Potsdam College Foundation Announces New Board Members, Richard J. Evans ’73 & Joyce Yianoukos ’71 & ’76
Joyce Yianoukos ’71 & ’76 of Colton, N.Y., has been named to the Potsdam College Foundation Board of Trustees.
The Potsdam College Foundation Board of Trustees is proud to welcome two distinguished alumni, Richard J. Evans ’73 and Joyce Yianoukos ’71 & ’76, as its newest members.
Both bring decades of leadership and service experience to support SUNY Potsdam’s mission. Their service officially began at the board’s fall meeting on campus.
About the trustees:
Richard J. Evans ’73 dedicated 37 years as a civil servant to the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Information Technology Unit until his retirement in 2022. In his final four years, he led the data analytics team for Adult Career and Continuing Education Services-Vocational Rehabilitation (ACCESS-VR), a state program that helps individuals with disabilities to achieve and maintain employment and to support independent living. Evans also served as Project Manager for systems developed to support the Bureau of Proprietary School Supervision (BPSS) and the High School Equivalency (HSE) program areas. During his time at NYSED, he was awarded the Outstanding IT Service and Support Award at the 2014 Government Technology Conference.
In addition to his government service, Evans taught several semesters as an adjunct professor in data processing at SUNY Cobleskill. He also served as a member of the SUNY Cobleskill College Foundation Board from 1985 to 1988. Evans has been actively involved in his local community. He was a founding member of the Pastoral Council at St. Edward the Confessor Church in Clifton Park, N.Y., where he completed a three-year term. During this time, he played a leading role in establishing the community garden at the church, as well as starting a soup kitchen by partnering with several other churches in order to serve local needs. He also served three years as troop committee chairman for the Boy Scouts of America Troop 30 in Vischer Ferry, N.Y., where he oversaw the financial needs and program content in support of the activities of the troop. A proud product of New York State’s public education system, Evans graduated first from SUNY Cobleskill with an Associate of Applied Science degree in data processing in 1971, then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in computer science and economics from SUNY Potsdam in 1973, and later pursued graduate studies in economics at the University at Albany. He has also received his credentials as a certified business analyst from the George Washington University.
Joyce Yianoukos ’71 & ’76 graduated from SUNY Potsdam with her Bachelor of Science degree in psychology, mathematics and elementary education, and later completed her graduate studies with a master’s degree in literacy (K-12). A member of the Alpha Delta Kappa Sorority, she continues to gather with Alpha sisters.
Yianoukos worked for 36 years in many areas of education, which included staff development, curriculum development, supervision of teachers, development of education program budgets and design of specific education programs within the school districts in St. Lawrence County She began her professional career at St. Regis Falls Central School, where she taught fifth and sixth grade social studies and mathematics, and later went on to work as a compensatory education reading teacher working with educational disadvantaged children. She then moved to St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services), where she spent the rest of her career, serving as the supervisor of curriculum and instruction for BOCES occupational education, alternative high school, adult education and alternative GED programs, the compensatory education Title I programs in St. Lawrence County and the incarcerated youth programs at the St. Lawrence County Jail.
Yianoukos has served as a leader on the state and regional level, joining and leading the New York State Reading Association’s North Country Council, the New York State Association of Incarcerated Youth and the St. Lawrence County Early Childhood Education Council. She also served as a member of the New York State Association for Comprehensive Education’s Region 7 Planning Team, the New York State Whole Language Advisory Council and of Delta Kappa Gamma International, an international society for key women educators.
On top of her professional achievements, Yianoukos has been deeply engaged in support of her alma mater and of the broader community. She is a past president and trustee of the SUNY Potsdam Alumni Association, and worked with her sorority sisters from Alpha Delta Kappa to establish an endowment supporting the Rebecca V. Sheard Literacy Center. Yianoukos is a past president of the Canton-Potsdam Hospital Guild and previously served on the St. Lawrence Health Foundation Board of Trustees. She is also a member and past deacon of Potsdam First Presbyterian Church. Among other honors, Yianoukos has been awarded the St. Lawrence Academy Medal, the Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award and the Leadership Through Service Award from SUNY Potsdam, as well as the St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Administrator of the Year Award. Yianoukos and her husband, Clarkson University graduate Steve Yianoukos, have two children and four grandchildren.
About the Potsdam College Foundation:
Established in 1968, the Potsdam College Foundation is a non-profit corporation dedicated to stewarding the continued growth of private giving in support of SUNY Potsdam. Its mission is to secure and manage private financial support and other gifts that build a sustainable future for SUNY Potsdam. To learn more, visit www.potsdam.edu/giving/pcf.
About SUNY Potsdam:
Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America’s first 50 colleges—and the oldest institution within SUNY. Now in its third century, SUNY Potsdam is distinguished by a legacy of pioneering programs and educational excellence. The College currently enrolls approximately 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its challenging liberal arts and sciences core, distinction in teacher training and culture of creativity. To learn more, visit www.potsdam.edu.