Bucci is wide-bodied and strong but, at 6-foot-4, he is not a college center.
The college center at Saunders opened this fall even as the guidance counselor for all 290 seniors was out on sick leave.
An average of 30 students a day visit the college center, which still has a length of blue ribbon taped to the window from the opening ceremony.
The six college centers were paid for by Yonkers Partners in Education, a nonprofit organization started by the city's mayor, Philip A. Amicone, and community and business leaders.
Mr. Rivera said that in a meeting with Gov. George E. Pataki, he broached the idea of a college center for 1199's members.
But this year it was transformed into a full-fledged college center with hardwood floors and pennants on the walls, and a row of flat-screen computers connected to a college planning system.
Last week, a committee laid out the evidence behind 13 charges of ethics violations, including failure to pay taxes and asking lobbyists and corporations for millions of dollars in donations for a college center to be built in his honor.
Since 2007, it has raised about $2 million for the public schools from local businesses and foundations, including Domino Brands, which owns a sugar refinery in Yonkers and pledged $232,000 for the college center at Saunders.
Working with local officials, it plans to demolish the meager downtown, which looks more like a makeshift set for a Hollywood western than a New England college center, and build a town from scratch.
The high school, which offers 13 Advanced Placement courses, has an expanded Reserve Officers Training Corps program, a new college center, a new digital photo lab, two new art galleries and a revamped music department.
