02/11/2025
Two SUNY Cortland psychology majors were chosen to be among the first nine statewide students chosen for the new SUNY Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) Career Development Internship Program. Cortland was the only SUNY campus to have more than one selected student.
Seniors Janielis Rivera Bauzo, of Manhattan, N.Y., and Kalyiah Haynes, of Brooklyn, N.Y. were in the inaugural group announced by SUNY Chancellor John B. King for a program designed to provide disadvantaged students with real-world experience and skill development within a field that aligns with their career goals.
“For over 50 years, the SUNY Educational Opportunity Program has been a driving force in student success and upward mobility,” King said. “The launch of the EOP Career Development Internship Program marks another significant milestone in SUNY’s mission to empower our incredible EOP students with the resources they need to thrive.”
Up to 50 eligible EOP students will be selected during the program’s first year and receive up to $5,000 each.
“We at EOP are thrilled for Kalyiah and Janielis as recipients of the Chancellor's new EOP Career Development Internship,” said Lewis Rosengarten, Cortland’s EOP director. “Both are high-performing students hailing from New York City, and are wonderful, hard-working, conscientious, deserving awardees. Having nominated them, we are gratified to know they are duly honored.”
Rosengarten said both students often came to his office to study and complete assignments.
When Bauzo first heard the news, she was overjoyed.
“It felt like the first step toward envisioning what my future could look like,” she said. “As an aspiring mental health counselor, my passion lies in helping people during their most challenging times. This internship gives me the invaluable opportunity to gain firsthand experience working with individuals in need, providing them with support and care. Without the support of EOP, I might never have known about this incredible opportunity.”
The program is designed to help students whose economic circumstances don’t allow them to forego getting a full-time job to support themselves while working as an intern.
Among the benefits of the new program will be personalized mentorship, financial support that helps the students develop personal budgeting, and support with accessibility issues to the program, like transportation. The program is made possible through funding allocated to SUNY by Empire State Development.
Cortland’s EOP program currently helps 90 students with strong academic and personal potential who would otherwise be excluded from higher education due to circumstances of academic under preparation and economic disadvantage.
“The value is great, even immeasurable,” Rosengarten said. “Entire families and communities are changed by it. These include families having never attended college, and folks who can only dream of the expenses involved to attend. Students go on to forge spectacular careers and light the path for others to follow. In my 30 years with opportunity programs, I’ve seen transformation and joy again and again. “
In selecting students for the program, priority is given to applicants from historically disadvantaged backgrounds who are the first generation to attend college. They enroll in the same coursework as traditional students and have access to financial assistance, a pre-first-year instructional program called the Summer Institute and EOP-specific counselors and tutoring.
To be eligible a student must be:
- A New York resident for 12 months before enrollment
- Ineligible for admission under traditional standards, but demonstrate potential for completing a college program
- In need of financial assistance within established income guidelines.
“Being part of the EOP program has been life-changing,” Bauzo said. “It has provided me with resources, guidance, and opened doors that ensure we have the same opportunities as any other student. Beyond that, EOP has built a strong community where I’ve formed lifelong friendships that I will always cherish."
Learn more about EOP at SUNY Cortland here.