Three Herkimer College Students Selected for SUNY Chancellor Awards for Student Excellence

Herkimer College seniors Kathryn M. Dolly (Herkimer), Kayla Guidi (Herkimer) and Avery McLemore (Poughkeepsie) have been selected for the 2014 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence. The Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence honors State University of New York students who have best demonstrated and been recognized for their integration of academic excellence with other aspects of their lives, which may include leadership, campus involvement, athletics, career achievement, community service or creative and performing arts.

This year, 274 recipients were selected from the 64 SUNY campuses with an average GPA of 3.8. The honorees were recognized at a ceremony on Wednesday, April 2 at the Convention Center at the Empire State Plaza in Albany.

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Kathryn Dolly is a Liberal Arts & Sciences: Science major and was granted early decision acceptance into the nursing program at St. Elizabeth’s College of Nursing. She is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society and the College’s first National Championship softball team. Dolly is a volunteer for the American Heart Association’s Heart Run and Walk, The Great American Irish Festival and Catholic Daughters of the Americas Court Reardon #841.

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Kayla Guidi is a Criminal Justice major who has served as president of the Sociology Club, vice president of the Outdoors/Go Green Club and Criminal Justice Club and public relations officer for Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society. Guidi is participating in the Honors Program at Herkimer College, and was named to the Who’s Who Among Students in American Junior Colleges. She was a member of the women’s soccer team and has volunteered for Hope House, the Mini Park Cleanup in Herkimer, the Gramm Lorraine Project and Phi Theta Kappa’s NYS Department of Transportation Adopt a Highway program.

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Avery McLemore, a Physical Therapist Assistant major, is president of the Student Government Association and represents the students on the Board of Trustees. She served as president of the Physical Therapist Assistant Club and is a recipient of an Outstanding Leadership Award for Herkimer College. She has volunteered for the Breast Cancer Awareness Walk at the Masonic Nursing Home and for the Herkimer Mini-Park cleanup.

Dean of Students Dr. Matthew Hawes said, “I am very proud of these students who have excelled academically and have participated in a variety of activities and served as leaders on campus and in our community. They exemplify student excellence and commitment to community and are very deserving of this prestigious honor.”

Chancellor Nancy Zimpher said “Students honored with the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence truly embody the power of SUNY. As proven leaders and role models, scholar athletes, creative artists, and civic volunteers, each student is recognized not just for academic achievement, but also for the profound impact they have on college campuses and local communities across New York State. Congratulations to the Herkimer College students being recognized.”