PEOPLE & BUSINESSES IN THE NEWS

January 26, 2023

CLERK OFF THE CLOCK: Kathy Sinnott Gardner, who has served as Otsego County clerk since 2003, recently announced her retirement from the position. After nearly three decades of service to Otsego County in total, her term will end on December 31, 2023. A Republican, Gardner plans to pursue new career opportunities, saying she will “miss serving the people of Otsego County.” Current Otsego County Deputy Clerk Jennifer Basile, also a Republican, announced her candidacy to fill the seat the day after Gardner’s retirement announcement. A Town of Otsego resident, Basile has worked in her current position for nearly a decade-and-a-half, according to her announcement. Before Basile’s tenure began in 2009, she said, she worked in various managerial roles for a total of 12 years. The election will take place on Tuesday, November 7.

SEMESTER STANDOUTS: SUNY Canton recognized the following area students’ academic achievements in making the fall 2022 semester President’s List: Frances Utter, a healthcare management major from Maryland; Kelsey Bers, a healthcare management major from Oneonta; Lauren Marszal, a funeral services administration major from Unadilla; Marijke Kroon, a veterinary technology major from Van Hornesville; and Victoria L. Biegel, a criminal investigation major from Westford. President’s List honors are awarded to full time students earning a grade point average of 3.75 or higher. In addition, Cooperstown’s Savannah Beckley earned Dean’s List honors for achieving a GPA between 3.25 and 3.74 and Oneonta’s Kelly C. Cleveland earned Part Time Honors for maintaining a GPA of 3.25 for six to 11 credit hours this past fall semester.

GOOD NEWS FROM GOOD NEIGHBORS: The Community Bank NA Milford branch made a “Good Neighbor” donation of $250.00 to the Milford Free Library, who recently welcomed Karen Zimba as their newest librarian.

DEAN’S LIST NODS: Area students named to the Nazareth College Dean’s List for the fall 2022 semester include Annika DeVries of Burlington Flats, Morgan Stoecklin of Hartwick and Leah Woertendyke of Oneonta. To qualify for the Dean’s List at Nazareth College, students must maintain a GPA of 3.5 or higher while completing 12 credit hours of graded work.

SPELLING STAR: Oneonta City School District eighth-grader Richard Tang recently won The Daily Star Regional Spelling Bee in the competition’s 15th round. Tang beat 29 other area students, advancing to the upcoming Scripps National Spelling Bee. The national competition is set to be broadcast live on the ION network the night of June 1, according to the organization’s website.

PEER-REVIEWED: Otsego-Delaware Board of Realtors® named Alden Banks, owner of Bluestone Country Real Estate Services, a brokerage in Oneonta, as 2022 Realtor® of the Year. The award is given to an individual who “exemplifies outstanding knowledge, leadership skills and service in the real estate profession,” according to ODBR. Banks serves as the OBDR board trained mediator and ombudsman, where he advises on ethical issues faced by area clients, brokers, and realtors. He was chosen by his peers for this award.

NEW DIRECTORS WELCOMED: Springbrook added Alberto J.F. Cardelle, SUNY Oneonta president, and Mary Ann C. Krisa, a Rochester-based lawyer, to its board of directors this past December. Cardelle brings a background in public health policy, while Krisa has been a “long-time professional in diversity, equity and inclusion.” According to Springbrook, the organization is the third-largest employer in Otsego County, with more than 1,300 employees across New York State.

SUNY SCHOLARS: SUNY New Paltz announced the recipients of its fall 2022 semester Dean’s List for students averaging at least a 3.3 GPA while maintaining a full course load, including area natives Ashley Clareen of Richmondville, Adell Coe of Oneonta, Hart Frable of Oneonta, Bryce Graham of Burlington Flats, Hannah Gray of Sidney, Delilah Griger of Cooperstown, Eliza Hamm of Otego, Olivia Hansen of Oneonta, Morgan Keuhn of Gilbertsville, Sonja Reyda of Otego, Emily Rifanburg of Edmeston, Vincent Santini of New Berlin and Abigail Waters of Milford.

POTSDAM NAMES PRESIDENT’S LIST: SUNY Potsdam named the following area students to its fall 2022 President’s List: Andrew Bowen, Hartwick, Art Education; Theresa Cerosaletti, Oneonta, Environmental Studies; Jason Donovan, Cooperstown, undeclared; Kaylee Hovick, Otego, Music Business; Chloe Munfro, Milford, Childhood/Early Childhood Education; Caroline Whitaker, Hartwick, Art Education. To achieve the President’s List, SUNY Potsdam students must maintain a GPA of 3.5 or higher while completing 12 numerically-graded semester hours. President’s List students were honored by Officer-in-Charge Dr. Philip T. Neisser.

SUPERB STAFFERS: Two Bassett Healthcare Network employees, Deanna Charles and Henry Knoop IV, were named to the “Becker’s Hospital Review” Rising Stars List. Charles serves as vice president, chief ambulatory and transformation officer at Bassett Healthcare Network, and Knoop is chief advanced practice officer and associate chief clinical officer, one of Bassett’s highest clinical roles. The Rising Stars List, according to Becker’s, “focused on leaders with a diverse background from across the industry who are 40 years old or younger. We accepted nominations for this list and selected members based on their quick ascent within their organizations and drive to improve patient care.”

CORTLAND ANNOUNCES LOCAL SCHOLARS: SUNY Cortland has released its fall 2022 Dean’s List, which included the following area students: Khi Atchinson, Oneonta; Molly Babcock, Sidney; Eliza Bernardo, Oneonta; Tyler Bruce, Oneonta; Mallory Frazier, Unadilla; Jordyn Lang, Sidney; Maci Milavec, Worcester; Cameron Neer, West Oneonta; Brynn Rifanburg, Edmeston; Justin Schrom, Richmondville; and Haley Smith, Sidney. To qualify, students had to earn a minimum 3.3 GPA for the semester.

STATE ASSOCIATION TAPS COUNTY RESIDENT: Lisa Jackson, manager of the Otsego County Fair, has been chosen as the third vice president of the New York State Association of Agricultural Fairs. This is the first appointment for an Otsego County resident in the state association in 30 years.

FUTURE LEADERS LAUDED: Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society, welcomed Samantha Harvery of Maryland and Elizabeth Thompson of Morris, both SUNY Oneonta students, among its 646 new initiates nationwide for the fall 2022 semester. To be initiated into ODK, students must be sophomores, juniors, seniors, or graduate students in the top 35 percent of their class and demonstrate leadership experience in at least one of the five ODK pillars: collaboration, inclusivity, integrity, scholarship, and service. According to the organization, “fewer than 5 percent of students on a campus are invited to join each year.”

DEAN’S LIST DESIGNATIONS: SUNY Oneonta recently announced the names of more than 1,250 students who qualified for the Dean’s List for the fall 2022 semester. A GPA of 3.5 or higher while taking a course load of 12 hours or more is required for the Dean’s List. The following area students qualified: Aliyah Abdelsalam, Oneonta; Jacob Aubrey, Oneonta; Savannah Baldwin, Unadilla; Patricia Biegel, Westford; Quinten Bissell-Smith, Oneonta; Riley Bowen, Hartwick; Jerred Brodie, Mount Vision; Zachary Brown, Fly Creek; Miranda Buck, Worcester; Andrew Carrington, Oneonta; Talia Casimir, Oneonta; Megan Catella, Oneonta; Alexander Ceacareanu, Oneonta; Ethan Chichester, Richmondville; Madison Clark, Richfield Springs; Raynella Clarke, Richfield Springs; Ronica Clarke, Richfield Springs; Neil Cotton, Maryland; Cadence Dudley, Oneonta; Erica Eggleston, Cooperstown; Tristan Ethier, Richmondville; Jacob Ghiorse, Oneonta; Timothy Ghiorse, Oneonta; Samantha Harvey, Maryland; Raven Henry, Unadilla; Keegan Holt, New Lisbon; Abigail Hubbard, Oneonta; Trystan Jennings, Oneonta; Laine Johnson, Oneonta; Isabella Jones, Cooperstown; Katherine Kodz, Richfield Springs; Joseph LaRosa, Oneonta; Trey Lambrecht, Oneonta; Andrew Lutz, Oneonta; Aubrie Malesky, Davenport; Bertha Miller, Schenevus; Dylan Neer, Otego; Adrianna Newell, Oneonta; Samantha Ruisi, Oneonta; Nathaniel Schwed, Oneonta; Jillian Segina, Mount Vision; Amanda Snyder, Fly Creek; Tanner Sorbera, Burlington Flats; Nicholas Stein, Otego; Camilla Tabor, Cooperstown; Gabriella Terrano, Schenevus; Samantha Vezza, Cooperstown; Victoria Villaverde, Oneonta; Chelsea Waid, Davenport; Yifan Wang of Zheng Zhou, Oneonta; Jacson Wolfe, Oneonta; and Nicholas Zamelis, Cooperstown.

PROVOST’S PRIDE: SUNY Oneonta’s Provost List, reserved for students who received a 4.0 GPA, included the following area students: Olivia Card, Oneonta; Christine Finch, Cooperstown; Amethyst Gardner, Oneonta; Colin Gilbert, New Berlin; Jessica Hoffman, Mount Upton; Faith Logue, Hartwick; Samantha Lyons, Oneonta; Allison Miller, Oneonta; Olivia O’Donnell, Oneonta; Gabriella Ragozzine, Oneonta; Samantha Spina, Davenport; Risa Tanaka, Oneonta; Bethanie Weand, Oneonta; Allison Winn, Oneonta; and Graham Wooden, Oneonta.

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