Record Number of Student-Veterans Graduating FSC
April 30, 2018
Farmingdale is graduating 36 student-veterans this spring, the most ever in recent memory. These former service men and women represent the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines . Of all SUNY schools, Farmingdale has the highest percentage of veterans among its student body.
Says Eric Farina, director of veterans affairs: “The program has really grown since I arrived in 2011. We had 10-12 veterans graduating each semester. With the downsizing of the military, the high concentration of vets on Long Island, and the expanded enrollment efforts of the college, we have seen a 38% growth in student-veteran enrollment. The efforts of the Student Veterans of America chapter on campus has probably had the greatest impact on veteran retention. The club officers are really self-starting go-getters who take the initiative to plan and carry out fun and different social activities off campus.”
The graduating student-veterans are:
Matthew Bay – Navy – Criminal Justice: Law Enforcement Technology
Matt Befumo – Army – Science, Technology & Society
Larry Perez – Navy – Computer Programming & Information Systems
Jason Clarke – Marines – Business Management
Bobby Costic – Army – Sport Management
Christopher Chodkowski – Marines – Mechanical Engineering Technology
Kevin Beckford – Navy – Security Systems
Iurie Tonu – Army – Construction Management Engineering Technology
James Finch – Navy – Science, Technology & Society
Nicholas Rufalo-Roaman – Army – Business Management
Tevon Simpson – Air Force – Aviation Administration
Chris Meza – Marines – Business Management
Fernando Wong – Marines – Security Systems
Christopher Lang – Army – Criminal Justice: Law Enforcement Technology
Sachella Higgins – Army – Science, Technology & Society
Alaine Bell – Air Force – Criminal Justice: Law Enforcement Technology
Marouane Guidi – Army – Aviation Administration
Aaron Franqui – Army – Electrical Engineering Technology Management
Ambar Davidson – Army – Science, Technology & Society
Carl DeRosa – Army – Construction Management Engineering Technology
Petersen Macelus – Navy – Electrical Engineering Technology Management
Lukas Bates – Navy – General Horticulture
Brian Carle – Marines – Criminal Justice: Law Enforcement Technology
Eric Cohen – Science, Technology & Society
Joseph Degennaro – Army – Mechanical Engineering Technology
Sean English – Security Systems
Christopher Freudenberg – Army – Criminal Justice: Law Enforcement Technology
Jonathan Iannazzo – Mechanical Engineering Technology
John Kagel – Sport Management
Patrick McGrory – Army – Aeronautical Science: Professional Pilot
Pavel Pimentel – Electrical Engineering Technology Management
Joshua Samuels – Medical Technology
Michelle Santiago – Army – Aviation Administration
Bryan Ulrich – Computer Programming & Information Systems
Surafel Yilmakassaye – Electrical Engineering Technology Management
Joseph Young – Army – Business Management
