On Campus: Great Achievements By College Students From Ellington And Somers

ELLINGTON-SOMERS, CT — Here are some recent notable accomplishments by local college students, as provided by readMedia. More great feats will be noted as they are received in the coming weeks.

Bob Jones University, Greenville SC

• Sophia Landry, a resident of Somers, has been named to the Bob Jones University Symphonic Wind Band. Landry is a senior majoring in music. The Symphonic Wind Band is BJU's top-performing instrumental ensemble. Each year, performers audition by playing a group of excerpts taken from band literature or study etudes, scales, and sight reading unfamiliar music. Following that selection audition, a second audition is held for seating within the ensemble.

Champlain College, Burlington VT

• Ryan Rabida of Ellington was named to the Champlain College Online Dean's List for the summer 2025 semester. Students on the Dean's List have achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or higher during the semester. Rabida is currently majoring in cybersecurity.

Eastern Connecticut State University, Willimantic CT

• This summer, dozens of students from the Business Division at Eastern Connecticut State University sharpened their corporate expertise through a myriad of internships. Each student exercised various professional skills they learned at Eastern and applied them on-site. Sydney Dietz of Ellington, a senior majoring in business administration, interned as a floor supervisor at Longmeadow Country Club in Massachusetts. She credited business administration Professor Craig Erwin with supplying her with the necessary skills to take on this role - specifically, how to communicate and listen impactfully within the organization.

Southern New Hampshire University, Manchester NH

• Tyrek Pratt, Ryan Vickery and Sarah Owens, all of Ellington, were named to the summer 2025 Dean's List. The summer terms run from May to August. Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.500 to 3.699 for the reporting term are named to the Dean's List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

Tufts University, Medford MA

• Juliana Barbosa, Class of 2028 of Ellington, was named to the dean's list at Tufts University for the spring 2025 semester. Dean's list honors at Tufts University require a semester grade point average of 3.4 or greater.

University of Rhode Island, Kingston RI

• URI celebrated more than 3,500 of its newest alumni, including two from Ellington, during the its 2025 commencement ceremonies, which took place May 16-18, 2025. Elizabeth Lewis graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing, and James Sternat graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration in accounting and a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration in finance. Students who received the honor summa cum laude graduated with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.7.

Western New England University, Springfield MA

• Twenty area students were named to the Dean's List for the spring 2025 semester. From Ellington: Samantha Beaulieu, Alexandra Dzen, Joshua Goodman, Zachary Killoran, Maxwell Raymond, Nicholas Shepard and Cadence Sizer. From Somers: Simon Banas, Alyssa Degray, Alejandro Diaz, Kate Gebo, Kyle Hanley, Patrick Herrity, Emily Karabinis, Thomas Lesco, Mason Manzi, Mariela Nunez, Palmer Oliveri, Eliana Wood and Kaede Wood.