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GCC Announces December Employee and Student of the Month

By Philip Anselmo

From Genesee Community College:

Genesee Community College is pleased to announce that Barbara Shine has been named Employee of the Month for December 2008. Barb has worked at Genesee for over seven years and is currently an assistant professor of business for traditional and online courses. Her endless energy and enthusiasm has made her stand out as a faculty member at Genesee.

Before coming to Genesee, Barb worked in corporate management at Fisher-Price, as an entrepreneur in her own family business located in Arcade, NY, as well as an executive director of a non-profit industry education foundation. Her first position at Genesee was director of Workforce Development at The BEST Center, which she held for three years. She currently teaches various business administration courses, is a College committee volunteer, and is a management skills trainer for The BEST Center.

Barb is a faculty advisor for Genesee's CEO (Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization) Club where her leadership and hard work enabled students to create the "Scholars" brand of new products including its inaugural Apple Cider Syrup, which is now on sale . At $9.99 per bottle, the product is a perfect holiday gift and can be purchased at Genesee's college bookstore, or simply email scholars@genesee.edu.

Additionally, Barb has also been central player in the development of the WIRED Emerging Entrepreneurs (WEE) scholarship program at Genesee. With funding secured through the Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) group, Barb is now helping students and community members explore business opportunities and pursue their entrepreneurial dreams by completing two Genesee business courses tuition-free.

"One of my favorite aspects of working at Genesee is I really enjoy the energy working with students and the continuous support of my co-workers," Barbara said. "I also enjoy the opportunity to work with local businesses as a trainer for The BEST Center."

Barb's extensive educational career actually began at Genesee where she studied Liberal Arts Humanities and earned her degree in 1970. She continued her education at Buffalo State College where she earned a Bachelor's degree in Education in 1972, and then later received her Master's degree in Organizational Management at Robert's Wesleyan College.

A resident of Holland, NY, she enjoys gardening, walking and learning to play the piano. She lives with her husband Dennis, who is also a faculty member at Genesee and they have two daughters and one granddaughter.


Genesee Community College is pleased to name Danielle Collins Student of the Month for December 2008. Danielle, a 2007 graduate of Pavilion High School, is in the Fashion Merchandising Management Program at Genesee. She is very active on campus and has been awarded many honors including President's List, Dean's List and being inducted into Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.

Danielle is President of Genesee's chapter of DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) and she co-produced the 27th Annual Fashion Show. Through her work with DECA, she led the group in a jewelry sale fundraiser as well as running the Thanksgiving 50/50 raffle. She has helped to orient freshmen students in the Fashion Merchandising program and has made several "best practices" presentations. Danielle has even been asked to make off-campus presentations to students at BOCES because of her high level of professionalism and enthusiasm.

Danielle, 19, a resident of Wyoming, NY is the daughter of Rick and Kim Collins. Danielle plans on attending the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising in Manhattan following her course work at Genesee. Her dream job is to be able to own a retail store that was designed to make customers feel comfortable with their size and make shopping an enjoyable experience, instead of a chore.

Danielle chose to attend Genesee Community College because of the Fashion Merchandising program and the ability to transfer onto a four year school. "My favorite aspect of attending Genesee is the excellent transfer opportunities made available to students," said Danielle. "I also like that they can offer scholarships to students with high academic achievement."

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