Three from Fisher recognized as Outstanding Adult Student Awards

Three students from St. John Fisher College— Gregory Bartholomew, Ina Buga, and William Maskrey —were recipients of the 2020 Outstanding Adult Student Awards given by the Rochester Area Colleges Continuing Education Association (RACCE).

The RACCE Outstanding Adult Student Award recognizes students who successfully balance academic excellence, service to the community, and the many competing responsibilities and obligations of adult life.

Bartholomew transferred as a full-time student into St. John Fisher College in fall 2018 after serving five years of active duty as a sergeant in the U.S. Army. He is the recipient of a number of honors, including the Humanitarian Service Medal, three Army Achievement Medals, the Army Good Conduct Medal, and a Letter of Appreciation from the Secret Service, Presidential Protective Division.

While attending Fisher, he is also a full-time dad. He volunteered to a Teach Seeds of Success program to 2nd graders at Rochester School No. 57, presented multiple times to a 6th grade class at Newark Middle School, and currently works as a philosophy tutor and volunteers at LifePoint Church.

Bartholomew completed his bachelor’s degree, with a major in philosophy and a minor in ethics. Next year, he plans to begin the master’s in mental health counseling program at Fisher.

Fourteen years ago, Buga graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and became a loan officer. She liked her work, but elected to leave it behind when she emigrated from Moldova five years later and came to the United States. She worked in a variety of jobs while learning English, and entered Fisher’s full-time Doctor of Pharmacy program in fall 2016.

In addition to her role as a student, she is a wife and mother of a kindergartener. She currently works part-time as an inpatient pharmacy intern for the University of Rochester Medical Center, Strong Memorial Hospital. She volunteers with UR’s Well Clinic at St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center, which serves under and uninsured. She also served as a teaching lab assistant and has held leadership positions with student chapters of the Student National Pharmaceutical Association and American Society of Health System Pharmacists. Upon graduation, she hopes to become a clinical pharmacist practicing in a hospital system.

After earning his associate degree in business administration from Finger Lakes Community College, Maskrey transferred into Fisher’s School of Business. A human resources major, he brought with him over 15 years of work experience across multiple industries and markets.

While at Fisher, Maskrey has served as a work-study student for the School of Business and Religious Studies Department. Last fall, he picked up a 35-hour per week position as an assistant manager in retail. He served as Fisher’s chapter president for the Society of Human Resource Management and as vice president of professional activities for Fisher’s Delta Sigma Pi chapter.