B.E.S.T. Program Gives Certificates to Area Students

Hudson, NY – The Columbia and Greene County Chambers of Commerce are pleased to announce that 55 students from Columbia and Greene Counties received the B.E.S.T. Program Certificate of Employability for completing the program based upon the guidelines provided to each school. Twenty-nine students from Questar, six students from Catskill, two students from Coxsackie-Athens and eighteen students from Taconic Hills received the certificate. The students were honored in a ceremony on May 13 at Columbia-Greene Community College .

The Columbia-Greene B.E.S.T., Business Employment Standards Transition Program certifies the work readiness of students so that when they apply for local employment or admission to college they can easily demonstrate that they have the skills, behaviors and knowledge necessary in the workplace and/or college. The B.E.S.T. Certificate is based on standards set by local area businesses. It verifies student's competence through an assessment of their academic performance, school attendance, community and career exploration activities. Each student's experiences are compiled into a portfolio that demonstrates the application of his/her skills.

The Columbia-Greene B.E.S.T. Program is operated in Catskill School District , Coxsackie-Athens School District , Taconic Hills School District and Questar III Educational Center . Local business participation is critical for the success of this project. Businesses are able to participate in a variety of different ways including internships, mentoring, job shadows, classroom skill development, portfolio reviews, etc.

The B.E.S.T. Program is funded by the Columbia Hudson Partnership and Greene County Economic Development and is supported by the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, Greene County Chamber of Commerce and the Workforce Investment Board of Columbia and Greene Counties .

The following students received the B.E.S.T. Program Certificate from Taconic Hills School District : Daniel Quinion, Ashley Goodacre, Jade Schmidt, Tess Meenagh, Miles Keil, Justin Taylor, Chelsea Halsted, Collin Brousseau, Brett Lilley, Janyce Preuss, Davon McNamee, Ahnia Young, Rihannah Darling, Amanda Traver, Peter Medici, Nick Warren, Daren Delamater and Nolan Boice.

The following students received the B.E.S.T. Program Certificate from Catskill School District : Katelyn Maggio, Ellen Story, Meranda O'Connor, Jessica Kelley, Stephanie Wilhelm, and Erin Hedges.

The following students received the B.E.S.T. Program Certificate from Coxsackie-Athens School District : Jocelyn Gao and Victoria Frisbee.

The following students received the B.E.S.T. Program Certificate from Questar III Educational Center: Justine Vezzuto – Cosmetology, Nicole Noll – Cosmetology, Mercedes Almstead – Cosmetology, Ashley Bernard – Cosmetology, Meghan Delaney – LPN, Kayla Tirpak – LPN, Christopher Taylor – HVAC, Quantaza Hinds – Early Childhood, Nicole Blish – Early Childhood, Kara Koblenzer – Early Childhood, Melissa Ryan – Business, Margaret Barris – Business, Christopher LaForge – New Visions, Tyler Perry – New Visions, Samantha Steenburn – New Visions, Kristopher Kornheisl – New Visions, Alexis Kutski – New Visions, Jessica VanAlstyne – New Visions, Sara Wood – New Visions, Jacob Godgart – New Visions, Nabilah Kabir – New Visions, Courtney Brandow – New Visions, Russell Jennings – Aviation, James Loring – Aviation, Michael West – Mechanical Tech and Matthew Miles – Criminal Justice.

For more information about the program contact the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce at (518) 828-4417.

The Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, with its 850 members, is the leading voice of business in Columbia County , providing advocacy, promotional and benefit solutions for its members. Those seeking more information concerning the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and membership can contact the Chamber at (518) 828-4417 or visit the website at www.columbiachamber-ny.com.