Wheelchair basketball returns to FLCC Oct. 12

Laura Day guards the ball during last year's exhibition game. See video clips of that match by clicking here. 

Finger Lakes Community College faculty, staff and students will take on the Rochester Wheels wheelchair basketball team in an exhibition game, Wednesday, Oct. 12.

The game will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the FLCC gym at the back of the main campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive in Canandaigua. Parking is available near the gym. The event is free and open to the public.

Concert moved: Adam Gussow now in Stage 13

Blues harmonica player Adam Gussow’s appearance at Finger Lakes Community College on Friday, Sept. 30, has been moved to Stage 13 on the second-floor of the main campus to accommodate a larger audience.

The event was originally scheduled for the Honors House on Lakeshore Drive, but an early estimate of attendance has suggested a larger venue is needed. Gussow will share excerpts from his books, including “Mister Satan's Apprentice: A Blues Memoir,” and entertain with his unique one-man band at 7 p.m.

The event is free and open to the public. For information, call (585) 785-1367.

FLCC president among ATHENA nominees

FLCC President Barbara Risser at the Serenity Garden dedication in September.

FLCC President Barbara Risser was among the six women nominated for the 2011 Canandaigua Athena Award, to be announced at the 27th Annual ATHENA Award Gala Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Inn on the Lake.

Dr. Risser, the college’s fourth president, began her higher education career at Onondaga Community College where she had served as vice president of student and academic services and was a member of the English/reading faculty for 20 years.

“She arrived at Finger Lakes Community College in the fall of 2007 with a clear vision of the challenges ahead and what the College needed to do to meet those challenges. She has effectively communicated this vision and goals for the College to all stakeholders and received enthusiastic buy-in across the board,” Charles McCausland, chairman of the college’s Board of Trustees.

Under Dr. Risser’s leadership, the college has added new academic programs, including Instrumentation and Control Technologies, Culinary Arts and Viticulture and Wine Technology.

FLCC’s main campus is undergoing the most significant expansion and renovation since its construction in the mid-1970s to accommodate rising enrollment.

The College has also taken steps to model and teach environmentally sustainable practices, including the adoption of a policy that new buildings be certified by the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).

Dr. Risser is joined by the following nominees:

·         Donna Bennett, founder, CanandaiguaConnected.com, CanandaiguaZumba.com and Three Chiquitas Publishing

·         Marianne Case Gallagher, grant writer, community volunteer and owner of Gallagher Consulting

·         Ellie Fralick, retired health care administrator, community activist and board member for Thompson Health

·         Michelle Garlock, owner of Master Peace Painting and an FLCC alumna

·         Diana Griffith, owner of Park West Hair Design and Spa

Reservations for the 27th Annual ATHENA Award gala must be made through Elisha Snow at the Canandaigua Area Chamber of Commerce by calling (585) 394-4400 ext. 203.

Main entrance at library to reopen on Oct. 3

Weather permitting, the main entrance nearest the Finger Lakes Community College library will reopen on Monday, Oct. 3, following extensive sidewalk replacement.

Students and visitors arriving at the front of the building from the A lot should follow signs to the new sidewalk leading to the library entrance. The doorway nearest the Campus Safety Offices will revert back to an emergency exit only.

The temporary exit at the end of the A wing will remain open until sidewalk work on the west side of the building is complete. Pedestrians walking from the G lot should watch for changes in walkways and follow construction fencing.

In the meantime, work has begun to build the sidewalk that will lead to the Student Center entrance, which will serve as the main lobby for the College when the building opens in 2012. A radiant heating system will be installed under this sidewalk to melt snow and ice.

88 students earn FLCC Foundation scholarships

Aldo Fioravanti and Daniel Servidio.
For more photos, see the FLCC Connects Flickr page here.

Finger Lakes Community College recognized dozens of student scholarship winners and their benefactors during the 27^th Annual Constellation Brands Scholarship Reception on Wednesday, Sept. 21.

Eighty-eight students received a total of $75,000 in private scholarships this year through the FLCC Foundation, a private not-for-profit that supports college activities. About half were able to attend in person and meet with the scholarship donors.

Among the newest scholarships is the Aldo F. and Anne J. Fioravanti Scholarship, started this year by Aldo Fioravanti of Canandaigua in memory of his late wife.

Fioravanti was prompted to set up the award following his experience as a member of the Finger Lakes Chorale, a community chorus based at the college and directed by adjunct faculty member Dennis Maxfield.

“I was very much taken by his leadership. I liked the guy very much,” Fioravanti said of Maxfield. “I asked what can I do to help out?”

His donation will fund an annual gift of $500 per year to a music student in financial need; the first recipient is Daniel Servidio of Rochester. 

“Maybe a student will be able to buy a musical instrument,” he said. “The important thing is that someone gets a little boost.”

Adam Gussow, blues harmonica master and author, to visit FLCC

Blues harmonica player, educator and memoirist Adam Gussow will bring his distinctive musical style to Finger Lakes Community College on Friday, Sept. 30. Gussow will share excerpts from his books, including “Mister Satan's Apprentice: A Blues Memoir,” and entertain with his unique one-man band. 

The event will begin at 7 p.m. at the FLCC Honors House, 4340 Lakeshore Drive, at the corner of Lakeshore Drive and Routes 5 and 20. The event is free and open to the public. Reservations are requested in order to ensure a seat. Contact Curt Nehring Bliss at (585) 785-1367 or nehrincd@flcc.edu. 

According to American Harmonica Newsletter, Gussow's playing is characterized by "technical mastery and innovative brilliance that comes along once in a generation."

Clifton Springs Hospital exhibits student art

Kristin Healy

Clifton Springs Hospital & Clinic will open an exhibit of artwork by FLCC students on Friday, Sept. 30, at 4 p.m. in the medical office building at 4 Coulter Road.

The public is invited to attend and meet some of the artists; refreshments will be served. Parking is available at the hospital's main and south entrances, accessible from Pleasant Street. 

FLCC faculty selected the work from the student honors art exhibit held in the spring of this year.

Framed reproductions of the student work, which includes both the fine and graphic arts, will be shown at  the  hospital for  one year then moved to permanent display at one of the FLCC campus centers.

“The installation allows our patients and visitors to access the work of talented local artists while enjoying the therapeutic benefit of the arts," said Ethan Fogg ’00, director of community relations for the hospital. 

Nathaniel Buys

"It's also a nod to our long-standing relationship with the college. Many nursing students do field placements here, many alumni work in our organization and several members of our administration are FLCC graduates,” Fogg said.

Student exhibitors – several of whom are now alumni themselves – and their hometowns are as follows:

Heather Bair (Naples), Kristin Healy (Canandaigua), Desiree Hewitt (Macedon), Joshua Secor (Groveland), Nathaniel Buys (Marion), Kathleen Dougherty (Keuka Park), Anthony Fili (Geneva), Lynn Eddinger (Canandaigua), and Taira Perrault (Penn Yan).

For more information or to purchase one of the original pieces, contact Barron Naegel, assistant professor of art, at (585) 785-1369.

FLCC to host author Joanna Scott Oct. 4

Joanna Scott

Joanna Scott, University of Rochester professor and author of short stories and novels, will give a talk titled “A Glimpse into ‘The Gilt Cabinet’: A Reading and Discussion of a Work in Progress,” on Oct. 4, at Finger Lakes Community College.

“The Gilt Cabinet,” a novel Scott is currently writing, focuses on a man named Armand De Potter, a world tour guide who mysteriously disappeared in 1905 and also happened to be Scott’s great-grandfather.

The free event begins with refreshments at 9:30 a.m., and the program follows at 10 a.m. on the third floor of the Charles J. Meder Library at the main campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive. The presentation will be followed by a question-and-answer session and a book signing.

Visitors driving to the campus should follow the signs for parking which will be posted the day of the event.

FLCC to lead national reform of biology curriculum with $3.35 million National Science Foundation grant

Jim Hewlett

The National Science Foundation has awarded Finger Lakes Community College a $3.35 million grant to roll out a national model for incorporating research into community college biology courses.

This is the only grant the National Science Foundation awarded this year for national implementation under a program called Transforming Undergraduate Education in STEM (Science Technology, Engineering and Math). 

“FLCC will be the national leader in undergraduate biology education reform at the community college level,” said FLCC President Barbara Risser. “National Science Foundation grants are highly competitive and almost always awarded to research universities. This is the first time that a National Science Foundation grant at this national level has been awarded to a community college.”

The grant will be administered by Jim Hewlett, FLCC professor of biology, who has led a regional project since 2008.

“For the last three years, we have worked with six other community colleges as they have reworked their biology programs to include research. We believe that in order to understand science, you must do science,” said Hewlett.

Free lecture marks Constitution signing

July 4 may get all the fanfare, but Sept. 17 is just as important a day for the United States. On this date in 1787, the Constitution was signed by 39 men representing the 13 former colonies as they sought to form “a more perfect union.”

James Michael Valenti, J.D., LL.M., Esq., assistant professor of criminal justice at Finger Lakes Community College, will give a free lecture Friday, Sept. 16, to mark the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution.

The lecture runs from noon to 1 p.m. in Room B440 on the fourth floor of the main campus at 3325 Marvin Sands Drive, just outside the city of Canandaigua. Valenti will focus on Marbury vs. Madison, a landmark case in which the Supreme Court declared an act of Congress unconstitutional for the first time.

Visitors should leave time for parking as the college is in session. General parking is available in the main lot in front of the building or the Constellation Brands Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center lot. Handicapped parking is available at the front and back of the main building.

Politico editor, Emmy-winning actor join Canandaigua speaker series

John F. Harris

John F. Harris, the editor-in-chief of Politico.com, and Michael Park, winner of two daytime Emmy Awards, have joined the first season lineup of the George M. Ewing Canandaigua Forum, a speaker series to be held at Finger Lakes Community College’s main campus.

Tickets are on sale now for the forum, which will launch Nov. 20, at 4 p.m. with the previously announced inaugural speaker, Michael O’Hanlon, an expert in U.S. defense and foreign policy.

John Harris will speak on Sunday, Feb. 12, at 4 p.m., and Michael Park is scheduled for Sunday, April 1, at 4 p.m.

Tickets are available by phone at (585) 785-1386 or online at gmeforum.org. Single event tickets are $29 to $39. Season tickets are $79 to $99. Patron tickets for the season, which include a reception with the speakers, are $175.

Zumba has arrived at FLCC

Zumba, the fitness dance classes that seem to pop up everywhere – including high-profile outdoor locations like downtown Canandaigua – are being offered as part of the physical education choices this fall at the main campus. The instructor is Colleen Avery, who is teaming up with Donna Bennett for a free community demonstration class on Tuesday, Sept. 6, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the FLCC gym. For more information about the free demonstration, contact Donna at (585) 298-0116.

FLCC gallery to exhibit art by Kurt Pakan, graphic and fine artist

“The Art and Process of Illustration: Work by Kurt Pakan,” an exhibit of the Rochesterian’s graphic design and fine arts, will be on display at Finger Lakes Community College Sept. 15 through Oct. 21.

An artist’s talk is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 22, from 1-3 p.m. and a reception, sponsored by the FLCC Foundation, will be held the same day from 4 to 6:30 p.m. in the Williams-Insalaco Gallery 34 on the first floor of the main campus, 3325Marvin Sands Dr., Canandaigua. Both events are free and open to the public.