MassBay Announces 2020 Student IMPACT Award Recipients

Photo: MassBay student Sabrina Beach, winner of The Student Leadership Award, which represents the highest honor the College recognizes for community involvement.

WELLESLEY HILLS, Mass. (May 26, 2020) — MassBay Community College is pleased to announce the 2020 Student IMPACT Award Recipients, including students who have been awarded the IMPACT Award, Silver Key Honor Society, the Student Leadership Award, and the 29 Who Shine award who have made a significant contribution to the MassBay community this year. Students will receive a plaque in the mail to recognize their dedication to the College.

The IMPACT Award is a new award and presented to students who are members of MassBay clubs and organizations, members of the Student Government Association (SGA), student athletes, peer tutors, mentors, and who have made an impact on MassBay. These students have demonstrated exemplary leadership qualities within a student organization, made a positive impact on campus life for their peers and colleagues, and showed a commitment to academic success. Students must be nominated by their peers, faculty, or staff in order to be considered.

Recipients of this year’s IMPACT Award in alphabetical order:

• Benjamin Akinkuoye - Business Administration (AS)
• Martha Anderson - Liberal Arts (AA) 
• Alyssa Battista - Early Childhood Education (AS) 
• Sabrina Beach - Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA) 
• Joanna Beer - Liberal Arts (AA)
• Iten Beshay - Associate in Science
• Vincent Briselli - General Studies (AS) Science, Tech, Engineer & Math
• Laura Delcourt - General Business (AS) 
• Borna Doroudi - Computer Science (AS) 
• Pedro Garcia - Business Administration (AS) 
• Allison E. Gross - General Studies (AA) 
• Nathaniel Hansche - Computer Science (AS) 
• Huy Huynh - Electrical & Computer Engineering (AS)
• Brenda Kay - Liberal Arts - Human Services (AA) 
• Allyson Kazanjian - Liberals Arts - Human Services (AA)
• Emma Laurie - Liberal Arts (AA) 
• Alexandre Lopes-Gomes - Business Administration (AS)
• Paulo v. Machado - Criminal Justice (AS) 
• Brenna k. McGrath - Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA) 
• Keith Miller - General Studies (AS) 
• Matt Mori - General Studies (AA) 
• Enehiremen Osunbor - Life Sciences (AS)
• Alicia M. Perpetuo - General Business – Hospitality Management (AS) 
• Nathan E. Persampieri - Liberal Arts - Communication (AA) 
• Thomas Regan - Biotechnology (AS)
• Jon Ribeiro - Liberal Arts (AA) 
• Kevin Riordan - Manufacturing Technology Certificate 
• Patricia H. Salmela - Undeclared 
• Isis Sanchez Zarate - Medical Office Administrative Assistant Certificate 
• Brian S. Sherry - Life Sciences (AS) 
• Mehar Singh - Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA) 
• David J. Snyder - Liberal Arts - Communication (AA) 
• Johnathan Stahl - International Business 
• Samantha Szeto - Liberal Arts - Human Services (AA) 
• Serena A. Tzeng - Computer Science (AS) 
• Ellen (Lena) Viazmitinov - Computer Science (AS) 
• Camila Wendorff - Biotechnology (AS)

                  
The Silver Key Honor Society is a student service honor society established at MassBay to recognize the various contributions made by students to the College and to the greater community.  The criteria for the Silver Key Award are community service and volunteerism – essentially selfless actions that benefit others. Candidates for the Silver Key Award are nominated by a faculty or staff member and induction is determined by a special Silver Key Honor Society Committee. Recipients of the Award are part of the MassBay Silver Key Honor Society. Students are selected based upon service, leadership, active participation, and the unselfish giving of time, energy, and ability over an extended period of time. Silver Key awardees must also be maintaining a satisfactory level of academic progress (2.3 cumulative GPA).

Recipients In alphabetical order:

• Sabrina  Beach Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA) 
• Vincent  Briselli - Science, Tech, Engineer & Math General Studies (AS) 
• Anna LeighMattox - Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA) 
• Karen A. Travins - Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA) 
• Ellen (Lena) Viazmitinov - Computer Science (AS) 

The Student Leadership Award represents the highest honor the College recognizes for community involvement. The recipient will receive a plaque and a monetary award. This award is presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding leadership, participation, and unselfish contributions to the College community. The selected individual must have been enrolled in a minimum of four semesters at MassBay, achieve a grade-point average of at least 2.75, and have distinguished him/herself by quality contributions of time and energy. This award is given to a student who “willingly gives of his/her time, energy, and skills in service to others.” The award winner is determined by a Faculty and Staff vote on the final candidates.

This Year’s Recipient:

• Sabrina Beach Liberal Arts - Psychology/Sociology (AA)

Sabrina’s nominators had this to say about her:
“Sabrina has provided exemplary leadership and actively contributed as a Peer Mentor, a LEAD program participant, a member of the Rotaract Club, a member of the Accessibility Committee and a Career Services intern. In the Spring of 2019, Sabrina participated in LEAD. She modeled for the other participants focused engagement and active listening. As a Peer Mentor, Sabrina worked with a fellow student to help her navigate her academic journey. She provided her mentee with support and resources for success. She became a trusted peer who her mentee knew she could turn to when challenges arose and offered her excellent guidance. Sabrina's unwavering positivity and willingness to help make her a joy to work with. She lights up the room and devotes full energy to the task at hand.”

The 29 Who Shine Award is given out annually by the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education recognizing 29 outstanding student graduates from the Commonwealth’s public higher education system, highlighting one student from each campus as the “29 Who Shine”. The graduates selected must show exceptional promise as future leaders in civic affairs or in business, will have a significant impact on the civic and economic wellbeing of the Commonwealth, is pursuing a career track that has demonstrated need in the state as a high-demand career, and plans to continue living and working in Massachusetts.

This year’s 29 Who Shine MassBay representative:

• Vincent  Briselli - Science, Tech, Engineer & Math General Studies (AS)

Vincent, a Norfolk, MA resident, is a full-time student who also works part-time as a licensed pharmacy technician, while also volunteering at Voices Against Violence, a sexual and domestic violence support center in MetroWest. He is heavily involved on-campus, serving as an orientation leader to welcome new students to campus, a senator in the Student Government Association (SGA), where he was nominated to be the diversity and inclusion liaison and worked on the Academic Affairs committee to expand access to Online Education Resources (OER) courses, and working on initiatives to bring domestic and sexual violence resources, like the White Ribbon Day campaign to campus. He is also a part-time tutor in the Academic Achievement Center (AAC) for STEM subjects, a part-time STEM laboratory assistant, a founding member of the Life Sciences club, and the student representative on the President’s Safe and Supportive Committee. Vincent is a member of the STEM Mentor Program and was selected to conduct research at UMass Boston this summer as part of the Bridges to Baccalaureate program and Sanofi’s Experiential Learning Opportunity over spring break.

In addition to his philanthropic and on-campus activities, Vincent has made Dean’s List every semester that he has been a full-time student. He is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society for two-year students and is a recipient of a MassBay IMPACT Award and a Silver Key Honor Society recipient for community services and volunteerism. Vincent will receive his Associate of Arts degree in general studies science in May, with a 4.0 GPA and will transfer to a four-year university to complete a bachelor of science in chemistry where he hopes to conduct research on sustainable energy, chemistry, and the environmental impact on at-risk populations. 

To learn more about MassBay visit www.massbay.edu

MassBay Community College is ranked by the Brookings Institution as one of the top schools for value added and earned salaries in the workforce. Ranked #1 for two-year colleges in Massachusetts, #2 in New England, and #16 nationally. The College’s facilities in Wellesley Hills, Framingham, and Ashland house day, evening and weekend classes that meet the needs of degree-seeking students and career minded lifelong learners. Online options provide convenience and allow faculty to facilitate the learning process. Since its founding in 1961, MassBay has been accredited by several governing bodies and strives to meet the needs of the diverse local communities it serves.