David Hinson

JAMESTOWN [MEDIA RELEASE] – Jamestown High School is proud to announce its 2020 Commencement Speaker, David Hinson, a 1995 JHS alumnus. Mr. Hinson is currently an area scout for the Kansas City Chiefs, who won the 2020 Super Bowl. Due to COVID-19, Mr. Hinson will deliver a taped Commencement Address, which will be featured on the JPS website at www.jpsny.org/graduation beginning on Wednesday, June 24th.

“As an alumnus of Jamestown High School, it is truly an honor and privilege to be this year’s
commencement speaker,” said Mr. Hinson. “I cherish many great moments from JHS…walking down the halls with friends, the laughter shared on bus rides to track meets, celebrating with teammates after scoring a touchdown on the football field and many more. High school, with its highs and lows, leaves you with memories and friends you could not have made anywhere else.”

Mr. Hinson is in his fourth year as the Southeast Area Scout for the Kansas City Chiefs. Before joining the Chiefs, Hinson was the Midwest Area Scout for the Philadelphia Eagles. Prior to joining the
Eagles, Mr. Hinson served as a college area scout with the New York Jets, the Cleveland Browns and the New Orleans Saints. Hinson joined the Saints after three years with the Buffalo Bills, where he had been the team’s scout for the BLESTO scouting services. He was previously in the team’s player personnel department before being promoted.

A native of Jamestown, NY, Mr. Hinson played tailback for the University at Buffalo while earning a degree in business management. He was a standout prep running back at Jamestown High School, where he was an all-state athlete and was selected as the New York Player of the Year. While at JHS, Hinson rushed for over 2,200 yards, winning the Connelly Cup and the Buffalo News Player of the Year. Mr. Hinson helped lead JHS to their first state title.

“David Hinson has made JHS proud as a student, student athlete, and for pursuing achievement and success beyond high school,” said JHS Principal Dana Williams. “He is proof that a JHS diploma can get you wherever you want to go, even to a Super Bowl Championship.”

Jessica Goodell (image from alumni.fredonia.edu)

JAMESTOWN – A U.S. Marine Corps veteran and author will deliver the 2016 commencement address at Jamestown Community College’s Jamestown Campus on May 21.

Jessica Goodell earned a degree in social sciences from JCC in just two semesters, graduating at the top of her class and earning the college’s top social sciences award. She went on to earn a degree in psychology from the State University of New York at Fredonia and is in the final year of a doctorate program in counseling psychology at the University at Buffalo. She hopes to work with veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders and other combat-related mental illnesses.

Goodell’s book, Shade It Black, is a memoir chronicling her service as a member of the Marine Corps’ first officially declared mortuary affairs unit in Iraq.

The commencement program in Jamestown begins at 10 a.m. in the Physical Education Complex.

Goodell will also deliver the commencement address for JCC’s Cattaraugus County Campus ceremony, scheduled for May 20 at 7 p.m. in Olean.

That’s according to Governor Andrew Cuomo, who earlier this week announced that 17 additional companies will create 343 new jobs in New York State through StartUp NY.

These companies join 93 other businesses that already participate in the program.

None of the companies are located in Chautauqua County – which offers StartUp NY assistance at both Fredonia and JCC. However, the University at Buffalo is partnering with five new start-ups that state officials say will yield 39 new jobs in Erie County.

Earlier this month the state reported that in 2014, the first full year for StartUp NY, businesses participating in the program created 76 of the nearly 2,100 new jobs promised over the next five years. That drew criticism from state lawmakers, who seized on the report as evidence of its failures, criticizing the $53 million spent on advertising and marketing to promote it.

Supporters of StartUp NY, however, insist it is in its early stages and has great potential.

U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and NY Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul will lead a roundtable discussion on sexual assault on Monday, March 2 in Buffalo.

BUFFALO – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul will host a round table meeting at University at Buffalo Monday with students and officials from University at Buffalo and other Western New York area colleges, as well as survivors, advocates, and law enforcement to discuss bolstering efforts to combat sexual violence on college campuses.

Last week Gillibrand reintroduced a strengthened version of her bipartisan bill The Campus Accountability and Safety Act. The legislation would flip the current incentives of a broken system to provide real accountability and transparency from higher education institutions. It would also professionalize the response to and reporting of sexual assaults that occur on campuses to better protect and empower survivors of campus sexual violence.

According to data from the U.S. Department of Education, college campuses in New York reported 388 forcible sex offenses and over 5,000 offenses nationwide in 2013.

The presentation is a part of “Invest in Fresh,” a project sponsored by the Creating Healthy Places to Live, Work, and Play project at the Chautauqua County Health Network in partnership with the University at Buffalo.

All of those concerned about improving access to healthy, affordable, and culturally acceptable food in Jamestown are invited to attend.

The event is free of charge and open to the public and light refreshments will be served.