Keuka College junior Aubrey Orloff has been named the Student Employee of the Year.

Orloff, a criminology/criminal justice and psychology major from Adams Center, was nominated for the Student Employee of the Year Award by Heather Bond, intake and transition coordinator for the Yates County ARC. She was honored at the recent Student Employee of the Year luncheon.

_{Aubrey Orloff (l) and nominator
Heather Bond}

Bond nominated Orloff for her work with the D.R.I.V.E.(diversity, responsibility, inclusion, vision and experiential learning) program, which has been a big success thanks to the dedication of  Keuka sophomores, juniors and seniors who are human services-related majors—psychology, occupational therapy, education and social work.

Orloff and her fellow students serve as peer mentors to young adults with developmental disabilities as they assimilate into the college environment and explore their personal goals. The program is funded by the Penn Yan Central School District, administered and coordinated by Yates County ARC and located on the Keuka campus.

According to Bond,“Aubrey has a maturity beyond her years.

“She treats every student in our program with the utmost respect and kindness,” said Bond. “She has the innate ability to see the skills and assets they bring to the campus. Aubrey is always on task and completes any assignment given to her without flaw. She never hesitates to participate no matter what we ask of her, and offers new ideas and suggestions to the team freely.”

Upon returning from her January Field Period, Orloff learned that her work study dollars were not sufficient to cover spring semesters hours. So, she offered to continue with the program as a volunteer for the rest of the academic year because she “enjoys the students and spending time with them,” said Bond.

Last semester, Orloff worked closely with a student that can be “rather challenging behaviorally, especially during periods of transition throughout the school day,” said Bond. “Despite this, Aubrey remained positive and creative, and did not allow herself to become frustrated with the situation. Aubrey has a confident yet gentle and reassuring approach that really gave this student the opportunity to explore and grow in the collegiate environment on her own terms.

“When Aubrey works with our students they are fully integrated into the campus without exception,” added Bond. “She does not hesitate to introduce the D.R.I.V.E. students to her friends and acquaintances on the campus, and has even offered to volunteer her time after work hours so that a student could come back to campus and participate in evening activies.”

According to Bond, the greatest testament to the quality of Orloff’s work is the response the D.R.I.V.E. students have had to her.

“Aubrey is highly regarded among all of our students, and they look forward to running into her on campus,” said Bond. “Aubrey’s smile is constant and infectious no matter what the circumstance, and she works very well in a team environment. Aubrey is very flexible and has adjusted to her D.R.I.V.E. student's needs quickly and efficiently.”

-- Gretchen Parsells