LIM College students helped clean up New York City parks as a required part of their Orientation.

Traditionally, Freshman Orientation consists of students learning their way around campus, meeting their classmates, and getting ready for the start of classes. Yet for incoming students at LIM College, Orientation is also a time to help improve the local community that they are becoming members of. So on August 20, hundreds of new LIM College students fanned out in small groups around New York City to volunteer for a variety of community service activities.

Projects the students participated in included: working to beautify parks in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx; assembling activity bags for pediatric patients at New York University Medical Center; helping the American Cancer Society and Gay Men’s Health Crisis prepare for upcoming special events; cleaning spaces for children and their families at the Ronald McDonald House; organizing clothing and dressing mannequins at Bottomless Closet (an organization that provides business attire for disadvantaged women); and sorting through items donated to Housing Works (an organization dedicated to fighting AIDS and homelessness).

 This is the second consecutive year that LIM College has made community service projects a mandatory part of its weeklong New Student Orientation.

 Shatika Robinson of Paterson, New Jersey is a freshman who helped clear weeds at Manhattan’s Riverside Park. She said “It was a good experience. I had fun while serving the community. I always enjoy doing community service and would like to go on and get involved in projects that help homeless men and women.”

 Arianna Pantin, a freshman from Deer Park, New York who also helped beautify Riverside Park said, “The park has a small staff for this type of work, so I’m glad we were able to come in and help them.” 

Says LIM College President Elizabeth S. Marcuse, “Orientation sets the tone for the academic year and establishes expectations for our students. Community service is an integral part of co-curricular life, so we felt it was important to incorporate it into the college experience as early as possible. Performing community service helps students develop an appreciation for diversity and privilege, and exposes them to some of the many issues facing our local area. It is our hope that this experience motivates them to stay involved in the community throughout the year.”

(L-R): Dale Smith, Vice President of Marketing; Jessica Perilla, CW Alumni & Award Recipient; and Karen Smith, President

At The College of Westchester’s (CW) June 3, 2010 Commencement Ceremony, Jessica Perilla, a 2001 graduate of the Multimedia Management and Development program, was awarded with CW’s First Annual Alumni Achievement Award.  She excelled while at CW and was immediately hired by the Partnership for a Drug Free America, where she had been doing an internship that had been arranged by our Office of Career Services.  She also went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in graphic design from The School of Visual Arts.  After graduating SVA, Jessica left her full-time job to start her own company – Jessica Perilla Design – an award-winning venture which has grown to over 100 clients, some very well known, such as Real Simple Magazine, Aeropostale, and Wiley Publishing.  Jessica is a member of several professional design and entrepreneurial organizations, started the Mural Project through which artists donate their skills to create murals in hospitals, including Montefiore in the Bronx, and founded an online network dedicated to women entrepreneurs called “Web2Fem.”   Jessica has remained a loyal CW alumnus, continuing to interact with faculty, attending events, and currently assisting the CW Online Division in website design.  It is for all of these fine accomplishments that Jessica was presented with this prestigious award.

AS&U is an information source for education facilities and business professionals—serving the nation’s K-12 and higher education administrators responsible for the planning, design, construction, retrofit, operations, maintenance and management of education facilities. Since 1983, AS&U has hosted the premier competitions for education design projects.

Maxwell Hall will be featured in AS&U’s upcoming Educational Interiors Showcase. Published in August each year, this is a special issue entirely devoted to the best in educational interiors and facility planning. Educational administrators and others interested in educational facilities look to the Educational Interiors Showcase issue as a guide to award-winning ideas and innovations for America’s schools and universities. Honored projects also appear on the SchoolDesigns.com website.

Says LIM College President Elizabeth S. Marcuse, “We are thrilled to be recognized by American School & University magazine. Larry Marner and his colleagues at Marner Architecture created a state-of-the-art environment for us that not only facilitates learning and working, but also builds on LIM College’s strong tradition of community by creating a place where students, faculty and staff can come together to share information and exchange ideas.”

The awards judging panel consisted of a mix of school administrators and AIA-member architects who evaluated and selected outstanding projects for publication. Primary consideration was given to the design firm’s solution to the stated educational program requirements. The jury also considered problem statement and technical specifications; architect/designer response to the program requirements; aesthetic characteristics of the solution and overall presentation of materials.

A number of SVA students were recognized individually for their projects. Alumnus and current MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Department student Jungyeon Roh (BFA 2009 Illustration) won a Gold Cube in the Illustration category for her book Today is Sushi Day. Bronze Cubes were awarded to Alex Sunyoung Koo (BFA 2009 Advertising) and Julissa Ortiz (BFA 2009 Advertising)  in Collateral Advertising; and to Wesley Gott, a current student in the MFA Design Department, for Television and Cinema Design. Jang Cho (BFA 2010 Advertising), Marianna D’Annunzio (BFA 2010 Advertising), Sungkwon Ha (BFA 2009 Advertising) and Eunjung Yoo (BFA 2010 Graphic Design) also received Merit awards for their advertising and design submissions.

The awards ceremony took place on Wednesday, May 19, at the SVA Theatre, 333 West 23 Street. Cubes were presented by top industry professionals including Richard Wilde, chair of the BFA Advertising and Graphic Design Department. SVA students, alumni and faculty were also featured in the Art Directors Annual 88.

SIFE works with teams of college students on campuses around the world to teach ethical and socially conscious business practices. LIM College SIFE has sought to improve the lives of individuals through service-oriented business projects. This year, SIFE completed seven projects, including providing job search training for women in need, coaching local entrepreneurs in merchandising for a small children’s boutique, and helping a young entrepreneur and LIM College alumna grow her business in manufacturing eco-friendly accessories in Guatemala.

SIFE also develops in its members academic excellence and professional achievement, qualities that are evident among the LIM College SIFE students. To wit, all senior members of the team received job offers from their Senior Co-op internship employers.

The LIM College SIFE Advisor is Professor Marla Greene, who was assisted by Professors Charles Fradella and Mary Ann Dray.

The College of Westchester is committed to the community at large and education overall, and this event is proof of its commitment. It is rewarding to recognize such promising students in our community, even if they don’t choose to attend our college. CW exists to develop in students, the skills and abilities needed for the greater marketplace of the future. Over the past 95 years one attribute of CW that ensures students’ success in the marketplace is our continual evolution with employment trends and employers’ needs. We offer high quality, practical, career-focused, collegiate education leading to graduate success and security

SVA Acting Chairman Milton Glaser receives the National Medal of Arts from President Obama

School of Visual Arts (SVA) Acting Chairman and longtime faculty member Milton Glaser has received the National Medal of Arts. Glaser is one of twelve Americans to be recognized this year for their outstanding achievements and support of the arts. The medals were presented by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama in an East Room ceremony at the White House on February 25, 2010. Glaser is the first graphic designer to receive the honor.

The National Medal of Arts is a White House initiative managed by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Each year, the NEA organizes and oversees the National Medal of Arts nomination process and notifies the artists of their selection to receive a medal, the nation’s highest honor for artistic excellence.

“These individuals and organizations show us how many ways art works every day. They represent the breadth and depth of American architecture, design, film, music, performance, theatre, and visual art,” said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman. “This lifetime honor recognizes their exceptional contributions, and I join the President and the country in saluting them.”

The official citation reads, “Milton Glaser, for a lifetime devoted to improving the way people communicate through innovation in graphic design, and for memorable visual artifacts that challenge contemporary artists and delight all Americans.”

Milton Glaser has a five-decade association with SVA. In addition to serving as acting chairman of the board since 2007, he has been on the faculty since 1960, currently teaching in the MFA Design Department and the Division of Continuing Education. He has created many of the iconic posters produced by SVA for display on New York City subway platforms, which were the subject of a 50-year retrospective exhibition in September 2009 entitled “Milton Glaser’s SVA: A Legacy of Graphic Design.” Glaser is also responsible for the design of the SVA Theatre, a former first-run movie house located in the heart of Manhattan that hosts film screenings, lectures and other events for the enjoyment of the community as well as the College.

In addition to Glaser, this year’s medalists include: Bob Dylan, Clint Eastwood, Maya Lin, Rita Moreno, Jessye Norman, Joseph P. Riley, Jr., Frank Stella, Michael Tilson Thomas, John Williams. (Twelve medalists were announced; however two were not able to attend the ceremony. Their medals will be presented at another time.)

The official announcement is online at http://www.arts.gov/news/news10/Medals.html.
Glaser’s Web site is at http://www.miltonglaser.com/.

(L-R) George Santiago, Briarcliffe College President and Vic Latino, La Fiesta Radio

Briarcliffe College President Dr. George Santiago, Jr., was the recipient of a Top 50 Hispanic Leaders of Long Island award during the first-ever Latino Awards Gala held earlier this month by La Fiesta Radio, Long Island’s only Latino radio station.  

“Long Island is home to 350,000 Hispanics and La Fiesta is committed to reaching and serving this growing segment of our population,” said Dr. Santiago. “It is truly a great honor to be recognized in the company of such distinguished honorees.”

Dr. Santiago, the first in his family to achieve a college education, advanced to a master’s and doctorate, eventually dedicating himself to a career in education.  At Briarcliffe College, he introduced the Hispanic Scholarship program to support the dreams of higher education among young Latinos.  His educational and community outreach and personal commitment to the Hispanic community have been recognized by Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, the Long Island Hispanic Chamber, 100 Hispanic Women, Adelante, and others.  He has regularly appeared in the media as an expert source on social and educational matters affecting Hispanic students in the metro New York area.

“Under Dr. Santiago’s leadership, Briarcliffe College is an exemplary educational institution — providing a whole new generation of New Yorkers with opportunity and prospects for the future,” stated John Caracciolo, president of JVC Broadcasting, the owner of La Fiesta radio.

Established in 2008, La Fiesta WBON 98.5 radio provides a combination of music and talk radio that has enjoyed great popularity with an audience of nearly 400,000 tuning in daily, from Queens to Suffolk County.

According to Vic Latino, Operations Manager for La Fiesta Radio, “The Latino Awards program was established to recognize the contributions from business, education, public service and the arts in celebrating Hispanic heritage.”

Other honorees at the First Annual Latino Awards included representatives from major industries as well as Suffolk County Legislator Rick Montano, New York State Assemblyman Philip Ramos and Nassau County GOP Chairman Joe Mondella.

SGA and Phi Theta Kappa members who delivered the toys to White Plains Hospital included (standing) Michael Adebiyi, Genaro Cruz and Denise Martinez, and (sitting) Kasey Grafer and Daniel Neves.

CW’s Student Government Association (SGA) helped raise $1,500 for Haiti’s earthquake victims, and with the college’s match, over $3,000 will be given to the Red Cross, which will directly benefit those who suffered a great tragedy on January 12. 

Philanthropic efforts such as this one, is of the norm for CW’s SGA.  Each holiday season they hold a toy drive, which benefits the children of White Plains Hospital.  Additionally, twice a year, they hold a chance drawing for the benefit of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a charity the college has supported for over 35 years. 

Students involved in these great causes talk about the great fulfillment they experience, which is something that can’t be taught in the classroom, but is still part of the college’s mission to, “….encourage personal excellence.”