Print artist and activist Sue Coe opens exhibit at FLCC

Sue Coe: The New World Order 1991, copyright © 1991 Sue Coe. Courtesy of Galerie St. Etienne, New York. Artist and activist Sue Coe will open her “30-Year Retrospective Exhibition in Prints” at Finger Lakes Community College, Feb. 9.
.

Internationally acclaimed artist and activist Sue Coe will open her “30-Year Retrospective Exhibition in Prints” at Finger Lakes Community College Thursday, Feb. 9.

The opening will begin at 1 p.m. followed by an artist workshop and talk from 2 to 3 p.m. and a reception from 4 to 6:30 p.m. The events will take place in the Williams-Insalaco Gallery 34 on the first floor of the main campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive in Canandaigua. All events are free and open to the public. The exhibit runs from Feb. 2 through March 9.

FLCC to screen ‘Green Fire’ film on conservationist Aldo Leopold

The student chapter of the Wildlife Society at Finger Lakes Community College will show the film “Green Fire: Aldo Leopold and a Land Ethic for Our Time,” on Thursday, Feb. 9, at the main FLCC campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Dr.

The screening begins at 7 p.m. in room D214 on the second floor. The club recommends reserving free seats on the club’s website: www.FLCCwildlife.com.

FLCC, Cornell Cooperative Extension establish teaching and demonstration vineyard

Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) and Finger Lakes Community College (FLCC) have reached an agreement in principle to establish a teaching and demonstration vineyard at Anthony Road Wine Company in the Yates County town of Torrey.

The 2.5-acre vineyard will serve as a site where CCE’s Finger Lakes Grape Program can conduct applied research projects and demonstrations for current and prospective grape growers in the Finger Lakes region and beyond.

Students from the FLCC Viticulture and Wine Technology program will have the opportunity to participate in some of this research. They will also provide most of the vineyard labor, such as pruning, shoot thinning and harvesting, and learn how characteristics of grapes translate into winemaking.

FLCC events feature cultures of Scotland, Thailand and Laos

Peter Cormack of Pittsford, shown playing the short pipes, will play the bagpipes at the Robert Burns Celebration at Finger Lakes Community College Thursday, Feb. 2.

Amy Warcup of Rochester, standing in front of a Buddhist temple in Laung Prabang, Laos, will share her recent travel experiences in Thailand and Northern Laos Tuesday, Feb. 7, at Finger Lakes Community College.

Finger Lakes Community College celebrates cultures from opposite sides of the world in February, with an observance of Scottish poet Robert Burns’ birthday on Feb. 2 and a professor’s presentation on Thailand and Northern Laos on Feb. 7.

Both events will be held in Stage 13 on the second floor of the FLCC main campus, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive in Canandaigua. They are free and open to the public.

The Robert Burns Celebration, featuring a shortened version of the traditional “Burns supper,” is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 2, from 12:30 to 2 p.m.

Joseph Nairn of Fairport, executive assistant to the FLCC president, will give the chairman’s welcome. Faculty and students will read poetry by Burns, perhaps best known for “Auld Lang Syne.”

Andrew Allan of Farmington, originally from Dunblane, Scotland, will perform traditional dance as Peter Cormack of Pittsford plays the bagpipes. Samples of the customary haggis will be served along with “bashed neeps” and “champit tatties” (mashed turnips and mashed potatoes).

On Tuesday, Feb. 7, from 12:30 to 1:45 p.m., Amy Warcup of Rochester, assistant professor of massage therapy, will give a presentation on her recent trip to Thailand and Northern Laos. She will share information about the cultures, traveling and Thai massage, along with photos of the people, the countryside, Buddhist temples and evening open markets.

“Thailand lives up to its nickname of the land of smiles,” says Warcup. “Everywhere I went the people were smiling. The Thai people are very laid back. They have a slower pace of living than we have in the United States.”  

Warcup traveled to Thailand and Northern Laos to study advanced Thai massage and experience the culture and language of Southeast Asia. She will lead 10 FLCC massage therapy students and alumni on a massage therapy trip to Thailand and Northern Laos this summer. 

The Robert Burns Celebration and the Thailand/Northern Laos presentation are partially funded by the FLCC Student Corporation and sponsored by the college’s Celebrate Our Differences program. For more information, call (585) 785-1905.

FLCC professionals to lead social media workshop in Waterloo

Two Finger Lakes Community College professionals will serve as instructors for a workshop on social media with the Seneca County Business and Workplace Exchange on Thursday, Jan. 26, from 1 to 4 p.m.

The workshop, which focuses on how to promote businesses and recruit employees through social media, takes place at the Seneca County Workforce Development and Youth Bureau Conference Room, 1 DiPronio Drive, Waterloo. The cost is $50 with a $5 discount for members of the Seneca County and Geneva chambers of commerce. Call (315) 539-1905.

Colleen Aiezza and Marcy Lynch, both with the FLCC Professional Development and Continuing Education Office, will lead the workshops. Topics include using Linked In, Twitter and Facebook.

First FLCC cleanroom operator training class graduates

Students in the FLCC cleanroom operator training program suit up at the Smart Technology Center in Canandaigua. For more photos, click here.

As the first class in Finger Lakes Community College’s new cleanroom operator training program graduated Friday at the Victor Campus Center, representatives from five potential employers sat in the back of the room preparing to interview them moments later.

Job prospects were excellent, in part because of an innovative effort that involved private industry, FLCC and the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) in Albany. The curriculum for the two-week program was developed by FLCC in consultation with the Smart System Technology and Commercialization Center in Canandaigua, which is part of CNSE, and other potential employers.

“The collaboration of a two-year school, four-year school and private partners to create industry-ready workers should be a model for driving the New York state economy,” noted Lisa Thompson, FLCC’s vice president of advancement.

FLCC offers free help for GED exam

Finger Lakes Community College offers adults 17 and older three ways to prepare for the General Equivalency Diploma (GED) exam. All are free of charge. Options are as follows:

A total of 17 traditional day and evening classes at various locations and times. Both day and evening classes are offered in Canandaigua, Newark, and Geneva. Day classes are offered in Lyons and Penn Yan. Evening classes are held in Sodus and North Rose. Classes begin Jan. 23, but people may register at any time. For specific days and times, call (585) 785-1431.

Online courses in which students move at their own pace, complete a series of exercises in 5 subjects and report to a teacher each week.

A television course offered on FLTV Channel 12, WXXI (Channel 21) in Rochester and WCNY (Channel 24) in Syracuse. Students complete workbook assignments and speak with a tutor each week. Lessons focus on the workplace and demonstrate practical applications of the skills and knowledge for the GED exam.  

FLCC offers two ways to improve English skills

Finger Lakes Community College offers speakers of other languages a chance to improve their English with free classes in Geneva or at home by watching a TV program and working with a tutor.

Students in either program must attend one of the orientation sessions, which are held by appointment at the FLCC Geneva Center, 63 Pulteney St. For more information, contact the FLCC adult basic education office at (585) 785-1431.

The TV program, a weekly half-hour comedy/drama titled “Crossroads Café,” will air on FLTV channel 12 at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesdays. The program also airs on WXXI Channel 21 in Rochester and on WCNY Channel 24 in Syracuse. In addition to learning English from the Cafe characters, viewers gain insight into other aspects of U.S. culture, such as seeking citizenship, renting apartments and finding jobs.

Evening classes for English as a Second Language (ESL) are held at the FLCC Geneva Campus Center, 63 Pulteney St., on Tuesdays from 6 to 9 p.m. Spanish GED is held on Thursdays from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Day ESL classes will meet at the FLCC Geneva Campus Center, 63 Pulteney St., Mondays and Wednesdays from 9 to 11:30 a.m. and on Thursdays from 12 to 3 p.m.

Finger Lakes Chorale seeks singers for April concert

The Finger Lakes Chorale, hosted by Finger Lakes Community College, is seeking members for its 2012 spring concert to be held April 28 and 29.  

Under the direction of adjunct professor Dennis Maxfield, the chorale will perform classical music by British master composers Sir Edward Elgar and Gustav Holst.

Rehearsals will be held Tuesdays from 7 to 9 p.m. beginning Jan. 24 at Finger Lakes Community College, room B355, 3325 Marvin Sands Drive, Canandaigua. Previous choral singing experience is preferred but not required.

Registration will be held prior to rehearsal on Jan. 24 and 31 and Feb. 7. A $5 non-credit fee is payable at that time. Singers should arrive early to complete registration.

Participants may also earn one college credit which requires registering and paying tuition. To register for class credit, contact the FLCC One Stop Center at (585) 785-1000.

The chorale includes singers from numerous towns in the Finger Lakes area. For more information about the group, contact Dennis Maxfield at (585) 396-0027.

620 students on FLCC fall 2011 dean’s list

Finger Lakes Community College announces the dean’s list for the fall 2011 semester. A total of 620 students earned this honor.

To be eligible for the FLCC fall dean’s list, full-time students must be matriculated, earn a grade point average of 3.5 or higher, and complete 12 or more credit hours. A matriculated student is one who has been accepted to a degree or certificate program.

Below are the students listed by county and town.

FLCC to offer a 'First in Family' scholarship

A new scholarship program will enable students from Monroe and Ontario counties to graduate from college debt-free. The scholarships will be available to students who are the first in their immediate families to attend college.

First in Family Scholarships will be provided by the Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation, which will commit up to $3.5 million to fund the scholarship program for students in the next three entering classes at institutions of higher education in Monroe and Ontario counties.

Each of the nine institutions in Monroe and Ontario Counties will designate one student each year to receive a First in Family Scholarship. They are as follows: Finger Lakes Community College, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Monroe Community College, Nazareth College, Roberts Wesleyan College, Rochester Institute of Technology, St. John Fisher College, SUNY College at Brockport, and University of Rochester. Eligibility and application details are forthcoming and will be announced at a later date.

“We at the Farash Foundation are heartened by the prospect of helping local students to be the first in their families to gain a college education without enduring the burden of a financial obligation likely to last for decades,” said Thomas H. Jackson, Foundation trustee. “We know this will give these scholars brighter, more productive futures—perhaps far beyond their families’ dreams.”

"The Farash Foundation’s decision to support first-generation college students will, over time, have a transformational impact on entire families," said FLCC President Barbara Risser. "Students who are the first in their families to attend college are navigating unknown waters and often face unique challenges. The opportunity to pursue educational goals without the additional burden of a heavy work schedule is an incredible gift. These students will be able to focus all of their time and energy on learning, and will leave college debt-free and ready to pursue their dreams."

F. Oliver’s owner is keynote at FLCC entrepreneur seminar

Penelope Pankow, who has two F. Oliver’s Oils and Vinegars stores in Canandaigua and Rochester, will talk about her startup experience Jan. 28 at Finger Lakes Community College. Click here for the program.

Penelope Pankow, proprietor of F. Oliver’s Oils and Vinegars, will be the keynote speaker at a seminar for current and would-be entrepreneurs on Saturday, Jan. 28, at Finger Lakes Community College in Canandaigua.

Pankow will talk about her experience planning for and opening her specialty stores in Canandaigua and Rochester during Entrepreneur Solutions, which runs from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and also includes sessions on business planning, financing, taxes and marketing.

Entrepreneur Solutions is designed for people who want to start or expand a business. Participants will have time to ask questions of workshop leaders and visit information tables staffed by representatives of the New York State Small Business Development Center, local banks, business development agencies and others who can offer services and advice.

The cost is $25 and includes a continental breakfast and a box lunch. Register by Jan. 23 by calling Finger Lakes Community College at (585) 785-1421, or email Lorrie Childs at FLCC at childsle@flcc.edu. Seating is limited. Scholarships are available; recipients may be asked to show hardship.