1972
Decades ago you had to be a resident of New York City to attend the City College of New York. There was an exception made for residents of New York State, who were not residents of New York City, and this exception allowed me to join the CCNY community as a freshman in 1968. Coming to CCNY was walking out of my small-town existence into New York City. I met students from many different backgrounds. I joined a House Plan, enjoyed new friendships, and went on some trips. Howard Accurso and I were music majors. We met in a practice room, where I was playing the piano. I didn't know Howard very well at the time, but he came in there, looking for another girl, and he met me. That was the beginning of our relationship. We married in 1976 and we will be celebrating our 45-year wedding anniversary in June 2021. I have fond memories of the Music Department. One of my best memories was being part of a class called Music 90, where I had piano lessons for the first time in my life. After graduating in 1972, I moved to a small apartment on West 87th Street, and then I moved with Howard to the Hotel Belleclaire. I have worked in brokerages, banks, and freight forwarders' offices and I've volunteered for the CUNY Graduate Center and for Planned Parenthood of New York City. My most meaningful job was working for the City College Fund from 2004 to 2005, when I helped to launch the City College and Bronx Science Scholarship Project. I knew that just as it was for the students from my own undergraduate days, today's students need access to the excellence of a quality education, regardless of their financial limitations. When I visit the campus, I like to look up at the gargoyles on the North Campus Quadrangle buildings. It seems to me that these figures are both sneering and beckoning. They seem to be saying, ‘There is treasure within these walls. This treasure is the knowledge that you seek. Come inside! But know that what and how much you uncover here will be up to you!’