SUNY Plattsburgh alumnae to be feted for positive impacts

PLATTSBURGH | Three SUNY Plattsburgh alumnae will be honored for their work and commitment to the North Country during the university's North Country Celebration Thursday, April 30 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Warren Ballrooms, Angell College Center. Michelle LaBounty '91, Sandra Lashua '63, and Tina Potter '81 will receive the 2026 North Country Impact Award at the third-annual event for their "sustained, positive impact on the vitality of the North Country and its residents." Impact Award nominations were solicited from faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the university and were reviewed by the nominees' respective three academic school's award selection committee. Michelle LaBounty '91 LaBounty will receive the North Country Impact Award from the School of Business and Economics. After completing an associate degree in fashion merchandising and design from Cazenovia College, she earned her bachelor's in marketing from SUNY Plattsburgh, graduating cum laude. In 2000, she and her husband, Eric, purchased Plattsburgh Housing Outlet, which offers manufactured and modular homes in upstate New York and northern Vermont. Under their leadership, the business has received industry recognition, earning the title of Retailer of the Year from the Manufactured Housing Institute for the NorthEast/Mid-Atlantic States in 2003 and 2013 and receiving the New York Housing Association's Vanguard Award for Marketing Excellence and the Homes to Be Proud of Award. In her roles as vice president, marketing director and sales manager of the business, LaBounty has enabled many families to purchase their first home, working closely with customers to tailor to their needs and budget. HALLOWEEN FESTIVAL LaBounty brings her experience in merchandizing and design to the table, staging the models and designing custom home layouts. For 15 years, she coordinated a Halloween festival to benefit the Ronald McDonald House in Burlington, Vt., not only providing a safe space for North Country children and their families to trick or treat but raising more than $65,000 for the charity. LaBounty has also lent her expertise to various industry task forces, organizations and steering committees and has devoted numerous volunteer hours to North Country organizations, among which are the CVPH Foundation, City of Plattsburgh Zoning Board, City of Plattsburgh Pedestrian and Cycling Safety Committee and the parent/teacher organizations of Momot Elementary, Stafford Middle School, and Plattsburgh High School. In addition, LaBounty has enriched the lives of numerous students at her alma mater, sharing her professional insights as a guest speaker in SUNY Plattsburgh marketing courses, providing prizes for the 20th Annual Mark and Pearlie Rabin Memorial Golf Tournament, and funding two North Country Scholarships for education majors in honor of her late mother, Jeri Jo Linney '74. Sandra Lashua '63 Lashua will receive the North Country Impact Award from the School of Education, Health and Human Services. A native of Peru, N.Y., she earned her degree in early education from SUNY Plattsburgh, which led to a 34-year teaching career. Lashua taught fifth grade at the former Monty Street School (now Momot Elementary) in Plattsburgh before taking a position at the district's Stafford Middle School, where she was nominated for the Press-Republican's Best Teacher in the North Country award. She further mentored young people in her role as bowling coach at Plattsburgh High School and was nominated for the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference Holmes Sportsmanship Award in 1995. Since 2002, Lashua has been volunteering as a docent at the Plattsburgh State Art Museum, developing a special tour geared toward middle school students focused on Egyptian art and artifacts. The tour became so successful it was made an annual event for schools from Clinton, Essex, and Franklin counties. Lashua continues to volunteer at the museum and serves as president of the docents. VOLUNTEER HOURS A longtime member of the Peru Community Church, she has also devoted countless hours to organizing volunteer and fundraising efforts for the church community and serving as an elder on the church board and as an adult education leader. In addition, for more than 25 years, Lashua has served on the board of the Northeastern Zone, Retired Educators of New York, during nearly all of which holding the position of vice president for membership. Under her leadership, the Northeastern zone has repeatedly received statewide recognition for recruiting the highest number of new members. Lashua is active in RENY community service and fundraising efforts and is a recent recipient of the organization's Certificate of Distinction. Lashua also volunteers with the Make-A-Wish Foundation and CVPH and keeps a free library at her Peru home. Tina Potter '81 Potter will receive the North Country Impact Award from the School of Arts and Sciences. With a desire to work in the field of child protective services and help children and families at risk, she majored in sociology/human services at SUNY Plattsburgh and spent her final semester at the university interning at the Clinton County Department of Social Services. After graduating with her bachelor's in 1981, Potter, a native of Saratoga County, returned home and embarked on a 41-year career with the Saratoga County Department of Social Services. During her time there, she served in numerous roles, including that of commissioner, a position she held for 12 years before retiring in 2023. Under her leadership, the department was recognized by the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance for having the top-performing child support enforcement unit in the state among medium-sized counties. Prior to that, Potter served as the department's deputy commissioner for 17 years and was responsible for fostering community engagement, promoting positive relationships with other service providers in the community and providing leadership. WORKING RELATIONSHIPS Her tenure with the Saratoga County Department of Social Services is marked the working relationships she built with mental health professionals, providers of services for veterans and victims of domestic violence, homeless advocates, assisted living communities and many other service agencies aimed at improving the social health of the county. Her positive influence was also felt by the more than 200 employees at Social Services. Potter also served to influence policy development for critical programs in her community through her service on local advisory councils, such as Saratoga County's Public Health Advisory Committee and Local Early Intervention Coordinating. In addition, her community service includes volunteering with St. Mary's Youth Ministry and Make-A-Wish Foundation, as well as serving as a girl's basketball coach for the Capital District, Catholic Youth Organization and Amateur Athletic Union and as a soccer coach for the Ballston Area Recreation Commission. 'HIGHEST RECOGNITION' SUNY Plattsburgh President Alexander Enyedi congratulated the trio on their North Country Impact Award, which he cited as being "the highest recognition SUNY Plattsburgh bestows on our alumni." "This year's recipients — Michelle LaBounty '91, Sandra Lashua '63 and Tina Potter '81 — reflect the kind of leadership, service and commitment that make a real difference in our community," Enyedi said. "Their work speaks not only to their own dedication, but also to the lasting impact of a SUNY Plattsburgh education. We are proud to recognize their achievements and their continued contributions to the North Country and beyond." NORTH COUNTRY SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM The North Country Celebration will also recognize current North Country Scholarship recipients and their benefactors. In fall 2025, SUNY Plattsburgh enrolled 100 first-year, North Country students through the North Country Scholarship program for a total investment of $483,000. The Plattsburgh College Foundation was able to award 42 of these scholars with named North Country Scholarships totaling $105,000, courtesy of local businesses and individual benefactors. The foundation provided the remaining $378,000 in support to North Country students through the institutional gift aid program. For more information on Plattsburgh College Foundation or the Office of Alumni Relations, call 518-564-2090, email alumni@plattsburgh.edu or visit https://www.plattsburgh.edu/about/offices-divisions/alumni-relations.html.

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SUNY Plattsburgh alumnae to be feted for positive impacts

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