Syracuse University Honors Program
Syracuse University Honors Program
Join us this Fall for a new series of Honors Footnotes Events! Our staff and faculty are putting together a fantastic line up of these small, enriching events that not only explore new interests, but connect you with others in the Honors community.
So stay tuned to your email for our invites! All Honors students will be invited via email, and the invitations will be “first come, first served” and we’ve seen that they fill up fast. So stay tuned to your email for our invites!
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Hello Honors Community,
This is a brief story we just had to share!
Meet Andrew Catauro ’06 (TRF/ITA) and Shannon (Grotzinger) Catauro ’07 (MAG/SOC) . Andrew and Shannon met in the Honors Program on their first day of class for PHI 107, completed what was then “General Honors”, and went on to get married! Andrew works on the acclaimed documentary POV for PBS and Shannon provides social services to homeless men in NYC. They stopped by the Honors Suite before the semester began and asked if we’d take their picture in 304C. They even remembered where they used to sit!
These are certainly the kinds of stories we love to hear from our alumni. Remember that if you have any interesting stories like this one, to let us know so we can share them!
The Westcott Street Cultural Fair that is. Each year Honors students volunteer at this fun event just a few blocks east of campus. Here’s what a few had to say:
“As a senior,” said Siying Wang, “this was my last Westcott fair. It has been fun to be a performer in the parade, a volunteer at the fair and also a fair goer. I really appreciate the community’s effort in organizing this special event every year. It makes me feel more involved in the community.”
Avery Gray “loved playing with the children and painting their faces. It was really great to make them smile and contribute to their experience at the Fair. This experience definitely had an impact on me becoming a more active citizen of the city. This is my second year in Syracuse and I think that becoming involved in the Westcott Festival was important for self-growth and growth as a community. In the future I hope to volunteer at community events. It has taught me that it is the people that define a city, not the city that defines the people. It was a joy to see the community coming together in celebration. I will look for these kinds of opportunities in my volunteering future.”
Jonathan Aziz didn’t discover the fair until his senior year and felt “it was great to see the community brought together, sharing their talents, interests, and company. I hope to be a part of similar community gatherings in the future.”
For information about this year’s fair, please visit http://www.westcottfair.org/: to volunteer, email info@westcottfair.org
“We’re there for people on their worst day. Riding in an ambulance as a patient is never a fun experience so we’re there to alleviate the trouble and provide pre-hospital care,” says junior Angela Binion. Syracuse University Ambulance (SUA) share a deep bond as expressed in third year student Kelly Heuer’s statement that “I take a lot of pride in being selected to be a part of this organization, as well as being able to continue to learn and grow within the organization.”
Serving the SU community since 1973, this student operated organization responds to over 1,500 medical emergencies a year. SUA volunteers act as attendants, drivers, and crew chiefs delivering emergency services to the 20,000 students, faculty and staff at Syracuse University. And their work doesn’t end when they wheel the gurney through the hospital doors. Diane Radov, also a junior, stresses that “the most important part of the ambulance is not only providing care, but the assessment that we do as a crew and individuals after we provide care. This allows us to update and better our skills so that we reflect the best way possible on the community.”
The rewards of being a part of the SUA team are far-reaching. Whether it’s a feeling of a stronger commitment to civic engagement or to their future professions, SUA becomes central to its members. Working with SUA has given senior Dan Cowen the awareness “that for our country and world to be more successful, it will rely on citizens who are dedicated to doing their jobs well and using their skills to help others.”
For senior Mark Schoenborn, SUA “allowed me to volunteer my time to help those whom I would otherwise never be able to help. The result has been both rewarding and empowering as it solidified my choice to go to medical school. One-on-one real patient interaction was not something I expected to get as an undergraduate student with no experience and I believe I have grown both as a student of the medical field and as a person as a result.”
When you hear sirens, know that your fellow students are on their way to provide the critical assistance each emergency demands.
Alexandra Koskoris, a freshman studying Public Communications in Newhouse, volunteered for the weekend at The Food Bank of Central New York through a pre-orientation program on campus. There Alexandra helped package fruits and non-perishable foods that would be delivered to impoverished families. She also spent some of her time volunteering at a local food pantry where she helped prepare meals and cleaned dishes for less fortunate families. An obviously humbling experience, Alexandra said that “the amount of work and organization it takes to keep The Food Bank and pantry running was eye-opening. This experience allowed me to help others who don’t have as much as some of us.” As for future civic engagement opportunities, Alexandra is excited to continue her volunteer work with The Food Bank and “create real relationships with people” as she becomes a consistent volunteer.
Contributing Blogger Samantha DeTore, ’15 Arts and Sciences
Benjamin Snyder, a senior in the Newhouse School, volunteered at the North Park Village Nature Center as a Natural Areas Manager. The Nature Center is a part of The Chicago Park District, which spans over 8,100 acres and is the largest municipal park in the US. North Park Village Nature Center boasts a 46 acre nature preserve and educational facility as well as woodland, wetland, prairie, and savanna trails. The mission of the Nature Center is to provide visitors with a hands-on opportunity to learn about wildlife and natural resources in an urban setting. Benjamin’s time as a Natural Areas Manager was spent working hard; he helped distribute fresh mulch on frequently used trails and prepared seeds for Spring by extracting them from plants. Through this experience, Benjamin gained an understanding of why Civic Engagement is a requirement in the Honors program here on campus. He said that “it is important to volunteer. There are very few paid employees at North Park. Without volunteers like them and myself, the park might struggle.” Regarding future volunteer opportunities, Benjamin says that he hopes to continue doing work that is “unique to a particular environment and represents an important contribution to a good cause.”
Contributing Blogger Samantha DeTore, ’15 Arts and Sciences