Buffalo State Celebrating EOP Honors Students May 2021 Educational Opportunity Program WHAT IS THE HONORS CONVOCATION The Honors Convocation is an annual this issue event recognizing academic excellence in special awards & honors P.2-6 the Educational Opportunity Program. The honorees P.7-9 program honors the achievements of all graduating seniors P.10 EOP students who have earned a 3.00 or staff remarks P.11 higher semester and/or cumulative grade tribute to Arthur O. Eve P.12 point average during the previous fall and/or spring semesters. Students are recognized through special awards an d scholarships based on academic excellence, campus leadership and s! You have all shown community service. We also celebrate our graduates and the culmination of their amazing grit and hard work. Lastly, we highlight faculty and perseverance this past staff who have demonstrated strong Congratulations to all our Buffalo State EOP students support for our students. year while completing that are being recognized today and those graduating in the class of 2021. Your faculty, staff, and peers are your studies in such a all proud of your accomplishments. I have watched unique and challenging you move through your years as students and each A MESSAGE FROM THE environment. With the year you have tackled the challenges before you and DIRECTOR OF EOP found your way to success. education, skills and EOP Scholars! Once again, we are not tools you have acquired, These last 18 months have been especially challenging as you navigated multiple crises of health, social hosting our traditional convocation, I am confident that you justice, and political divide. I know that the backdrop however we virtually send our love and are ready to take on any of these major issues has, at times, caused additional positive energy while saluting your opportunity or challenge stress, frustration, and concern. perseverance for hanging on through tough times. that lies ahead. It was not always easy to find your way to today’s recognition of success, but you did it. You drew upon Congratulations on your your individual ways to cope, you worked hard, you Since the day you joined our Buffalo State amazing achievement! were supported by those around you, and you kept family, you have shown strength and your focus on the success ahead. These are traits that resilience, succeeding despite difficult We are so proud of you will benefit you throughout your life. It is easy to be circumstances. You have survived and and are excited to see derailed by the noise around you or to focus on thrived in the face of adversity, trauma, how you make the world something that is not productive, we all have had to pull ourselves back from these distractions on tragedy, threats, and stress. You have had a better place. occasion; students you maintained your focus on what no choice but to be resilient and being was important and you carved a path to success. resilient is an act of resistance and survival. Jim Mayrose, Ph.D. Our wish is for you to continue to prosper Provost & Vice President Today, I stop to applaud you for maintaining a clear and enjoy much success, as we are in this for Academic Affairs vision and focus on your goals and moving to grasp together. You are not alone. SUNY Buffalo State academic success. I wish you all the best as you move forward. May you always find triumph in the most straightforward way such that your accomplishments continue to lift you to achieve your goals, your dreams, and your aspirations. Katherine Conway-Turner, President SUNY Buffalo State SPECIAL AWARDS EOP Distinguished Alumnus Award AND HONORS Yasin Mohammed earned his B.A. in Political Science from the State University of New York College at Buffalo in 1999; his M.A. in Homeland Security, with a concentration in Logistics Management, from American EOP Distinguished Alumnus Military University; and his M.B.A. from the University of Maryland Global Award Campus (UMGC). After graduation, Yasin worked at the United Nations Yasin Mohammed (UN) in the Office of Legal Affairs. Though politics was his original love, Yasin changed his focus to procurement and continued his career at the UN, Alumni Association Awards Karisma Karim the Department of Defense, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the International Criminal Tribunal in Sierra Leone, the United States Pharmacopeial Tania Mia Convention (USP), Xerox Corporation and in the non-profit sector including for the largest EOP Staff Merit Award US government contract issued (GHSC-PSM) to help purchase life-saving medications for Kelly Boos HIV, Malaria, Family Planning, and other infectious diseases. He also holds several professional certifications, including: Certified Professional Public Buyer (CPPB) from the Annie Joe Memorial Award Universal Public Procurement Certification Council (UPPCC) and Certified Procurement Wilma Buchanan Professional from the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP-CPP). He currently is the Deputy Director of Procurement at the Maryland Department of Kolawole Glover Transportation State Highway Administration. This role is responsible for ensuring the agency Memorial Award achieves its mission of maintaining State highways, roads and bridges to allow the citizens of Jadell Joseph Maryland and those traversing our roads to reach their destinations. Martha Pierce Student Recognition Award In his down-time, Yasin enjoys cooking (anything and everything), bottling signature hot Naheema Wilson sauces, and spending time with his wife, five children and grandson. He also works as a realtor in the Washington D.C. Metro area helping clients fulfill their dreams by finding their perfect Theresa A. Shepard home! Advocacy Award ShyTimber Mitchum Alumni Association Awards The Alumni Association Awards are presented to the two May graduates who have earned the highest Arthur O. Eve Distinguished cumulative grade point averages. Student Achievement Award Ko Meh Karisma Karim is a senior who will graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Social Work. She has an overall GPA of 3.97 and has made the dean's list EOP Director’s Award every semester. Karisma received her Associates in Social Services and a Desiray Slaughter certificate in Human Services from Erie Community College in 2018. Aside EOP Faculty Merit Award from academics, Karisma has volunteered for multiple social service Stephen Burgeson, Ph.D. organizations in Buffalo, New York including Jewish Family Services and Catholic Charities of Buffalo where she directly worked with the refugee and Dougherty-Witten Scholarship immigrant population. Karisma has been accepted into the University at Buffalo's Advanced Jean Brito Standing Masters of Social Work (MSW) Program and will begin her coursework in Summer 2021. USB EOP Award Karanveer Gill Tania Miah transferred to Buffalo State College in Fall 2019 after completing Yasir Arafat her Associates Degree from Erie Community College. Tania is majoring in Social Work and will graduate with her bachelor’s degree in May 2021. She Highest Cumulative has an overall GPA of 3.9 and has made the dean’s list every semester. She is Averages by Class a member of Phi Alpha and Phi Theta Kappa. Tania was selected to Freshman – Hamidou Balde, participate in Buffalo State’s Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship. Yovanna Maldonado, Any Zhou Sophomore – Shahedatul Trisa Tania plans on going to the University at Buffalo to receive her master’s in Junior – Jodie Amato social work. Senior – Karisma Karim Top Five Graduating Seniors Karisma Karim Umaya Mehbub Tania Miah Ensuf Mohammad Ba Paw EOP Staff Merit Award The Staff Merit Award is presented to a college staff member who has shown commitment and service to the Educational Opportunity Program. Kelly Boos (class of 1977) has worked at Buffalo State for over 30 years as a senior staff associate for the Dean’s Office of the School of Natural and Social Sciences. She enjoys advising students, watching them grow into leaders, professionals, and people of principle and empathy. She has assisted EOP many times to support funding for EOP Honors and by presenting at the Beyond the Bachelor’s Student Development Conference for many years. She also co-sponsored Law School presentation workshops and information for EOP students in conjunction with UB. Kelly is always ready to help and support EOP students when advisement is needed for Law School preparation or for students who need assistance with opportunities in the medical field. She has received the President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Advisement and is a recipient of a CSTEP Staff Appreciation award. She is trained in QPR (Question, Persuade and Refer) and has been recognized as a BSC Upstander by the Counseling Center. Kelly was a proud supporter at the inception of Milligan’s Food Pantry. She continued to have a cabinet of food and other supplies available for students in the Dean’s Office, until COVID-19 made face to face meetings impossible. The faculty and staff of the School of Natural and Social Sciences made this endeavor successful with regular donations of food and supplies. She served as the chair for the Professional Staff Caucus (PSC) for several terms and introduced a host of professional development programming and scholarship opportunities for students. She serves as a member of the College Senate. Annie Joe Memorial Award This scholarship is awarded to a junior or senior student who, despite significant special circumstances, has earned a 3.0 semester average during the Fall or Spring 2020 semester. The awardee must have worked diligently to overcome personal and academic obstacles. The scholarship is given in memory of Annie Joe, a student who died tragically on the eve of the 1982 EOP Honors Convocation. Wilma Buchanan, a senior at Buffalo State, is an Adult learner who is pursuing a dual degree in Anthropology and Earth Science.