Five students receive SUNY Chancellor’s Award

Fredonia, N.Y. — April 10, 2008 — Five Fredonia students traveled to Albany April 7 to be honored by the State University of New York as recipients of the 2008 Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence.

The award is given to students who have demonstrated their abilities to integrate academic excellence with accomplishments in the areas of leadership, athletics, creative or performing arts, and community service. It was presented to each student by Interim Chancellor Dr. John B. Clark in a ceremony held at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center. Each student received a framed certificate as well as a medallion which may be worn during Fredonia’s commencement ceremonies on May 17. 


The students were among 275 honored from 62 campuses across the SUNY system. Fredonia received 20 student nominations from its faculty. Those were then reviewed by the Fredonia Cabinet, which was allowed to officially nominate up to five students (one per 1,000 undergraduates enrolled). Those students were then reviewed and evaluated again by the Chancellor’s Office.

Fredonia’s honorees include:

Alden Edson, a mathematics and mathematics education major from Honeoye, N.Y. Alden has received scholarships and awards in both math and education, served as project assistant for several grants, and is president of the Fredonia chapter of Kappa Delta Pi, an international honor society for education majors;

Scott Horsington, a music education and music performance major from Rochester, N.Y. Scott was the winner of the 2006 Fredonia Concerto Competition, and is a two-time All-American diver, earned at the 2007 and 2008 NCAA Championships. His extraordinary academic and athletic achievements were recognized statewide in November 2007 when he received the Dr. Sam Molnar Award, given annually by the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) to the male student-athlete with the best combination of athletic and academic ability in the conference;

Kathryn Kornacki, an English major from East Aurora, N.Y. Kathryn has served as vice president of the student association and as a resident assistant. An active member of the Honors College and University Senate, she has been involved in numerous community service activities and worked within Fredonia’s admissions department, where she supported the production of a campus recruitment video;

Ashley Lenz, an inclusive childhood education major from Lima, N.Y. Ashley has won many other academic awards, including the Robert E. Coon Recognition Award in 2007, which recognizes Fredonia’s top junior based on academic performance and campus involvement. She is also a member of Fredonia’s Alma Mater Society, the highest non-academic honor awarded to a student displaying outstanding character and leadership. She frequently speaks at admissions open house sessions for prospective students as well; and

Kathryn Tarnowski, an education major from Dunkirk, N.Y. Kathryn is a member of several honor societies, a student ambassador, and a recipient of two local and state academic scholarships. She works as a student assistant in the President’s Office, is a past president of her sorority, Sigma Gamma Phi, and has been involved in numerous campus and community service activities.