The Voice

DeFayette

Hope

Tam

Two students from SUNY Potsdam and one from SUNY Binghamton have earned this year’s UUP scholarships.

Receiving the one-time, $2,000 scholarships are:

• Seth DeFayette, a senior at SUNY Potsdam majoring in archeology and French;
• Sarah Hope, a junior at SUNY Potsdam majoring in music business and sociology, with a minor in society and human services; and
• Tsz Ting Tam, a junior majoring in political science and management at SUNY Binghamton.

“These students were carefully selected by the Scholarship Selection Committee from approximately 100 applicants,” said Secretary Eileen Landy. “It was very difficult to choose this year’s recipients out of such an impressive group of applicants.”

The scholarship was created in the 1980s and is given to students who excel academically and who are dedicated to the community and the goals of unions.
Seth DeFayette first discovered his passion for social activism when he joined his school’s oration team. The first speech he wrote was on the pros and cons of a vegetarian diet. Since then, DeFayette has become a vegetarian, the president of an animal welfare group, and a working member of two food co-ops.
DeFayette spent a semester as a teaching assistant for an archaeology lab and was an intern for the Mountain Lake Public Broadcasting System’s fine arts auction.

He is also creator and editor of the Potsdam Modern Language Zine; a member of both the college’s French and Anthropology clubs; a tutor for Literacy Volunteers of Northern New York; and a talented soprano clarinet player in the Crane School of Music.

DeFayette has a grade point average of 3.83.

Sarah Hope is a gifted piano player in the Crane School of Music at Potsdam. She is involved in the Crane Student Association, which is the music school’s student government. She is also coordinator of concert production for the college’s record label, Madstop Records.

Carol Britt, coordinator of music business and executive director at the Crane Institute for Music Business, believes Hope “will find a way to combine her passions for music business and sociology in a way that is of great benefit to society.”

Hope has a grade point average of 3.82.

Tsz Ting Tam came with her family from Hong Kong to the United States when she was two years old.

“My parents emigrated to the U.S. because they wanted to provide me with better access to a college education,” Tam said. “I want to use my degree as well as any knowledge I’ve incurred to help them, along with many in their position to secure a safer workplace environment and better wages.”

Last semester, Tam worked with UUPer David Cingranelli, a professor of political science, helping him to research worker rights protections around the globe.

Tam is a member of the Boys and Girls Club at Binghamton, the Catalysts for Intellectual Capital and the Binghamton Debate Team. She is also a tutor at the Center for Academic Excellence. As a Discovery Advisor, Tam helps incoming students get accustomed to student and academic life.

Tam has a grade point average of 3.93.

“These three scholarship winners have proven themselves to be very deserving of this honor through their dedication to their campuses and their communities,” said UUP President Phillip Smith. “They embody everything that UUP represents and are truly impressive and inspiring students.”

— Julia Patane