Erie 1 BOCES Monthly Spotlight: March 2023
Contributor: I.D.E.A Committee
Greetings,
We hope that you enjoy reading this month's E1B Staff Spotlight. The purpose of this activity is to get to know our colleagues better, create meaningful connections, build relationships, create a strong sense of community and celebrate our differences! Please consider participating by clicking and completing this short E1B Spotlight (submission form). Your spotlight will not get posted until you preview it and give final approval. Please note that the information that you choose to provide will be posted internally, featured in the Monthly Inside Story Newsletter; and externally on our public webpage. Please use your discretion & only share information that you feel comfortable having shared publicly. Any questions please contact Nicole Kerner, nkerner@e1b.org
Warm Regards,
The I.D.E.A Culture & Climate Subcommittee
Hi my name is Amanda Cammarano. I am the Communications and Partnerships Coordinator for the WNYRIC. I work to improve communication systems, create greater brand recognition and help the WNYRIC’s teams become effective and intentional communicators. I came to E1B after working in communications and marketing for the Erie County Fair and the Lexington Co-op. I have been at Erie 1 BOCES for one year.
I was born and raised in Buffalo. I briefly ventured outside of Buffalo to attend college in Rochester and for an internship in Disney World. I enjoyed escaping to sunny Orlando for one winter, but missed my family and my city too much to stay.
I live in the city with my boyfriend and our two corgis, Shorty and Einstein. Outside of work I enjoy reading, cooking, thrifting, kayaking and playing board games. In the winter, I exclusively watch what most would consider bad TV; unless of course the Bills are playing. If you ever see a preview for a show and say “who would watch that?!,” the answer is me! I would and probably do. I listen to all types of music, but my favorite artist is Eric Church. My brother and I have seen him more than a dozen times in eight different cities. It’s our way to spend time together and explore new places!
I surveyed my family members in a group chat as to how they would describe me. Some of the more positive descriptions included: kind, loyal and caring. However, they also described me as loud and accident prone. Then my mom had a typo that said I was “adoptable”, and the chat devolved into chaos from there..LOL. She meant adaptable. I think...
Hi! I'm Vicki Forcucci. I was given the name Victoria Elizabeth because my mother wanted me to have a regal name. The closest I ever got to royalty was being prom queen. I have one older sister and one older brother.
After being a stay-at-home mom for many years, I came to BOCES almost 15 years ago. I started out in Policy Services which is where I remain today as the Sr. Clerk Typist. I like that in Policy we serve districts all across the state, not just locally.
Aside from one year in Southern California, I have lived in Hamburg. More recently though, I moved to Lancaster. A little less snow, but not by much. My two grown sons are third generation Frontier graduates. I'm very fortunate that they have decided to stay in WNY. I get to spend a lot of time with them, my daughters-in-law and my “grandimals". In addition to spending time with my family, I like to binge watch a good TV show and travel, although I haven't been anywhere since the pandemic. I would rather explore somewhere new than go to the same place twice. My farthest destination has been Japan.
Those closest to me would probably describe me as organized, funny and extremely loyal.
Hello my name is Constance Kick, but everyone calls me Connie. My mom originally wanted to name me Victoria after my grandmother, but then thought she would also need to use my other grandmother's name as my middle name. She decided Victoria Sophie Kolek was just too Polish sounding. Thanks Mom for changing your mind.
I work in the Technology Services Division on the SMS programming team as a Sr. Systems Analyst. I support the eSchoolData team mostly and help them with behind the scenes data manipulation, reports, extracts, etc. I also work with our districts in setting up Zaps and API that are used to integrate with third party vendors. I love being able to assist our team and the districts we service.
As for how I came to work for Erie 1, when I was in high school, I attended Harkness and was enrolled in the Data Processing course that was offered. Upon graduation, we were offered interviews at various companies. At the time, Erie 1 BOCES was hiring temporary summer help positions in the data entry department. After a 5 minute interview, I was surprised to find out that I got the job. I worked that summer doing mostly data entry. One day when it was slowing down in Data Entry, the programming manager at the time (Susan Robinson), asked if I would like to work "upstairs" in the programming department to see what it was like. I gladly accepted her offer because I was going to be starting my programming degree program at Buffalo State College that Fall. After working in the department for about a week, the manager said she would see what she could do about keeping me on. I ended up working part-time during the school year and full-time during all my breaks as a programmer trainee. After graduation from college, I was promoted to Sr. Computer Programmer. And the rest is history. I’m proud to say that in July, I have been at Erie 1 BOCES for 38 wonderful years!
I was born in Buffalo and have lived in various suburbs including Clarence, Lockport and most recently Depew. I was a Clarence HS graduate. I am a very blessed and proud mom of 3 grown sons. The last 2 are twins and my eldest is a youth pastor in Pittsburg where I visit my 2 year old grandson Elijjah. I enjoy making crafts and run a crafting group through my church called ‘Crafting for a Cause’. Our group has made Fidget Blankets for Alzheimer patients, Easter gifts for Children's Hospital during the pandemic, and crafts for a local ministry's annual fundraising craft show. Our latest outreach is making drawstring backpacks for the homeless filled with various personal items. I also have volunteered with and been hired as an Event Coordinator by the Buffalo office for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. I have helped organize their annual 100 mile bike ride as well as worked their fundraising gala. I love any kind of outreach to the community. I also organize an annual community-wide Easter Egg Hunt at my church of and have done so for over 20 years along with doing all the logistical planning for our church's VBS. I also serve on our Church council. To say the least, I am quite busy!
Friends and family often refer to me as the Energizer Bunny, I am always doing something. I don't like to be bored. I often said that if I was a stay at home mom, I would have had a very clean house and fat kids as on days off, I can often be seen cleaning, cooking and baking.