Ithaca College

Joanie Groome, for 25 years a dedicated and popular lecturer in the Departments of Health Promotion and Physical Education and Recreation and Leisure Studies, recently received the Town Gown Award for her consistently outstanding work with the Ithaca Youth Bureau.

Joanie worked for almost 30 years at the Ithaca Youth Bureau as Program Coordinator of Recreation and Support Services (RSS).  Her commitment, expertise, dedication, enthusiasm, advocacy, creativity, and passion for the participants and their families in the RSS program is legendary.

Joanie’s career was filled with huge accomplishments. These include awards and recognition for programs like the Work-Out Buddy Program, Summer Camp Inclusion, Saturday Playgroup, and the YMCA Swim Partnership along with receiving various local and state grants to expand the work her department was doing in the community. Over her tenure, Joanie was responsible for a variety of youth and adult programs, some of which spanned the length of her career allowing her to develop some very special long-term relationships. In a sense some participants grew up with Joanie in the RSS programs as she provided programming and support to them from youth to adulthood. 

We are very proud and fortunate that Joanie also enlightened the lives and mentored students for 25 years at Ithaca College in Personal Health, Understanding Disabilities, and Adapted Physical Education.