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Onondaga Pathways to Careers (OPC) at Onondaga Community College (OCC)
…for Young People with Disabilities
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Greetings!
This is our FIRST Newsletter!
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NEW SCSD Scholars Program Begins
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Five (5) high school seniors from the Syracuse City School District (SCSD) met at OCC on January 30th and February 27th to form the first cohort of “OPC Scholars.” OPC Scholars is a new bridge program created to provide high school students with disabilities with the requisite skills needed to successfully transition from high school into college and a career. The Scholars meet once each month to explore aspects of college and career preparation. So far, the Scholars have learned about the different types of financial aid; the college search and application process; and important deadlines for both. The group will meet again in April to hear from a panel of career professionals working in local STEM (Science/Technology/Engineering/Math) occupations.
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Residence Hall Advisors Learn about Disabilities
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Nancy Carr, Director of OCC’s Office of Accessibility Resources (OAR) spent time on January 11th working with 12 new residence hall advisors to offer training and guidance on how to familiarize themselves with the needs of our campus community’s diverse population of students living with one or more disabilities. Carr said of the event, “I could see the students’ faces as I spoke. We were talking about safety and making all feel welcome. I saw them come to the realization that they were responsible for others now, not just themselves and begin to think about how they could take on this responsibility.”
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Peer Mentors Pitch-In to Raise Mental Health Awareness
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OPC’s 3 Peer Mentors contributed February 25th to the Alive! Mental Health Fair. Alive! is a suicide prevention and awareness event. Our OPC Peer Mentors helped with the set-up, break-down and managed tables with interactive suicide prevention activities.
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Getting to Know a New Environment
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On February 8th, 12 students attended the OPC “Meet n Greet,” an event held at the start of each semester that brings together both new and returning OPC students. The Meet n Greet increases students’ awareness of the comprehensive supports offered for students with disabilities through the OPC program and the Office of Accessibility Resources. It offers an opportunity to meet staff in key offices at OCC and to learn about services and resources available to all students on campus. The event also facilitates the start of community-building among OPC students by introducing the students to each other, to the OPC Peer-Mentoring program, and to the dozens of additional opportunities to further their engagement during the semester with personal and professional development workshops, as well as leadership, networking and volunteer opportunities.
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Transitions after Brain Injury Conference held at OCC
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OCC hosted the 2nd annual Brain Injury conference. This year’s conference was a full day with vendors and many local service providers sharing materials. The conference had a holistic approach. The keynote speaker, Dr. Mary Handley, provided a historical retrospective of treatment options and current issues in the field. Other speakers focused on yoga, massage, nutrition and mindful stress reduction techniques. BIC meets at OCC the first Wednesday of the month. Contact
braininjurycolaitioncny@gmail.com
for more information.
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New Career Exploration and Planning Tool to Launch
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Students at OCC will soon be introduced to Career Coach. Career Coach is an online tool that enables students to explore career choices aligned to their strengths and personalities
and to choose an appropriate program of study leading to employment in a chosen field. The application is loaded with local/regional information, so that users can access latest data on area jobs, salaries and employment trends as well as find links to OCC’s relevant programs of study. Live demonstrations of Career Coach will be provided during OCC's Spring Open House in SRC Arena April 8th and 9th.
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Get to know OCC’s Learning Center; Learn how to get tutoring support; or apply to BE a Tutor
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The Learning Center at Onondaga Community College offers tutoring support to students in virtually every branch of learning on campus, including math and sciences, humanities, technology, and writing. Students may work with a tutor or study independently in our relaxed, centrally situated location. Additionally, we offer tutor-led study groups, workshops, and seminars. Stop by the Learning Center in Gordon, Room 202, or check out our web site at
www.sunyocc.edu/learningcenter
, to learn how we can help you to become the best student that you can be. To schedule an appointment for free tutoring, visit our website at or call us at (315) 498-2103. The Learning Center continuously recruits knowledgeable tutors in the areas of Health Information Technology/Medical Records, Mechanical Technology and Advanced Manufacturing, Electrical Engineering Technology, and Computer Information Systems. To learn how to join our tutoring team, contact Kathleen D’Aprix at
k.a.daprix@sunyocc.edu
or phone (315) 498-6088.
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Workshops Abound at OCC - Providing Students with Academic, Career and Life Skills Training….
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In collaboration with OCC’s Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), students in the OPC program participated in a Study Skills workshop held February 17th. The workshop was offered to give students guidance and tips on taking great notes, properly preparing for examinations, and keeping the mind sharp with effective study skills.
On February 22nd George Kilpatrick, Men’s Outreach Program Coordinator/Educator and Meaghan Greeley, Campus Sexual Assault Coordinator at Vera House, facilitated a workshop on Healthy Relationships. Several OPC students participated in the workshop, which included discussions about dating violence and ways for young adults to develop and maintain healthy relationships.
4 OPC students participated February 24th in the “Successful Transferring” workshop offered by OCC’s Educational Opportunity Program (EOP). Going beyond the completion of applications, this workshop explores the different types of schools, their costs and funding options; helps students identify pros and cons of each; and looks at tips on being admitted.
On February 29th, several OPC students took part in a workshop called “Beyond your Peers; Communicating with Faculty and Staff,” presented by the Advising Center at OCC. It was an opportunity to explore aspects of professional communication, including proper etiquette, expectations and what types of questions to ask when meeting with professors. Students also had the chance to discuss and explore how positive relationships and good choices affect how they are perceived and can impact everything from grades to future career connections.
Staff from OCC’s Career & Applied Learning Center (CAL) helped OPC students gain an understanding of resources available to them from the CAL Center. The March 2nd workshop, titled “Planning for your Career,” informed students about how to access job postings, internships and work-based learning opportunities through the CAL Center, as well as how to receive career preparation assistance such as resume-writing, job application and interviewing skills.
On March 7th, Debra Mimaroglu, RDN, CDN Nutrition Educator at Food Bank of NY, provided several OPC students with her “Easy Ways to Eat and Be Healthy” workshop. The objective of this workshop is to provide students with practical ways to eat healthier, increase exercise, and relieve stress to live a longer and healthier life.
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Preparation of this item was funded by the Office of Disability Employment Policy, U.S. Department of Labor, Grant No. OD-26453-14-75-4-36. This document does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Office of Disability Employment Policy, U.S. Department of Labor, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
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