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Hamilton is among several New York State colleges that administer the Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program, known on the Hill as simply “the Opportunity Program” or just “OP.” The Opportunity Program, designed to support students whose transition from high school to college may be made more difficult by their educational, socioeconomic, or personal circumstances, helps 30 to 40 new students each year acclimate to the College’s academic standards and social life.

Brenda Davis, associate director of Opportunity Programs, was recently awarded the Arthur O. Eve Human Relations Award at the Higher Education Opportunity Program Professional Organization (HEOP-PO) conference in Buffalo. This award is given to an individual who “champions the issues of inclusion, access, and success while making post-secondary opportunities available to historically underrepresented students through their efforts at their institution and through their advocacy at the state level.”

In further (happy) evidence that life has returned to normal on College Hill, the first influx of accepted members of the Class of 2025 has arrived. The 42 students, who are part of the College’s Opportunity Programs, are spending five jam-packed weeks getting introduced to Hamilton’s academic rigor and, with support, building a personalized foundation for success.

At last Saturday’s Commencement, Diamond Jackson’s ’21 four busy years at Hamilton came to an end. She served as the chair of the C. Christine Johnson Voices of Color Lecture Series, co-president of the Black & Latinx Student Union, supervisor at the Academic Center for Excellence (ACE), HEOP summer residential assistant, and as a student researcher, completing Emerson, Kirkland, and Levitt Center projects.

President David Wippman announced the Beverly S. and Eugene M. Tobin Employee Award recipients, and the Wertimer-Couper Award winner at the May 5 virtual Staff Assembly.

New Director of Opportunity Programs Aaron Ray credits his grandmother, Vena Ray, as the inspiration for everything he does.

Marquis Palmer, a 2018 Hamilton graduate from Utica, N.Y., has been selected to receive a Marshall Scholarship, one of the most competitive and prestigious postgraduate scholarships awarded to U.S. citizens.

When Josie Collier ’97, P’14 learned that she would be taking over as president of Hamilton’s Alumni Association starting next month, she was hit with a mix of emotions from excitement to anxiety. After all, her work as a longtime volunteer fostering connections among previously disengaged alumni had largely been done quietly behind the scenes. Now everyone would be looking to her to develop partnerships on a larger level.

The Class of 1980 is honoring one of its own, Phyllis Breland, by creating an endowed scholarship to support the student opportunity she has worked for throughout her career at Hamilton.

Anyi Rescalvo was selected as a Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU) student cabinet member representing Hamilton. In that role, she attended CICU’s Student Cabinet and Student Aid Advocacy Days on Feb. 10 and 11 in Albany, N.Y.