Eye on the Storm: The Official Undergraduate Admissions Blog of the National Leader in Experiential, Hands-on Learning

Most high school students get their first glimpse of a prospective college campus via a brochure or Web site. When they visit the campus, what they saw isn’t always what they get. Then again, love at first sight is possible.

Keuka College held its annual Fall Open House Oct.15 and despite rainy weather, a record 150 high schoolers and their families made the trip to Keuka Park. Students had the opportunity to tour the campus and meet with professors, coaches, current students, admissions counselors, and financial aid representative.

This is important part of open house at any college, because these are the people you will be interacting with on a daily basis. So, it’s a good idea to get to know and make an impression on them because they will be sure to remember you when you come to school as a freshman. This is especially true at Keuka, where we never forget a face.

Open house is often the first opportunity for students to “try us on for size.” At Keuka, students and families checked out all of the student clubs and organizations on campus after enjoying a delicious meal in the Geiser Refectory. And speaking of food, my favorite part of open house actually happens at lunch time. I enjoy seeing the real-life interaction between students, something a college cannot recreate in a brochure.

When visiting a campus, you should try to imagine yourself living there. Look at all the posters around campus; really see what is going on. And, of course, the golden rule: ask as many questions as possible when on tour. How often do get the full attention of a current college student for an hour at 9 a.m. on a Saturday? Take advantage of it.

1. Visit The Windmill – like a giant farm, food, and craft fair. Go hungry – the food is awesome.

2. Go to Seneca Farms – best homemade ice cream in the world & wonderful chicken too

3. After all this eating, go hiking! The Outlet Trail from Penn Yan takes you along the outlet that leads from Keuka Lake to Seneca Lake. Or go to Watkins Glen and hike the gorge and see the waterfalls (especially pretty this time of year)

4. Pick some apples or pumpkins at one of the many farms in the area. Buy some apple cider – yummy! The Wager Cider Mill also makes their own homemade cider donuts – my mouth is watering just thinking about them. Go to a corn maze and outrace your friends to the finish.

5. Outrace your friends (or your dad) at the Go Karts

6. Ride your bike around the roads surrounding the campus and the lake - do your own leaf peeping tour while you get some exercise and burn off all of the calories gained from the ice cream and donuts mentioned above.

7. Travel to Hammondsport at the southern tip of Keuke Lake. Nice shops and good places to eat (check out the candy at The Cinnamon Stick).

8. Enjoy a boat tour of the lake.

9. Go to Hayes Auction Barn just north of the hospital in Penn Yan. They serve wonderful pies and you can get some great deals on things (the people watching there is really fun too – I love to see what people are so intent to buy that they go into a bidding frenzy!)

10. Attend some of the many festivals in the area - The Grape Festival, The Appleumpkin Festival, The Scarecrow Festival – like everything else mentioned above – really fun and feature the most important item – great food.

Early in the semester, students always hear stories about the professors on campus. Who lets you use your notes on tests? Who gives the most extra credit?  Where’s Socrates? From there, students either beg their adviser to slip them into a class with their favorite educator or push aside their wishes and go with whomever is available. Keuka College has a remarkably talented group of educators and each individual has their own unique way of teaching a class.

By asking students about their favorite professor, it allows others to get some insight into who may be right for them next semester, next year or years down the road. Below are 11 Keuka College students who took the time to discuss their most-noted professor and what brought them to the campus in the first place.

Shannon Slater ‘12

Favorite Professor: Mrs. Jennings
What’s Your Major: Early Childhood Education
Why Do You Like Keuka? “I like Keuka because it’s far from home.”

MaKenna Moon ‘12

Favorite Professor: Dr. Leahy
What’s Your Major: Political Science and History
Why Do You Like Keuka? “It’s full of awesome people!”

Ashleen Betts ‘11

Favorite Professor: Dr. McKenzie
What’s Your Major: American Sign Language
Why Do You Like Keuka? “[Dr. Mac] makes boring classes interesting!”

Ben Ternosky ‘12

Favorite Professor: Dr. Dickinson
What’s Your Major: Occupational Therapy
Why Do You Like Keuka? “The class size and scenery.”

Kimberly Notebaert ‘11

Favorite Professor: Dr. McKenzie
What’s Your Major: Social Work
Why Do You Like Keuka? “I finally found a place that makes me feel like I belong.”

Emmalee Pearce ‘11

Favorite Professor: Dr. Shepardson
What’s Your Major: Unified Childhood Education
Why Do You Like Keuka? “The small family-like atmosphere.”

Paige Snyder ‘13

Favorite Professor: Dr. Holloway
What’s Your Major: Psychology
Why Do You Like Keuka? “Close to home.”

Kristen Amidon ‘13

Favorite Professor: Dr. Holloway
What’s Your Major: Occupational Therapy
Why Do You Like Keuka? “Friendly, family setting.”

Diamond Booker ‘11

Favorite Professor: Dr. McKenzie
What’s Your Major: Business Management
Why Do You Like Keuka: “It’s beautiful.”

Jing ‘Potato’ Lin ‘10 (left) Carol Yu ‘10

Potato

Favorite Professor: Mr. Perryman
What’s Your Major: Business Management
Why Do You Like Keuka? “The lake and ice cream.”

Carol

Favorite Professor: Mr. Perryman
What’s Your Major: Business Management
Why Do You Like Keuka? “Nice people and the lake.”

Cecilia Chen ‘10

Favorite Professor: Mr. Perryman
What’s Your Major: Business Management
Why Do You Like Keuka? “The beautiful lake.”

Ahh. This is both my favorite and least favorite question to answer. It is my favorite because I could talk about it for days, and therefore also my least favorite. SIFE has often had the reputation of being just a business club. Now comes the part where I squash all the rumors: SIFE is more than just a business club! There. SIFE is an acronym for Students In Free Enterprise.

(On of life’s harshest lessons: just because you know what an acronym stands for, does not necessarily mean that you understand it.)

SIFE is a worldwide organization with teams in over 40 countries. There are about 1000 teams in the United States. At Keuka College, you will find one of the 48 best teams in the country (results per 2009 national competition). The great thing about SIFE is that every team is different. I will tell you a little bit about what the Keuka SIFE team is all about.

Our team has around 62 members this year, and 16 projects. Essentially we have one goal: to make the world a better place, beginning with our own backyard of Yates County, NY. We have a variety of educational projects that we target to youth in our area. Our team spends time in local classrooms promoting the principles of Free Enterprise. Some of these include ethics, financial literacy and environmental sustainability among other things. Most people will agree that these are all issues where education is vital. You don’t have to be a business person to understand how to manage your money or be ethical. We are all consumers in the long run, right?

And of course our other main goal is to help local entrepreneurs succeed. We accomplish this by providing and marketing seminars, developing marketing plans for local businesses, and sharing what we learn in the classrooms with business owners. The relationship we have with local businesses benefits all parties involved. They are able to receive assistance from an outside source, and we as students get to take what we learn in the classroom and apply it in real life scenarios. Experiential Learning at its finest? I think so.

I wish I could tell you all of the advantages of being on a SIFE team, but they won’t let me write forever. But I can tell you that it is the most important part of my resume. I will be sure to update you more about what our team is doing this year.

I’ve decided that I might as well start off this year with the lessons that Keuka has taught me in the past two(ish) years.

1. It’s never too late to change your major

1.5 You can finish a major in two years if you have all your gen eds done.

2. In about three months the new friends you meet will suddenly feel like best friends.

3. Sleeping with a stuffed animal is really actually not that weird.

4.Facebook is the reason for procrastination.

5. The library is a beautiful thing!

5.5 They have syllabi in the library, so if you lose yours, THEY HAVE ONE. How awesome? Now you don’t have to ask the teacher.

5.5 Part Two: And sometimes, they have the books you need for class on reserve. Ergo, You don’t necessarily have to go all the way back up to your room, you can just go ask to borrow it for two hours.

6. Using food in presentations is how you get an A.

7. Happiness is your choice. No matter where you go, you’ll find someone you don’t like. Don’t let it bother you, and just keep swimming.

8. Take time out of every day for yourself. Going down to the lake during downtime is wonderfully relaxing.

9. Time management is the key to eternal happiness.

10. Always make sure you have friends that aren’t just your roommates.

11. I should not be an English major. Communications is so much more fun. For me.

12. Make time to exercise. Even if you don’t really want to.

13. Don’t forget to clean out your fridge. Or put the twisty tie thing back on the bread. Bad bad things will happen.

14. People care about whether you call it pop or soda.

15. DO NOT wait until ten minutes before an exam to study.

Guess what happens a week from today? The Class of 2013 moves in!

Here at Keuka College our incoming freshmen class moves in 3 days earlier than everyone else, which we call Transition Week. At this time freshmen adjust to living in the residence halls, meeting new people and  living away from home for the first time.  During Transition Week,  students are kept very busy with all sorts of activities ranging from guest speakers,  group advising sessions, a game show and Teamworks! (our ropes course located behind Davis Hall.) It may be a nervous time for most freshmen, but to help with this we have mentors that the students will work with to combat any anxiety they may encounter the first few weeks of college living. The mentor’s are upperclassmen students that have become leaders in our community and are trained to assist freshmen with any issues that may come up.

So, get ready Class of 2013…we are all here waiting and excited to welcome our new family to Keuka College!

Hey Guys and Gals,

I hope everyone’s summers are going smoothly.  Before we all know it, it will be the end of August; summers go by so fast.  This summer, I have secured a placement for my semester-long internship at Hillbrook Detention Center in Syracuse, NY.  All Criminology and Criminal Justice majors are required to fulfill this requirement before graduating.  However, many majors such as Social Work and ASL , to name a few, require this internship as well. 

Most Criminology and Criminal Justice majors complete this internship during the fall semester of their senior year so they can finish up classes in the spring before they graduate. 

Facts you will need to know:

-You must have 84 credit hours before completing this internship. 

-After gaining approval from your advisor, you should register for the Internship Course (CRM 401) during regular course registration

-Must complete 490 hours total   (35 hours/week for 14 weeks)

-You will be required to purchase a textbook, maintain a journal, and complete written work in order to reflect upon and get the most out of the internship experience

-You can take classes along with the internship.  However, keep in mind you will have a full-time internship requirement which will take up most of your time. 

-Your advisor can help you locate a site or there are several lists that can be found in the Center for Experiential Learning Office and on various websites provided by the college. 

-If you are lucky you can find a paid internship, but that is completely up to the site.

-The internship contract form needs to be completed and signed by the supervisor at the site, your advisor and yourself to fully complete the registration process.

-After completion,  you will have earned 12 credit hours towards your degree

I hope this gave you a little insight about how the internship works.  Please do not hesitate to ask questions. 

In the future, look forward to reading about how my internship is going

Hello from Keuka College!

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Attentions all Education Professionals!

Want to get the word out about how great Keuka College is?

Invite your school’s guidance counselors, teachers, and administrators to our

Day on Keuka Lake: High School Counselor Visit Day:

August 12 10am- 2pm

Take a tour, learn about our admissions process, meet with our admission staff, and join us for a lunch cruise on Keuka Lake.

RSVP now as space is limited – contact at kharter@keuka.edu or call 1-800-33-KEUKA to reserve your place.

Overnight on-campus accommodations are available.

For more information and overnight accommodations reservations:

www.keuka.edu/go/summervisit

Thinking about coming to visit Keuka College this summer?

Why not visit on one of our special summer visit days?

Wednesday July 8 (This day includes sessions on our Business/Management Department*)

Monday July 13

Friday July 31

Take a tour, speak with Financial Aid and your Admissions Counselor, then join us for lunch with our own Dean of Admission in charge of the grill!

Call (315) 279-5254 or 1-800-33-Keuka to RSVP

*Majors within Management include: marketing, accounting, international business, sports management, human resources and entrepreneurship.