Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, Honored as “Friend of CUNY”

Earlier this week Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Chairwoman of the Higher Education Committee, was honored as a “Friend of CUNY” by the Professional Staff Congress/CUNY during a Belle Zeller Scholarship Trust Fund virtual event. The PSC thanked the Senator for her fervent support of the City University of New York during her more than twenty years in the senate.

Senator Stavisky’s deep rooted connection to the CUNY system dates back decades. The Senator completed graduate courses at both Hunter College and Queens College after graduating from Syracuse University. And, as she explained in her acceptance speech, the CUNY system played a pivotal role in the life of her late husband, Senator Leonard Stavisky.

“I consider myself a Friend of CUNY for many years,” says Stavisky. “I will never forget the fact that my husband was a proud graduate of City College. Without City College and free tuition he could have never gone to college. There are so many people like him today. We have to make sure that CUNY not only exists, but survives and flourishes.”

The Belle Zeller Scholarship Trust Fund was established in 1979 by the Professional Staff Congress/CUNY, the instructional staff union of The City University of New York. The scholarship honors the founding president of the PSC, Dr. Belle Zeller. This year’s other honorees include New York Assembly Member Deborah Glick, and outgoing PSC CUNY and University Student Senate member Timothy Hunter. The event also recognized this year’s CUNY scholars.