Hudson Valley Community College Student Robert Spain of Guilderland Receives SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence

2013 Apr 5

Robert Spain of Guilderland was recently honored with the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence, one of the highest student honors in the State University of New York system.

Spain, who is studying Civil Engineering Technology at Hudson Valley Community College, was honored at a recent ceremony along with other recipients from across the State University's colleges and universities.

Robert has been a member of the Army Reserves since 2004 and currently holds the rank of Staff Sergeant. He was twice deployed to Iraq. Named to the Deans' List for three consecutive semesters, he is a member of the Armed Forces Club and the Concrete Canoe Club, which competes in concrete canoe construction and racing against other engineering schools around the Northeast. He is an active volunteer firefighter in his hometown.

The Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence was created 16 years ago to recognize students from across the SUNY system who have demonstrated the integration of academic excellence with accomplishments in the areas of leadership, athletics, community service, creative and performing arts or career achievement.

Each year, campus presidents establish a selection committee, which reviews exemplary members of their college communities who are graduating. Nominees are then forwarded to the Chancellor's Office and are subject to a second round of review. Finalists are then recommended to the Chancellor to become recipients of the Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence.

Founded in 1953, Hudson Valley Community College offers more than 70 associate degree and certificate programs in four schools: Business; Engineering and Industrial Technologies; Health Sciences; and Liberal Arts and Sciences; and workforce and academic preparation programs offered through the Educational Opportunity Center. One of 30 community colleges in the State University of New York system, it has an enrollment of nearly 13,250 students, and is known as a leader in distance learning initiatives and worker retraining. Hudson Valley has 75,000 alumni.