Sarah Piraino Scholarship & Advising Award

As the conference is free in 2021, a scholarship is not being offered.

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WNY Advising is proud to offer Graduate Scholarships and an Advising Award to honor Sarah Piraino, an academic advisor at the University at Buffalo and a long-time member of the WNY Advising Conference Committee.  Sarah worked humbly with a diverse population of students and colleagues at UB.  She had a passion for helping guide newcomers to the field of higher education, taking time to share her experiences and joy of working with undergraduates. Sarah was known for her generosity, dedication and contagious smile. She loved UB, the WNY community, her church, her family, and above all else she was a proud and doting mother to twins, Anthony and Adriana. Sadly, Sarah passed away on September 16, 2018 after a long battle with Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML) and Lupus. In establishing these offerings we hope to recognize Sarah’s dedication to the WNY community and to helping others establish experience in the career field of higher education.

Apply Here for the Award

If you have questions or trouble submitting the attachments, you can email supporting documents to
- Tiffany Hamilton, thamilto@daemen.edu, 716-566-7880
- Amy Pistrin-Faust, pistrina@ecc.edu, 716-851-1921

WNY Advising 2021 Conference
Application Deadline, January 13, 2020

Advising Award

Sarah Piraino Advising Award Winners:
2021 - Jerrell Mason, Niagara University
2020 - Sarah Robinson, University at Buffalo
2019 - Jessica Farley, University at Buffalo

Sarah Piraino Scholarship Winners:
2020 - Xiao Yuan, Niagara University
2019 - Brianna Sprole, SUNY Buffalo State
2019 - Shannon Myers, University at Buffalo

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This award is designed to recognize the outstanding achievements from a professional in the field of advising. This award recognizes Sarah’s dedication to the WNY community and to helping others establish experience in the career field of higher education.

1 award per calendar year

Applicants to the Sarah J. Piraino Advising Award must:

• Be currently employed at a college or university in the greater WNY / Ontario Community
• Demonstrate strong leadership ability and strong positive impact on the community.
• Applicant can't be a past recipient

Graduate Student Scholarship

​This scholarship is designed to help support the attendance of one graduate student a year to the annual WNY Advising Conference by covering the registration fee.

1 award per calendar year

Applicants to the Sarah J. Piraino Scholarship for Graduate Students must:

• Be enrolled in a WNY graduate program related to the field of Higher Education, Student Services, School Counseling, or Education.  Students must be actively enrolled in the spring semester in which the conference is offered.
• Demonstrate plans to work at a college or university in higher education setting, preferably in a field heavy in advisement and student contact.
• Able to attend the spring WNY Advising Conference.
• Applicant can't be a past recipient

Return to the Conference Page

More About Sarah

Early in 2017, University at Buffalo academic advisor and two-time UAC conference chair, Sarah Piraino, was given a potentially fatal diagnosis of a rare, serious disease known as Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML).  It progressed quickly and was believed to have been caused in part by her long time battle against Lupus.  Sarah was accepted into a clinical trial for this disease that helped prolong her life to give her more time with her family. Sarah was a single mom to two 11 year old children, Anthony and Adriana.  In early 2018, the PML stabilized but new challenges arose between finding ways to treat Sarah’s Lupus, treating acute renal failure, and participating in physical therapy and rehabilitation all while trying to find “a new normal”.  There were numerous check-ups and doctor’s visits as well as regular trips to Maryland, where Sarah sought treatment for the PML.  On Sunday, 9/16/18, Sarah passed away and was mourned by her family and the WNY Advising Community.

Over the years, Sarah was very involved in the Higher Education community and in order to help her family during this difficult time, WNY Advising hosted two benefits during our annual conferences in 2018 and 2019 for Sarah and her family. 2018 we successfully raised over $825 for her and her family, and now offer both a conference scholarship and advisor award in her name.