EDBLog February 2026 – Westchester Community College Foundation

From the Desk of the Executive Director, Dolores Swirin-Yao

February 2026

Longtime SUNY WCC supporter Con Edison hosted its “Power of Giving Forum,” convening its nonprofit partners to “connect, collaborate, and learn more about our vision for a clean energy future that benefits all New Yorkers.” Subjects included safety during the current blizzard recovery, assistance programs for low-income customers, Con Edison’s broad workforce development efforts, and the company’s work to respond to power needs for electrical vehicles.

Chairman, President, and CEO of Con Edison **Tim Cawley** addressed the representatives of community partners at an overflowing room at Civic Hall in Manhattan.

Con Edison Talent Manager **Ruberstein Jean-Louis** spoke about the company’s talent management activities in partnership with community organizations.

SUNY WCC Professor **Richard Vaninwegen** and me with Con Edison Corporate Affairs Manager **Michael Pinto** and Clean Energy and Tech Workforce Partnerships Manager **Kaila Wilson** at the grantee gathering.

Community Impact and Engagement Leader **Joeanne Walker** greets grantees.

SUNY WCC had a rich selection of programming for the 100^th anniversary of Black History Month. I just got to a sampling of the events, some virtual and some in person.

Harlem Renaissance: 101 Year Commemoration! Presenters: Dr. Carla Dubose-Simons & Dr. Mark Lewin.

A short film, “Ain’t No Back to a Merry-Go-Round,” about protests to desegregate the Glen Echo Amusement Park, including the role of American Jews as allies in the struggle.

This year’s Black History Month honorees.

The commemoration culminated in a celebration at which the Black History Month Committee presented the Dr. Julius Ford Outstanding Service Award to Steven Dussuaud (a SUNY WCC student), Prof. Franklin Asante, Dana Carter, Sean Cole, Mary Ann Davis, Versella Morgan, Prof. Terry Haynes, Prof. Iskra Hernandez, Jeffrey Hyman, and Alfredo (Quinn) Quinones.

The Center for Financial and Economic Education (CFEE) promotes economic advancement for students at Westchester Community College through programs that build critical skills around money management and financial decision-making. CFEE presented a workshop on “Values, Financial Goals and Goal-Setting.”

Assemblyman Chris Burdick and Assemblywoman Dana Levenberg presented proclamations to Westchester Community College Foundation board member Shirley Acevedo-Buontempo on her retirement as Founding Executive Director of Latino U College Access (LUCA).

This event was actually on January 30, after the January blog was posted, but I did not want to miss recognizing the extraordinary engagement of the alumni in the Robert R. Wiener Center for Excellence in Cybersecurity, who gathered for an annual reunion hosted by Center Director and SUNY WCC alumnus John Watkins and Alumni Engagement Director Michelle Schleibaum.