Distinguished Alumni

CCC Distinguished Alumni

Each year the CCC Alumni Association seeks nominations for our Distinguished Alumni Award presented at the May Graduation. The recipient is a platform guest and has the opportunity to address the graduates. The following is the criteria one must meet to be considered for the Distinguished Alumni Award:

Ø A graduate of Clinton Community College, or have taken a minimum of 24 credits.

Ø Has achieved a high level of professional success and is distinguished in their profession.

Ø Has made a meaningful contribution to their community/community service.

Ø Demonstrated an ongoing commitment to further education and/or professional development.

2004 Distinguished Alum Matt Bergeron

Matthew Bergeron, class of 1997 (center in photo) was chosen to receive the 2004 Distinguished Alumnus Award. Matt was a College Advanced Placement student in high school and graduated from CCC in 1997 with high honors in Humanities & Social Science. He served as president of the Student Senate, Assistant in the New York State Senate, and was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Matt then went on to become an outstanding student at Plattsburgh State earning a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science in 1999. Matt went on to graduate in the top 10% of his class from Albany Law School in 2002, augmenting his studies as a Senior Law Clerk for Research and Special Projects for New York State United Teachers during his time as a student.

In May of 2004, Matt practiced law as an Associate at Satter & Andrews LLP in Syracuse, NY. Within one year of entering practice, Matt’s firm, with a great deal of his input and hard work, argued and won a case in front of the highest court in the State of New York (the NYS Court of Appeals). Matt remains committed to community service, performing pro bono work for his law firm.

2003 Distinguished Alum Bosco McKinney

A Plattsburgh native, Bosco graduated with an Associates Degree in Art from CCC in 1984, under the instruction of Ellen Heyman. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration at Syracuse University in 1987. There he illustrated for the university newspaper, freelanced for magazines and also worked as a manager for the Syracuse University football team.

The medium of ink on illustration board came to Bosco at a very young age. However, he would not fully develop his recognizable style until the end of his studies at Syracuse University. Influenced by college professors Murray Tinkleman, Bob Dacey, Roger Demuth, John Vargo and master artists Frank Frazetta and Salvador Dali, Bosco’s work has evolved into surreal images of people, animals, and once in awhile, nature. It is difficult to define whether his creatures are wrapped as mummies or are we seeing muscles, veins and the blood coursing through their often headless bodies. In 2003, he was illustrating a version of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow replete with wildly grinning jack-o-lanterns, steeds with noses like steam engines, chaotic human action and headless horsemen. A satire on the human condition, his figures are not only bizarre and unusual, they evoke a kind of pathos, a sad humor at the situation. His subjects range from Adam and Eve to the travesty of OJ Simpson, eroticism to madness, frustration and rage.

Bosco lives in Plattsburgh with his wife, Karen and his daughter, Morgan, a talented eleven year old painter. He enjoys “simply creating” and tries to find time to draw each day. He credits his father, also a talented artist, with encouraging his passion for drawing from childhood.

Bosco's work has been recognized and awarded by many art organizations