Submitted Photo Giovanina Vancheri (third from left), Randall Filighera, GEICO college recruiter (second from left), and the GEICO mascot Gecko (Michaela Lee) display a symbolic $2,500 check that Vancheri has received for being named a 2018 Achievement Award recipient. Joining them are Christopher LaGrow, associate director of Career Development (left), Tracy Collingwood, director of Engagement and Career Development (second from right) and Brianne Corbelli of GEICO.

Giovanina Vancheri, a junior majoring in Business Administration: Marketing from Rochester, New York, has become the State University of New York at Fredonia’s first recipient of the GEICO Achievement Award.

Only 34 students from across the country are receiving the 2018 Achievement Award. The honor, which includes a $2,500 cash award, recognizes students for hard work, leadership and dedication to their communities. The award was presented to Vancheri by 2006 Fredonia graduate Randall Filighera, a GEICO college recruiter based in Getzville, New York, who works closely with Fredonia’s Career Development Office, along with 2017 Fredonia graduates Michaela Lee and Brianne Corbelli, GEICO management development associates.

Vancheri, daughter of Nino Vancheri and Sarah Taffner, graduated Magna Cum Laude from Our Lady of Mercy School for Young Women. She is enrolled in the Honors Program at Fredonia and a member of the women’s tennis team.

Begun 25 years ago, the GEICO accolade is intended to benefit students while they are in college, as well as to introduce them to GEICO as a potential employer.

To be considered for the award, students must be enrolled full-time as a sophomore or junior at an accredited four-year college or university and have a GPA of 3.0 or better and a major in business, mathematics or computer science or in a discipline related to business such as economics, finance, marketing, management, information systems, computer engineering, statistics or actuarial science.