THANK YOU FOR A SUCCESSFUL FALL!
Thank you for reading the Fall 2016 issue of the Mount Vernon Extension Newsletter. Our
featured student in this issue is Johnnie Asibuo, an honor student who is involved in
student activities and works as a tutor at the Mount Vernon Academic Support Center.
Also in the spotlight is Project Transition, a program funded by the Department of Labor
designed to provide skills to displaced homemakers seeking to enter the workforce. This
issue also celebrates the exciting events hosted by the Mount Vernon Activities Club. Be
sure to read more about the Mount Vernon Film Festival, activities celebrating the
Common Read, and our spotlight on English as a Second Language student, Nazar Derii.
Finally, see where the Mount Vernon Extension Center team has been spotted in the
community this semester. Thank you for your readership and enjoy this issue!
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: JOHNNIE ASIBUO Our students at Westchester Community College are as diverse and inspiring as they come, and it is our greatest pleasure to celebrate our students’ successes. Meet Johnnie Asibuo, an exemplary student whose story is a testament to perseverance and positivity. Johnnie studies Business Administration, is involved in student activities, and even tutors at the Mount Vernon Academic Support Center. “My goal is to transfer and get my bachelor’s degree in global business after I graduate,” she explains. “I want to help businesses in other countries manage their scarce resources. I will know how to set up and manage successful businesses so that they contribute to the growth of their economies.”
Having spent most of her school years in Ghana, Johnnie knew she wanted to pursue
higher education in New York. She initially came to WCC because of its reputation. It was
hard to adjust to a new environment, but she didn’t let that stop her. “My first semester, I
was failing Precalculus,” she remembers. “I made a decision to succeed, so I started visiting
the Mount Vernon Academic Support Center and met my favorite tutor, Inesa, who was a
WCC graduate. This was undoubtedly a key to my success – you have to ask for help, and
you have to be willing to do the work.” She not only passed the class, but now Johnnie is a
straight-A student and is a math tutor as well. “My favorite subject to tutor is pre-algebra,
because students tend to really struggle. I remember what that was like, so I want to give
back,” Johnnie says. With a full course load and while working as a tutor, Johnnie still
finds time to be involved in other activities at WCC. She is Co-Secretary of the Mount
Vernon Activities Club, a member of the business honors society, and is in the Honors
Program. She thinks back to her first semester at WCC and tells us, “Prof. David Fritz was
the professor for my first course, ENG 101, and the course was so different than what I ...
Continued on page 4
17 S. Fifth Avenue, Mount Vernon ∙ 914—606—7200
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Student Spotlight: Johnnie Asibuo …………………………… 1
The Mount Vernon Extension Center Hosts: Mount Vernon Film Festival ...................... 2
Introducing Project Transition .......................... 2
Out and About: Spotted in Mount Vernon .................... 2
English as a Second Language: Spotlight on Nazar Derii…… 3
Common Read at Mount Vernon …………………………… 3
Sponsored by MVAC: For Students, By Students ......... 4
Westchester Community College
Mount Vernon
Fall 2016 Newsletter
“WCC is for everyone…If you are focused on success, that’s exactly what you will get.”
The Mount Vernon Extension Center hosts:
MOUNT VERNON FILM FESTIVAL
From September 22 through 26, the
Mount Vernon Extension Center
hosted the third annual Mount
Vernon Film Festival. The festival
draws local, international, and
independent filmmakers. Both
featured films and shorts are shown.
Mount Vernon Film Festival
founder and producer, Osiris
Imhotep, is a filmmaker and
educator who believes that film
exposes viewers to new perspectives
and possibilities, and serves as a
way to connect the world. He also
believes that there is a natural
synergy between film and
education. This year, he offered free
submission for student-made films
as well as free admission to the
festival for WCC students. Included
in this year’s festival was an
afternoon of workshops and panels
with Imhotep that were designed to
provide youth attendees with the
knowledge and skills to be creative
and successful filmmakers and
change agents in their fields.
The festival attracted over 60 submissions and diverse members of the Mount Vernon community. We congratulate all award winners and filmmakers, and look forward to supporting next year’s festival.
This semester, the Mount Vernon Extension Center hosted a cohort of Project Transition, a grant-funded program through the New York State Department of Labor. The program provides training for displaced homemakers or eligible individuals who have been caring for family members and have lost their means of support. The program is intensive. It focuses on computer skills like MS Office and QuickBooks as well as soft skills like resume writing, business writing and oral communication. Alice Walsh, WCC Program Specialist for Project Transition, explains that the program equips students with the “basic skills for communications, computer programs and office management.” Graduates from previous cohorts are employed in fields ranging from medicine to insurance to advertising.
Students are selected for the program based on eligibility criteria as well as an interview. For some, the goal will be to obtain their first job outside of the home. Others are seeking to re-enter the workforce after as many as 20 years. The program represents an opportunity for students who otherwise may not be capable of obtaining formal employment on their own.
For many graduates, Project Transition isn’t only about getting a job. Alice Walsh explains that many graduates of the program go on to enroll in classes or degree programs. This is true for both Sally Hall and Angie Tome, two students in the Mount Vernon cohort who plan to take classes after completing the program. Angie shares, “I’ll definitely look into classes at WCC. It’s intimidating, but I’ve realized that it’s possible. College isn’t just for 20-somethings; it’s for everyone.”
Project Transition provides students with the skills they need to re-enter the workforce and also sparks an interest in pursuing education. But the impact of the program goes even deeper. “I think Project Transition has already had an impact on my life,” Sally tells us, “by reminding me that I am more than a mom and a wife, and that there is a whole ‘me’ that I can now focus on.” Angie has three daughters, and wants to model being an independent income earner while still putting family first. “I want them to see that they have choices, and that they don’t even have to choose – they can do it all,” she tells us.
Students come to Project Transition from many walks of life and with many positive experiences to share. What they have in common is that they are deeply impacted by this 8-week program. Whether graduates obtain jobs, continue to pursue higher education, experience personal transformations, or any combination of the three, they owe part of their success to Project Transition. But mostly, they earned it through hard work and perseverance.
INTRODUCING: PROJECT TRANSITION
Angie Tome and Sally Hall pose in the lobby of the
Mount Vernon Extension Center
OUT AND
ABOUT:
The Mount Vernon
Extension Center
Team is all around
town! See where
they’ve been spotted
this semester.
Sergeant Carpenter (left) of the Mount Vernon Police
Department and Francine Carl (right) pose with
Frances Wynn and Delia Farquharson of My Brother’s
Keeper, a community initiative, and are regular visitors
at the Mount Vernon Extension Center.
Director Francine Carl and Asst. Director
Janna Gullery at Mount Vernon’s annual
Arts on Third Festival.
(Photo credit: Mount Vernon Inquirer)
Student Katie Mason with Administrative
Assistant Kristen Payton at Mount Vernon’s
Summer Breeze Concert series. Students in the
Entrepreneurship Summer Academy sell their
products to learn about profit margins.
COMMON READ AT MOUNT VERNON
Sponsored by the Mount Vernon Academic Support Center
Every year, Westchester Community College celebrates the Common Read as a way for students to gain a new perspective about the power of the human spirit and their own resilience, and as a cornerstone of the First Year Experience. The 2016-2017 selection, The Skin Between Us by Kym Ragusa, explores themes of race, difference, family, and belonging. The book serves as a foundation for a series of events ranging from coursework to a “Walk and Roll” race around campus, book discussions, and a campus visit from the author.
The Mount Vernon Academic Support Center (MVASC) facilitates Common Read programming at the Mount Vernon Extension Center every year.
This year, the MVASC raffled off 20 copies of the book to students and facilitated a book discussion. Congratulations to raffle winners and thank you to students who participated in the compelling book discussion!
Students at the book discussion pose
with copies of The Skin Between Us
WCC security guard Jared Norman (right)
poses with Sgt. Carpenter (left) of the Mount
Vernon Police Department, who coordinates
the 21st Century Policing Initiative, a challenge
posed by President Obama and accepted by
the City of Mount Vernon.
Administrative Assistant Kristen Payton
and Senior Technical Assistant Araceli
Soriano answer questions about the
college at the New Rochelle Street Fair.
Both are proud WCC graduates!
ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE: SPOTLIGHT ON NAZAR DERII
One of the most celebrated elements of Westchester
County is its diversity. Between 2010 and 2014, the
US Census estimated that one out of every four
Westchester residents was foreign-born. For many,
learning English is a critical beginning step to
building a life here. The English Language Institute
(ELI) of Westchester Community College serves over
5,000 English as a Second Language (ESL) students
per year, more than any other educational institution
in the county. Students represent over 100 countries,
adding to the rich diversity in the county. The ELI
offers six levels of ESL instruction at thirteen
locations throughout the county, including the Mount
Vernon Extension Center.
Nazar Derii is one of those students. Originally from
Ukraine, Nazar dreamed of coming to the US since he
was 15. When he finally arrived to join his father
about a year and a half ago, he knew it would be
important to learn English in order to succeed in the US. Both his brother and his friends
had taken classes at Westchester Community College, and they highly recommended that
he enroll in the ESL program. “The Mount Vernon Extension Center is very conveniently
located near my home and job, so I was very excited to find a class that met my needs here,”
he recalls. Having learned some English in Ukraine, he was placed into level 3. “It was
challenging to practice what I was learning in class while I was at my job, but I knew how
important it was to do so,” he tells us.
Learning English is a gateway to many other opportunities for students in the ESL
program. Nazar remembers when his ESL instructor invited her class to share their goals
for their future. “That pushed me to think more seriously about what I wanted to do with
my future,” he explains, and it helped him to develop a passion for achieving the goals he
had identified. “I plan to continue learning English until I am fluent, then pass the TOEFL
exam, and become a project manager or an architect.” Once he completes the ESL program,
he plans to pursue his undergraduate career at Westchester Community College and, later,
transfer to a four-year school and obtain his bachelor’s degree.
Nazar tells us, “I recommend the ESL program at Westchester Community College because
it will help you to achieve your goals. I am so happy I received this recommendation, and
now I will pass it along to others.” We wish the best of luck to Nazar and look forward to
seeing him next semester.
Nazar studying at the Mount
Vernon Extension Center
NEW!NONCREDIT FOR SPRING
Computer Basics 1: Operational Skills 2/28 & 3/2, 1-4 pm
Computer Basics 2: Windows and File Management 3/7 & 3/9, 1-4 pm
Computer Basics 3: Internet & Email 3/21 & 3/23, 1-4 pm
REGISTER NOW !
Classes start January 21st
Academic counselors available
M — Th 5-7pm
ATTEND OUR
OPEN HOUSE!
Tuesday, January 10th
5:30—7:30 PM
Interested in starting or
continuing your education?
Attend our Open House to
tour our center and speak
with experts from
Admissions, Financial Aid,
Honors, Academic Support,
and more.
In its second semester, the Mount
Vernon Activities Club (MVAC)
continues to bring fun and educational
events to the Mount Vernon Extension
Center. This semester, MVAC first
hosted a resume writing workshop
with career counselor Prof. Gelaine
Williams. Students revised their
resumes to stand out, and enjoyed
coffee and pastries courtesy of Steam
House Express next door. One student
in attendance has already received two
job offers! Next, MVAC hosted an
“International Dessert Party,” where
students brought in desserts
representing their cultures. Students
brought in desserts from almost 20
different countries, and this popular
event was enjoyed by many students at
the center. MVAC even received a visit
from officers and advisors of the
Yonkers Activities Council! During the
holiday season, the club’s annual
“MVAC Gives Back” encouraged
students to drop off clothing and food
to be donated to a local charity. MVAC
also invited local high school students
to visit the center to learn about
preparing for college. We look forward
to hosting a group of 20 10th grade
students in the AVID College Readiness Program at Thornton High School. Finally, the semester
ended with a party to de-stress before finals. MVAC provided snacks in a relaxing environment
so that students could take a study break and enjoy their last days of the fall semester. We look
forward to new events hosted by MVAC in the spring!
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: JOHNNIE ASIBUO Continued from page 1
… was used to in Ghana. Prof. Fritz gave us such challenging and engaging assignments that focused on current events and things that are relevant in our lives. It opened up my eyes, and laid the foundation for my career at WCC.” After so much success, we asked Johnnie what she wishes the college knew about her. “I wish the college knew how determined I was to succeed during and after my time here,” she says, “and that I’m really proud of my success, because it hasn’t been easy, and I’ve worked really hard for it.” When asked what advice she would give to other students, Johnnie told us, “WCC is for everyone, and there are so many opportunities and so much support, but it’s about the choices you make. You will get out what you put in. If you are focused on success, with the help of professors and Academic Support, that’s exactly what you will get.” Join us in celebrating Johnnie and all the students working so hard for their success. Keep it up!
Johnnie (right) tutors student Amanda Kentish (left)
in preparation for her pre-algebra midterm.
Visit Us On the Web! sunywcc.edu/locations/mountvernon
Students together with MVAC officers pose with
Professor Gelaine Williams from Career Counseling at
MVAC’s Resume Writing Workshop
Students are all smiles during MVAC’s International
Dessert Party hosted in the student lounge
SPONSORED BY MVAC: FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS