Campus Champion

Otilia Rivas just completed her second year as a Summer Institute residential staff member for incoming Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) students. The Yonkers native, a junior communications major with minors in political science and business management, is a first-generation college student, like many of the two-dozen incoming EOP students. Each brings strong academic and personal potential and would otherwise be excluded from higher education due to a lack of academic preparation and economic disadvantage. Supported by the EOP family at SUNY Cortland, Otilia helps guide new students through the transition from high school to college and remains a dedicated mentor — and friend — throughout the academic year.

SUNY Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum stressed the importance of faculty and staff connecting with students as both the reason for the university’s current success and as a key solution to upcoming challenges during his address at the Fall 2023 Opening of School Meeting.

Bitterbaum opened the meeting by mentioning several important updates about the university.

Cortland has recently used approximately $375 million in state aid to fund building renovations. Work is happening on Van Hoesen and Cornish halls that will upgrade the home of the Communication and Media Studies Department and refurbish offices, including Conley Counseling and Wellness Services. Corey Union will be completely renovated in the years to come. A long-term plan to improve Bowers Hall, Memorial Library and the physical education and recreation wing of Park Center are also underway.

“The state of New York is doing well,” Bitterbaum said. “When you look at other states, they are taking money away. We have been very fortunate and we give thanks.”

Improvements to the university’s athletic facilities include the Michael J. Cappeto ’71, M ’73 Team Room and the James J. Grady ’50, M ’61 Field at the SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex, both of which were funded by generous alumni donations.

Bitterbaum noted the role of the Division of Institutional Advancement in raising more than $30 million through its All In: Building on Success comprehensive campaign. The Cortland Challenge, a one-day fundraising event in the spring, brought in $472,000. 

Cortland has been named to many best-of lists by national publications in recent years, including:

• One of the safest college towns in America (SafeWise)
• Best College for Your Money (Money magazine)
• National master’s universities, particularly in social mobility, service and value (Washington Monthly)
• Best public colleges for getting a job (Zippia.com))
• Top 100 colleges and universities for sustainability (Sierra Club)
• Best small community to purchase a home (Realtor.com)

Students participated in many undergraduate research programs this summer. Twelve students were selected to be Summer Undergraduate Research fellows, earning a $4,000 stipend and having on-campus housing provided while they worked with faculty. Other students worked in the Chemistry Department or on National Science Foundation grants with Assistant Professor Amanda Davis and Professor Patricia Conklin in the Biological Sciences Department.

“When you bump into these students, and I’ve talked to many of them, and ask them about their research with their faculty, their eyes light up,” Bitterbaum said. “It’s extraordinary. During the school year we also have many of our students doing original research. When you visit with those students, you learn that it changes their life’s trajectory.”

These types of connections between students and faculty are part of the reason why Cortland has been able to retain 80% of first-year students, one of the best retention rates among SUNY’s comprehensive universities.

Cortland’s Urban Recruitment of Educators (C.U.R.E.) program continues to grow thanks to a recent grant of nearly $1 million that will provide funding for five years. C.U.R.E. provides scholarship support for students who pledge to teach in urban or underserved schools after their graduation.

“Superintendents and principals want our graduates, especially those coming out of the C.U.R.E. program,” Bitterbaum said. “I had one principal in New York City say they’d take our whole class if they could afford it. We hope that it can continue to expand. We are famous for the quality of our educators.”

SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr., who began in that role in January 2023, has announced four key priorities that both mirror Cortland’s longstanding mission and will shape the university’s strategic planning in the years ahead. Those priorities are student success, diversity, equity and inclusion, workforce development and an investment in research and scholarship.

Bitterbaum also cited four primary challenges that Cortland will face in the future: the world of work, admissions, mental health and ChatGPT and artificial intelligence.

Teaching Generation Z students skills such as verbal and written communication, collaboration and teamwork and emotional intelligence will be key to their success in the workplace.

“Employers’ advice to us is that students need to understand that communication is valuable no matter what they’re majoring in," Bitterbaum said. “How these executives will look at them is based on the quality of their written word, the quality of their spoken word. Your faculty can start making it clear to students how much you value good writing and set high expectations for the quality of the work your students turn in.”

The university’s incoming class of first-year students is a sizable and impressive group. Cortland will welcome 1,250 first-year students, representing 17 U.S. states, and 513 transfer students from other institutions. Of those new students, 85% participated in athletics in high school, 188 are bilingual and five were their high school’s valedictorian.

However, the confluence of several factors is likely to lead to a decrease in national college enrollment over the next few years. A dip in the birthrate, particularly between 2009 and 2010, will result in fewer students than average graduating from high school. Concerns about affordability, debt and the general perception of higher education may also cause individuals to reconsider attending college, Bitterbaum said.

He urged faculty and staff to be aggressive in supporting initiatives of the Admissions Office and other enrollment efforts. Solutions include participating in campus visit programs such as Open House, being available during weekday campus tours and making one-on-one contact with prospective students and families.

The Admissions Office will continue to work with students who were rejected for admission coming out of high school by allowing automatic admission if they meet criteria by attending a SUNY community college before they reapply.

Bitterbaum also emphasized the importance of mental health resources, citing a study that found 77% of current college students know someone who has experienced a mental health challenge. He encouraged faculty and staff to support students by destigmatizing the topic, intentionally reaching out to those who may be “silent sufferers,” advocating for the university’s Counseling Center and responding generally with a culture of caring.

Artificial intelligence is an emerging issue for college campuses and in how faculty deal with the academic integrity of work completed by students. The university’s Faculty Senate is gathering a working committee to discuss ethical issues and a panel of faculty and staff are looking to host a Sandwich Seminar this semester to share their insight and gather feedback from others.

“This is the way of the future,” Bitterbaum said. “As a community we have to think about it in an appropriate way.”

Bitterbaum closed his remarks with stories from alumni who reflected on their time at Cortland by being grateful for the sense of belonging and the second chances the university provided them. He encouraged faculty and staff to continue forging meaningful relationships with students that make life-changing impacts.

Decades later, alumni reach out to Bitterbaum asking for contact information for professors who shaped their career paths and changed their perspective on the value of higher education. They want to express their gratitude for the mentorship and guidance they received as undergraduates.

Bitterbaum shared one of those messages from a former Cortland student.

“You should know that our students are always watching you,” he said. “In many cases they want to mirror who you are. They want to carry themselves the way you carry yourselves. That’s the kind of influence I’ve heard over the past few years. You are their role models and should be aware of that.

“Think about that for a moment. Faculty helping students in a moment of failure and embracing these students with kindness and a second opportunity. There is far more opportunity in the future than the error in the moment for these future alumni.”

Students, athletes and fans returning to SUNY Cortland this week will see some impressive changes at the football team’s home field.

They’ll see new turf, a new scoreboard, new fencing and a brand-new name; all designed to improve safety and enhance the experience of players and fans.

The facility is now officially the James J. Grady ’50, M ’61 Field at the SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex — or Grady Field, for short — thanks to an historic, million-dollar gift from Chris Grady ’79 to the university in honor of his father.

A formal naming ceremony will occur during the Red Dragons’ home football game against Utica University on Saturday, Oct. 7. In addition to football, Grady Field is the primary home competition venue of Cortland’s men’s and women’s lacrosse teams and a secondary venue for men’s and women’s soccer.

“If you haven’t seen it yet, the field feels like Cortland,” said Associate Athletics Director Jaclyn Lawrence of the renovations. “It now features our primary logo in the center, and the red endzones and sideline boxes pop off the turf. It really is beautiful. We are truly fortunate to play in one of the best sporting facilities in the state.”

 The turf

The new, artificial turf replaces a surface that was nearing the end of its useful life and was beginning to become matted and threadbare. The project also corrected drainage issues that had been occurring in late winter and early spring when the lacrosse team needed to use the field.

“After much analysis and consideration, it was determined that the only way to improve the drainage was to completely replace the entire subbase and all existing drainage,” said Dillon Young, lead construction manager for the university’s Facilities Planning, Design and Construction Office. The work was done in a way that allowed any reusable material to be put back on top of the new subbase, keeping hundreds of tons of rubber and sand out of Cortland County’s landfill, Dillon said.

“We didn’t want to mess this one up,” Lawrence said of the high-profile facility. “I think within our department we must have sent renditions back and forth 20 times to make sure we had the look we wanted.

“After over a year of planning and countless emails, meetings and calls, when I walked out to the stadium and saw the completed project in front of me, not on a sheet of paper, I couldn’t have been happier.”

The scoreboard

The new, state-of-the-art scoreboard stands 28 feet tall. Its width is the length of a school bus. Its high-resolution screen has the ability to run video footage, better graphics and game replays, and is tied into the stadium sound system.

“The Daktronics video display installed at Grady Field is the same technology and clarity used for the Detroit Lions, Cincinnati Bengals, Jacksonville Jaguars, and the Carolina Panthers,” said Adam Snyder of Toth’s Sports, the firm that installed the scoreboard project.

Toth also installed a secondary, traditional fixed digit scoreboard on the Carl A. “Chugger” Davis Building to increase visibility from all angles of the stadium. They installed new game clocks include backlit advertisement panels for sponsors, Dillon said.

“The technology has greatly improved, and the new full video board will provide a much greater fan experience,” he said. 

The fence

The original 4-foot-high galvanized chain link fence surrounding the field was replaced by a more aesthetically pleasing black vinyl-coated chain link fence. 

The new fence is 10-feet-tall, which will improve safety for both fans and athletes, Lawrence said.

The name

For Chris Grady, there’s no name better to be permanently identified with SUNY Cortland athletics than of his father, Jim Grady, who played football as a quarterback for the Red Dragons.

“My father had a great college experience,” Chris said. “He went back for his master’s there and went back summers. Cortland represented his career. As he got older, we always talked about Cortland and Cortland sports teams.

“One year, toward the end of his life, he asked If I could apply for a C-Club membership for him,” Grady said of the university’s C-Club Hall of Fame organization, which supports Cortland athletics. “That stuck in my head. He ended up passing (in Feb. 2021) of COVID, but when he passed, I said to my wife, ‘A donation to Cortland in his name would be way better for him. He’ll feel it wherever he is in heaven.’ I think that is perfect for him.”

When today’s athletes walk onto Grady Field, they will be part of that tribute. The turf they play on represents the ideals that Chris says his father believed in: fair play, hard work, and appreciation of life.

Jim Grady balanced raising a loving family with his wife, Pat (Mary Patricia), while working long hours to support seven kids. The dedication that drove Jim as a father also drove him as a man. He served in World War II, graduated college in three years, and inspired a generation as an educator, coach and athletic director at Wantagh High School on Long Island. He was honored as the winningest varsity high school baseball coach in New York state and began a post-retirement career in Chris’ investment services company as a financial planner.

Chris is currently senior vice president of sales at Athene Annuity & Life Assurance Company, an enterprise he helped start.

Chris Grady’s generous gift to the university will help support SUNY Cortland Athletics and will establish the Christopher J. Grady ’79 Scholarship, for business economics students, and the Terry Bedell Grady ’80 Scholarship, for physical education students. The scholarships are named after Chris and his wife.

Chris said he chose to give back to SUNY Cortland not only because of his family’s history, but because he views it as a place that gave him experiences that shaped his future.

Chris’ brothers add to the family’s legacy at Cortland. Two, Michael and Jimmy, spent time on campus before transferring. A third brother, Joe Grady ’90, transferred to Cortland and was an All-ECAC safety for the Red Dragons when the team finished 11-1 and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in 1988.

Chris Grady said embracing opportunities at SUNY Cortland taught him a lot about life, helped develop his negotiation skills and encouraged him to look beyond his major in physical education for job opportunities. It’s also part of the idea behind the new scholarships. He hopes they help students to discover skillsets they weren’t aware they had. 

"I’d like to give kids an opportunity and help them through their college experience,” Chris Grady said.

Cornish Hall and Van Hoesen Hall, staples on campus since 1962, are undergoing big changes, with Wing C of the linked buildings receiving extensive updates.  

The $27 million project includes major interior and exterior renovations and is scheduled to be complete in January 2026. 

Construction began this summer and will bring all elements of the Communications and Media Studies Department together into one location on campus. It will also provide centralized locations for Counseling and Wellness Services, Disability Resources and the Educational Opportunity Program. Other goals of the project are: 

• Outdoor spaces for casual gatherings and educational use. 
• Enhanced acoustics and infrastructure for production studios.
• Universally accessible spaces.
• A distraction-free testing area for students.
• Preparation for possible future geothermal well use.
• Improved energy efficiency.
• Improved drainage.
• Ensuring building design longevity and maintainability. 

“Despite the short-term inconveniences construction will cause, the benefits to our students and the university will be substantial,” said Professor Paul van de Veur, chair of the Communications and Media Studies Department. 

He noted that while he and the rest of the department’s faculty want to ensure that construction doesn’t disrupt foot traffic or isolate their offices, they are excited about the updates. 

“The field of communication has undergone significant changes in the past decade, changes that are impacting everything from our interpersonal communication to the ways that we interact with the media,” van de Veur said. “The spaces under development will allow us to better respond to these changes and will enhance our programs in Cinema Studies, Communication Studies, New Communication Media, and Media Production. The creation of a Student Media Commons will also bring together our student media audio, video and newspaper clubs into one space, allowing them to collaborate more effectively with each other and take advantage of greater access to the department faculty and production facilities.” 

The renovation work will benefit students across campus, according to Juanita Larrabee, director of Facilities Planning, Design and Construction. 

“Improvements to Counseling and Wellness, Disability Resources, and the Educational Opportunity Program will allow staff to better serve our students during some of their most challenging and vulnerable situations,” she said.  

The building updates, she added, will address a severe lack of space, fragmentation of services and confidentiality issues. The expanded area is designed to be cohesive, meet student needs, and offer a programmatically and clinically effective space that protects students seeking help and support. 

An existing covered walkway on the ground floor of C-Wing will also be enclosed to create more interior space, and a small addition at the north end of the building will add an exit stair, entry vestibules and an elevator. 

The renovation site will be closed during the 30-month construction window. To help with access to the building, a temporary asphalt walkway will lead to Cornish and Van Hoesen’s first floors from their back parking lot. Signs will be supplied and updated to ensure people know the safest routes to take as work continues. 

Air quality testing will be performed over the course of the work to ensure health standards in the buildings. 

During construction, students, faculty, staff and visitors will see these temporary changes: 

• The Educational Opportunity Program moved from D-Wing to Old Main, Suite 136. 
• The Communication and Media Studies faculty in D-Wing and the radio station relocated to B-Wing, Suite 219. 
• Disability Resources moved from C-Wing to Memorial Library, Suite B121. 
• The ROTC office moved from the B-Wing to the McDonald House.
• The Faculty Senate office moved from Suite 219 to the McDonald House. 

 The campus community should also expect periodic closings of the east entrance to the B-Wing, to be communicated by a notice campuswide as well as to departments located in B-Wing. 

Additional information on the construction can be found online. For questions or comments, contact Loralee Morrow at 607-753-2241 or Juanita Larrabee at 607-753-2217.  

Students went to this year’s SUNY Cortland Showcase in New York City with dreams of launching a career in the theater. They delivered one stellar performance after another, and every single one of them caught the eye of someone in a position to give them a big break.  

The annual showcase is a performance by SUNY Cortland’s seniors in the Musical Theatre Program. It places them center stage in front of agents, casting directors and other industry professionals to secure professional representation. 

This year’s event took place at New York City’s Ripley-Grier Studios. Each student involved received at least one inquiry from the professionals. It’s a spectacular result in an industry that can be notoriously tough to break into. 

“We’ve experimented with various ways to present the SUNY Cortland Showcase,” said Associate Professor Deena Conley, chair of the Performing Arts Department. “We’ve taken students to New York City and have also had industry professionals come to campus to work with our seniors. COVID certainly put a damper on our efforts, so this was a reintroduction, if you will, and was our most successful showcase to date.” 

The focus on creating a showcase began years ago. Faculty knew that to build up the school’s reputation as a place where performers can thrive and develop, it was key to place the students in a position where they could make connections important for their future careers. 

The result, according to Conley, is more than a chance to perform. It’s a chance to learn from the established professionals hired to direct the showcase. The past two years, that’s been Bob Cline, founder of Bob Cline Casting in New York City. 

“We are extremely lucky to have someone of Mr. Cline’s professional caliber directing our students,” Conley said. “In the spring of each year, we offer a class entitled, ‘Showcase,’ which he teaches as well. He works with the seniors to prepare their repertoire and deems who is ready to be involved in the performance.” 

Cline, a faculty member at Pace University’s Musical Theatre Program, says he has enjoyed his time working with Cortland’s students ever since Kevin Halpin, a professor in SUNY Cortland’s Performing Arts Department, first contacted him. 

"I actually started casting 30 years ago this month and I’ve been lucky enough to be teaching for the last 25 years,” Cline said. “When I was asked to start teaching at SUNY Cortland a couple years ago, I didn’t honestly know what type of program I was stepping into. I had the students perform for me over Zoom in our first class, and I was hooked. Here were all these wonderfully talented performers, just waiting for permission to trust themselves and what they’ve been taught.” 

His experience in theater, film and TV has also been valuable in the showcase’s overall goal of furthering the students’ opportunities after graduation.  

“It was a pleasure to introduce them to my colleagues in the industry in New York City,” Cline said. “After so many years in the business, one of my favorite things to do still comes from the thrill of introducing people I love to people I love. The seniors, and the department’s trust, made that easy.” 

Unidentified human bones might be unsettling to some. But for SUNY Cortland student Caleigh Pfalzer, they’re an intriguing mystery that must be solved in order to return a donated collection of human remains to their rightful Indigenous descendant community.

Pfalzer, a dual major in anthropology and criminology, has spent the summer working in SUNY Cortland’s Bioarchaeology and Forensic Anthropology Lab under the guidance of Associate Professor Kent Johnson. She is methodically sorting through four boxes that were given to the university by an amateur archaeologist in the early 2000s — boxes that include partial skulls, fragmented bones and other organic materials likely dating back hundreds of years.

Her effort, supported as a Michael J. O’Reilly ’58, M ’63 undergraduate research summer fellowship, is an important first step of a repatriation process that will return the remains to their descendants and list them in the Federal Register, the official journal of the U.S. government. The materials are governed by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), which maintains that centuries-old human remains and cultural items belong to the people of the tribal lands where they are found.

“We know very little about these remains, so Caleigh’s doing the initial inventory that has to be part of the Federal Register listing,” Johnson said, noting that any further academic research requires the permission of their Indigenous community. “It can be a real challenge, but it’s a great learning opportunity in so many ways.”

It is unknown exactly where the remains were found, or what Indigenous community they belonged to, although Johnson speculated that they predate European settlers. Determining their approximate age would require radiocarbon dating, a destructive process that cannot take place without permission of descendants.

In a sense, Pfalzer’s summer work involves piecing together an imperfect puzzle using microscopic context clues and her knowledge of human osteology, which studies the skeleton and bone structures. Pfalzer is looking to determine the minimum number of individuals present by completing skeletal inventories for each layer of the boxes.

“It’s like someone else put a puzzle together, removed about a third of the pieces and then tore the actual image off some of the other pieces,” Johnson said. 

Among Pfalzer’s tools: a sieve to separate tiny items from soil such as fragmented bones, seeds and plant materials; a full human skeleton model for reference; and a laptop computer to catalog her findings in a spreadsheet.

SUNY Cortland’s Archaeology Lab in Moffett Center has held artifacts such as animal bones that were donated to the university as potential teaching materials for many years. Sometimes, that material includes human skeletal remains kept in storage. During the Fall 2022 semester, Johnson and Assistant Professor Hollis Miller came into possession of the remains that were given to SUNY Cortland roughly 20 years ago.

Very few confirmed details are known about the remains, other than they came from an amateur collector’s family in the Binghamton area following his death. As part of her summer work, Pfalzer found the collector’s obituary, which included mentions of participation in a statewide archaeological organization.

She hasn’t been fazed by the meticulous work or the degree of difficulty that comes with bone identification. She has taken several courses taught by Johnson, including the summer experience’s prerequisite in human osteology.

“I wasn’t scared to handle the bones,” said Pfalzer, who grew up in Akron, N.Y., and earns a $4,000 stipend plus campus housing during the summer as a research fellow supported by the Cortland College Foundation. “I was more excited to look right in.

“If anything, I was more worried about my confidence and ability in identifying the bones. … But staring at them for eight hours a day, I picked it up pretty fast.”

A major highlight involved Pfalzer finding and identifying three auditory ossicles — tiny bones within each ear that are rarely recovered. Johnson had never encountered them in unidentified remains during his research career, and even textbooks report that they’re unlikely to be found.

“If you were to ask me, I would say there’s a 0.01% probability (of finding them), but Caleigh was determined,” said Johnson, a bioarchaeologist who traces his passion to human osteology courses from his graduate training at Arizona State University.

Another small success came while sifting through soil accompanying the bone fragments. Pfalzer found an insect wing and identified a potential species match that could help determine the location of the original remains, after follow-up consultation with an entomologist.

“It’s not just about the bones,” she said. “It’s about finding any context.”

The in-depth academic work also has helped shift Pfalzer’s post-graduation plans. She came to Cortland as a criminology major and Spanish minor, with the intention to pursue a career with the FBI. But an information session during her COR 101 first-year experience and subsequent courses with Johnson, her academic advisor, revealed the potential to investigate past people and societies through human remains as a forensic anthropologist.

The identification portion of the research project is expected to wrap up by early August, and Pfalzer hopes to assist Johnson during her senior year with the nondestructive analyses that are necessary to complete the inventory for the Federal Register. 

She eventually plans to pursue advanced graduate-level training in forensic anthropology after graduating.

“This is one of those make-or-break experiences that will make Caleigh a highly competitive candidate for those (graduate) programs,” Johnson said. “She got paid to do applied research with archaeological human remains.

“That experience itself is invaluable.”

As an aspiring teacher, SUNY Cortland senior Emma Stack is concerned about the impact growing censorship in schools has on public education. So this summer, she decided to find out for herself.  

Stack is one of 12 SUNY Cortland undergraduate research summer fellows this year.  

She wants her Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship project, "The Books that Bind: Analyzing the Effects of the Banned Book Effort on the Public Education System," to help educators assess the problem. 

“There is no doubt that the conversations surrounding this topic have reached an all-time high, with state governments issuing censorship laws within classrooms all throughout the nation,” Stack said. “In response to this, I am really interested in researching this question: How does the banned book effort in the United States affect current English teachers and librarians in designing curriculum within the public school system?” 

Stack, a senior who plans to become an English teacher, majors in adolescent education English and minors in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL).  

As part of her research, Stack is interviewing three teachers and one librarian in the New York public education system. She'll then analyze those conversations, looking to decipher similarities and differences in the participants’ responses. Then she will complete a formal write-up of her findings that Stack hopes to publish and present at conferences. 

The goal for Stack is to help gauge the severity of the issue, which in turn will let educators better adapt to the changing legal landscape. 

 “I remember hearing news stories and reading articles about the pushback teachers were — and still are — receiving from any and all directions about the books they were teaching, and feeling very upset by that,” Stack said. “I wanted to create something that could help all educators, both those currently on the ground and preservice teachers like myself, in how to handle book censorship and banning.” 

SUNY Cortland’s summer student research program, managed by its Undergraduate Research Council, provides students with a residence hall bed, campus research space and $4,000 stipend. The Council gives an additional $2,000 to each faculty member who mentor a student. The students present the results of their studies at the annual Transformations conference. 

Each student's fellowship is supported by donors who fund permanent undergraduate research endowments managed by the Cortland College Foundation. Stack's donor funding came from the estate of Nancy Johnson '48 M '56.

The idea for her project came out of a 2022 summer study abroad trip to England. On that trip, Stack recalls talking with friend Lawrence Bruce '22, who last year had a summer research fellowship of their own.  

“I remember realizing at that moment that creating a research project was not something that had to be done while wearing a white coat in a science lab. It encouraged me to explore topics in English and in education that I might consider learning more about.” 

Returning to Cortland for the fall semester, Stack was introduced to Assistant Professor Adrienne Raw of the English Department, who would become her mentor for the project. 

“It's been really wonderful to work with Emma this summer,” Raw said. “The most fulfilling part of working with Emma is the passion she brings to her project. The questions she's asking are not just critically important to the field, but also questions that matter to her. It's inspiring to see her commitment to building resources for others, and it's a genuine joy to be able to work with her on making that happen. Emma is the kind of student that keeps you excited about teaching.” 

The partnership with Raw has been an indispensable source of support, according to Stack. Her mentor provided in-depth knowledge on the past and current history of book banning along with added resources on research methodologies. The entire English Department have also provided encouragement and resources. 

Stack said she was intimidated at first when applying for the fellowship because her project focuses on the humanities rather than traditional science. That all changed when her proposal was approved. 

“I felt very validated by — not to mention incredibly grateful — for the research council upon hearing about my acceptance. It made me extremely happy and excited that other people were interested enough in this project to provide funds and support in order for me to carry out the vision I have for it. 

Seven new members will be inducted into the SUNY Cortland C-Club Hall of Fame during its annual ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 2.

Info Page with registration link

The 2023 honorees are:
 
Joseph Bramante ’71, M ’74 - Football, Men’s Lacrosse, Men’s Basketball, Baseball

William “Bill” Plante ’76, M ’82 - Men’s Ice Hockey

Bobby “Bates” Bateson ’83 - Football

Derek Lalonde ’95 - Men’s Ice Hockey

Holli Mulholland Nirsberger ’00 - Women’s Soccer

Stephon “Stef” Sair ’07, M ’11 - Wrestling, Football

Dan Pitcher ’10, M ’11 - Football

In addition to Saturday night’s official ceremony, the inductees will be introduced at halftime of the Cortland football game versus Delaware Valley earlier that afternoon.
  
Established in 1969, the C-Club Hall of Fame recognizes Cortland alumni who competed as athletes at the College and who have since distinguished themselves in their professions and within their communities. Honorary members are recognized for their long and significant contributions to SUNY Cortland athletics. New C-Club members have been added annually and this year’s ceremony will bring the Hall of Fame roster to 289 alumni and 32 honorary members.
 
Nominations for the 2024 C-Club Hall of Fame voting will be accepted until January 15, 2024. The nomination form is available online at: http://www.cortlandreddragons.com/nominations. A person must be nominated to be considered for induction into the Hall of Fame.

HALL OF FAME PAGE
 
A detailed look at this fall’s inductees is below.
 
Joseph Bramante ’71, M ’74
 
Joseph Bramante was a standout football running back at Cortland and a long-time teacher, coach and administrator in the Maine-Endwell (N.Y.) School District.
 
• A native of Newark, N.Y., he earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 1971, a master’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 1974 and a Certificate of Advanced Study in School Administration and Supervision from Cortland in 1980
 
• Competed in football at Cortland for four seasons (halfback on freshman team in 1967 and running back, all-purpose back, punt/kick returner and defensive punt team on varsity from 1968-70); also a lacrosse midfielder in 1969 and played freshman baseball and basketball
 
• Set a school record as a junior with 739 rushing yards and scored eight touchdowns, six rushing and two receiving, and was considered for All-East and All-America honors as well as being nominated for Little All-America honors
 
• Finished with a then school-record 1,212 career rushing yards, despite missing the first half of his senior season due to injury; served as team captain as a senior and received NFL Draft consideration from the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers
 
• Cortland Men’s Athletic Association treasurer in 1969 and president in 1970
 
• Teacher, coach and administrator for more than 35 years, including 30-plus years in the Maine-Endwell Central School District
 
• Maine-Endwell football head coach from 1974-79, girls’ track head coach from 1981-86 and director of physical education and athletics from 1997-2005, along with stints coaching modified boys’ basketball, girls’ tennis and boys’ and girls’ track
 
• His football teams at Maine-Endwell had winning records each season and were ranked as high as third in the state
 
• New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Section Four President in 2002-03 and Section Four Athletic Director of the Year in 2005
 
• Started Maine-Endwell’s girls’ lacrosse program while director of athletics in 1998
 
• Inducted into Maine-Endwell Hall of Fame in 2011 and Section Four Hall of Fame in 2021
 
• Assistant varsity football coach at Johnson City High School from 1980-85 and served as a teacher, boys’ lacrosse head coach and assistant football coach at Waterloo High School during the 1971-72 school year; he instituted and taught co-ed classes under Title IX while at Waterloo
 
• Customized the “Four C’s” — Competence, Character, Civility and Citizenship — as an assessment tool for athletics
 
• Integrated curriculum philosophy Athletics as an Extension of the Classroom, highlighting “Fair Play, Honesty, Consideration of Classmates” in K-12 physical education; Maine-Endwell received consecutive NYSPHSAA awards and was designated a model school for sportsmanship
 
• Community service includes work with St. Anthony of Padua Church in Endicott from 1976-2005, the town of Maine from 1976-81, a variety of youth sports work in Endicott from 1989-99, and at the IDEAL Living Center nursing home from 2005-17
 
William “Bill” Plante ’76, M ’82
 
Bill Plante was a member of Cortland’s inaugural varsity men’s hockey team and won a New York State-record five state championships as boys’ ice hockey head coach at Salmon River (N.Y.) Central School.
 
• A native of Utica and New Hartford, N.Y., he earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 1976, a master’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 1982, and an associate degree from Herkimer County Community College in 1971
 
• Men’s hockey goalie at Cortland from 1974-76, including the Red Dragons’ first varsity season in 1975-76; recorded a 2.17 goals-against average in 1974-75
 
• Physical education teacher and multi-sport coach for more than 40 years in the Utica area and Moriah and Salmon River Central Schools, and served as mentor to new teachers, activities supervisor, and National Honor Society advisor
 
• New York State leader with five state hockey titles at Salmon River in 1980 (won first-ever state title game), 1981, 1989, 2001 and 2002, and runner-up finishes in 1983, 2004 and 2005; his teams won many Section Ten league and playoff titles and his 2001 team ranked fourth nationally (all high school levels)
 
• Five-time New York State Boys’ Hockey Coach of the Year; won numerous Section Ten Coach of the Year awards and was a National Coach of the Year finalist
 
• With Aboriginal hockey, Team Eastern Door and the North (Team Quebec) he scouted, recruited and coached Native American men, ages 16-21, to many gold, silver and bronze medals in the National Canadian Championships
 
• Led Salmon River girls’ volleyball to league, sectional and regional titles, the state “final four” in 2006, and a 2007 league championship
 
• Coached Salmon River baseball to sectional and league titles and the boys’ JV lacrosse to two consecutive undefeated seasons
 
• Led town of Holland Patent women’s softball team to a state title in 1977
 
• Founding member of Salmon River’s Athletics Hall of Fame (individual/teams) and the New York State High School Hockey Coaches Association Hall of Fame (individual/teams); also inducted into the Greater Utica Hall of Fame, the Herkimer County Community College Alumni Wall of Honor and the SUNYIT Wildcats Hall of Fame, and was cited by NYSPHSAA for inclusion in the Century Athletic Club
 
• Started hockey programs at Herkimer County and Clinton Community Colleges, served as Head American Scout for the Cornwall Royals Major Junior Hockey Team of the Ontario Hockey League in the 1980s, and was coach and general manager of junior teams The Massena Americans of the Central Canada Hockey League (late 1980s; now the Cornwall Colts) and the Northern New York Gamblers of the International Junior Hockey League (2010-12)
 
• Professional baseball scout for the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1970s and director of operations for the Blue Jays’ New York-Penn League team in Utica
 
Bobby “Bates” Bateson ’83
 
Bobby Bateson was an All-ECAC football linebacker at Cortland who went on to play professionally in the mid 1980s. He is the founder and long-time owner of Body Blocks Fitness in Buffalo.
 
• A native of Chicago, Ill., Columbus, Ohio and Eden, N.Y., he earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education with a concentration in athletic training from Cortland in 1983
 
• Football four-year starting linebacker at Cortland from 1979-82
 
• Finished with career totals of 384 tackles, which was a school record when he graduated and still ranks third at Cortland; he also registered five forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, 11 pass breakups and two interceptions
 
• His 140 tackles in 1982 are still a school single-season record; he finished with 109 tackles in 1981, 73 tackles in 1980 and 62 tackles in 1979
 
• During his senior season in 1982, he was elected as a team captain, earned All-Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) recognition, and was a nominee for Kodak All-America honors
 
• Registered a school single-game record 23 tackles versus Canisius and 18 tackles in Cortland’s Cortaca Jug win versus Ithaca during the 1982 season
 
• Linebacker with NFL’s Buffalo Bills in 1985 before being released due to a knee injury
 
• Played professionally in Italy from 1986-88 with the Belusco Seahawks of the Associazione Italiana Football Americano (AIFA); also a member of the Canadian Football League’s (CFL) Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1984) and Mid-East Football Conference’s New Jersey Rams (1984) and Brooklyn Mariners (1985)
• Owner of Body Blocks Fitness in Buffalo, which he founded in 1988
 
• Strength and conditioning coach and athletic trainer with the Buffalo franchise of the American Basketball Association from 2005-07 (known as the Rapids in 2005-06 and the Silverbacks in 2006-07), and strength and conditioning coach for the Nigerian national basketball team at the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China as the team qualified for the 2020 Olympics
 
• Personal strength, conditioning and rehabilitation coach for professional and collegiate teams, including Major League Baseball, the NFL and the NHL
 
• Basketball associate head coach and head strength coach at The Park School of Buffalo from 2017-21; the Pioneers won the 2018 New York State Federation Class A title and won New York State Catholic High School Athletic Association and Monsignor Martin High School Athletic Association titles in both 2018 and 2019
 
• Author of The Essentials of Fitness and Sports Performance, which was implemented into a curriculum for the Buffalo City Schools and for the Human Performance Course at Medaille College
 
• Developed and implemented fitness program for Teens Living with Cancer, which worked with post-cancer treatments in conjunction with the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
 
Derek Lalonde ’95
 
Derek Lalonde was a men’s ice hockey goalie at Cortland in the early-mid 1990s and is currently the head coach of the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings in the latest step of his nearly 30-year coaching career.
 
• The Brasher Falls, N.Y., native earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Cortland in 1995 and a master’s degree in education with a concentration in administration from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in 1998
 
• Men’s ice hockey goalie at Cortland from 1991-95, recording 988 saves in 41 games played
 
• Cortland’s starting goalie as a senior in 1994-95, finishing with 614 saves in 22 games and earning the team’s Red Letter Award
 
• His junior season included two victories over perennial SUNYAC power Oswego, and he also defeated Oswego on the road in his senior year
 
• Named the head coach of the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings in 2022 and is believed to be the first Cortland graduate to serve as the head coach of a team among North America’s four “major” sports leagues (NHL, NFL, NBA, MLB)
 
• Served four seasons as an assistant coach with the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning from 2018-22, including Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021
 
• Spent two seasons as head coach of the Toledo Walleye, the Detroit Red Wings’ farm club in the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL), from 2014-16, and two years as head coach of the Iowa Wild, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Minnesota Wild, from 2016-18
 
• Head coach of the Green Bay Gamblers of the United States Hockey League (USHL) from 2011-14 and led the Gamblers to the league title in his first season
 
• Held Division I assistant positions at Ferris State University from 2002-06 and the University of Denver from 2007-11
 
• Assistant coach at Hamilton College from 2000-02 and Lebanon Valley College from 1998-2000, and a graduate assistant coach at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts from 1995-98; he worked at Lebanon Valley under his former Cortland head coach, Al MacCormack
 
• Involved with numerous charity events throughout his hockey coaching career, including: the Toledo Walleye Feed the Hungry event (serving Thanksgiving meals to people in need); Salvation Army Kettle drives in Green Bay and Toledo; a Ronald McDonald House fundraiser in Green Bay; the Wild About Reading program in Des Moines (promoting importance of literacy and stimulating reading interest among elementary and middle school students); and the Detroit Red Wings’ Street Hockey in the D at Home program, which gives Detroit youth an opportunity to learn basics of hockey along with fundamental life skills
 
Holli Mulholland Nirsberger ’00
 
Holli Mulholland Nirsberger was an all-region women’s soccer forward at Cortland in the late 1990s and has been the highly decorated head coach of the Shenendehowa High (N.Y.) girls’ soccer team since 2004.
 
• The Plattsburgh, N.Y., native earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education and sports medicine/athletic training from Cortland in 2000 and a master’s degree in kinesiology from the University of Northern Colorado in 2004
 
• Four-year women’s soccer starting forward at Cortland in 1995-96 and 1998-99, including two years as a team captain (1998 and 1999)
 
• Registered career totals of 26 goals and 10 assists for 62 points in 77 games, including team highs of nine goals during her senior year and six goals in her sophomore season
 
• Scored eight goals in 1998 to help lead the Red Dragons to the NCAA Division III playoffs (14-5-2 overall record)
 
• Currently ranks 15th at Cortland women’s soccer history in career goals and ranks 18th in points
 
• Earned third team all-region, first team All-SUNYAC and All-New York State Women’s Collegiate Athletic Association (NYSWCAA) honors and was Cortland’s women’s soccer Red Letter Award winner during her senior season in 1999
 
• Three-time All-SUNYAC selection (first team in 1998 and 1999 and second team in 1996) and named to the NYSWCAA all-tournament team in 1995
 
• SUNYAC Commissioner’s List and All-Academic Team honoree in both 1998 and 1999 and named to National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Academic Team in 1999
 
• Earned Cortland’s Dorothy Arnsdorff Award, presented annually to a senior woman in the physical education teacher certification program, and Cortland’s Excellence in Leadership and “Prof” Holloway awards in 2000
 
• Earned the John L. Sciera ‘52 Scholarship for athletic training from Cortland in 1998 and the Lorraine M. Khouri Scholarship for physical education from Cortland in 1999
 
• Inducted into the Kappa Delta Pi (KDP) Honor Society in Education in 1998
 
• Physical education teacher, athletic trainer and coach in the Shenendehowa School District since 2000
 
• Shenendehowa High School girls’ soccer head coach since 2004 and girls’ lacrosse head coach from 2000-14; also has served as an instructor of intramurals in soccer, gymnastics, spinning, and track and field
 
• Overall girls’ soccer coaching record at Shenendehowa (through end of 2022 season) of 267-63-16 (.795)
 
• 2004 New York State Class AA Girls’ Soccer Coach of the Year after leading Shenendehowa to a state title; also guided the Plainswomen to a state runner-up finish in 2021
 
• 2009 NSCAA state and regional Girls’ Soccer Coach of the Year and 2009 and 2017 Suburban Council league Coach of the Year
 
• Served four years as a coach and a coordinator with the Special Olympics program
 
Stephon “Stef” Sair ’07, M ’11
 
Stephon Sair was a national champion wrestler and All-America football safety and punt returner at Cortland in the mid-2000s and is currently the successful wrestling head coach at Manhasset (N.Y.) High School.
 
• A Huntington, N.Y., native, he earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 2007 and a master’s degree in physical education from Cortland in 2011
 
• Competed four years on Cortland’s wrestling team (174 pounds and 184 pounds), two as a team captain, and four years as a safety and punt returner on Cortland’s football team
 
• Three-time NCAA Division III wrestling All-American with a national championship at 174 pounds in 2006, runner-up finish at 184 pounds in 2007 and fourth-place finish at 174 pounds in 2005
 
• Three-time Empire Collegiate Wrestling Conference (ECWC) champion (two-time Wrestler of the Year) and three-time all-state honoree at all-divisions New York State Championships (third place in 2007, fourth in 2004 and 2006)
 
• Wrestling career record of 80-14 with 12 pins and helped Cortland place in the top 10 nationally three times, including a sixth-place finish in 2006
 
• Cortland’s wrestling Red Letter Award winner as a senior
 
• 2017 National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Division III Hall of Fame inductee
 
• Earned Football Gazette honorable mention All-America honors as a safety in 2005 and a punt returner in 2006 and garnered six All-East honors (Football Gazette safety in 2003, 2004 and 2005 and punt returner in 2006; D3football.com safety in 2005 and 2006)
 
• Three-time first team All-ECAC Southeast safety from 2004-06 and six-time All-New Jersey Athletic Conference, including first team safety three years from 2004-06 and first team punt returner in 2006
 
• Football career totals of 213 tackles, 13 interceptions, 35 pass breakups and four forced fumbles, along with 53 punt returns for 675 yards (12.7 yards per return) in 39 games; graduated as school’s career leader in interceptions and still ranks third
 
• Scored five touchdowns - one punt return, two rushing, and two interception returns (including 70-yarder at Ithaca in 2005)
 
• Helped football team qualify for NCAA Division III playoffs in 2005 (7-3 record) and qualify for ECAC bowl games in 2006 (9-2 record) and 2003
 
• 2006-07 Cortland C-Club Senior Male Athlete of the Year
 
• Physical education teacher and coach in the Manhasset school district since 2010 and teacher in the Huntington school district from 2008-10
 
• Wrestling head coach at Manhasset High School since 2010, where he has earned six conference Coach of the Year honors and has led the program to five top-10 Nassau County finishes
 
• Started an ALS (“Lou Gehrig’s Disease”) Research fundraiser with the wrestling program at Manhasset High, and has volunteered as a football coach with the Huntington Police Athletic League (PAL)
 
Dan Pitcher ’10, M ’11
 
Dan Pitcher was an All-America football quarterback at Cortland in the late 2000s/early 2010s and is presently the quarterbacks coach for the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals.
 
• The Cortland, N.Y., native earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Cortland in 2010 and a master’s degree in sport management from Cortland in 2011
 
• Four-year football quarterback at Cortland from 2008-11, including three seasons as a team captain (2009-11); won the team’s Red Letter Award in 2011
 
• 2011 finalist for the Gagliardi Trophy (Division III National Player of the Year)
 
• 2011 D3football.com Hon. Mention All-American and First Team All-East Region
 
• 2011 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Offensive Player of the Year and 2010 First Team All-NJAC
 
• First Team CoSIDA Academic All-American as a senior and two-time Academic All-District; also SUNYAC Chancellor’s Scholar-Athlete Award winner for 2010-11 school year
 
• 2011 ECAC Division III Southeast Bowl Most Outstanding Player
 
• Career stats (30 games): 402-of-674 passing (.596), 5,033 yards, 54 touchdowns along with five rushing touchdowns; set school record for career TD passes (currently is third) and consecutive games with a TD pass (13 spanning the 2010 and 2011 seasons), and is currently seventh in passing yardage and completions despite playing only two games in 2009 due to injury
 
• During senior year in 2011 he completed 197-of-317 passes (.621) for 2,712 yards and 31 touchdowns with just five interceptions and ran for 239 yards and three scores; his 31 TD passes are still tied for the school single-season record and his five TD passes at Brockport are still tied for the school single-game record
 
• Member of teams that won NJAC titles in 2008 and 2010; the 2008 squad was 11-2 and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals and the 2010 team went 10-2 and advanced to the NCAA second round
 
• Entering his eighth season on the coaching staff of the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals in 2023; has served as the Bengals’ quarterbacks coach since 2020, was assistant quarterbacks coach from 2018-19 and assistant wide receivers coach from 2016-17
 
• During his tenure with the Bengals, the team advanced to the Super Bowl in February 2022 and to the AFC Championship Game in January 2023
 
• Pro scout for the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts from 2014-15 and scouting assistant for the Colts from 2012-13
 
• Wide receivers coach at Cortland in spring of 2012
 
• Youth camp volunteer for the Marvin Lewis Community Fund, which empowered, educated and inspired individuals in the Greater Cincinnati region through outreach programs
 
• Guest speaker at numerous events, including at the College Football Hall of Fame banquet, the Cortland Youth Bureau and SUNY Cortland Convocation and Admissions Recruitment

A series of riveting historical images from a documentary that captures the final, violent end of totalitarian communism in Eastern Europe, went on display in SUNY Cortland’s Old Main Colloquium starting Monday, Aug. 28.

Presented by the university’s Clark Center for Global Engagement in collaboration with the Dowd Gallery, the exhibition titled “1989. Struggle for Democracy” documents the bloody, nine-day revolution that marked the end of communist control in Eastern Europe.

1989 was a landmark year for the former communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, as the collapsing Soviet Union loosened its control. Most of them made a peaceful transition from totalitarianism to democracy, with one exception — Romania, which was the only country where the transition to a democratic regime was carried out violently and where the leaders of the old regime were executed. The Romanian Revolution, the first revolution broadcast live on TV, took place between Dec. 16 and Dec. 25, and involved demonstrations and street fighting leading to the fall of former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and the former communist regime.  

The exhibition presents a selection of photos taken in Cluj-Napoca, the historic capital of the Transylvania region of Romania, by professional and amateur photographers during the Romanian Revolution from 1989. This was during a time when black and white photos were still extremely rare due to both technological and political reasons.

“In the 1980s Romania was a time of penury when many products were very hard to find, if not impossible,” said Clark Center Director Alexandru Balas. “It was very expensive and not usually available in stores; and you would have to develop the photos in your self-made dark room, usually in the bathroom.” 

An opening reception for “1989. Struggle for Democracy” and a screening of the documentary from which the images were pulled, will be held in the Old Main Colloquium on Wednesday, Sept. 30. The event begins at 4:30 p.m. with the documentary starting at 5 p.m.

Professor Rareș Beuran, the project’s coordinator and a lecturer in the Journalism and Digital Media Department, Faculty of Political, Administrative and Communication Sciences at Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, will attend the opening reception and give a brief introduction.

Afterward, Beuran will offer short remarks about the 50-minute documentary itself, which is titled “Photographic Testimonies from the Revolution. Cluj-Napoca, December 1989.”

The exhibition, opening reception and film screening are all free and open to the public.

They are part of a larger research initiative of visually reconstructing local history through images immortalized by photographers, according to Beuran. Some of these photos were never published.

“The aim of this initiative is to increase the level of information of the young generation to stimulate intergenerational dialogue about the 1989 Revolution and the values of democracy,” Balas said. “This is necessary given the attacks on democracy in many countries around the world.”

Beuran also will engage in campus activities for several days. He is a visiting scholar with the Clark Center as part of the European Commission’s Erasmus+ KeyAction1 mobility project.

Erasmus stands for EuRopean Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students and is a European Union (EU) student exchange program established in 1987. The newer Erasmus+, or Erasmus Plus, program was started in 2014 and combines education, training, youth and sport aspects.

As of 2014, 27 years after its creation, the program has promoted these scholarly exchanges, termed “mobilities,” of more than 3.3 million students within the European community. More than 5,000 higher education institutions from 38 countries are participating in the project.

The EU pays the cost for these academic exchanges.

Beuran joins a larger group of Babes-Bolyai University scholars visiting the SUNY Cortland campus during the fall semester, Balas said. That includes professors Cristina Nistor and Constantin Trofin from the Journalism and Digital Media Department, Professor Adina-Letitia Negrusa from the Business Department, and Carmen Tagsorean, head of office to Babes-Bolyai University’s Center for International Cooperation.

“As part of the same Erasmus+ KeyAction1 project, seven professors and staff members from SUNY Cortland visited Babes-Bolyai University for one week earlier in 2023 to enhance our institutional partnership,” Balas said.

They were Distinguished Professor John Foley, Physical Education Department; Associate Librarian Daniel Harms, Memorial Library; Assistant Professor Odalis Hildago, Modern Languages Department; Assistant Director of Systems and Information Security Eli Simon, Information Systems and Security; Senior Academic Counselor Judy Stoddard, Educational Opportunity Program; and Associate Professor Maria Timberlake,  Foundations and Social Advocacy Department.

“Our institution has signed more Erasmus+ KeyAction1 institutional agreements and we hope to offer an increased number of such mobility opportunities to our Cortland students, professors and staff in the near future,” Balas said.

The exhibition and related events are co-sponsored by SUNY Cortland’s International Studies Program, the Project on Eastern and Central Europe and the President’s Office. For more information about this and other programs organized by the Clark Center, contact Alexandru Balas at 607-753-4823.

IN THE TOP IMAGE, amateur Romanian photographer Radu Mureșan’s untitled 1989 filmography still image shows the first democratic gathering in Cluj-Napoca after the former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu fled the capital city. Citizens are shown listening to dissident Doina Cornea’s first speech on Dec. 22, 1989.

Food. It’s taken for granted until weather disasters, invasions, wars, supply chain issues or  corporate greed place this urgent topic on America’s own dinner table.

SUNY Cortland will continue its annual, year-long academic series of lectures, discussions, film screenings and art exhibitions framed this year on the very timely issue.

Starting on Thursday, Sept. 7, the university’s Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee (CICC), an all-campus committee of faculty and staff appointed by the provost, will partner with local organizations including the Cortland Food Project to explore the many facets of food on the campus and out in the community.  

The events are free and open to the public.

“Food is one of the most interdisciplinary themes in our daily lives,” said this year’s CICC chair, Benjamin Wilson, associate professor and chair of the Economics Department.

“From the science of agricultural practices to the economics of food systems, from the cultural values that surround family recipes to the histories behind culinary traditions, food unites communities as well as academic fields,” he said.

Food, he explained, can also act as a window into some of the largest crises of our time. These range from the need to foster sustainable ecosystems and the vulnerability of global food pathways in the face of climate change to widespread hunger and famine, food deserts and inequalities of access to healthy nutrition.

“Building on SUNY Cortland’s commitment to ‘green’ initiatives, we hope that the shared topic of food will not only provide ‘food for thought,’ but also that it will inspire collaborative actions as we work together towards a nourishing and sustainable future,” Wilson said.     

Each year, the series features a “common read” aimed at creating a foundation for discussion across campus. The selection for the 2023-2024 academic year will be  Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants. The author, Robin Wall Kimmerer, is an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, and a MacArthur Fellow.

“Braiding Sweetgrass resonates strongly with this year’s focus on ‘Food,’ inviting us to explore our relationships with the environment on both personal and systemic levels and to build community through our engagement with Kimmerer’s moving and lyrical storytelling,” said Abigail Droge, a SUNY Cortland assistant professor of British literature and culture and the organizer of an upcoming panel discussion on the book.

Series highlights will also include a "common screening" of films and documentaries relating to a food theme; and two community-focused food security events, a panel presentation and a sandwich seminar, hosted by the university’s Institute for Civic Engagement. Campus community members are encouraged to seek out and view related digital cinematography by Michael Pollan housed at Memorial Library.

Fall 2023 events

Events, which are still being scheduled, are as follows:

THURSDAY, SEPT. 7. A teaching panel presentation on this year’s common read by Robin Wall Kimmerer, “Teaching Braiding Sweetgrass: Classroom Contexts, Lesson Plans, and Learning Objectives,” will take place from 4 to 5:30 p.m. in Old Main Colloquium. Panelists who have taught from the book will discuss their experiences and suggestions on engaging ways that educators might use the text in their own courses. The conversation will cover a wide range of disciplines and course levels. Panelists will include Gabriel Colella, Abigail Droge and Dan Radus of the English Department; Jeremy Jimenez, Foundations and Social Advocacy; Joanna LoGerfo ’23, M.A. in English; Hollis Miller, Sociology/Anthropology Department; and Benjamin Wilson, Economics Department.

THURSDAY, OCT. 5. SUNY Cortland’s Institute for Civic Engagement will host a community roundtable, “Addressing Food Insecurity in Cortland County,” from 8 to 9 a.m. in the Park Center Hall of Fame Room. Co-sponsored by the President’s Fund, the roundtable will include Avery McCloud, a Seven Valleys Health Coalition Project coordinator who chairs its Hunger Coalition and helped with the Hunger Coalition’s Story-Telling Project; Carrie Kane, MS, RD, CDN, deputy director for Nutrition Services, Area Agency on Aging; and Mike Discenza, SUNY Cortland’s head golf coach and academic coordinator, and member of the SUNY Cortland Cupboard.

THURSDAY, OCT. 12. A sandwich seminar on the SUNY Cortland Cupboard in the context of community food insecurity will run from noon to 1 p.m. in Old Main Colloquium. Presenters include Avery McLoud, project coordinator with the Seven Valleys Health Coalition; Carol Corbin Costell, deputy chief of staff at Assemblymember Anna Kelles’ Cortland office and a former SCC board member; Mike Discenza, SUNY Cortland's head golf coach and academic coordinator, as well as a member of the SUNY Cortland Cupboard; and Samantha Shaffer, assistant director of SUNY Cortland Student Conduct and an SCC board member.

The Spring 2024 series events will be announced in a future Bulletin.

To submit an event, volunteer to support this year’s activities and programming, or for more information, visit the “Food” website or contact Wilson at 607-753-2436.

Organizers are pulling together a team of SUNY Cortland faculty, staff and alumni to help support the local fight against child abuse by running in a hybrid 5K fundraiser from Sept. 15 to 17.

“One child abused is one too many,” said Paige Potter ’21, M ’23, community outreach educator with the Cortland County Child Advocacy Center since last summer. She noted that an estimated one out of every 10 children will be abused before their 18th birthday.

That’s why the annual event, sponsored by child advocacy centers throughout the state, was named the “One Too Many 5K.”

Potter, a SUNY Cortland graduate and former standout Red Dragon lacrosse goalie, has teamed up with Jaclyn Lawrence ’12, M ’14, SUNY Cortland associate director of athletics, to drum up campus community participation in the challenge, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 16.

It will be the first time SUNY Cortland has assembled a team to raise money for the Cortland County Child Advocacy Center through the run, which is in its fifth year. Individuals can become part of the university’s team when they register online for the race by selecting “SUNY Cortland Red Dragons” and the “Cortland County Child Advocacy Center.”

Registration costs $40 per person, with 75% of it going directly to support child advocacy centers like the one in Cortland. The center’s multi-disciplinary team facilitates child abuse investigations and evaluations and provides education about the issue in local schools and other venues.

By creating a SUNY Cortland team, the university community can encourage more participation and give SUNY Cortland a shot at winning this year’s Individual Team Challenge Award.

“I think this would be a great thing for our campus to support,” Lawrence said. “I am hopeful that we can make a SUNY Cortland team that can include faculty, staff and alumni. According to Paige, Cortland County has been consistently in second place in registrations behind Dutchess County, and I don’t think any of us like coming in second!”

Organized by the New York State Children’s Alliance, the 5K will happen at locations all across New York, with the Cortland County event to kick off at 10 a.m. that Saturday in front of Homer High School.

Participants in the 5K can register up through the day of the event, either online the day before the race and in person on the day itself. 

Team members can also choose to complete their 5K virtually anytime between Friday, Sept. 15 and Sunday, Sept.17. These participants can run anywhere they like. They must track and submit their own completion date, time and location in their neighborhood, area park or on their treadmill. Virtual results submitted by the race date will be considered for prizes.

In addition to helping SUNY Cortland win the Team Challenge Award, individuals may win statewide competition prizes in the following categories:

• Best View on My Run/Walk/Roll Selfie
• Dogs Need a 5K Too
• Funniest Sunglasses
• Best TEAM Costume
• Best Race Time, Male and Female

The 5K will be followed by a “Be a Star for Children” barbecue lunch from noon to 3 p.m. at Homer Hops in Homer, N.Y. The event, which requires separate registration, will feature prizes and a basket raffle/silent auction run by Homer radio station WXHC Always Classic, with items valued at up to $3,000 donated by corporations and individual donors.

“Be a Star for Children” is $20 for general admission, with all but $5 waived for that day’s 5K participants; and $10 for children 12 and under.

“(SUNY Cortland) has a lot of faculty and staff who are into running, and it is a good way for us to support our community,” said Potter, noting the agency last year achieved its goal to raise $25,000. “It can benefit people in our community.”

Potter, a former sociology major who grew up in Cortland, has a Master of Science in Community Health and Preventive Medicine at her alma mater. In her current role, she visits schools and community groups to raise awareness about how to spot signs of child abuse and how to work with the center to help end child abuse.

“I’m still learning new things every single day,” Potter said. “It’s a very fulfilling job when it comes to learning how to become an advocate for people who don’t have a voice, speaking on behalf of them or helping them to speak. What we deal with isn’t enjoyable but getting to help the kids is.”

Last year, Potter completed her first One Too Many 5K on her own time due to a prior lacrosse team commitment. She walked in Cortland from Tompkins Street to Broadway Avenue to Groton Avenue to achieve her five kilometers.

“It was basically a big loop around campus,” Potter said. “It’s not a bad one.”

Image: Paige Potter ’21, M ’23, community outreach educator with the Cortland County Child Advocacy Center,  displays swag that was given to participants in last year’s 5K.

Steve Beville, one of the nation’s most successful collegiate men’s lacrosse coaches, has announced his retirement after 17 years as head coach at SUNY Cortland.
“I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of 17 amazing journeys at Cortland,” Beville said. “I walk away with a heartfelt appreciation for all the athletes I have coached and built relationships with. They are an incredible group of characters and athletes! I am looking forward to seeing the future Red Dragon teams compete at the highest levels.”
Beville’s record at Cortland (including an abbreviated season in 2020) was 255-65 (.797), making him Cortland’s career victories leader. He led the Red Dragons to the NCAA Division III championship game four times, with a national title victory in 2009, and he also guided Cortland to the national semifinals in both 2013 and 2010, the quarterfinals in 2011, 2014, 2015 and 2017, and the second round in 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022.
“Steve has given a great deal to SUNY Cortland and our men’s lacrosse team, including a national championship trophy,” said Cortland Director of Athletics Mike Urtz. “We are eternally grateful for his time here along with all of his accomplishments.”

Prior to Cortland, Beville coached 10 seasons at Colorado College (100-49 from 1989-98) and eight years at Division I University of Vermont (48-62 from 1999-2006). His overall coaching record of 403-176 over 35 years ranks him sixth in victories all-time among coaches on all NCAA levels and fourth in Division III through the end of the 2023 season.
A native of Syracuse, N.Y., Beville graduated from West Genesee High School in 1981 and went on to enjoy a highly successful playing career at Washington College in Maryland, graduating in 1985. He was a two-time Division III National Defenseman of the Year and played in three Division III national championship games.
Beville served as an assistant coach at Washington College in 1986 and 1987 and the team reached the national title contest in 1986. He was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002.
Beville led Cortland to undefeated regular-season records in both 2012 (21-1 overall) and 2013 (19-1 overall), as well as a 19-2 overall record during Cortland’s 2009 national championship season. He was selected as the 2009 United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Division III National Coach of the Year after his team won four NCAA tournament games, capped by a 9-7 victory over Gettysburg in the national title game in Foxborough, Mass.
In Beville’s tenure at Cortland, the Red Dragons won 13 of a possible 16 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) titles (2008-16, 2018-19, 2021-22) and made 15 of a possible 16 NCAA tournament appearances. Beville was named SUNYAC Coach of the Year nine times (2008, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019, plus Coaching Staff of the Year in 2021 and 2022) and he was voted as the SUNYAC Coach of the Decade for 2010-19 with a combined 163-38 record during that stretch.
Beville led Cortland to the national finals in his first two seasons in 2007 and 2008. The 2007 squad, which finished 15-6, earned an NCAA at-large berth and won three NCAA road games before losing to Salisbury in the finals in Baltimore. The 2008 team finished 18-2 and won three NCAA games at home. The Red Dragons lost to Salisbury in the finals in Foxborough.
The Red Dragons broke the school record for wins in a season with their 19 victories in 2009, then broke the mark again with their 21 wins in 2012. Cortland advanced to the NCAA championship game in 2012 before losing to Salisbury in a battle of unbeaten teams in Foxborough. In 2013, Cortland finished 19-1, with its lone loss an overtime home setback to RIT in the national semifinals.
The Iroquois Nationals men’s lacrosse team named Beville as its head coach for the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championships in Denver in July 2014. He led the team to its first-ever medal with a bronze finish at the 38-nation event. Beville also served as an assistant coach on the 2012 Iroquois Nationals U19 (under-19) squad that won a bronze medal at the World Championships in Finland. During that tournament, the team upset Team USA for its first-ever win versus an American team in international competition.
Beville was a 2010 inductee into the U.S. Lacrosse Upstate New York Hall of Fame.

Flatworms, also known as planarians, prefer a quiet, dark spot. So you don’t expect to find them baking in the glare of the media spotlight aimed by news outlets like CNN and NBC.  

That recent focus is on the truly weird variety of planarians known as hammerhead worms or broadhead planarians. The headlines have stressed the odd-looking worm’s toxic secretions, carnivorous hunting habits and the fact it is an invasive species from Southeast Asia.  

But, thanks to the expertise SUNY Cortland’s Peter Ducey and his students, the body of the stories include reliable facts that show they aren’t the cause for alarm they’re sometimes portrayed as. 

 “Sometimes people are interested in invasive worms because it’s a sky is falling, ‘These invasives are going to eat up everything’ kind of thing,” Ducey said. “And this is not really one of those cases in general.” 

Ducey, a distinguished teaching professor in the university’s Biological Sciences Department, specializes in flatworms, reptiles and amphibians. He’s been involved with several research studies on the hammerhead that are cited on websites like the National Invasive Species Information Center and Wikipedia. 

The recent fascination was sparked by increased sightings of the planarians, which resemble flattened slugs with a front end shaped like an arrowhead, in areas across the country.  

It’s not the first time there’s been a sudden media focus on these species. Ducey has contributed to local news stories about planarians in the past, but this is the first time the topic has reached such a large national audience. 

“This sort of thing has been occurring off and on over the last couple of decades,” Ducey said. “Every once in a while, someone will find one in their yard someplace and raise the alarm. There will be a couple of stories and then it dies away. But a month ago, it seemed like there was a mushrooming of those stories across the country.” 

Despite the recent alarm about an invading species that eats earthworms, a lack of past studies makes it hard to know whether flatworms are spreading rapidly or have had similar numbers in the northern area for decades. Most people never actively looked for flatworms until social media made their existence a more widely known issue. 

If a flatworm is spotted, he cautions against touching it with bare skin. Planarians have a neurotoxin, tetrodotoxin, that can be hazardous. This toxin, the same found in most pufferfish and some salamanders, can’t enter the body through skin. However, exposure on a cut or by touching your eyes or mouth is possible. Ducey and his students all wear gloves when handling them. 

There are five species of broadhead planarians reported to be in the United States, according to Ducey. Three are in the southern parts of the country and two are northern. One species in the South and one in the North have been widespread across the country for decades. Two of the southern species are now increasing their ranges.

That doesn’t mean there’s cause to be a flatworm fatalist. 

“It’s not, all of a sudden, puff — here they are,” Ducey said. “Several species have been in North America for probably 100 years.” 

The most likely place to find these planarians are moist, shady areas like gardens, forests and under rocks. While they aren’t going to wreak ecological havoc in your yard, he does agree that any changes brought on by the planarians need to be monitored. 

“They are relatively new things to the ecosystems of North America, and they are very effective predators, so they could have negative effects on ecosystems here. Several of the species feed on earthworms, and earthworms do play significant roles within soil ecosystems. But many of the earthworms in North America are themselves not native to the continent. It makes the story a little more complicated. If the flatworms were coming in and eating native species, that would make them the bad guys. But now they’re coming in and eating both invasive earthworms and native earthworms. They might be having some minor positive effects by eating the invasive worms.” 

Climate change, while a possible contributor to the spread of the southern flatworms, is probably not a major factor, according to Ducey. Instead, it’s a lack of natural predators making it easy for hammerhead worms to thrive. In fact, the flatworms’ ability to stay on top of their own food chain is one of the things he finds most fascinating about them. 

“Even though they’re small, soft, squishy worms, they are amazing predators,” Ducey said. “They take on prey items 10-, 15- and 20-times their own mass. It’s sort of like a house cat attacking a white-tailed deer.” 

The planarians also have an extraordinary ability to regenerate that puts them far beyond other worms. Ducey notes that some of the flatworm species can be cut into 10 pieces, with all those pieces growing back the parts required to become complete, functioning worms. It’s a trait being studied by scientists with the hope of developing similar regenerative abilities in human medicine. 

Ducey says his own decades-long research at Cortland has been helped by the university’s undergraduate research program. He estimates that dozens of students have helped his research through this program, with many of them subsequently listed as published authors alongside Ducey in peer-reviewed scientific journals. 

“They go on to become everything, but the experience they have in science can help them,” Ducey said. “Some of them got Ph.D.s and are now professional scientists, but many of them are high school teachers, doctors, dentists, physician assistants or nurse practitioners. The students that work with these worms or with the reptiles and amphibians have all those kinds of careers now.” 

Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, a SUNY Cortland musical theatre major from Staten Island, N.Y., heard the siren’s call of show business by the age of 7. For her, there was never a doubt about choosing a career. 

“I went to ‘The Lion King,’ which was my first Broadway show,” said Fitzpatrick, recalling that she sat near the stage. “I remember when the animals came down the aisle and I had the realization that this is exactly where I want to be when I grow up.” 

Soon to be a sophomore, Fitzpatrick recently was selected as one of six interns for the Shubert Organization, a major theatrical producing company and owner of 17 Broadway theaters. She was chosen out of 93 applicants from 66 campuses in 12 states and three countries.  

The six-week program is designed to give BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) students interested in theater management an experience in administration and operations. She works at the Shubert Theatre, where the new Tony-winning musical “Some Like It Hot,” based on the 1959 Marilyn Monroe movie, is playing. 

Fitzpatrick does the behind-the-scenes work that goes into bringing a million-dollar production to the stage, night after night. Her favorite moments so far have been when the doors open before a performance starts. 

“You would think this is very chaotic,” Fitzpatrick said. “Sometimes it is, but it’s also the rush of helping people, of organizing everything, of thinking on your feet and getting people to where they need to go. The actors are getting ready for the show and you’re making sure everything is ready. Opening the house is just a beautiful feeling. You are working in tandem with everyone to get this show going, and it’s so satisfying.” 

Aside from her professional pursuit, Fitzpatrick has a cultural interest in theater that keeps her inspired. Her favorite musical is Lin Manuel Miranda’s “In The Heights,” due to its reflection of her own heritage as a daughter to an immigrant mother, Maria, from El Salvador and a father, Kevin, descended from Irish immigrants.  

The show, Fitzpatrick says, also mirrors her own feelings as a first-generation college student with parents who worked hard to create a better life for their children. 

“I grew up a lot around my Hispanic culture, but I didn’t really see that reflected in any TV, musicals or movies. So the representation of ‘Oh there’s somebody who comes from a mixed family. Oh, there’s somebody that has a household where they speak Spanish’ — where I can see a mirror image of my family, of my culture, that didn’t really happen to me. So, when I found ‘In The Heights’ It was a big deal for me.” 

Just because Fitzpatrick had a clear goal at a young age doesn’t mean it was always easy. As part of a family where everyone else had a serious love of sports, it took time to find her own way. 

“My two older sisters played basically every sport possible, my younger sister plays a lot of sports. And I was placed in sports at the ripe age of five years old and was bad at it — very, very bad,” Fitzpatrick said. “My older sister Haley said, ‘Mom, you can’t do this. She has to find something else that she’s good at.’” 

With her family’s support, she soon found that something. Her mom, who had seen Fitzpatrick singing and humming from a young age, signed her up for voice lessons. At her sister’s suggestion, dance classes followed.  

As her interest in performing grew, so did her interest in other aspects of theater, including management. Someday, Fitzpatrick hopes to open her own theater company. 

“Those things interest me — not just as a backup, but as another thing in theater that I want to do. But I’ve been performing since I was 7 and plan on hopefully, one day, to be on the Broadway stage. However, the idea of being a manager and the idea of being on the business side of theater is a goal that I very much want to accomplish as well.” 

Cast in the university’s production of “Seussical” last spring, Fitzpatrick says the personal attention and close bonds she’s had in the Performing Arts Department have also been key to her progress.  

“I have gained so much experience and so many connections through just one year at Cortland, and I have seen so much progress within myself. Goals that I had been trying to do for four years in high school, I accomplished them in one year at Cortland.” 

Now, a little over a decade after her dream began as part of an audience, Fitzpatrick relishes her chance to work for a premier musical in the most famous theater district in the world.  

“Every day is kind of a surreal moment because I feel so lucky that I’m 18 years old, I’m a young woman and the daughter of an immigrant, and I’m already doing a job that I love so much.” 

As the annual Constitution Day approaches in mid-September, some SUNY Cortland students may doubt they have the power to make meaningful change in the world. They might want to meet two recent SUNY Cortland Institute for Civic Engagement Action Team interns who are doing just that.

Austen Johnson ’19 has helped organize many political dialogs at SUNY Cortland, starting well before graduation. He currently serves as placement coordinator with Oneida County’s Workforce Development Board.

Hailie Addison ’21 started SUNY Cortland’s chapter of the national group BridgeUSA, a national organization devoted to finding common ground between different political views on college campuses. Addison has helped start chapters at other colleges and is now the group’s national program manager.

Members of the campus community will have the opportunity to meet them and other political movers and shakers when SUNY Cortland, five other SUNY institutions, and institutions in the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education team up on Tuesday, Sept. 19, for a Zoom-based Constitution Day, and on Wednesday, Sept. 20, for a Constitution Day event at SUNY Cortland.

Each year, SUNY Cortland’s Institute for Civic Engagement holds a Constitution Day event to connect with students on topics related to the importance of the U.S. Constitution in their lives. This year, organizers have asked faculty to encourage their students to register and participate in both events.

Constitution Day (or Citizenship Day), is an American federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the U.S. Constitution and those who have become U.S. citizens. Observed this year on Sept. 19, it is normally recognized on Sept. 17 — the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia. When Constitution Day falls on a weekend or on another holiday, schools and other institutions observe the holiday on an adjacent weekday.

It’s the second year the group, which this year includes SUNY Plattsburgh, SUNY Oswego, Buffalo State, Old Westbury and Nassau Community College, as well as the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, has held student-centered educational and participatory discussions to mark the occasion.

“This year, both events will help students learn and apply guidelines for exercising their First Amendment right to petition the government,” said John Suarez, director of SUNY Cortland’s Institute for Civic Engagement (ICE).

Students from each campus have an opportunity to interact with students from other campuses, Suarez said.

The Tuesday, Sept. 19, event Zoom-hosted by Nassau Community College is titled “Be an Agent for Change: Use your power to petition the government.” Register to attend the online event using the following link. The ICE invites students, faculty and staff to watch the keynote address of Natalie Higgins, Massachusetts State Representative, together from 10 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. at the Institute’s Moffett Center, Room 102 office. Space is limited to 20 people.

The Sept. 19 event’s activities will unfold in three parts from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.:

• Keynote speech. Natalie Higgins, Massachusetts State Representative, will address participants. She will be interviewed by John Reiff, Massachusetts Department of Higher Education’s director of civic learning and civic engagement, who is a Campus Compact Equity and Engagement Fellow.
• Panel discussion. Moderated by Suarez, the panel will discuss considerations such as best practices for building productive working relationships with government officials, understanding which level of government to contact, and steps to take when replies are delayed or otherwise not helpful. The panel will include Adam Saccardi, director of constituent services for S. Rep. Nick LaLota, a Republican representing New York Legislative District 1; and Manu Meel, CEO of BridgeUSA, whose nationally renowned work helps students bridge differences in civil and productive ways.
• Workshop. Small group discussions will be followed by a full group debrief.

The Wednesday, Sept. 20 event, titled “Go, Co-Govern! Solve challenges by exercising your First Amendment right to petition the government,” will take place in two parts from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Park Center Hall of Fame Room.

The event is free and open to SUNY Cortland students, faculty and staff and the greater Cortland community. Early registration is advised to attend the day’s events and help organizers plan the discussion. Activities will include:

• Panel discussion. Austen Johnson, a former Cortland ICE Action Team intern; Meel; Tom Michales, a City of Cortland alderman since 2003 who has served as deputy mayor since 2022; and Hailie Addison, a former Cortland ICE Action Team intern who will facilitate the small groups.
• Workshop. Small group discussions will be followed by a full group debrief. Participants will apply panelists’ lessons in moderated small-group/issue-oriented discussions in which they decide which level of government would be appropriate to work with; the medium — such as email or personal visit — to use in reaching out to the appropriate person; and what to learn about the government official’s opinions about, and actions on, the issue.

“By attending the panel discussion, people will be able to name at least three ways of petitioning the government and explain circumstances under which those ways would be most appropriate and beneficial,” Suarez said.

“By participating in the workshop, people will learn an appropriate approach for petitioning a particular government office on a particular issue,” he said. “They also will be able to name a way in which information or a skill from at least one academic course can help them address a major issue and partner with at least one other person — ideally from the greater Cortland community — to use their new knowledge to address an issue of concern to them.”

The Constitution Day events are hosted by the ICE and the President’s Fund. Those interested in learning more about the Constitution Day program may contact Suarez at 607-753-4391.

Image: Courtesy of Aaron Burden for Unsplash 

The following message was shared with faculty and staff by the SUNY Cortland Communications Office:

A new semester is about to begin, and once again we’re reminding you to update your campus online directory entry. Presenting current information and images on our website is a vital part of marketing SUNY Cortland to prospective students and employees and a great way to enhance your professional profile.

 Upload a photo and receive a gift card

To help make a positive first impression of yourself as a potential instructor, mentor or colleague, please add a recent photo to the campus directory. When you do that, you’ll receive a $5 Cortland Auxiliary Services gift card to be used at campus eateries and cafes. Once your photo is uploaded to the directory, please notify Nikki Thomas in the Human Resources Office at nikki.thomas@cortland.edu to receive the gift card.

Information about obtaining and uploading your photo is posted in our brand identity guide.

 Online directory

Your directory entry should include your current title, an office room number, phone number and email address. Follow these steps to add to or edit your contact information:

1. Sign in to myRedDragon.
2. Select the Faculty/Staff tab.
3. In the About Me box, select “Update/Edit YourDirectory”
4. Review yourdetails and make any necessary update

 More detailed information about how to enhance your entry is available in the directory’s help menu and FAQ page. 

For assistance accessing myRedDragon or the directory, contact The Help Center by email or call 607-753-2500. Please note: Employees making requests may experience longer-than-usual wait times as the semester gets under way. Thank you for your patience.

SUNY Cortland will host the Fall 2023 “Wellness Wednesday Series” featuring speakers, self-help presentations and other programs intended to help students adjust to college life and maintain healthy habits.

Sponsored by the Health Promotion Office and the Conley Counseling and Wellness Services, the series will take place each Wednesday in Corey Union Exhibition Lounge, unless otherwise noted. The events are free and open to the public.

In keeping with a university priority of well-being, each semester SUNY Cortland offers weekly encouragement to the campus and community to pursue a lifetime of good health.

A Fall 2023 Wellness Wednesday poster listing all the events can be found at the Health Promotion Wellness Wednesday webpage.

Events include:

On Aug. 30, yoga instructor Victoria Quick, will offer Intro to Yoga from 6 to 6:45 in the Student Life Center Mind Body Room. Participants will experience a beginner-level yoga class and should dress in loose, comfortable clothing and bring a towel. In-person attendance is first come, first served and is open to the first 40 participants who show up for class. Free yoga mats will be given to all who attend.

Lauren Scagnelli, health educator, will help Put the Myths to “Bed” from 7 to 7:45 p.m. on Sept. 6. Learn why sleep is necessary, the facts and myth around sleeping and napping and learn what to do to get a good night sleep. Free sleep masks and ear plugs will be given out.

On Sept. 13 from 7 to 7:45 p.m., Scagnelli will turn down the lights for Sex in the Dark, answering your questions and presenting on the topic of safe sex.

Stop by the What's Going in My Lungs? information tables on the Corey Union steps between 1 and 3 p.m. on Sept. 20 to learn what is in e-cigarettes and to take a challenge to stop using nicotine and tobacco.

On Sept. 27, information on Stress Management will be available from health promotion representatives between 1 and 3 p.m. on the Corey Union steps. Try out different coping strategies to reduce stress and enjoy some free giveaways.

Learn Empowerment Self-Defense techniques with SUNY Cortland’s University Police Department from 6 to 6:45 p.m. on Oct. 4. Wear clothes you can move in and athletic footwear for balance and stability.

On Oct. 11, SUNY Cortland will celebrate National Coming Out Day. Join health promotion interns and SOGIE Committee members from 1 to 3 p.m. in Neubig Hall lobby to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community.

Disabilities: Lived Experiences is a podcast on Sound Cloud that will download on Oct. 18 and feature students, Disability Resources and Access to Independence of Cortland County community members with disabilities. People with a variety of disabilities will discuss their lived experiences, challenges they face and how they adapted.

On Oct. 25, It’s Real: College Students and Mental Health will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. and feature the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, health promotion and our men’s hockey team. Learn how to balance your life from other students who have been there, learn how to spot and help friends who may be struggling, and have an honest conversation about mental health and well-being. This event will feature a short film and live discussion.

Stop by Neubig Hall lobby between 1 and 3 p.m. on Nov. 1 for Relationship Jenga. Play Jenga to understand the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships.

Educators from health promotion and prevention education will review responsibilities and rights around alcohol, drugs and sex at this informational Party Smart Before Cortaca from 1 to 3 p.m. on Nov. 8 in Neubig Hall lobby.  Free giveaways will be provided.

On Nov. 15, Kathryn Gallup and Jennifer Talarico, senior counselors, will present ways to increase self-awareness to enhance wellness in your life. Join them from 6 to 6:45 p.m. for Connecting With Yourself and Others.

For more information or accommodation to attend an event, contact Lauren Scagnelli, health educator, in Van Hoesen Hall, Room B-38, or at 607-753-2066.

The Faculty Development Center (FDC) is accepting applications for the Small Grant Program. The Provost's Office, in collaboration with the Cortland College Foundation, provides funding for the program of up to $500 to SUNY Cortland faculty. Eligible applicants are members of the teaching faculty, specifically those SUNY Cortland employees whose official title includes the word professor, instructor, lecturer or librarian.

Learn more about the Small Grant Award Guidelines which includes tips for a successful small grant application, provided on the FDC website. Here is the link to the Small Grant Application Form. It can also be found on the FDC website. Deadline for the Small Grant application for the fall semester is Friday, Sept. 15, 2023. Applications must be completed using the new online application form, requesting routing first to your department chair and then dean. Please allow adequate time for your department chair and dean to review and sign/initial to complete your online application submission. Applications will not be considered unless all documentation is provided to the Faculty Development Center with the approved online application form by the deadline. Please attach a copy of your proposal as well as your budget as outlined in the online award application guidelines. A final decision is made by the Provost for the College.

Applicants are eligible to receive one Small Grant per fiscal year (July 1 through June 30). The Small Grant award activity dates for fall applications is Aug. 28 through Dec. 31, 2023. 

For any questions and additional information contact the Faculty Development Center, Betsy Barylski via email or by phone, at 607-753-4753.