Chancellor King Announces SUNY College Access Ambassadors Program

September 18, 2026

In Support of Governor Hochul’s Universal FAFSA Law, SUNY Will Leverage the Expertise of High School Counselors to Assist Incoming Students in Completing Financial Aid Applications

Albany, NY — State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced the College Access Ambassadors program. Through this program, SUNY will leverage the expertise of high school counselors to spread the message about the importance of assisting aspiring and incoming college students across the state in completing necessary financial aid paperwork, including the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

“Completing applications for the FAFSA and other forms of financial aid is a vital part of ensuring prospective students can find their place at SUNY,” said SUNY Chancellor King. “Through initiatives like the College Access Ambassadors, SUNY is ensuring New Yorkers have the resources they need to complete their financial aid forms. The dedicated high school counselors selected to be College Access Ambassadors will help connect students to financial aid, so they can achieve their dreams through an affordable, excellent SUNY education.”

The SUNY Board of Trustees said, “Ensuring that students understand what federal and state financial aid opportunities are available to them is a crucial part of making higher education accessible. The College Access Ambassadors will help support potential students and increase their access to the tools they need to complete their financial aid applications so they can make their goals a reality, and we are grateful to Governor Kathy Hochul and the State Legislature for their steadfast support of initiatives like these, so our students can reach their full potential.”

More than half of SUNY resident undergraduate students attend tuition-free thanks to federal, state, and institutional financial aid, and 36 percent of SUNY students receive Pell grants. However, students can only access financial aid if they complete the necessary paperwork, including the FAFSA.

High school counselors play an essential role in closing the financial aid gap. One study of 23,000 college-bound high school students found that 87 percent of those who met with a counselor completed the FAFSA, compared to 59 percent who did not meet with a counselor. The impact was even greater for first-generation students. To strengthen college-going and FAFSA completion efforts across New York State, SUNY is recognizing, elevating, and leveraging the expertise of high school counselors doing exceptional work in these areas by naming the inaugural cohort of SUNY College Access Ambassadors.

This group of 14 individuals, selected from a competitive pool of more than 125 applicants, represents high school counselors doing exceptional college access work with students and families in every region across the state. Throughout the year as SUNY’s inaugural cohort of College Access Ambassadors, these individuals will help strengthen college-going and FAFSA completion efforts in schools and communities across New York State by sharing the strategies and practices that have helped their students successfully navigate the path to college.

The program recognizes and supports counselors demonstrating strong early college access work, including driving high FAFSA completion rates and rates of college-going among their students. Selected counselors are beginning their appointments with the start of the new school year, including:

  • Lauren Bristol, Schenectady High School in Schenectady City School District
  • Annemarie Cervoni, Orchard Park High School in Orchard Park Central School District
  • Amy Daniels, Plattsburgh High School in Plattsburgh City School District
  • Nina Darnell, Union Springs Central High School in Union Springs Central School District
  • Erica Dejesus-Corporan, Roosevelt High School Early College Studies in Yonkers City School District
  • Shaniece Devieux, Democracy Preparatory Harlem High School in New York City Community School District #5 in Manhattan
  • Matthew Driscoll, North Rockland High School in North Rockland Central School District
  • Cindi Isshiki, Francis Lewis High School in New York City Geographic District #26
  • Marissa Kropp, Belmont Preparatory High School in New York City Geographic District #10
  • Melissa Lewis, Math, Engineering, and Science Academy in New York City Geographic District #32
  • Marilyn Marsilio, East Hampton High School in East Hampton Union Free School District
  • Amelia San Jorge, High School of Fashion Industries in New York City Geographic District #2
  • Lindsay Towne, Tri Valley High School in Tri-Valley Central School District
  • Thomas Wescott, Owego Free Academy in Owego Apalachin Central School District

State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, said, “The people supporting our students in schools every day are on the frontlines and are some of the most qualified to guide student access. This program is a critical component of our efforts to increase student enrollment in SUNY by formalizing counselors’ experiences and methods into strategies schools from across the state can learn from and implement. I thank Chancellor King and my colleagues in the Legislature for working together on this, and congratulations to the counselors selected for the inaugural cohort.”

State Assemblymember Alicia L. Hyndman, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Higher Education, said, “I strongly support the SUNY College Access Ambassadors program. Any initiative that helps high school students gain better access to higher education is worth backing, especially when it comes to aid with financial assistance. I want to thank SUNY Chancellor John B. King and the SUNY Board of Trustees for putting this initiative on the forefront as high school seniors prepare to attend college and university next.”

State Assemblymember Marianne Buttenschon said, “High school counselors serve as a critical conduit for higher education, especially for first-time and first-generation students navigating the complexities of financial aid. By empowering them as College Access Ambassadors, SUNY is widening the doors of opportunity for students across the state.”

Governor Hochul introduced legislation, which was passed in the FY2025 Enacted State Budget, requiring universal FAFSA completion beginning in the 2024-25 academic year for graduating high school seniors in an effort to boost completion rates. The FY2025 budget also included the doubling of New York States Tuition Assistance Program’s (TAP) minimum award from $500 to $1,000, increased the maximum income threshold from $80,000 to $125,000 for dependent students, and increased the independent student maximum income threshold from $10,000 to $30,000.

SUNY has taken numerous steps to assist students and their families in applying for financial aid to make college more affordable, including:

  • Hosting virtual and in-person FAFSA completion workshops, held in both English and Spanish, to help families complete the FAFSA;
  • Working with State partners to develop and promote online resources, including print-ready resources for counselors and students to help guide them through the financial aid process and;
  • Continued engagement of the SUNY FAFSA Completion Corps, an AmeriCorps funded program through which current SUNY students support prospective students and their families with FAFSA completion, that began in October 2023 with 50 students and has grown to 70 students at 14 SUNY campuses.

About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.

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