Campus Champion

Blake Burnette’s coworkers in Facilities Operations and Services have nothing but kind words for the trades specialist who helps manage water systems as part of the plumbing group. Described as a team player, Blake has worked at SUNY Cortland for more than eight years. Colleagues praise him for being ready to step up wherever he’s needed. And if there’s a problem with pipes, drains, drinking fountains or sanitation systems, Blake makes sure the behind-the-scenes work so important to the university gets done. 

Blind since birth, Lindsay Ball doesn’t back off from challenges, whether overcoming her own or helping others do the same. 

A former Paralympian skier, the SUNY Cortland assistant professor of physical education is now a distance runner. And thanks in part to a training team she’s found on campus, she’s preparing to run farther than most people — legally blind or not — will ever try. 

After attempting five marathons and completing four of the 26.2-mile races, Ball is now training for the Cayuga 50K — about 31 miles — at the end of May. It will be her first ever ultramarathon.  

Already a serious test of grit and endurance, Ball must do it seeing only shades of light instead of mile markers or cracked pavement. Thankfully, that’s where fellow Cortland professor and ultramarathoner Kevin Dames comes in. 

Acting as her guide, Dames, of the Kinesiology Department, trains with Ball and spots what she can’t.  

“Most of the time we just talk or focus on moving forwards,” Dames said. “A quick word about uneven pavement as needed then back to talking.” 

Most recently they completed the Syracuse Half Marathon in March. It’s a tandem born of a shared appreciation for running and of pushing themselves to new heights. 

Before that they took on a trail run through snow this winter, which Dames described as a timed race where participants run for as long as you want before stopping. Despite the cold and terrain, Dames said they ran a couple hours and got to socialize with other runners. 

Ball hopes to expand their running group soon. In addition to Dames, sophomore exercise science major Ben Wasser also runs with her. She’s looking for more runners to join them and possibly learn to guide alongside her. 

“The more guides you have, the more flexibility there is in the schedule,” she said. “And then it’s not all put on like one person, which makes it much easier.” 

For others interested in being a guide, Dames described communication as key to finding out what a runner expects. He recommended United in Stride as a useful website. 

“Running is a great modality for getting to know other people,” said Dames, who specializes in biomechanics, more specifically gait and postural stability. “For me, conversations somehow flow much easier when moving. Most of my miles are solo so I really enjoy opportunities to run with others.” 

Ball and Dames began by running indoors at the Student Life Center’s three-lane track to practice cues for turns and avoiding other people. Then they went outside to develop a sense of sloped sidewalks, potholes and other issues that could appear. 

For Ball, ultramarathons feel more fun compared to lesser distances, with less focus on speed and more on the experience. She appreciates the balance of enjoying her time running with competing. 

“I think it’s really just seeing what I can do, what am I capable of,” Ball said. “You don’t work in academia if you’re not an overachiever. It’s one of those things where I want to have a new goal and always need to be working toward something.” 

In the past, that desire has led her to face off with some of the world’s best. Qualifying as a downhill skier in the 2014 Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia, Ball injured her ACL months before the event before making it back to the slopes in time to race.  

Since then she’s pursued running and completed a Half Ironman triathlon. The 70.3-mile distance consists of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run. 

Now, with the upcoming 50K race, Ball wants to push herself past her old limits. 

“I think I want to try and see how the 50K goes,” she said. “My thought was, let’s start with the 50K first then go from there. I don’t know if I can do what Kevin does and run through the middle of the night.” 

Ball is used to shattering personal goals, and she’s poured that tenacity into helping others. She also serves as a board member and works with the Maine Organization of Blind Athletic and Leadership Education, a sports camp for blind and visually impaired youth. 

“Our society and our systems don’t emphasize that blind or visually impaired or disabled kids have the skills and ability to move, and so we kind of limit their options for them,” Ball said. 

She stressed that her work at the camp is to give kids more of those chances if they want them, and then to reinforce the activities that they enjoy. 

“It doesn’t have to be running, it doesn’t have to be skiing, but to find something that they love enough to move their body throughout their life is really why I’m doing what I'm doing.” 

When four SUNY Cortland business economics majors conceived of starting a new business, they looked no further than the university’s Student Life Center, where they often go to lift weights and spend time together.

Their big idea, Scrap Fit, consists of custom dumbbells and other gym equipment created from melding together junkyard metal scraps. The unique finished pieces will be sold by the pound.

Recently, the four seniors — Chris Youngs, Justin Wolmeldorph, Thomas Wheeler and Luka Kvizhinadze — took their prototype exercise equipment to the first round in the New York Business Plan Competition (NYBPC), held recently at Onondaga Community College, and captured first place in the products and hardware category. Their business plan, and that of one other SUNY Cortland team, won a grant for $200 to pay their expenses as they advance to compete against nine other regional competitors in New York state.

The intercollegiate entrepreneur competition is used to show off the most innovative student start-up businesses in New York for six categories: food and agtech; health and well-being; learn, work and live; safety, power and mobility; products and hardware; and software and services.

The second SUNY Cortland startup proposal advancing to the state-level on April 22 at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) will be Next Life, proposed by Ryan Craig. Next Life, which placed second in its category of safety, power and mobility, offers a junk culling service where Craig picks up loads of recyclable materials, usually metals,  and sorts the refuse for donation, recycling or scrap.

Thirty-two students formed the 11 teams from Cortland that competed In the Central New York Region against 60 other teams, according to James Wilson, an Economics Department lecturer, advising the teams for a second year in the competition.

The participants at Cortland prepared for this spring’s competition by taking two of Wilson’s management courses, Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship last fall and then the companion course, MGT 275 Entrepreneurship I, this semester. The spring course requires those enrolled to take part in the competition.

“We have our own internal elevator pitch like a mini competition that gets them used to the concept of developing an idea and creating a viable business concept around it and then pitching that concept,” Wilson said. “So we do our own internal small competition in class as a baby step to the larger competition.”

Wilson said the level of competition has elevated compared with last year, both in terms of SUNY Cortland and the regional competition. Then, 13 initial teams from Cortland faced off against 30 other teams in the region.

“You know, in the New York Business Plan Competitions, typically there are around 300 teams from 10 different areas across the state,” Wilson said. “And so, it begins as a pretty big net cast for these budding entrepreneurs.”

SUNY Cortland’s first level of competition was against business startups proposed by students from across the region at Syracuse University, Cornell University, Colgate University, SUNY Oswego and Le Moyne College.

The university’s two regional winners will now begin additional preparation for the state-level competition at RIT.

Should a Cortland team win the statewide award in their category at RIT, its members will take home a $10,000 prize. Later that same day, those winners will vie across categories for one final $25,000 prize.

In 2025, more than 300 teams competed from across New York state and SUNY Cortland’s NIL Finder team won its track and a $10,000 prize.

All Cortland teams also will present their business plans on campus during the university’s annual Transformations: A Student Research and Creativity Conference.

The four students in Scrap Fit conceived of their big idea while working out at the Student Life Center, said the start-up’s representative Chris Youngs.

“We noticed that even with regular commercial gyms or even university gyms there’s really not a whole lot of uniqueness to a lot of the gym products there,” Youngs said.

Young noticed that many of the dumbbells look the exact same.

“We wanted to create a product that would be unique in its own aspect, but also we were taking a sustainability route with it too,” he said.

“This is a business where we take recycled scrap metal and materials from junk yards, scrap yards … and we turn it into gym equipment,” Youngs said.

Members visited several junkyards to find metal covers for electronic wires that became the bar of the dumbbell and various other components like hubcaps that became the weights, Youngs explained. They found a professional welder to fashion the prototype.

So now every piece welded together looks and feels a little different. Selling by the pound provides an easy way to set the price on these very individualized pieces of equipment.

“Right now, we’re selling for a $1.35 a pound,” Youngs said. “And between paying a welder a commission out of that, our net profits are about 73%, which is about a dollar per pound. So, if we sell a 20 pound dumbbell, we make about $20 profit.”

He thinks bringing a product sample with them to the competition may have been what pushed them into the winner’s circle.

“If I was a judge, it would been really hard to pick between everybody in our class because everybody did such a good job,” Youngs said of two startups that he particularly admired, Throwing Shade, which produces beach equipment, and Shred Air, a self-cleaning fan. Neither team brought in a prototype.

“Just having an actual physical product,” Youngs said. “That’s what really helped.”

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The Cortland Challenge 2026 clock is ticking down to Wednesday, April 15, when SUNY Cortland begins its annual day of giving. There’s more at stake than ever.

Last year’s 4,104 generous alumni, faculty and staff and friends contributed to a record total of $633,714 of institutional support, which this year’s challenge organizers will seek to beat.

Therefore, Cortland Challenge 2026 donors could unlock more than $300,000 in matching gifts — $100,000 more than last year.

Until midnight on Challenge Day, students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends can give to the Cortland Challenge cause of their choice at give.cortland.edu/2026-Cortland-Challenge. Causes include The Cortland Fund, athletic teams, campus programming and more.

That same website allows supporters to learn more about the challenge and follow its progress throughout the day.

“Last year’s Cortland Challenge showed what our Red Dragon community can accomplish together,” said President Erik J. Bitterbaum. “What makes this day so special isn’t the amount we give, but how many of us come together to give a gift.

"Our SUNY Cortland alumni and friends always rise to the occasion, and I’m excited to see that spirit carry us even further in 2026.”

“Like every year, the Cortland Challenge is all about participation and Red Dragons everywhere coming together to support current and future students,” said Natasha McFadden, director of annual giving. “Gifts of all sizes will help us reach our goals and unlock matching gifts, and gifts of all sizes can have a lasting impact at out university and in the lives of our students.”

More than $118,000 in matching gifts for SUNY Cortland will be unlocked throughout the day as certain donor milestones are met:

• $8,000 unlocked at 607 donors to celebrate the community where SUNY Cortland is located.
• $10,000 unlocked at 1,000 donors
• $20,000 unlocked at 2,000 donors
• $20,000 unlocked at 3,000 donors
• $20,000 unlocked at 4,000 donors
• An extra $20,000 will be unlocked if we set a new Cortland Challenge record by reaching 4,015 donors, just one more than in 2025.

“We will have eight timed challenges, which is more than we’ve ever had before,” McFadden said. “The first will start when we launch at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, April 14, and the last will end at 11:59 p.m. when we wrap the campaign on Wednesday, April 15.”

Every unique donor will count toward unlocking matching gifts, McFadden said.

“These gifts will be awarded at multiple levels,” McFadden said, “with our ultimate goal being a record-breaking 4,105 donors to unlock all awards.”

The Cortland Challenge website contains a list of the generous people who make all the challenge gifts possible.

Additionally, a dollar-for-dollar match for gifts made to The Cortland Fund will be available all day, up to a total match of $20,000.

Athletics Challenge returns

The Athletics Challenge is back this year, with $10,000 on the line, and it looks a little different. The 20 teams have been broken into four categories: men’s and women’s teams. Individual teams will compete to bring in the most unique donors to win first, second or third place awards of $2,000, $1,500 or $1,000 for their programs. After the event, $1,000 will be awarded to the team with the largest average gift per student-athlete.

Academic departments and campus offices compete

This year, 23 academic departments and 19 campus areas will be competing for the highest number of unique donors, hoping to land in the top four and win awards for their program ranging from $500 to $2,000.

“Some departments also have their own unique matches available to drive support for their specific campaigns,” McFadden said.

Leading up to the big day, the entire campus community is encouraged to:

• Take part in the challenge by making their own gift, in addition to any they already made this year.
• Encourage others in the campus and alumni community to also give to the Cortland Challenge.
• Spread the word on social media accounts. A good way to do this is by sending your own transformational Cortland story via the #CortlandChallenge hashtag.
• And don’t forget, on Challenge Day, use the hashtag #CortlandChallenge to follow along with other Red Dragons through Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter).

“In the spirit of Cortland and Red Dragons, we’re always challenging ourselves to improve,” McFadden said. “So, our ultimate goal is to reach 4,105 donors to set a new Cortland Challenge record.

“This year’s Cortland Challenge has already broken records with more than $300,000 pledged in matching gifts and 63 teams and departments fundraising for their unique programming and initiatives,” she said. “We’re excited to see what the day brings, but we’re most excited to once again be connecting Red Dragons everywhere as we work together to support SUNY Cortland’s current and future students.”

A SUNY Cortland ecotourism course recently included an unforgettable spring break trip to Costa Rica — not to chase Instagram-worthy sunsets, but to explore the cultural, environmental and economic impact of visitors to unique coastal communities in Central America.

Organized through GIVE Volunteers, the excursion was led by Ken Cohen, associate professor and chair of the Recreation, Parks and Leisure Studies Department. Tourism and recreation is one of SUNY Cortland’s newest academic majors and a discipline that prepares students for careers in a growing global industry.

As part of the recent trip, SUNY Cortland students explored topics spanning sustainability to biodiversity and they led a community service project. Senior Cassie Williams, a senior from Middletown, N.Y., also published a blog about the trip, “Bridging Worlds Through Ecotourism: My Journey in Costa Rica,” for her internship with Experience Cortland, the Cortland County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The Costa Rica experience brought students to Finca Las Hormigas, a permaculture farm on the South Caribbean coast, where they learned about regenerative approaches to agriculture and how locals develop food plots to protect the natural ecosystem.

At a school in the village of Gandoca, Cortland students helped teach English lessons and plant a garden for children. They also saw the connection between tourism, wildlife and conservation firsthand, and how declining sea turtle populations impacted the local economy and people who depend on visitors for income.

Students learned about the cultural importance of banana and cacao plants, and they embraced a popular greeting in Costa Rica — “pura vida,” which means “pure life.” The phrase represents the joy of living sustainably and simply. It also gets to the heart of ecotourism.

As Williams expressed in her trip recap: “The best kind of tourism doesn’t just benefit travelers, it uplifts the communities we visit.”

As sure as a pumpkin can become a golden carriage, audiences can expect something magical with SUNY Cortland’s upcoming production of “Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella.” 

All performances are in the Dowd Fine Arts Center Theatre from Friday, April 10, until Sunday, April 19. 

• Friday, April 10, at 7:30 p.m. 

• Saturday, April 11, at 7:30 p.m. 

• Sunday, April 12, at 2 p.m. 

• Friday, April 17, at 7:30 p.m. 

• Saturday, April 18, at 7:30 p.m. 

• Sunday, April 19, at 2 p.m. 

Tickets are on sale at SUNY Cortland’s online Box Office. 

With direction by Shirley Serotsky, choreography by Andrea Dotto and music direction by Ben Kapilow, the script and score come from a Tony Award-winning 2013 Broadway production. 

It’s the most recent version of the romantic Rodgers and Hammerstein fairy tale classic that first debuted as a live-in-color TV special in 1957, starring Julie Andrews.

“To get to take on this character that so many know and love from our childhoods, and bringing my own to it, is just so special,” said senior musical theatre major Vivien Reed, who plays Cinderella. 

As part of the role, Reed said she tried think of the titular character as every other person that goes through similar experiences — just not with all the enchanting twists of the beloved story. 

“Going on a first date and meeting the love of your life for the first time,” she described. “Bringing those experiences into it and bringing also a fun, quirky side as well.” 

Benjamin Wells, production manager and publicity coordinator for the Performing Arts Department, described the current update as developing the characters more, including “a new strength, confidence and independence to Cinderella.” 

Songs like “In My Own Little Corner” and “Impossible” have earned their place as industry standards, with the Cortland cast looking forward to adding to the long history of the show. 

Senior musical theatre major Heather Hayes, who plays the Fairy Godmother, credits the Performing Arts Department for running bigger musicals along with smaller productions. She’s previously portrayed Reno Sweeney in “Anything Goes” and Shelby Holcomb in “John Proctor is the Villain.” 

“Each (role) has taught me different skills, for example in a performance at a smaller theater you’re acting can be more nuanced because the audience is so close to you,” she said. “They are able to read every little facial expression.  

“In a bigger theater everything has to be bigger, your gestures, your movements, even your makeup and hair.” 

With singing, dancing and on-stage effects that let Hayes perform the fanastical on the way to a happily ever after, “Cinderella” requires many of Cortland’s musical theatre majors to be involved, including a cast of 20 and 22 crew members.  

“Cinderella has been so much fun to work on because it being a fairytale story already lends itself to be extravagant,” Hayes added. “And now, we’re performing it on the main stage, so we get to have so much fun making those big choices.”  

SUNY Cortland was selected for Newsweek’s first-ever America’s Best Colleges for Women list, ranking among the best in standards including leadership, pay and policy, safety and opportunity. 

The online and print news company described the ranking as a way to highlight institutions that meaningfully strengthen women’s success academically, professionally and structurally. 

Out of more than 1,200 schools listed, Cortland placed in the 201 to 300 range, tied for fourth among all SUNY institutions and tied for third among SUNY comprehensives. 

“SUNY Cortland is proud to be recognized as a university that empowers and supports women,” said Ann McClellan, the university’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. “You see it in many ways: our recent celebration of Women’s History Month events; our interdisciplinary minor in women’s, gender and sexuality studies; and the continued success of our alums in far-reaching fields, from education to athletics to business to STEM.  

“We are committed to demonstrating that women shine as leaders in our society — especially at SUNY Cortland.” 

Partnering with Newsweek for the new raking was Gender Fair, which describes itself as a data-driven, third-party certification of a company’s commitment to women’s equality. 

“Earning a place on the America’s Best Colleges for Women list reflects an environment that meaningfully supports women’s success,” said Newsweek’s editor-in-chief Jennifer Cunningham when the list was published March 30. 

Data used included the U.S. Department of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System and the Campus Safety and Security Database. 

Categories analyzed were: 

• Leadership: The percentage of leadership roles at the school filled by women, including staff and faculty.
  

• Pay and policies: The average ratio of women’s salaries to men’s, along with average total salaries and the availability of childcare.
  

• Safety: An analysis of the number of crimes against women and hate crimes reported per student.
  

• Opportunity: Based on the number of students receiving Pell Grants and the proportion of faculty who are non-white professors, associate professors or assistant professors. 

To qualify for the list, colleges and universities had to employ 20 or more women in academic roles, have at least 1,000 students and award bachelor’s degrees. 

Student Select 2026, SUNY Cortland’s annual, juried exhibition featuring impressive student artwork, runs through Wednesday, April 15, in the university’s Dowd Gallery.

Original artwork includes ceramics, sculpture, prints, painting, fibers and digital media. The exhibition, which opened on March 26, is sponsored by the Dowd Gallery and the student-run Art Exhibition Association (AEA).

The Student Select 2026 exhibition, which celebrates excellence in studio art from courses offered through the Art and Art History Department, is free and open to the public. It remains on display through Wednesday, April 15.

The opening reception, held on March 26, included an award ceremony with student artists, faculty and staff from the Art and Art History Department and this year’s exhibition curator, Brookley Abbate ’02. Winners included:

• 2026 Best of Show — Josefina Jimenez Garcia, digital animation, “Penelope and Odysseus”
• Second prize — David Barry, oil on panel painting, “It’s Cold Outside”
• Third prize — Bella Chuley, oil on canvas painting, untitled
• Fourth prize — Molly Williams, weaving diptych, “Matthew 27:51”

Abbate is a visual arts teacher at Homer (N.Y.) Junior High School who has accumulated years of experience working with students and community members through visual art as a teacher, organizer, exhibition jurist and coordinator of field trips to SUNY Cortland for prospective students.

Abbate was invited to be this year’s juror by the AEA.

“After an invitation to sit in on a critique in advanced drawing, the association thought (Abbate’s) background in mixed materials would be ideal in the deliberation between nuances in the artwork of varying levels of student work from studio art courses and independents,” said AEA representative Kat McCormick.

“Many of the foundational skills for these subjects take root first in New York state junior high curriculum,” they said. “That allows Abbate’s practiced experience to analytically isolate exceptional works among a field of great examples.”

This year’s Student Select was a little unique.

“With the help of our submission limit of two pieces per student, we received as many submissions as the amount of work we wanted to display,” McCormick said. “No pieces were selected out this year, so our juror could focus solely on her rankings.”

The gallery in Dowd Center is located on the corner of Graham Avenue and Prospect Terrace. It is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays; and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursdays. Walk-ins are welcome.

For more information, an appointment, a tour, or additional images, contact McCormick. Visit the Dowd Gallery website for details about exhibiting artists, other programs, safety protocols and group visits.

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Did you know the date of Earth Day, April 22, was chosen with college students in mind? Falling between spring break and finals exams, organizers wanted to maximize student participation.

But at SUNY Cortland, sustainability and the protection of the environment are celebrated for the entire month of April. Fifteen events include information tables, film screenings, lectures, opportunities to volunteer, and more.

View the full schedule on the Sustainability Office webpage.

“This year we are celebrating the intersection of the environment with human health, biodiversity, our food system, water usage and much more,” said Megan Swing, the university’s energy and sustainability engagement coordinator. “No matter your interests, there will be an Earth Month event for you!”

Campus community members also are encouraged to follow SUNY Cortland Green Reps on Instagram to learn more about student-inspired sustainability efforts and events.

SUNY Cortland’s University Police Department recently held a swearing-in ceremony to recognize staff promotions and new officers.

The March 26 event was one of the department’s largest in recent years, with recognition of the following staff members:

• Jason Welch, promoted to assistant chief;

• Travis Block and Dustin Morris ’12, promoted to lieutenant; and

• Keyshawn Clarke-Wells, John DiVirgilio, Elisabeth Evans and Diondre Smith, new officers who have completed or are nearing completion of their field training.

UPD oversees law enforcement and security functions on SUNY Cortland’s campus 24 hours a day, seven days a week, every day of the year, with an emphasis on community policing. The department currently includes 20 full-time staff members and two K-9 units.

UPD also recently received reaccreditation from the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, which recognizes conceptually sound and operationally effective policies across three categories: administrative standards, training standards and operational standards.

SUNY Cortland’s Counseling Center and Fiber Arts Club recently co-hosted a crochet workshop in Memorial Library’s Makerspace to provide creative outlet for campus community members.

Participants mastered the basics of crocheting while disconnecting from their phones. During the hourlong session, they chatted and learned a new skill in a supportive environment.

Future crochet workshops are planned for 4 to 5 p.m. each Friday in the Makerspace. The university’s Fiber Arts Club meets biweekly on Mondays from 5 to 7 p.m. Contact [email protected] with questions. Beginners are welcome to all events and future crochet workshops.