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Free Tuition With the College Scholars Program

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An excited group of twelve students from various ulster county high school hold action poses and smiles.

Getting good grades in high school doesn’t just look good to colleges. It can also get you a free ride to SUNY Ulster with the College Scholars Program. Students who maintain a status in the top 10% of their high school class qualify for free tuition upon getting their diploma.

A fair skinned girl with blonde hair sits in a brick walled reading room. She wears a deep blue hoodie with stars on it and has a pair of green headphones hanging around her neck. She sits at a desk with a pile of books to her left and leaning her head on her hand which is propped on the desk. In front of her she has an open faced, large, hardcover book with a small bright green apple sitting on top of one of the open pages.

College scholars have a significant step ahead of the other students they are joining at college. Not only are they extraordinarily studious and devoted to learning. They’ve also earned the chance to get up close and personal with Dr. Al, our college president. While all other students eventually have the same opportunity, it’s a bit different for these few. College scholars are privy to a small meeting with executives. During which everyone is introduced and the program awards are given out. Their footholds on campus are strong before they start courses since they’ve made like-minded friends ahead of time.

Get Your Head in the Game Early

Mary Sommers was a recipient of this scholarship thanks to her hard work and diligence. Before she became a collegiate, she always made sure to maintain the best grades and study habits. She says, “It’s something that I’ve always worked for; the option to go to SUNY Ulster for free was so important and attainable.” Her family inspired her from a young age to be an excellent student and make the most out of her potential. They’ve given her the foundation she needs to attain her desired masters degree in child development so she can become a guidance counselor one day. As for where she will end up, she says, “I don’t know exactly where it will take me, but it’s going to be far.”

Stay Focused on What’s Important

A dark skinned man sits at a mac computer and holds his hands on the mouse touch pad and keyboard. He is wearing a grey shirt with a dark blue collar, a watch, and has an earring in his right ear. We cannot see his face

Another conscientious college scholar, Bradley Westervelt, currently uses the program’s funding toward his music degree at SUNY Ulster. He realizes that the program has had a big impact on his education and life. He says, “I definitely believe I was able to achieve more as a student because of my tuition being funded by the school. I think SUNY Ulster is a great place to go to college. I’ve had really wonderful teachers and many cool experiences since coming here.” The time Bradley spends at SUNY Ulster is in preparation to transfer. He wants to earn a Bachelor’s degree before starting his career as a music instructor.

Something to Aspire To

So for those of you high school students and parents out there, make sure to keep those grades up and the motivation high! The chance to attend one of the top five community colleges, as ranked by BestColleges.com, is nothing to pass up on. The even bigger opportunity to attend that college for free is certainly something to pursue. Mary summed it up well when she stated: “I strived and worked hard to make it into the program, and I think that anyone can set the same goal. As long as you make your deadlines and do what you need to do, you can do it too.”

See the application here.

a cartoon notepad lays open with two arms laying on top of it, one holding a pen. There is also a cup of coffee present and a white smart phone with a dark blank screen. The notepad is blank.
Photo by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay

12 Tips for Organizing Your College Life

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Focused woman doing homework in the library

With finals approaching, there’s no better time than the present to get organized. Whether you’re new to college or a returning student, here are some great tips to help you succeed. Try them and find what works best for you!

  1. Be motivated. When the going gets tough, it’s easy to lose track of why you’re putting so much time and effort into college. Keep a list of long-term goals to help you stay focused on what’s important. Tack it up somewhere where you will see it every day.To do list written on paper with blue pen
  2. Keep a planner and/or a planner app. During the school year, using a planner to track classes, assignments, work, and social plans is extremely important. Planners are cheap and are available almost everywhere you can find calendars. If you’re more digitally inclined, there are many free apps and websites you can use that are a Google search away. 
  3. Save all your syllabi and keep them available. If your professor gives you a guide to what your entire semester is going to look like, don’t lose it. You can mark your syllabus with everything you need to remember. Gather all your syllabi together and enter important dates into your planner or calendar app.
  4. Set a schedule and stick to it. Keep to-do lists updated every day. Try to keep the same wake-up and bedtimes every day of the week, even on the weekends and holidays, when there are no classes. This will help you stay on schedule consistently. Also, try to figure out what time of the day you are most productive, and optimize that time for productivity.
  5. Be prepared for the day, before the day happens. When you’re ready for the day even before you wake up, the day tends to run much smoother. You’re less likely to forget important items you need for the day. Having your backpack stocked ahead of time with everything you need is a big time saver. stuffed-pack
  6. Tidy your living and work spaces. Think of the time you spend looking for something in the morning while getting ready to leave the house for the day. Having a clean desk is an excellent start. At the end of each day, get rid of clutter and put things where they belong. This simple nightly routine makes getting ready in the morning much less stressful.
  7. Develop good note organization habits.  Use a color code system, and give each class a color. Match all your binders and notebooks for that class to their color, so that they are easier to find and grab when you are on the go.  Keep separate binders, folders, and/or notebooks for each of your classes. apps-for-keeping-organized-in-college
  8. Set work sessions and use a timer. This step will keep you from wandering into other tasks not coursework related.
  9. Study and hang out in different areas. Work at a desk or in a library, and reserve your room or bed for hanging out and sleeping. Try not to study on the couch in front of the TV, as it’s easy to get distracted by your newest favorite Netflix show.College Study Area SUNY Ulster
  10. Spend time away from the screens in your life. Disconnect from the internet for a few hours a day. Unplugging is a healthy way to curb stress and keep yourself from wasting time. Consider limiting your social media use or cut the habit out altogether, as a quick scroll through your Instagram feed can quickly turn into a hour-long browse.
  11. Remember college is only one piece of your life. If possible, try the 8/8/8 method for balancing your life. It’s a way to divide your time to be responsible and still relax. Try to sleep for eight hours a day, spend eight working, and eight hours for the rest of your life – time with friends, eating, etc.
  12. Go easy on yourself. No one is perfect, and it can be incredibly difficult to stay on top of all your responsibilities. Do your best, but remember, everyone make mistakes. SUNY Ulster has lots of support services to help. And always remember the goal – graduation!

 

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!

Alumna Highlight: Leanna White, Graphic Design

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Close up photo of Leanna White, SUNY Ulster Alumni

Leanna White is a SUNY Ulster Alum, Class of 2012 with an A.S. degree in Advertising Design and Graphic Technology. Her career since graduation has been the very definition of “Start Here. Go Far.” Leanna has taken her classroom knowledge into the real world to excel in her chosen career as a professional Graphic Designer.

The SUNY Ulster Graphic Design program is not only instructional, it also prepares students to work with clients. While in the program, students work on professional projects to prepare them for a career in graphic design immediately after graduation.

Among other projects, Leanna worked on the design of the Ulster County Sheriff Patrol cars.

K9_Front-Back K9-Car

Recently, we sat down with Leanna to discuss her accomplishments since graduating from SUNY Ulster.

What have you accomplished since graduating from SUNY Ulster?

Since graduating in 2012, I have had nothing short of a colorful career. Shortly after graduating, I was offered a job at Pictoura (start-up travel company) where I retouched over 30,000 beautiful images from locations around the world.

YTWT_Jan-2015-CatalogLater that year, I was offered an in-house position as a graphic designer for Naturtint, an international leader in natural hair dye. The advertisements I designed could be found around the U.S. and Canada in top publications like Women’s Health, Dr. Oz and The Good Life.

Womens-Health_Nov2014

After parting ways with Pictoura in 2013, and Naturtint in 2014, I was offered a position as creative director for We Are Triumphant (Records) in Fall 2014. My job was to manage all of the company’s creative material including artwork for individual artists and bands on the label.  Plus I had the great opportunity to work directly with Victory Records to have my work produced for their online store.

While I still work on-and-off with We Are Triumphant, most of my time is currently occupied with design work for Yankee Trails World Travel. Some of my many tasks include designing travel catalogs, printed advertisements, e-mail campaigns and more. All the while, I have maintained a bustling freelance career where I work with awesome people from around the world.

You can see Leanna’s portfolio online at: www.leannawhite.com

How has the SUNY Ulster graphic design program assisted you in your career? 

Even though I did some design work before attending SUNY Ulster, The ‘Real World Classroom’ with its controlled setting really helped prepare me for what to expect in the design world. The field is extremely competitive and this gave me a head start.  With the help of the program’s real-world projects and competitive student atmosphere, I quickly adopted a work ethic that has helped me produce some of my best work yet.

Do you have any advice for current Design students?

  • Always have a contract.

One thing that I think needs some serious mentioning is design contracts. If you are a freelance designer dealing with money of any kind, you must ALWAYS have a written agreement between both parties. I cannot stress this enough. More often than not, people will try to take advantage of  you if a contract is not set in place. If you cannot afford a lawyer to write a contract for you, do your research and alter an existing contract to suit your needs.

  • Be competitive.

To survive in the design world, you absolutely have to be driven and committed. Never stop learning, never stop improving. Keep up to date with current design trends and constantly perfect your skill and technique. Most clients are looking for a one-stop-shop, which means you need to be a multi-disciplined and multi-faceted individual with a lot to offer. If you’re not giving it your all, expect that someone else will. This career is not for the light of heart.

  • Take a break.

As with most creative professions, your brain needs a break from creative thinking. Working long hours on a project will leave you feeling blind and without direction.  That is never a good feeling, especially when someone is relying on you to make something great. Know when to close down Adobe for the night and try not to stress about your creative block – tomorrow’s fresh eyes are exactly what your design needs.

Interested in more information about the SUNY Ulster, Graphic Design Program?

Check out: https://www.sunyulster.edu/academics/credit_programs/advertising_design/

 

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.

SUNY Ulster’s Environmental Club Recognized

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SUNY Ulster Environmental Club digging a hole

SUNY Ulster’s Environmental Club is working to make sustainability a bigger part of the college’s mission. The student group would like to see more specific sustainability goals added to the mission statement and will present its recommendations to the Board of Trustees.

Environmental Club President Aidan Ferris and Vice President Alex Lemus met with President Don Katt to share the club’s ideas and will make the presentation on Dec. 16. The club is recommending numerous new initiatives, including the formation of a sustainability committee, working with food service to reduce waste and increase recycling, and implementing a sustainability tracking and rating system.

The members would like to see the college use the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) conducted by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), which is used by SUNY Orange and hundreds of other community colleges.

The club also has been active in community work. Six members along with faculty advisor Jennifer Costello donated their time to restore, protect and beautify a Hudson River park. The group spent half a day planting native plant species at Kingston Point Beach, working with Kingston Parks and Recreation Department, UlsterCorps and Volunteer New York on the service project.

Want to get involved? Contact Jennifer Guiher at guiherj@ sunyulster.edu to find out more!