SUNY honors student for overcoming obstacles

Joshua Bauer received the Norman R. McConney Jr. Award for Student Excellence from SUNY for his resilience and academic achievements.

Joshua E. Bauer of Interlaken, a business administration major at Finger Lakes Community College, was among 46 State University of New York students honored in April with the Norman R. McConney Jr. Award for Student Excellence.

The award recognizes students in the SUNY Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) for their academic merit and strength in overcoming significant personal obstacles.

Bauer, 20, who is scheduled to graduate with his associate degree on May 20, is a 2021 graduate of South Seneca High School. Bauer’s aspiration is to become a helicopter pilot and pursue a career in aerial cinematography and drone photography despite significant medical and financial issues.

He underwent heart surgery to relocate his pacemaker to a position that would give him a higher chance of meeting the medical standards required by the Federal Aviation Administration for becoming a helicopter pilot. He also is receiving botox injections into the muscles surrounding his eyes every three months to mitigate a condition that causes eyelid spasms, which would disqualify him from being a pilot.

“For some people, if they experienced what Joshua has, it would cause them to give up or limit their life,” said Lisa Thomas, director of the EOP program at FLCC, in her nomination. “Joshua has shown time and time again that nothing will stand in the way of his goals. He manages to earn academic honors all while balancing his entrepreneurial adventures, health problems and financial challenges.”

Bauer is a member of the FLCC Psychology and Engineering clubs. He started an online wholesaling company in 2022 called Exispace and volunteered as a Google-endorsed Gold Product Expert on the Google sites help forum from 2020-2022.

“My time at FLCC has been instrumental in teaching me a variety of skills that are helpful to owning your own business such as accounting practices, sales strategies, and legal considerations,” Bauer said. “I am privileged to have had the opportunity to attend this college and learn from the knowledgeable faculty at an affordable cost, before moving on to hopefully become a helicopter pilot as well as advance my businesses on the side.”

The Norman R. McConney Jr. Award for Student Excellence is named in memory of a graduate of the University at Albany and former assistant dean for special programs at SUNY. McConney (1946–2016) and former Assembly Deputy Speaker Arthur O. Eve helped create EOP as a statewide program.

Bauer attended an award ceremony in Albany on April 17 with Nicole Siegwarth, the EOP academic support outreach specialist.

Since its inception in 1967, the EOP has provided access, academic support, and supplemental financial assistance to students from disadvantaged backgrounds, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college. In its 56-year history, the EOP has served more than 80,000 students and evolved into one of the country’s most successful college access programs.