The SUNY Empire State College Alumni Student Federation Board of Governors announces the addition of a fourth award, the Veteran Service Award, to its annual alumni awards program.

The Veteran Service Award recognizes a SUNY Empire alumnus and veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces who has made a positive impact on the local, national, international, college and/or veteran communities.

“The Veteran Service Award reflects the college’s commitment to recognizing its most outstanding alumni,” said Officer in Charge Mitchell S. Nesler. “Educating veteran and military students, and their families, has been an important part of SUNY Empire’s mission since the college was founded in 1971. Acknowledging veteran and military alumni for contributions above and beyond their service to the country expresses the college’s gratitude and, importantly, honorees may inspire others to engage in service to the college and the country.”

SUNY Empire’s alumni awards program recognizes the college’s exemplary alumni, who have made a lasting impact on society and on the college through their outstanding professional, military, philanthropic or volunteer accomplishments with, now, four annual awards:

• Community Impact,
• Distinguished Leader,
• Emerging Leader, and
• Veteran Service.

Nominations for next year’s awards now are open to the entire college community and the deadline for submission is Friday, March 1, 2019.

More information about each award and nomination forms are available online.

Erin Sullivan ’04, ’13, a union shop steward in New York City and resident of Congers, N.Y.; Emad Rahim ’02, ’03, an educator living in Syracuse, N.Y.; and John Corrou ’94, a retired sales executive living in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., were recognized as the 2018 Emerging Leader, Community Impact and Distinguished Leader Award recipients, respectively.

They were honored at the college’s second annual awards program ceremony, held Thursday evening, Oct. 18, in Saratoga Springs.

View images from the 2018 award celebration on Facebook.

SUNY Empire provides veterans and active-duty service members, their families and dependents with access to a high-quality SUNY education, anytime, anywhere in the world.

Through its Office of Veteran and Military Education, the college provides academic support to help these students navigate benefits and complete their degrees.

OVME offers pre-application advising and an unofficial review of military transcripts at no charge and the opportunity to earn credit for college-level learning gained through military training, standardized exams and other life experience.

For more information about the alumni awards program, contact Associate Director of Alumni and Student Relations Lindsay Valenti at Lindsay.Valenti@esc.edu, or 518-580-4779.