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“In my family, there was always this idea that one could go anywhere after graduating from here,” says Mikhli-Forkosh, who has two older siblings who attended the college and have since gone on to law and medical school. “It was always looked at as a hidden gem right in our backyard.”

With a cumulative 4.0 GPA, Forkosh has been on Dean’s List continuously since 2012. She is receiving a Bachelor of Science in psychology, and is the recipient of the 2015 CUNY Excellence in Leadership Award. That same year, she received an award from the ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ Alumni Association. She has also received a Macaulay Honors College scholarship for academic excellence.

This past year, Mikhli-Forkosh helped to found the Women’s Initiative at ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ and during her junior year, she was the first woman president of the Student Government in more than a decade. She has also been an editor of the student newspaper Night Call.

“My education at ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ has prepared me for the next stage of my life,” says Mikhli-Forkosh. “The tremendous diversity exposed me to a richness of viewpoints, ideas, and culture that has greatly broadened my worldview.”

She plans to attend law school to pursue a career in litigation. After graduation, she will work as a paralegal at the Manhattan District Attorney’s office, which she says is a perfect synthesis of public service and legal work.

Class of 2016 salutatorian Stephanie Taormina holds a cumulative 4.0 GPA and has made the Dean’s List every semester of her attendance.

“¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ has helped to mold me into an intellectual and professional woman,” she says. “It has given me not only the foundation knowledge I need to enter into my career field, but has taught me how to adapt to a diverse environment.”

Taormina, who is receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Health and Nutrition Science, was president of the Health and Nutrition Science club, a position in which she planned and organized many health and fitness events on campus. She has also been a member of the Civic Engagement team, helping with student orientations and elections, and other activities.

In 2013, Taormina earned recognition on the ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ Wall of Fame. This past academic year, she received two scholarships: the Pearl Gross ’40 Scholarship in Nutrition and the Mereese Ladson Memorial Scholarship.

Taormina was accepted to a dietetic internship at New York Presbyterian Hospital, a yearlong program in which students apply theoretical knowledge learned in the classroom in a clinical setting. She will also begin the M.S. program in nutrition at ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ. Her dream job is to work as a registered dietitian at a hospital so that she can provide nutritional care to critically ill patients.

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In a few short hours, the students will be in Callicoon, a town in upstate New York, for the 2015 Unity Retreat, a three-day workshop funded by President Karen L. Gould, created by Elliot Wasser ’02, and hosted by the Division of Student Affairs, in which select students are invited, during the winter intersession, to participate in extracurricular programming—including grant proposal writing, team-building exercises, lessons in self-care, and health and wellness activities—that will provide them with a set of supplemental skills to make them better students, better citizens, and better candidates in the marketplace.

In this lies Nieves’ power: to inspire those around her to be better, to do better, and to recognize that this requires dedication and the confidence to tap into their own potential. This is especially true since she shares the same socioeconomic roots, experienced the same challenges and struggles as the majority of the members of her audience. But most importantly, she overcame them and is now willing to pass those strategies on to the next generation.

“If my coming back here to share what I have learned serves, in any way, students as they pursue quality education at ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ, then I will continue to return,” says Nieves. “I return out of a sense of responsibility and as a part of my personal system of values.”

Nieves, who received her Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and political science from the college, is a social entrepreneur and leader. She is the former ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ Belle Zeller Visiting Distinguished Professor in Public Policy. Currently, she is a founding partner at Lingo Ventures, where she provides consulting services to the nonprofit and public sector on growth, talent recruitment and retention, and change management, and she is also commissioner on the White House Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. In addition to being a Rhodes Scholar, Nieves also a Truman Scholar and a Pahara-Aspen Fellow.

Using an activity known as the Leadership Compass, Nieves helped the students recognize precisely what kind of leaders they were, splitting them into four groups corresponding to the points of a compass based on their personal leadership styles. In short, north represents people who are known for their take-charge attitudes; south represents consensus builders, east represents people who are aspirational in their approach to leadership, and west represents people who are thorough and detail-oriented leaders.

“I’m telling you things that you might already know about yourselves,” Nieves says to the students. “What you may not have, however, is the language to frame it. And by giving you a common language, I’m helping you to remove friction and potential conflict and replace it with the potential for negotiation.”

Mickael Dejean was excited to be present for Nieves’ workshop and to be selected to participate in the retreat. He is a senior majoring in health and nutrition sciences, and is a volunteer in Civic Engagement and Orientation (CEO), and member of the Black and Latino Male Initiative (BLMI), the Black Student Union (BSU), the Haitian American Student Association (HASA), the National Black Science Students Organization (NBSSO), and serves as vice president of the Delta Chi chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha. Dejean, who identified himself as an east-style leader, believes his attendance brings him a step closer to reaching his personal, sociopolitical, and professional goals.

“I’m inspired by people who are doing great things for the campus and for their communities,” says Dejean. “By being a part of this positive interaction, I gain the skills I need to influence the campus, and my own community, in a similarly positive fashion.”

Nieves, who says that all great leaders are ever evolving and pivoting as situations call for ingenuity, is close to completing her Doctor of Education at the University of Pennsylvania.

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The annual event was co-sponsored by the ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ Division of Students Affairs, Assemblywoman Rhoda S. Jacobs ’62, and the 42nd District Assembly Office. With the help of its various units—the Student Center, Health Programs/Immunization Requirements Office, and Division of Recreation, Intramurals and Intercollegiate Athletics—Student Affairs collected over 1,000 cans of food and dozens of toys to be distributed to Little Flower Children and Family Services of New York, and the Flatbush Food Co-op Community Partnership Program, both of which serve local residents.

The college sponsors several drives each year through its Health Programs Office. However, this is the first organized specifically to encourage students’ civic engagement for the Thanksgiving holiday. This year, the participation of the Athletics Division and more than 10 student clubs ensured a significant turnout.

“I’m glad that the drive produced such amazing results,” says senior Krystal Burrows, who majors in education. “I’m also really glad to see so many members of the ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ community come forth to support those in need. I hope this trend continues.”

Another drive is being planned for the December holidays.

For more information about ¿ÉÀÖÊÓƵ’s food and toy drives, please contact the Health Programs/Immunization Requirements Office. To learn more about civic engagement activities at the college, please contact the Student Referral Office.

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