College at Oneonta News

ONEONTA, N.Y. -- Four senior students at the SUNY College at Oneonta were among a select group of State University of New York students chosen to receive the 2009 SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence. The Chancellor of the SUNY system will present the awards to the students at a reception in their honor at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany on April 7.

The Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence is the highest honor that SUNY bestows upon students. It is presented annually to SUNY students who demonstrate academic excellence and integrate it with other qualities such as leadership, athletics, community service, creative and performing arts, entrepreneurship, or career achievement.

The four SUNY Oneonta students chosen by SUNY to receive the 2009 Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence are as follows:

• Carleigh Bettiol, Business Economics major, from Oneonta, NY
  An excellent student and a December 2008 graduate, Carleigh displayed outstanding talent in the arts as a choreographer, dancer, teacher, actor, and singer. In the Oneonta community, she choreographed and appeared in the Orpheus Theater production of "A Chorus Line." As Vice President of the Terpsichorean Dance Company at SUNY Oneonta, she created 10 original pieces of dance and performed in 32 pieces. She has introduced dance to hundreds of young people on campus and in the community. Carleigh was named as one of SUNY Oneonta's "Best and Brightest." She recently landed a role in a professional production of the musical "Guys and Dolls" at the Armory Theater in Janesville, Wisconsin.
   
• Amanda Carmichael, Adolescence Education: Spanish and Spanish major, from Stafford, NY
  Amanda plays a substantial role in the Residence Life community at SUNY Oneonta, where she serves as secretary for the National Residence Hall Honorary, was a Resident Advisor for three semesters, attended two conferences of the North East Affiliate of College and University Residence Halls, implemented and ran two campus-wide programs, and won recognition awards for her outstanding participation. She has furthered her professional development as a future foreign language teacher through her positions as a recreation leader and substitute teacher, her membership in two professional associations, and her completion of two professional conferences and sixteen weeks of student teaching in a local public school.
   
• Sarah Cascone, dual major in Communication Arts and Psychology, from Brooklyn, NY
  Sarah has served as President of the College Union Activities Council, President of the Senior Class of 2009, and Vice-President of the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society. She has been recognized as one of the "Best and Brightest" students at SUNY Oneonta and as among the top 1% of on-campus students nationwide. A member of three national honor societies, Sarah has been on the Dean's List for six successive semesters. She has completed over 200 hours of community service, which includes volunteering for campus events and for Habitat for Humanity. She served as Events Committee Chair for "Red Day," a celebration of school spirit at SUNY Oneonta.
   
• Dennis Dorf, dual major in English and Biology, from Brooklyn, NY
  Dennis serves as the President of both the Chi Phi Fraternity and the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society. He has done independent research on pediatric HIV, performed in campus theater productions, and served as a resident advisor and teaching assistant. Dennis has received numerous awards for academic excellence, including the "Best and Brightest" Award, Richard Siegfried Student Scholar Award, and Sparks Memorial Award. The former Community Service Chair of the College's Inter-Greek Council, he has been recognized for his philanthropy and leadership. Dennis is a member of three honor societies and a Dean's List student who has applied to medical school.
  
  Since the program was implemented in 1998, fifty-six Oneonta students have received the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence.

A liberal arts college with a pre-professional focus, the SUNY College at Oneonta features outstanding and accessible faculty, students committed to academics and community service, exceptional technology, a modern fieldhouse and athletic facilities, and a beautiful campus. The College enrolls over 5,800 students in its academic programs, several of which are nationally accredited.
 

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