Top 10 Reasons I Love CCC by Tara Bowman

10. Free Stuff!

The activities fee I pay every semester covers a lot of really cool stuff. Free concerts, free food, free t-shirts, games, giveaways, prizes, festivities, entertainment, comedians, merriment all around, hoopla, oh and cake! Since I live off campus, all this jubilation is an awesome way to still feel like you’re part of a community.


9. Waffle fries…


I swear they put crack in those things. The waffle fries in the dining hall are amazing. Since we have a professional catering service that makes all the food for CCC, all the food is really, really good.


8. The Chemung River


Campus is so close to the Chemung River that I can kayak back to Elmira when I have classes on the main campus. There’s nothing more relaxing then going to the river after a stressful day, sitting back, dipping your feet in the water, and just effortlessly floating some 15 miles or so home.


7. Market Street


Market Street is beautiful! I love all the little shops, and great places to eat. There’s a really cute place to eat called the Old World Café that has the best ice cream ever. You can find anything from music, animals, food, art, beauty salons, to cafés and hand crafted trinkets, and gadgets; an excellent place to kill time, and wander aimlessly :)


6. The Math Learning Center


I was in the MLC every week, at least 3 days a week, this entire semester. I probably would have lost my mind, and/or flunked out of Calculus had it not been for the amazing peer and professional tutors there.


5. The professors


My professors here at CCC are amazing! They’re all super nice. My Tae Kwon Do instructor made me laugh until I cried on a pretty regular basis. [By the way, I highly recommend that class!] They’re also very flexible, and understanding. If you make the effort maintain communication with them, and let them know what your needs are, they’re very accommodating.


4. The Class Size


All of my classes this semester were 15-20 students or less. This made me feel a little more comfortable with participating in class, and communicating with my professors. They all know me by name, and I don’t feel anonymous, like I would sitting in a large lecture hall trying to absorb information like a sponge.


3. Class Selection


There are a lot of really cool class selections here on campus. CCC is the best place to start, especially if you don’t know exactly what you want to do; because of the large variety of classes, programs, and electives you can take, it’s an excellent place to get a feel for what sparks your passion. I started out as a math/science major, but my guidance counselor helped me put a little bit of everything in my schedule so I could test the waters a little bit, and I soon found out my passion is psychology.


2. Diversity


There are so many different, wonderful people here, there really isn’t such thing as the typical CCC student. I took a year off to just work, and then came back to school, for the second time and felt right at home at CCC.


And the number one reason I love Corning Community College… [Drum roll please!]


1. The Sense of Community


The strong sense of community here at CCC is the number one reason why I love it here. Ask any student, and they’ll tell you the reasons they love it too. There’s a lot of pride in our school, and support for everyone who’s apprehensive about attending college. My family is about to move to the west coast, and I’m very fortunate to still have my family away from home here at CCC.

Tips for summer by Sean Keenan

Sean writing his blogs

• Relax
• Take a break
• Visit Corning Community College
• Take a Summer Course
• Buy discount golf passes

Out with the Old by Nick Bonomo

Nick hard at work at the front desk of the Admissions Office

At the end of each year at a college, one can see many people leaving and plans changing, chapters ending and beginning. This is the same for any student ambassador that plans on leaving to attend a transfer school, as I am. I am so grateful to have been a part of this wonderful program, to be paid to do what I truly wish would have been done for me. I was glad to help out the prospective students that were still undecided on what their temporary plans were. I am glad I got to know some great mentors and people along the way. I am glad I can always remember my work and experiences that taught me so much about working in an office setting.

On my way out of the door, I’d like to leave behind some meaningful advice for others: register early, take classes that interest you, stay involved, and always give it your all. College isn’t just about “getting the degree” or “partying all day and night.” A degree allows you to move more quickly into adult life, that’s all. To truly be prepared for this life, you must learn to try your hardest in every class you take, whether it counts toward your degree or not. College is a chance to learn who you are and how you fit into the world. Corning Community College especially taught me these things. However, it is still more than classes and work ethic. It’s a chance to make mistakes and changes to yourself and your plan. It’s a chance to have some fun and to help others. College is, in a sense, a concentrated version of real life. You can choose to use this opportunity to learn to fit into the real world, and I sincerely hope that you do.


Good luck, and register asap!

Yay, it’s SPRING! By Kate Schiller

Are you all ready for SPRINGfest?! For those of you who are new to CCC this semester, SPRINGfest is a week filled of free food, free activities, free give-a-ways and free entertainment! I think it should just be called FREEfest but since the weather is finally acting right, I think we’ll keep the original name.


I look forward to it every year. I’m talking like I’ve been here for 20 years. I’m actually trying to clear my schedule a bit (from work, not classes!) so I can make it to more events this time around. So here’s a quick overview as to what to expect next week. For more details about events head to your MyCCC account and click the “Student” tab then scroll down to “Student Events.” You can click on each one for more details.

• Monday, May 9 @ noon
• FREE T-Shirts and entertainment with the HUMAN KNOT (free soft serve pretzels and drinks will be served)
• Tuesday, May 10 @ noon
• FREE Ice Cream and the Prize Wheel
• Wednesday, May 11 @ noon
• FREE Lunch and entertainment with A PAIR OF NUTS

Did you read my blog about finals coming up? Well, they’re here! If you didn’t know, CCC offers free coffee or tea in the commons building during finals week. I think it’s great that they offer this to students, but what about the ones who don’t drink coffee or tea? I think I need to request hot cocoa. Anyone else a cocoa drinker?


Good luck on your finals and if you aren’t taking summer courses, have a great vacation!

Thoughts on Completing My Senior Year at CCC by Abby Donegan

Hey! My name is Abby and I am attending CCC for my senior year of high school. Being here at CCC as one of few high school students has been an interesting experience. It is definitely a change from walking the halls of East High school.

I decided to come to CCC for my last year of high school honestly because I was annoyed with the minimal amount of freedom given to students in high school. I didn’t want to have to have a pass to go to my locker, or have to sign out to go home for a few minutes. I enjoyed high school and still have many friends who attend high school; I was just ready for change. There were times when I regretted coming to CCC and not having a traditional “senior year”; I missed seeing my friends every day and I felt kind of left out.

When I first came to CCC, I assumed it would be easy. I had thoughts like every other high school student that attending a “community college” was basically a walk in the park. I was wrong. I had to work really hard in many of my classes to get the grades I was satisfied with. I struggled in my math class, which I even took at the high school level the year before. It was much different, but every class experience made me more prepared for college in the future. The teachers were very helpful and unlike at big colleges, they knew you by name, not just a seat in a classroom. The attention from the teachers was very comforting and I did not have a difficult time with any of my teachers. I am currently taking one class at East High ninth period that is only for the second half of the year. I originally signed up for the class to boost my average so I could get a scholarship for a college that I am no longer planning to attend; however, I am happy that I am still taking it because it gives me a chance to see my friends from school that I don’t see as often.
Now that the end of the year is approaching, I look forward to many things that most seniors look forward to. I graduate from East High in two months, I am planning my graduation party, I look forward to Senior White Day, Prom, the Senior Awards Assembly, the Senior Trip, and all of the other activities that seniors take part in.

I am extremely thankful that I made the decision to attend CCC as a senior. The classes gave me an eye opener to what college classes are like and I am graduating high school with thirty-five and a half credits! I am attending SUNY Fredonia in the fall to dual major in dance and special education. It is VERY helpful that most of my general education credits are already out of the way. I am so glad that I attended Corning Community College, and I would recommend this college for anyone who is interested in receiving an associate’s degree from a reliable college!

10 Intelligent ways to save and make money as a community college student by Sean Keenan

1. Apply for the scholarships in the spring for Corning Community College
2. Look around before buying gas
3. Buy laptops when there are promotions, for example, in the summer if you buy a Mac you get a free iPod
4. Don’t impulse buy -- it’s simple but often forgotten
5. Get a Wegman’s card especially if you live in Corning/Elmira area
6. Sell your old books on Craig’s list if the school won’t buy them back
7. Take advantage of buying cheap Jackals and movie tickets at the school
8. You can reuse tea bags
9. Sell your old clothing in the trade-in store on Market Street
10. Make a grocery list and only buy the things on the list

I'm going to Disney! by Kate Schiller

Well, it’s official. I got my invite to the Disney College Program! I was offered the role of Attractions which means I could be a Bell Hop at the Tower of Terror or a guide on the Jungle Cruise! There are a lot of smaller roles, but I’m sure you could see why I’d be excited about this. Well, if you’ve been to Disney World. If you haven’t… I’m sorry. You should probably book a trip this fall and come visit me! J I won’t find out what attraction I’ll be working until I check in on August 17th. Who knows? It could be more than one.


Now I need to decide how I’m getting down there and when I want to leave. I’m definitely taking my car. They offer public transportation from your housing to the park and around town. But, I wouldn’t want to be reliant on public transportation especially since one of my brother lives about 45 minutes away from Disney. It’d be nice to visit him whenever I wanted to.


I found out there is an auto-train that takes you and your car from Virginia to Florida! So, now I don’t know if I want to drive the whole way or take the auto-train most of the way. It’s about a 6 hour drive from here to VA, a 17 hour train ride to FL and then another 2 hour drive from the train stop to my brothers. I’ll be staying at my brothers the night before I check in so I don’t have to pay for a hotel. I hear people get there as early as 4 AM to check in even though it doesn’t start until 9 AM. I can understand getting there early because they don’t assign your housing until you get there but really?! 4 AM?!


So, it costs just a tad more to take the auto-train but if you factor in the cost that I wouldn’t have to stop at a hotel, it pretty much evens out. If I take the train I could sleep while we are still moving but if I drove I could stop and see things on the way down. Oh, decisions. But, on the positive side, my brother wants to fly up from FL and travel down with me!


Oh, I’m so excited! I don’t have any advice to give in this blog but just thought I’d share what’s going on in this CCC student’s life. Maybe next blog I’ll talk about my concern of packing everything into my tiny convertible to take down to FL. Oh, man…