CANTON – The SUNY Canton Alumni Association has selected a new recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award.

Jennifer Stevenson, Real Estate Broker/Owner of Blue Heron Realty in Ogdensburg, received the award during the college's recent Alumni Weekend celebration. Stevenson is a graduate of the class of 1988, when she earned her associate degree in Accounting.

She was 2020 President of the NYS Association of Realtors, a past President of the St. Lawrence County Board of Realtors and formerly served as Adirondack regional vice president of the New York State Association of Realtors. She serves as the Fair Housing Policy Chair for the National Association of Realtors and sits on several other committees that deal with fair housing, diversity, equity and inclusion.

Stevenson said she didn't follow a traditional college trajectory by taking a few gap years to decide on a career path. She credited the late Professor Emeritus Walter R. Christy, J.D., for her success.

"Anyone could do what I am doing if you had the training and background that I received here at SUNY Canton," Stevenson said. "I feel the real estate education I got here, with an attorney teaching the class, was far superior to many."

She is active in her community having served as a former Ogdensburg City councilor and past director of the St. Lawrence Valley SPCA. Stevenson is also a board member of Habitat for Humanity of New York State, board member for the Fort LaPresentation Association and member of the National Association of Realtors' State and Local Issues Policy Committee. Stevenson is also a member of the SUNY Canton College Council.

"I've been fortunate to visit the campus numerous times to see how SUNY Canton has grown and changed," Stevenson said. "When I was approached to join the council, it seemed like the right thing to do to give back to the college that allowed me to have the career that I love."

The Distinguished Alumni Award is selected annually by a committee of the college's Alumni Association board of directors to recognize outstanding achievement and continuing contributions to the college.