"More than a return on my investment" - Ericka Bennett '00

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"More than a return on my investment" - Ericka Bennett '00

“I had a good experience at Utica College. I had great professors who were accessible. I was involved in campus activities. If I had gone to a larger university, I may not have had those opportunities.”

Ericka Bennett ‘00 doesn’t take for granted the fact that she’s part of the institution credited with establishing the model for today’s multidisciplinary approach to cancer care.

Founded in 1898 as the nation’s first cancer center, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center has been serving its community for more than 120 years, and as Associate General Counsel, the Utica College alum is proud to play a role within their success.

“I really am proud to be a part of this institute. It’s very meaningful to me,” Bennett says. “Roswell Park offers, not only inpatient or outpatient cancer treatment, but there's also a very large research component at the Institute where there are people working full-time to develop cures for cancer. I’m passionate about working here because I feel like I can be a part of that.”

Why might a hospital need an attorney?

“If you think about it, every service that’s offered, everything that comes into the hospital usually requires an agreement. And agreements that I work on are research-based and also clinical trial agreements, in which we're able to offer new medicines that maybe haven’t yet made it to the marketplace to people who really need them, who may not have any other treatment options.”

What was your experience at Utica College like?

How did it prepare you for what you’re doing today?

“I think my experience at Utica College prepared me, in a lot of ways, to work in a professional environment and provided me with the mentorship and the soft skills. They’ve done more for me than I could’ve paid for, for the four years of tuition, so it was definitely, I’ve gotten more than a return on my investment.”

What keeps you motivated?

“I truly do love what I do. Everyone has hard days. That’s unavoidable, but knowing that I’m part of a mission to help people who have been affected by cancer, that makes every hard day easier. I appreciate the people that I work with. They are awesome and they are intelligent and they are passionate about the fight against cancer and, you know, my role is small but I appreciate being part of the team.”