On Tuesday, May 24, HFM BOCES celebrated 28 students who completed the HFM PTECH program this year during a ceremony outside of Fulton Montgomery Community College.
These students, who come from school districts across the Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery region, earned their Regents high school diplomas and associate degrees through the project-based, early college high school program.
The 28 students earned associate degrees from SUNY Cobleskill in agricultural pathways and from FMCC in areas including business, computer information systems, health studies, and electrical technology.
Entrepreneur and owner of Upstate Coffee Kevin Chamberlain delivered the keynote address.
Student speaker Kaidince Nellis took the stage to share parting words with her fellow students.
During the ceremony, each student was recognized for their accomplishments during their time in the PTECH program and received a plaque.
The following students were honored as completing the PTECH program during the 2021-22 academic year:
Colby Agerter is from the Mayfield school district and has earned his associate degree in computer information systems from FMCC. He plans to continue his education at SUNY Polytechnic Institute, where he’ll major in Applied Computing. His long-term goal is to pursue a career in web development or software development.
Connor Brown is from the Johnstown school district and earned his associate degree in Business Management from FMCC. He plans to attend Coastal Carolina University to major in Business Management with a concentration in professional golf course management.
Connor Courtoies is from the Fonda-Fultonville school district and has earned his associate degree in Electrical Technology from FMCC. He plans to pursue his bachelor’s degree in Renewable Energies at SUNY Morrisville.
Bethany Dence-Duffek is from the Gloversville school district and has earned her associate degree in Animal Industry from SUNY Cobleskill. In the immediate future, she is hoping to take her job at Runnings to the next level and become a manager in the Agriculture Department. Long-term, she would like to train service dogs for retired veterans.
James Dudar is from the OESJ school district and earned his associate degree in Computer Networking and Cybersecurity from FMCC. He plans to pursue his bachelor’s degree in Education at SUNY Oneonta.
Abigail Embree is from the Gloversville Enlarged School District and has earned her degree in Health Studies from FMCC. She plans to continue on to complete the nursing program at FMCC. Her goal is to become a registered nurse and then continue her education to become a physician assistant.
Brant Fancher is from the Mayfield school district and has earned his associate degree in Health Studies from FMCC. He plans to continue his education with a degree program at FMCC in the fall. His long-term goal is to become a family medicine nurse practitioner.
Angelo Fatta is from the Canajoharie school district and has earned his associate degree in Computer Networking and Cybersecurity from FMCC. He plans to continue his education at SUNY Polytechnic Institute as a Network and Computer Security major. His long-term goal is to become a cybersecurity analyst.
Kaylee Finch is from the Broadalbin-Perth Central School District. She has earned her associate degree in Animal Industry from SUNY Cobleskill. She plans to continue her education at SUNY Cobleskill in canine training and management and then pursue a career in canine training.
Braden Greenslete is from the Canajoharie Central School District and has earned his associate degree in Business Marketing from FMCC. He plans to continue his education at St. John Fisher, where he will major in Sports Management and minor in Business Management.
Sierrah Guyette is from the Greater Johnstown School District and has earned her degree in Health Studies from FMCC. She is continuing her education at the University of New Haven and plans to major in Criminal Justice, Investigative Services. Her long-term goal is to become a crime-scene investigator.
Alexis Henderson is from the Amsterdam school district and earned her associate degree in Animal Industry from SUNY Cobleskill.
Kyla Herrick is from the Greater Johnstown School District and has earned her degree from SUNY Cobleskill in Agricultural Science. She is continuing her education at SUNY Binghamton as a business major.
Zakary Kehn is from the Amsterdam school district and has earned his associate degree in Computer Information Systems from FMCC. He plans to use his degree to enter the workforce in this field with an eye toward securing a position at IBM, where he worked as an intern in the summer of 2021.
Natillia King is from the Gloversville school district and earned her associate degree in Animal Industry from SUNY Cobleskill. She plans to continue in her current job at Burger King in the short term, but long term would like to become an animal trainer.
Caleb Kobas is from the Johnstown school district and earned his associate degree in Computer Information Systems from FMCC. He plans to attend SUNY Polytechnic Institute and major in Computer Science and minor in Game Design. His long-term goal is to become a software engineer.
Makenzie Lang is from the Johnstown school district and has earned her associate degree in Health Studies from FMCC. Makenzie plans to enter the workforce.
Sebastian Lasher is from the Gloversville Enlarged School District and received his degree in Computer Information Systems from FMCC. He plans to enter the workforce in his degree field.
Mari-Ahna Manchester is from the Johnstown school district and earned her associate degree in Animal Industry from SUNY Cobleskill. She plans to further her education in graphic design.
Gianna Merendo is from the Amsterdam school district and has earned her associate degree in Health Studies. She plans to work in the health field in a position at Nathan Littauer Hospital. Long-term, she would like to continue her education to become a substance abuse counselor.
Makenzie Merendo is a student from the Greater Amsterdam School District and has earned her degree from SUNY Cobleskill in Animal Science. She plans to continue her education at Cobleskill to earn her bachelor’s degree. She hopes to eventually open and run her own canine boarding, training and doggie daycare facility.
Kaidince Nellis is from the Johnstown school district and has earned her degree in Health Studies from FMCC. She plans to continue her education either at Hudson Valley Community College to become a dental hygienist or to Russell Sage to study biology. Her long-term goal is to become a dentist.
Natalie Palmer is from the Greater Johnstown School District and earned her degree in Health Studies from FMCC. In the short term, she plans to continue her education at Hudson Valley Community College to become a dental hygienist. Long-term, she is looking to continue on to earn her bachelor’s degree.
Nicole Quillan is from the Northville Central School District and has earned her associate degree in Business Management from FMCC. She plans to continue her education at SUNY Oswego to pursue her master’s degree in Business Administration.
Mario Rios is from the Amsterdam School District and earned his degree from FMCC in Business Administration. He is using his degree to pursue business ownership.
Alexis Rocklin is from the Gloversville school district and earned her associate degree in Health Studies from FMCC. She plans to pursue her bachelor’s degree in early childhood development with a goal of starting her own daycare business.
Alanis Roman is from the Gloversville school district and has received her associate degree in Health Studies from FMCC. She plans to continue her education to obtain her doctorate, with a long-term goal of becoming a chemist.
Alexa Savage is from the Greater Johnstown School District and earned her degree in Business Administration from FMCC. She plans to continue her education in the fall at Siena College, where she will be pursuing her master’s degree in Business Administration.
