Announcements

Press Release:

BATAVIA, NY -- Genesee Community College continues to demonstrate a commitment to student success and community connections with a campus visit from nationally known author Roy Kesey on Monday, April 27. With the aid of the Humanities department, assistance from The New Courier, Genesee's student run newspaper, and funds from the Academic Innovations Senate Committee, Kesey will be reading, answering questions, and signing books from 9:30 to 11:30 AM at the Batavia Campus in room T102. This event is free and open to the public.

Roy Kesey is the author of three books: a short story collection called All Over (Dzanc Books), a novella entitled Nothing in the World (Dzanc Books), and Nanjing: A Cultural and Historical Guide for Travelers (Atomic Press.) He recently won the Jeffrey E. Smith Editors' Prize in Fiction at The Missouri Review.

Kesey's work has appeared in more than seventy magazines in North America, Europe and Asia. Prior to their publication in All Over, several of his stories appeared in anthologies including The Robert Olen Butler Prize Anthology and New Sudden Fiction. The story Wait was picked by Stephen King for inclusion in the Best American Short Stories 2007 anthology.

Nothing in the World is the story of Josko Banovic, a lonely schoolboy who, with the outbreak of fighting between Serbia and his native Croatia, reveals himself to be a gifted sniper and becomes an unwitting war hero. Winner of the Bullfight Little Book Prize, Nothing in the World received unanimously great reviews, sold out its original 2006 printing in just a few months, and was recently brought back into print by Dzanc Books.

Nanjing: A Cultural and Historical Guide for Travelers has been lauded as a "well-informed and beautifully observed book," and Kesey as "the ideal guide to the mighty city on the Yangtze." The book combines vivid historical anecdotes and profiles to give the reader a clear image of contemporary Nanjing.

"We're honored to have Roy Kesey visit Genesee and share his literary works with the community," Tracy Ford, associate professor of English said. "This couldn't have been possible without the commitment and funds contributed by the Humanities department, The New Courier and the Academic Innovations Senate Committee.  We are truly grateful for all their contributions."

Roy Kesey was born and raised in northern California, and currently lives with his wife and children in Syracuse. He has traveled around the world writing and has lived in China, as well as Peru. For more information regarding Roy Kesey, please visit www.roykesey.com <http://www.roykesey.com> .

For further information, please contact Kris Dassinger 585-343-0055 x6233, Marie Iglesias-Cardinale 585-343-0055 x6275 or Tracy Ford 585-343-0055 x6277.

Press Release

BATAVIA, NY -- "Addressing Cybersafety and Cyberbullying" will be the topic of discussion at an upcoming workshop to be held at Genesee Community College on Wednesday, April 29, 2009 from 7:00PM - 8:15PM in room T102 at the Batavia Campus.  The free workshop, sponsored by the Genesee Region Teacher Center, will feature Dr. James Colt, Coordinator of School Safety and Security at Monroe BOCES #1.

Designed to familiarize participants with the scope and magnitude of internet crime, the discussion will also provide ways in which to protect children and adults from online victimization.  This workshop is appropriate for students, teachers, administrators, law enforcement, parents and any interested community members.

According to Christine Belongia, coordinator of the Teacher Education Transfer Program at Genesee, as well as Genesee Region Teacher Center (GRTC) Policy Board member, "People are only just beginning to realize the scope and magnitude of internet crime.  This workshop is designed to familiarize participants with this important topic as well introduce ways in which we can protect children and ourselves from online victimization."

The workshop will include startling data from a local 2007 survey of 40,000 K-12 school-aged students.  Results from the survey, conducted by a team of researchers lead by one of the nation's leading cybercrime experts, Dr. Sam McQuade of the Rochester Institute of Technology, indicate that "the more time children spend online and the more ways they access the Internet, the more vulnerable they become to being a victim of cybercrime and the more likely they are to slip into offending behaviors."

This workshop is an excellent learning opportunity for area residents interested in cybercrime and ways to prevent victimization. This workshop is free and open to the public. Pre-registration is not required.

For more information, please contact Christine Belongia at 585-343-0055 x6278.

To read the draft minutes of Monday's Genesee County Legislature meeting, download the PDF of the minutes here.

Press Release:

The Democratic Rural Conference (DRC) will hold its annual Spring Conference at the Gideon Putnam Hotel in Saratoga, NY on April 17 and 18, 2009. The theme of this year’s conference is Winning Rural Campaigns and will feature a series of campaign training workshops.  Registration is required.

The DRC Spring Conference has a tradition of bringing top Democratic Leaders to upstate New York.  Confirmed speakers are United States Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, Governor David Patterson, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith. Others are expected.

The DRC is an organization composed of the 42 New York counties with a population less than 250,000.  Its purpose is to represent and promote the interests of rural New Yorkers within the New York State Democratic Party and within the government of the State of New York.

Five Genesee County Democratic committee members will be attending the DRC.  Chairman Lorie Longhany along with state committee members representing the 147th assembly district, Bill and Connie Bruggman and state committee members representing the 139th assembly district, Joe and Dawn Cassidy.

Genesee County Farm Bureau will award a $1,000 scholarship to a graduating high school senior this year. The award will go to a Farm Bureau member’s son or daughter. The award decision will be based on scholastic achievement, extracurricular activities, an essay and interest in agriculture. Students who are continuing their education beyond high school into a technical, 2-year or 4-year program are eligible. The award will be given in two segments: half at the beginning of the first semester and the second half at the successful completion of the first semester. The student will need a GPA of 2.0 or higher to receive the award.

Press Release:

BATAVIA, N.Y. -- The BIC/Chamber Strategic Roundtables will generate ideas that business owners can use to improve their performance by having a panel of area entrepreneurs share their expertise in different fields and then conducting an open dialogue with the audience on the matters of most interest.
 
The first program will focus on Technology Ideas to Grow Your Business.  With issues like selling on the Internet, social networking and wireless networking this promises to be an informative session.
 
The meeting will be held over breakfast at TF Browns, 216 East Main Street, 7:30 AM on Thursday, April 23rd.  The cost is $10 for Chamber members and $15 for non-members.  To
Make your reservations call the Chamber at 585-343-7440, ext. 27 or stop in at 210 East Main Street, Batavia. 
 
The BIC is celebrating its 50th year helping businesses get started and grow.  As the world's first business incubator the BIC has helped thousands of businesses of all sizes and types.  This Strategic Roundtable Program is just one of the ways the folks at the BIC are commemorating this occasion and rededicating themselves for the next 50 years!

We received this in e-mail from Terry Hills:

Restaurant Opening!
The Terry Hills Restaurant will be opening Thursday, April 9th.
 We will be offering an exciting new menu that includes several new lunch items as
well as fantastic new appetizers and seafood dinners.

League Openings
Terry Hills has league openings for our Mens, Ladies and Friday Morning Seniors'.
We have also started a Friday Evening Couples League that will run 8 weeks this summer. 
All of our Leagues are shot gun start.  You start and end the same as everyone, no waiting around!  Call the Pro Shop for more information. 343-0860

Press Release:

BATAVIA, NY  -- Genesee Community College is pleased to announce Hal Legg has received a Paragon Award, which recognizes the highest achievement among two-year college communications professionals across America, Canada, and several other countries. Hosted by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR), this year's competition drew more than 1,700 entries.  Hal took top honors in the "Notes/Cards/Invitations" category for "Flip Flop," a student recruitment mailing shaped liked a sandal.

Legg also received two scholarships totaling $500 to defray the cost of his attendance at the NCMPR national conference which took take place March 15 - 18 in Kansas City, Missouri. He won a $400 "Seasoned Professional" award for professional development and a $100 scholarship from the NCMPR's District 1 Council, which is the governing body of the organization's Northeast region. This is the second consecutive year that Hal has received both national and regional scholarships to attend an NCMPR event.

"Flip Flop" previously won gold at the NCMPR's District 1 Medallion Awards last October in Saratoga Springs, prompting Hal to enter it in the Paragon Awards. One of the elements that make "Flip Flop" so interesting is that it is Customized Market Mail (CMM), which is a special postal classification. With CMM, irregularly shaped pieces (in this case, life-sized sandals in the sand) can be mailed without any envelope. Another interesting feature is that it incorporates variable data publishing (VDP), meaning that the content of each piece is tailored to its recipient. For example, a male applicant could get a camouflaged flip flop with language particular to having applied for admission. A female non-applicant could get a pink flip flop with language related to soliciting an application for admission.

"'Flip Flop' was a challenging piece, but it really resonated with potential students. You look at it, and it's just a lot more fun than typical mail," Legg said. "An award like this just goes to show Genesee's across-the-board support for innovation. I'm privileged to accept it, but this honor belongs to the College."

This is the first time Hal has entered and won a category in the Paragon Awards. A recruitment communications specialist, he has been with Genesee since 1997, and is a frequent conference presenter. He is a resident of Brockport, NY.