Onondaga Community College: 2021 Commencement

Press release from Onondaga Community College:

Roger Mirabito

May 15, 2021

Onondaga Community College's 58th commencement ceremony looked distinctly different from any of its predecessors. Due to regulations related to COVID-19, the usual rows and rows of chairs and a filled-to-capacity SRC Arena were replaced by individual tables and limits on the number of graduating students and guests who could attend.

The College adapted to the rules by holding three separate commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 15. OCC President Dr. Casey Crabill addressed students at each ceremony. She congratulated students on what they had accomplished and looked forward to what lied ahead. "As we celebrate what you have done already, we are most excited about what you will do next. And wherever you go from here, remember Onondaga Community College and what you learned here. It will serve you well."

Each year the College selects a student speaker to deliver the commencement address. This year there were three student speakers.

• Cristian Pompey - native of Brooklyn who earned a degree in Mathematics & Science. He's transferring to the University of Buffalo where he will pursue a degree in Computer Engineering.
• Si Po Ra - immigrated to the United States from Burma, Graduated from Henninger High School in 2019, and earned a degree at OCC in Humanities & Social Sciences. She's transferring to Syracuse University where she will major in International Relations.
• Hunter Scholl - 2019 graduate of Liverpool High School who earned a degree in Communication Studies. Transferring to SUNY Geneseo and will major in Communications.

During the first commencement ceremony OCC presented honorary degrees to four community leaders. The honorary degree is the highest form of recognition offered by the State University of New York to persons of exceptional distinction. The honorees were selected for their professional excellence, meritorious and outstanding service, and accomplishments which serve as examples of the SUNY system's diverse student body.

• Dr. Mantosh Dewan, President and SUNY Distinguished Professor, Upstate Medical University, for his leadership and critical guidance to both OCC and the entire SUNY system throughout the pandemic.
• Joseph Geglia, Executive Director, Elmcrest Children's Center, for being a compassionate leader whose work has touched the lives of thousands throughout his career.
• Bethaida "Bea" Gonzalez, Retired Community leader and Educator, for her extraordinary service to the community both as a public officeholder and for ensuring the academic success of countless students.
• Dr. Indu Gupta, Commissioner of Health of Onondaga County, for her efforts leading the community through the COVID-19 pandemic which include contact tracing and a mass vaccination campaign.

All three ceremonies were shown live on OCC's Facebook page and YouTube channel. They will also be rebroadcast Saturday, May 22 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on WSYR TV's "Antenna TV" channel. It can be found at 9.2 with a digital antenna, Spectrum Cable channel 1240, Verizon Fios channel 470, and New Visions cable channel 23. The video production was put together under the leadership of Broadcast Media Communications Professor Tony Vadala. His entire crew consisted of OCC Faculty, current students, and alumni.

Lane Russell is a member of OCC's class of 2020. He returned to campus for the 2021 commencement ceremony and worked on the video production crew for all three ceremonies. He is now a student at SUNY Oswego.

This press release was produced by Onondaga Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.