October 28, 2024
By Alfred State Spokesperson Paul Welker
Brian Perry, ’85, returned to Alfred State to share his experiences, highlight his company, Perry’s Ice Cream, and take questions from students in the audience.
Scooping up Knowledge – Brian Perry visits campus
“I think it’s good to come back to your alma mater to support them,” commented Perry. “I think they (Alfred State) do a great job with teaching and giving us the credentials that we need to further our careers. I have always enjoyed coming back because I liked my experience here and it’s just a way of giving back.”
Perry, speaking to a group of mainly current Culinary Arts students, detailed his education path and how he ended up at Alfred State. He then shared about the history of Perry’s and his role as EVP & Chairman.
He shifted the focus of the presentation and allowed Marisa Elgie, Product Development Manager and Megan Mergler, Associate Product Manager, to speak on the New Product Development and Research and Development processes at Perry’s.
The formal part of the presentation concluded with the education and career paths of employees that currently work at the company, outlined the career opportunities that are available at Perry’s, and answered dozens of questions.
“I wasn’t quite sure where I’d go in the world after I finished college but from this seminar, I learned that you could start somewhere very small and end up somewhere very big,” commented Culinary Arts: Baking, Production, & Management student Katelynn Ruolo. “Manufacturing sounds very interesting, and a very possible career path. They need a lot of people.”
Debra Burch, the Chair of the Culinary Arts Department, was excited for her students to hear from Perry. “They learned that if you work hard, you can achieve anything you want. It was especially important to see an alum here and know how he went through the process to being where he is today.”
Perry continued, “We’ve had good success with hiring from Alfred. We had three engineers come out of the engineering school and we’re challenging them every day. It’s a challenge for us to keep them busy because they are so smart but that’s what we need to do to see our business perpetuate into the future.”
Opportunities to share with current students is important to Perry. “It’s quite fun. Talking about how we’ve been successful and how students can be successful as well.”
Perry was on campus last Fall when the college officially opened “The Nook.” The convenient store located inside the Central Dining Hall features Perry’s Ice Cream and novelties.
“We thank Perry’s Ice cream and Brian for coming today and doing this for our students,” stated Burch. “I think they had a great experience
