On Point for College Founder Ginny Donohue to Receive Prestigious National DAR Education Medal at Utica Celebration on Nov. 12

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Virginia “Ginny” Donohue, founder and former Executive Director of On Point for College, has been selected to receive the Mary Smith Lockwood Medal for Education, one of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution’s prestigious Founders Medals, in recognition of her extraordinary service and leadership in expanding access to education.

The award will be presented by the Oneida Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR). The Mary Smith Lockwood Medal for Education honors individuals who demonstrate exemplary achievement through service and leadership in promoting education outside the formal educational process.

The award will be presented during On Point for College's annual Utica Celebration on Thursday, November 12, 2026, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Hart's Hill Inn in Whitesboro, New York. The event brings together students, alumni, educational partners, business leaders and community supporters to celebrate student achievements and the people who help make them possible.

Community members are invited to attend, with tickets and sponsorship opportunities available at onpointforcollege.org/events/utica-celebration/. The medal will be presented by Dr. Mary K. Cardinale, Vice Regent of the Oneida Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR).

For Donohue, her work began with helping a single young person find a path to college.

In 1991, Ginny’s daughter asked her to help a friend navigate the college application process. After she helped him enroll, other young people began seeking her guidance. Over the next eight years, she worked with students facing significant barriers to higher education, helping them complete applications, secure financial aid and scholarships, obtain college supplies and transportation, and navigate challenges that could otherwise prevent them from continuing their education.

In 1999, Ginny left a successful corporate career to establish On Point for College, with an original goal of helping 1,000 students who never imagined college was possible. By the time she stepped away from leading the organization, thousands of students had received support in pursuing their education.

What began as one person helping students navigate an unfamiliar system grew into an organization providing comprehensive support from college access through graduation and into the workforce.

“Talent is everywhere; opportunity is not,” Ginny has said — a belief that continues to guide On Point’s work today. She has also described a principle at the heart of her decades of service: “If you had that person, thank them. Please be that person for someone else.”

That philosophy became the foundation of a model designed not simply to help students enter college, but to stay alongside them as they overcome financial, academic and personal barriers to completing their education and building meaningful careers.

The nationwide recognition presented by the Oneida Chapter also reflects Ginny’s lasting connection to the Mohawk Valley and her national impact. On Point expanded to Utica in 2012, extending its college access, success and career services to students throughout Oneida, Herkimer and Madison counties. Today, the organization serves students across six Central New York counties: Cayuga, Herkimer, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, and Oswego.

“Ginny is an amazing person. She is a great leader, teacher, mentor, and friend. It is my greatest pleasure to have met and worked with her,” said Sam Rowser, Executive Director of On Point for College.

Ginny’s contributions to education and community service have been recognized numerous times throughout her career. In 2023, she received a State University of New York honorary doctorate during SUNY Oswego’s December Commencement. Her previous honors have included Syracuse University’s Martin Luther King Jr. Unsung Hero Award, recognition as a Purpose Prize Fellow and a Daily Point of Light, among other distinctions. Yet the impact of her work is perhaps best reflected in the thousands of students and graduates whose paths have been changed by the support she helped create.

The Mary Smith Lockwood Medal for Education is one of four Founders Medals established by the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution to recognize individuals whose exceptional service has made a meaningful contribution to their communities, states or nation.