SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence 2022

SUNY’s Highest Student Honor

The State University of New York honored 180 students from 61 campuses as part of the 2022 Chancellor’s Awards for Student Excellence (CASE). CASE is the highest honor awarded to SUNY students who have best demonstrated academic excellence and leadership. Awardees were honored at a ceremony in April at the Hall of Springs in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Corina Picon

Hailing from Irvington, NY, Corina Picon is a psychology major graduating this May with a 4.17 GPA. Her nomination file attests to her numerous accomplishments, academic excellence, leadership, campus involvement, community service, and career aspirations.

Picon was selected by the faculty to serve as a learning assistant in the rigorous psychology research methods class. She is the president of the Psychology Club, organizing and running more than 10 events this semester alone. Picon has interned with the Purchase Leadership and Bystander Intervention Program and the Career Development Center, both counseling roles, and serves off-campus as a dedicated volunteer for BBBS (Big Brothers Big Sisters) and other agencies.

Laila Wilson

Laila Wilson, from Freeport, NY, completed her BA a semester early, majoring in playwriting and screenwriting with a minor in psychology and film/video production. Wilson produced the Purchase 2020 Point of View Festival, which brought together students across many disciplines to showcase new student work in inventive ways in the midst of the pandemic. She is a YoungArts screenplay winner and the recipient of the SUNY ACT Scholarship as well as the student representative for Purchase College at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, where she was also selected to be the Playwriting Intensive writer, administrative intern, and ASPIRE/LORT Fellow.

“Now more than ever, it is time to celebrate the accomplishments of our students who have helped one another get through this global pandemic and focus on getting the most out of their college education, and this year’s CASE winners are at the top of the class,” says SUNY Interim Chancellor Deborah F. Stanley.

“It is my great honor to celebrate the fortitude, leadership, and achievements of this year’s winners, and I applaud their hard work and desire to do more for their campuses and fellow students. I, for one, can’t wait to see what they do next.”