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Applied Learning Grant Recipients Showcase Achievements | SUNY Plattsburgh


Recipients of the summer and fall 2017 Applied Learning Grants were saluted Nov. 30 at a showcase event in the Cardinal Lounge.

The 14 graduate and undergraduate students discussed their experiences, presented their posters or sent video presentations in their absence, and thanked the Career Development Center for administering the grant and the Plattsburgh College Foundation for funding it. Since its inception in 2015, more than $35,000 has been funded to 35 students. Applications for grants are accepted four times each year: September, for fall projects; November, for winter projects; February, for spring projects; and April, for summer projects.

“It is amazing to see how this funding provided by the Plattsburgh College Foundation enables students to partake in career-making opportunities,” said Morgan Pellerin, career counselor and Applied Learning coordinator in the CDC.

“I have heard from many students who have gone through the program that the funding they received made the difference between being able to take part in the experience or not. To date, we are the only SUNY school that offers a program at this scale, and I feel it demonstrates our commitment to student success and applied learning. It is my hope we can keep expanding the program and be able to assist even more of our students in the future.”

Gifts Have Direct Impact

“We are deeply grateful to our generous alumni and friends of the college who make these opportunities possible,” said Anne Hansen, vice president for institutional advancement and executive director of the Plattsburgh College Foundation. “Their charitable gifts to the Plattsburgh Fund are helping students to gain the experience they need to compete in a competitive job market. It is exciting to our benefactors to know that their gifts have a direct impact on a student’s ability to succeed in achieving their post-graduation plan.”

Senior psychology major Lindsey Prutsman traveled to Elmira, N.Y., this past summer for her Applied Learning experience where she did research with Dr. Allyson Graf studying sexual consent in older adults. She told those at the showcase Nov. 30 how the funding helped with living and travel expenses.

Able to Apply Classroom Skills

Nellie Delacruz, a senior international business major, interned this fall with Swarovski Lighting, whose North American headquarters is in Plattsburgh. Delacruz said she “was able to apply skills I learned at Plattsburgh outside the classroom. I left feeling very accomplished.”

Ryan McLennon, a senior majoring in political science, spent the summer at the Washington Internship Institute in Washington, D.C. For someone whose goal it is to become a U.S. senator, McLennon said the Applied Learning Grant not only helped financially, but gave him confidence and experience to meet with more than two dozen ambassadors, hone his professional writing skills, plan events attended by government officials and conduct himself in a professional manner.

“I’ve made professional contacts, lifelong friendships and learned how to multitask,” he said.

Seven students have recently been awarded nearly $4,000 in grants for winter projects. They are:

  • Abhey Sharma: $750 to assist with housing costs for an internship with Dish One in Atlanta, Ga., with winter.
  • Allison Kurdziolek: $250 to attend the National Broadcasting Society Convention in Bethesda, Md., this March
  • Kai Silvera: $460 for transportation costs for an internship with the Relationship Foundation in New York City this winter.
  • Melissa York: $500 to assist with a study-away experience at Bond University in Australia this spring.
  • Naomi Acosta: $500 to assist with a study-away experience at the University of Capetown in Capetown, South Africa, this spring.
  • Timothy Cartmell: $500 to attend the National Broadcast Society Convention in Bethesda, Md., this March
  • Tomoki Noguchi: $930 to help with transportation costs to conduct an internship with Art in Tanzania in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, this winter.

To learn more about Applied Learning and internships at SUNY Plattsburgh, please contact:

Mr. Morgan Pellerin
Applied Learning Coordinator
Career Development Center 
118 Angell College Center (ACC)
101 Broad Street
Plattsburgh, New York 12901
Phone 518-564-2071
Fax 518-564-5080
Email: [email protected]

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