Dr. Daryll Dykes, '83 Named National Alumni Award Honoree

Onondaga Community College alumnus Dr. Daryll Dykes, ‘83 has been named a 2018 Outstanding Alumni Award winner by the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). Dykes will receive the award Tuesday, May 1 at the AACC’s annual convention in Dallas, Texas.

Dykes love of medicine started early. When he was a young boy growing up on Syracuse’s west side, he enjoyed visiting his mother while she worked as a nurse. After graduating from Fowler High School in 1980, Dykes joined the United States Marine Corps as a way of paying for college. When he completed his military obligation Dykes came to OCC and majored in Mathematics & Science. “The classes and professors really ignited my passion for learning. The professors saw my talent, invested in it and pushed me to do great things,” Dykes said.

Dykes turned his passion for medicine into his career. Today he is one of the nation’s premier spine surgeons and owns his own practice, Medical and Surgical Spine Consultants of Minnesota.

“We are so proud of Dr. Dykes and his accomplishments,” said OCC President Dr. Casey Crabill. “He is richly deserving of this recognition, and we congratulate him. We’re grateful too that in the years since he earned his degree he has been willing to return to campus and speak with students who today sit where he once sat. His message of hard work, perseverance and determination have had a positive impact on those he has spent time with.”

Dykes is one of only three national Outstanding Alumni Award honorees in 2018. He is also the fourth OCC honoree in the last five years joining Dr. Emad Rahim (2017), Laurie Halse Anderson (2015) and John Dau (2014). There are 1,462 community colleges in United States serving approximately 12 million students annually. According to the AACC, Onondaga Community College is the first institution to have four Outstanding Alumni Award honorees in five years.

Congratulations Dr. Daryll Dykes!

Recently we announced a new initiative, “The OCC Effect.” We wanted to hear from our former students about the ways in which OCC impacted their lives. If you would like to join in the conversation please visit our Alumni web site and tell us about your experience. Your success is a significant part of OCC’s story which began more than a half-century ago when we first opened our doors in 1961. We’re proud our middle name is “community” and we’d love to hear what OCC’s effect has been on you.