10/02/2025
As an advocate for peace whose talent in combat sports made him a 2013 New York State Golden Gloves Champion, Ezra P. Scott, Jr. ’10, strives to inspire communities, bridge divides and cultivate the next generation of leaders.
Scott, currently an Empire State Fellow at the New York State Department of Public Service, will discuss his guiding principle, “I am, because we are,” from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 1, in the Corey Union Function Room.
A public servant, educator and community leader whose career reflects an unwavering commitment to equity, justice and empowerment, Scott will deliver the keynote speech during SUNY Cortland’s 14th annual Student Conference on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Social Justice.
“My message to aspiring changemakers is simple,” Scott said. “Know the process and know the people in the process. When you understand both, you amplify your impact and create lasting change.”
The conference will take place from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Corey Union. Anyone can attend the conference and everyone is asked to register by Friday, Oct. 10. There is no registration cost for the SUNY Cortland community. The registration cost for non-SUNY Cortland students is $25 and, for all other registrants, $30.
For more information, contact the university’s Multicultural Life and Diversity Office or visit cortland.edu/multicultural.
The annual student-led event allows participants to examine problems and concepts across a wide range of disciplines with scholarly presentations, interactive workshops and cultural performances. Diversity-related topics — explored through the prism of the presenter — may include race/ethnicity, class, gender, culture, sexuality or orientation, disabilities/abilities, religion or age.
This year’s conference theme, “Rivers of Culture: Flowing Through Diversity,” reflects the ever-evolving and interconnected nature of students’ identities, experiences and communities, said conference organizer Kyrstin White ’25, program coordinator with Cortland’s Multicultural Life and Diversity Office.
“Just as rivers gather strength by drawing from countless streams, our collective understanding of diversity grows when we come together to share knowledge, challenge assumptions and celebrate differences,” she said. “Through this theme, we aim to honor the rich cultural currents that shape our campuses, society and future.”
SUNY Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum, Vice President for Student Affairs C. Gregory Sharer and student chair Jake Niederbuhl will welcome participants at the conference, which is expected to attract approximately 250 attendees from eight educational institutions across the state.
Sean Platt, the current president of the SUNY Cortland NAACP Chapter – Unit 29AW-B, will deliver the annual student keynote speech at noon in the Corey Union Function Room. Platt, a physical education major with a minor in Africana studies from Baldwin, N.Y., also serves as vice president of Men of Value and Excellence (MOVE), as a Male Multicultural Initiative student facilitator, and as coach of women’s club basketball. A Cortland Urban Recruitment of Educators (C.U.R.E.) scholar, he plans to use his career in physical education to unite people from all backgrounds through movement, physical literacy and wellness.
Ezra P. Scott Jr. ’10
As an Empire State Fellow since 2023, Scott serves as special assistant for intergovernmental and community affairs in the Executive Office of the New York State Department of Public Service. He engages to build trusted partnerships with elected officials, community organizations and agency leadership to advance New York’s clean energy goals while fostering public confidence in government.
A native of Niagara Falls, N.Y., Scott is a first-generation college graduate who earned an associate’s degree from SUNY Niagara and then a bachelor’s degree in sociology from SUNY Cortland. A student-athlete on Cortland’s men’s basketball team, he also helped organize the Save the Kids from Incarceration (STKI) Conference, using Hip Hop and Lowrider cultures to engage youth of color, advance transformative justice, dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline and challenge the criminalization of young people. During his graduation year, Scott was recognized with the CNY Peace Award by the CNY Peace Studies Consortium.
He later enrolled at Niagara University, earning graduate degrees in strategic management, human resource management and early childhood education.
As a student success coach at Niagara Falls High School, Scott helped increase graduation rates from 67% to 85.5% and partnered with Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center on equity-driven public health initiatives.
At 29, Scott became the youngest African American elected city councilmember in Niagara Falls’ history, advocating for fiscal accountability, youth justice, health equity, transit protections and statewide driver’s license reform. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he championed vaccine access.
The founder of the Niagara Falls Peacemakers, Scott led a coalition dedicated to youth engagement and public safety. Under his leadership, the Peacemakers earned a 2020 Golden Apple Award for teachers and inclusion in the 2024 documentary “Tale of Two Cities: Reclaiming Niagara Falls and Salinas.”
In 2024, Scott became the founding chapter president of Albany Professionals Under 40 & Friends, which earned him the 2025 Super Connector Award during Albany Black Restaurant Week. He also serves on the executive committee of the NAACP Albany Branch, is a founding member of the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce and contributes to the Reimagine Albany Coalition, focused on reconnecting neighborhoods divided by I-787. He was a 2025 Big Benefactor — Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Capital Region.
Scott also was honored with the 2025 SUNY Niagara Distinguished Alumni Award, the 2021 Leadership Niagara Emerging Leader of the Year, Niagara University’s 2021 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award and the Buffalo Changemakers 30 Under 30 Class of 2016.
He is the father of Ezra III and Khari.