Press Releases

May 01, 2000
Basketball Seniors Noel Diaz and Jay Bryant Honored for High Grades

Students From Disadvantaged Backgrounds Give College Try and Succeed

Contact:
Darren Johnson
(631) 287 8313
Fax: (631) 283 4081

Twenty-two students from disadvantaged backgrounds are now on pace to graduate from Southampton College of Long Island University with grades of "B" or better. In a recent ceremony, students from the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) were honored by Provost Timothy Bishop with symbolic stoles and pins for their accomplishments.

Noel Diaz of Middletown, NY, was one of the honorees. The graphic-arts major has a 3.34 GPA and is graduating cum laude May 21. Commencement speaker is famed musician Billy Joel. A graduate of Middletown High School, Diaz is very active in college life at Southampton: the 5-foot-6 point guard captained the basketball team. He also was president of the Concert Committee, served as Student Embassador and volunteered for campus groups La Fuerza Latina and Helping Hands. He is the son of Nancy Colon and Genaro Diaz.

Also honored was Jay Bryant of Queens, NY. The communication arts major is a graduate of Christopher Robbins Academy and has a 3.0 GPA. The son of Jack and Claudette Bryant, Jay, too, is scheduled to graduate May 21.

HEOP is a state-sponsored program aimed to help students from poverty and academically disadvantaged backgrounds succeed in college. At Southampton, HEOP students are greeted with intensive support services, including regular tutoring. The hard work has paid off especially for the 22 multicultural scholars whose grade point averages ranged from 3.0 (B) to a perfect 4.0 (A).

Southampton College gets its unique character from its beautiful location on the Atlantic in the heart of the popular Hamptons. Also, it has an intimate size of approximately 1500 undergraduate students and outstanding experiential education programs. The College has widely praised marine and environmental, writing and arts and media programs.