FEATURES

     Two UAlbany undergraduates, senior Lisa Friedberg, a political science major, and junior Clemmie Harris, an American history major, have won the 1999-2000 Eugene P. Link College Scholarships. The scholarships are sponsored by United University Professions and are open to students across the SUNY system.
    The daughter of two longtime members of unions, including UUP's statewide affiliate New York State United Teachers, Friedberg spent her formative years near Utica, observing pickets over unfair working conditions and engaging in discussions about labor issues.
    Exploring controversial social and political matters as a member of her high school debate and forensics teams solidified Friedberg's values, she said, where the discussions centered on the “traditional labor values of justice, equality and the common good.”
    At UAlbany, Friedberg has joined the Student Rights Coalition, which works with the administration to better conditions for students. She helped improve campus telephone service, upgrade the campus food-service program and fight for an alternative bookstore.
     Friedberg wants her future to include a career that is “socially relevant” and will “produce a tangible, positive result,” in a niche that will impact her strongest convictions regarding the poor, the environment, and women's equality.
Friedberg is active on New York Public Interest Research Group's higher education and environmental committees, and has lobbied against tuition hikes.
      “Lisa is a very serious young woman,” said Morton Schoolman, an associate professor of political science, in his letter of recommendation. “She is industrious, conscientious and enthusiastic. If Lisa continues to develop intellectually as she has in my course, she will certainly turn out to be one of this University's finest products.” Friedberg has a 3.81 grade-point average.
     Clemmie Harris, a junior with a major in American history and a minor in political science, “personifies the role of union and community activist,” according to Ivan Steen, president of the Albany chapter of UUP.
    A native of Buffalo, Harris attributes the 14 years he spent in law enforcement with helping him “forge an understanding on how public policy works and the importance of unionism in that process.” At the Erie County Sheriff's Department, he apprehended and arrested “dead-beat dads.” He went on to join the ranks as a State Police officer, where he worked in road patrol, and as a police instructor, hostage negotiator, narcotics investigator, bias crimes specialist and recruiter.
    During his tenure as a police officer, Harris testified before the New York State Assembly in support of his union - the New York State Troopers Benevolent Association - in its successful quest for improved disability benefits for members.
    Previously, returning home after a stint in the military, Harris made a positive impact in his local community. By serving as a Boy Scout troop master, Harris became a role model to many of the young men in his neighborhood who displayed signs that reflected a “lost hope in succeeding beyond the boundaries of their impoverished enclaves,” he said.
    It was his post-high school membership in a grass-roots political organization that empowered communities of color that clarified Harris's professional goals.
    “I realized then that I wanted a career in public service because it gave me the opportunity to champion the issues of the socially and economically oppressed,” he said.
    Harris, who has a 3.84 grade-point average, intends to pursue a doctoral degree in public administration. 
     “I realize that education is the key that unlocks the door of opportunity for those who possess the heart to pursue it,” he said.
     The Eugene P. Link Scholarship Trust Fund was created by UUP in the 1980s to recognize more than 50 years of devotion to the pursuit of knowledge, service to youth and leadership in academic unionism demonstrated by Eugene Link, a retired SUNY Plattsburgh history professor who taught for 35 years. The veteran activist was a founding member of the union. The first awards were given in 1988.
    Scholarships of $650 per semester, with annual adjustments tied to tuition, are given to four SUNY undergraduates who demonstrate the same commitment to social issues and labor ideals as Link.
    To be eligible for this award, students must have a minimum grade-point average of 3.75. The awards ceremony was Oct. 1 in Buffalo at the UUP Delegate Assembly.
     The Link Scholarship is supported by voluntary contributions of UUP members. Anyone wishing to make a contribution may send a check, payable to the “Eugene P. Link Scholarship Trust Fund,” to the Albany chapter office, Room B19D of the UAlbany Administration Building.

   Nova L. Panebianco, who helped organize a post-graduate medical anthropology study project in Mongolia last summer, has been named the 1999-2000 winner of the David Axelrod Fellowship at the University's School of Public Health.
    She is the fifth winner of the prestigious award, which is the most generous offered at the School, and is made possible by private contributions.
    “We are delighted to welcome Ms. Panebianco to the School of Public Health and to the distinguished roster of Axelrod Fellows,” said interim Dean John Conway. “Previous Fellows have made important contributions to the school and we look forward to working with Nova in the coming year.”
    The School of Public Health is a unique institution offering students the academic strength of a major research university and real-life exposure to public health practice, through professors who hold positions at the New York State Department of Health. These officials are actively engaged in a wide variety of public health problems, including the recent E.coli outbreak and toxic waste emergencies, as well as chronic problems such as teen pregnancy, smoking, AIDS, cancer, and health care quality improvement.
    The Axelrod Fellowship won by Panebianco is named for the late State Health Commissioner who served in that post from 1979 to 1991, and was nationally known for his leadership on a wide variety of public health issues.
    The Axelrod award consists of a $12,000 stipend and full tuition scholarship for the first year of what is normally a two-year study program. Second-year public health students working on master's degrees are often funded in their internships.
    Panebianco, from Southampton, N.Y., is a Binghamton University graduate who is pursuing a master's of public health degree and subsequently plans on attending medical school. She is interested in international health issues, and in linking the public health emphasis on disease prevention with medical work. Her study in Mongolia, a vast and sparsely populated nation with extremely limited access to health care services, focused on the Mongolian equivalent of stress, and its relationship to the onset of disease. As an undergraduate, Panebianco participated in anthropology field research in Nepal.
    The Axelrod Fellowship was established in 1995, with funds raised specifically to honor the former commissioner's record of service and public health innovation. Dr. Axelrod graduated from Harvard Medical College and was a virology researcher at the National Institutes of Health before coming to Albany to establish a new laboratory division in the health department.
    The School of Public Health was founded in 1985 through the efforts of Axelrod and then University President Vincent O'Leary to join the efforts of the New York State Health Department, its Wadsworth Center laboratories, and the University.

    Input from academic departments and three students groups, conducted last spring, has given the Career Development Center a new heads-up on what students need for their futures and how they would like the University to help.
    For instance, the Center heard from students that they were most interested in internships and in career help from faculty, as well as assistance in applying to graduate school. Special events, like the employer-alumni panel on career issues that will be held in the spring, were requested.
    “The largest issue to be addressed is campus lack of awareness about the CDC's purpose and services,” said Shirley Downey, director. “The CDC's goal is to help ALL students, of ALL majors, succeed. We assist students in expanding their life choices - from helping them determine their interests, goals and values, to putting them in touch with prospective employers. This is accomplished through career counseling, use of CDC Library resources, career assessment tools, mock interviews, resume and cover letter critiques, workshops and programs, graduate school information, internships, summer jobs, job fairs, and on-campus recruitment.”
    Career center outreach begins with freshmen, who are encouraged to set career goals and to develop an academic plan. Career counseling can help them identify their values, interests and skills which will help formulate their career direction.  Sophomores are supported in exploring various ways of enhancing their academics with activities, volunteer experiences and summer jobs.  They are also assisted in finding various career options within their major.  Juniors are aided in developing resumes and confirming career choices. The center recommends that they seek leadership positions in campus groups, obtain career-related internships, and prepare for recruiting events their senior year.  Finally, seniors meet with a career counselor to determine a job search strategy and to have their resume and cover letter reviewed. They may then wish to participate in on-campus recruiting.
     Students are encouraged to register with the center through its Web site (www.albany.edu/cdc/) beginning their freshman year. The center web site provides information on career and major exploration, upcoming events, graduate school, job resources and alumni  services, including the Career Advisory Network. Students registered with the office receive e-mail notifications regarding programs, workshops and job search activities. They can obtain information on full-time, part-time and internship job openings through JobTrak. On-campus recruiting is facilitated through InterviewTrak (a component of JobTrak). Registering with the center is the best way for students to stay current with upcoming events geared toward student career development and success. 
    Students registered with the center will learn of some exciting new programs in the future. “We plan to coordinate several alumni and/or employer panels addressing career issues relevant to social science, natural science and liberal arts in the spring semester,” said Marie Rabideau, assistant director. The center's staff members are eager to address the career needs of the various UAlbany departments and are available for workshops and seminars during class time or in the evening.  Interested faculty members are encouraged to contact the center.
     “Faculty can play an important part in students' career development in the above-mentioned way, as well as in other simple ways. Be aware that many students do not think about their career futures until their senior year. Address this issue with them by explaining how your particular course can help them in future careers. Point out the specific skills they are expected to develop in your course that will be an asset for them and give them examples of how they can list these skills on their resumes.  Briefly discuss the importance of career planning and refer students to the CDC for more information and assistance.  Successful graduates of your department will be grateful that you did,” Rabideau concluded.