The goal of the SUNY Empire PRODiG Scholars Program is to support undergraduate and graduate student-scholars from historically underrepresented groups, including women in STEM disciplines, to progress into doctoral programs and faculty positions at institutions of higher learning. The 2021-22 Scholars cohort is comprised of 10 undergraduate and 10 graduate participants across various fields of study and at different stages of their journey toward a career in academia. This series will feature the students who are currently involved in the program, along with their goals and areas of academic interest. To learn more about this program, visit the SUNY Empire PRODiG Scholars Program website.

Trenisse Sutton is a SUNY Empire 2021-22 PRODiG Scholar who will graduate in Spring 2022 with a second master's degree in adult learning at the College.  She graduated from SUNY Empire in 2019, earning a Master of Education in curriculum and instruction. She has been selected to receive the 2022 Dean’s Medal. 

Trenisse is an adjunct college laboratory technician at CUNY Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn, N.Y. for the past 10 years within an intergenerational program–My Turn–that welcomes Third Age (older adult) students to take college courses. She believes her job puts her in a unique position to meet people from diverse cultures and career backgrounds. Trenisse states, “I never know who I am going to meet. Our students come from different professions; retired doctors, lawyers, teachers, and principals, just to mention a few. However, they return to the classroom to pursue interests and hobbies such as painting, new technology, or physical education, and it’s wonderful to see how happy they are to be learning alongside the younger generations.”  

In fall 2021, Trenisse was a SUNY Empire PRODiG teaching assistant for an online, graduate-level teaching and curriculum: science course with Michelle Eades-Baird, Ph.D. She also assisted in Eades-Baird’s research on promoting the development of STEM identities in early childhood classroom through culturally authentic picture books, featuring underrepresented lead characters engaged in science and engineering practices. In Spring 2022, Trenisse continued her assistantship with Dr. Eades-Baird in an online, graduate-level educational evaluation course. She will also be the third author on an article with Eades-Baird and co-writer, Emily Hayden’s titled "Fostering Early Childhood STEM Identities Connecting Diverse Picture Books with Hands-on STEM" in Literacy Today. 

Trenisse resides in Brooklyn, N.Y. and enjoys spending time with her daughter, family, and two pups.