This year’s class of Leadership Columbia County recently visited the Columbia-Greene Educational Center for a tour, a panel presentation, and a lunch prepared by the Questar III Culinary Arts classes.
The panelists included James R. Campion, President of Columbia-Greene Community College, Heather C. Lansing, Co-Principal, Questar III’s Columbia-Greene Educational Center, Pastor James Eastland, Principal, Academy of Christian Leadership, Sue L.S. Brown, Elementary Principal, Germantown Central School and Alexandra F. Taylor, Director of Admissions at Hawthorne Valley School.
After a tour of the Center by Questar III Career Development Specialist Lynn Seftner, guests were treated to a gourmet lunch prepared and served by the Culinary Arts students, supervised by Instructor Peter Desmond. Chef Desmond noted: “For students to plan, prepare, cook and provide wait service for a business lunch for visitors in our building provides my junior and senior classes with a real-life experience that will help them be better prepared for both internships and future employment opportunities.”
Leadership Columbia County is a dynamic, community-based program designed to develop informed, action-oriented leaders to meet the future challenges of our area. Each month, the group focuses on a different theme, with the March agenda being Education. Coordinator Amy Kneller of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce stated “Leadership Columbia County is a wonderful opportunity for professionals to discover and achieve a more in-depth understanding of many issues and opportunities available in Columbia County. We appreciate the information shared today by these educational leaders, and the hospitality offered each year by Questar III.”
This year’s class includes: Suzanne Bressler, Camphill Villate USA: Christine Bower-Kirch, COARC-The Starting Place; Catherine Carlson, Columbia-Greene Community College; Jeffrey VanGorden, Columbia Memorial Hospital; Nina Fingar, Fingar Insurance; Lisa Benfield, First Niagara Bank; Lisa Marchesani, Hudson-Catskill Newspapers; Megin Miller, Christina Schober, Kinderhook Bank; Amy Arneson, Special Needs Program, Inc.; Christopher Pierro, Jeffrey Browne, Kathleen Proper, Taconic Farms Inc.; Jennifer Wall, The Alternative Board; Amy Conte, The Bank of Greene County.
