SUNY Plattsburgh Celebrates Spring 2013 Commencement

SUNY Plattsburgh Celebrates Commencement

May 18, 2013

More than 1,100 graduates walked the dais in two ceremonies Saturday, May 18, as SUNY Plattsburgh honored its newest alumni.

Looking at Return on Investment

The speaker, Emma Puglisi — an accounting, finance, business and hotel, restaurant and tourism major, who is also minoring in economics — discussed the college experience in terms related to her fields of study.

“The way I see it, there are two ways for you to consider your return on investment,” said the graduate from Port Washington, N.Y.

First, she pointed to statistics showing that, over the course of a lifetime, the average college graduate makes $2.5 million more than individuals who hold only a high school diploma. She further broke down the statistics for New York state residents attending SUNY Plattsburgh for four years, finding that they would have a return on investment of 30.98.

“This means that, for each dollar you invested, you are receiving an increased value of $30.98,” she said. “Not too shabby. However, the other way to consider the return on your investment is through personal reflection.

“Your true investment is not the money you have spent or the loans you took out, it is the countless hours that you sacrificed studying for exams and struggling through statistics. It is the time and energy that you put into bettering yourself. It is the ways you have matured, the relationships you have forged and, hopefully, a new way of looking at the world. This investment will not necessarily be reflected in your pay grade but will shine through you in every aspect of your life.”

Distinguished Honors

Both ceremonies also featured the awarding of the Distinguished Service Award to Bill Laundry and alumna Cheryl Hogle.

Laundry served as housing director and later vice president of student affairs at the college, where he worked for more than 40 years. He has also served on many campus and community committees and is a recent recipient of the key to the City of Plattsburgh.

As a student, Hogle was the college’s first female president of the Student Association. She went on to become its associate dean of students and later the executive director of SUNY Plattsburgh’s College Auxiliary Services. She also earned national recognition as the first female president of Omicron Delta Kappa, the national honor society.

 

 

Contact Information

For more information about Winter 2012 Commencement, please contact:

Office of the President
Office: 159 Hawkins Hall
Address: 101 Broad Street, Plattsburgh, New York 12901

Phone: (518) 564-2010
Fax: (518) 564-3932
Email: president_office@plattsburgh.edu