POUGHKEEPSIE – To celebrate graduation day for the class of 2020 while social distancing guidelines remain in place, Dutchess Community College will post a video at www.sunydutchess.edu/graduation and on its social media platforms May 14 at noon.
It will feature congratulatory remarks from DCC President Pamela Edington, Ed.D., DCC Board of Trustees Chair Michael Dupree, Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro ’01 and others, along with submitted photos of graduating students.
Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro encouraged the graduates, saying “While this may not be the graduation ceremony you expected, and 2020 will be remembered for this historic crisis – your accomplishment is no less great nor should it be forgotten in this unprecedented moment. This is your time, to take all you’ve learned, all you accomplished, and all the love and support you have received and do great things. Use this moment to propel you into new success, new opportunities, and a life of meaning and purpose. Stay strong. Stay healthy. Be kind to each other.”
Chairman Dupree is cognizant of the disappointment some students are experiencing as they graduate in an unconventional ceremony yet wants them to celebrate their achievement, many of whom are the first in their family to graduate from college. “As open enrollment institutions, community colleges have long had a higher percentage of graduates who are the first generation in their families to attend,” adding “Graduation represents the transition of who students were to the adult they want to become. We know Dutchess Community College has done its level best to ensure that they succeed as they continue forward, whether to jobs or completion of a four-year degree.”
Associate degrees and career certificates in 46 programs of study were earned by 1,006 graduates, who range in age from 18 to 71.
Associate in Science degrees were awarded to 65 percent of the students, 12 percent received Associate in Arts degrees, 20 percent received Associate in Applied Science degrees, and 3 percent earned certificates.
Additionally, the second cohort of Think Ahead program graduates earned certificates of completion. Think Ahead is a partnership between the College, the county, Abilities First, Maplebrook School, the Arc of Dutchess, and Taconic Resources, which teaches life-and job-readiness skills to students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
A total of 165 students either starting their second year at DCC or graduating and entering four-year colleges in the fall, earned scholarships totaling more than $156,000. More than $2 million in scholarships has been awarded by the DCC Foundation as part of its spring Convocation over the last 20-plus years. The scholarships are funded by individuals and organizations to reward academic excellence.
