning Stingel a $45,000 scholarship to the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in Manhattan.

Through the college’s new capstone art classes – Advanced Studio 1 and 2 – Stingel got the time to devote to working on independent portfolio pieces in a mentoring environment with professors and peers, which she says made all the difference for her to reach her transfer goals.

SUNY Ulster added the advanced studio offerings two years ago, after hearing feedback from the top art schools that said its students were producing high-quality work but weren’t doing enough independent projects.

Taught by adjunct arts instructor Chris Seubert and Art Department Chair Iain Machell, students learn how to photograph their work (with photographic equipment supplied by a Title 3 mini-grant), create an online portfolio, write an artist’s statement, and create a successful transfer portfolio and application for a four-year college. They also have the opportunity to work with faculty at the Woodstock School of Art through a partnership. Other community colleges now are creating similar portfolio-building classes.

After graduating in May with her Associate’s in Fine Arts, Stingel will enter SVA as a junior in Illustration and have about half of her tuition paid for by the scholarship over three years. She was awed by the artwork she saw at Acceptance Day and is looking forward to the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn from gifted working artists in NYC.

Stingel will pursue a Bachelor’s in Fine Arts in illustration and aspires to work in the commercial side of art doing commissions for movies or games.

The Saugerties resident originally chose SUNY Ulster to make the transition to college life easier and excelled in the fine arts program here.

“I was really impressed with the art program at SUNY Ulster,” she says. “The professors are helpful with our work and easy to talk to outside of class.”

Stingel’s self-portrait currently is on show at the SUNY Spring 2015 Student Art Exhibition at the Plaza Gallery, SUNY Plaza in Albany. This is an exhibition that highlights the projects of art and design programs throughout the SUNY system. Her art work won a further accolade and has been selected for the Best of the Year SUNY Student Art exhibition that will take place at the NY State Museum in Albany in June.