ReflectionsA PUBLICATION OF THE SUNY ONEONTA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION WINTER 2021

What's Inside: Ric Burns' Film Drawn From Oneonta Professor's Book Campaign Surpasses $17M Sustainable Fashion Week 2020 Brings Oneonta Voices to a Global Stage Alumni Weekend 2021 Reflections Volume LXXIV Number 2 Winter 2021

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Reflections is published POSTMASTER Reflections Michelle Hansen Address service Vol. LXXIV three times a year by Lonnie Mitchell requested to: Number 2 the Division of College Kevin Morrow Reflections Winter 2021 Advancement and is Sandi Mulconry funded in part by the Office of Alumni MANAGING EDITOR Danielle Tonner ’95 SUNY Oneonta Alumni Engagement Laura M. Lincoln Benjamin Wendrow ’08 Association through Ravine Parkway charitable gifts to the SUNY Oneonta EDITORS CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Fund for Oneonta. Oneonta, NY Kevin Morrow Gerry Raymonda 13820-4015 Sandi Mulconry Michael Forester Rothbart SUNY Oneonta LEAD DESIGNER Illustrator Oneonta, NY 13820-4015 Reflections is printed Jonah Roberts David Owens Postage paid at on recycled paper. Oneonta, New York CONTENTS 2 10 20 FROM NETZER 301 FEATURE: TRENDS IN CAMPAIGN SURPASSES $17M HIGHER ED FUNDING IMPACT SUNY ONEONTA'S GROW. BUDGET THRIVE. LIVE. 12 THE FUTURE FEATURE: CAMP: 20 YEARS OF OF SUNY ONEONTA SUCCESS HELPING MIGRANT STUDENTS 26 FEATURE: OUR HEARTS GO 3 OUT TO THEM FROM THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 29 BEYOND THE PILLARS - Class Notes 4 - Celebrations ACROSS THE QUAD - In Memoriam - 2020 Sustainable Fashion Show - Driving While Black - Cornell-Gladstone-Hanlon- Kaufmann Lecture 40 - Community of Scholars ALUMNI PROFILE - Annual Alumni Association Latisha Nero ’09 Awards Celebration 14 2021 ALUMNI WEEKEND - Alumni Weekend 2021 Schedule - Alumni of Distinction Honorees - Annual Alumni Association Award Recipients

On the Cover: Alumni of Distinction honoree Reconnect Gretchen Sorin ’75, director Follow the Alumni Association for news, events, of the Cooperstown Graduate contests, photos, and more. For links to all of our Program and Distinguished Service Professor social media sites, visit www.oneontaalumni.com. From Netzer 301 Dennis Craig Acting President

Serving the College in what is truly a pivotal moment is as much an honor as it is a challenge.

On Oct. 18, I became acting president of SUNY Oneonta, Today, we are on the brink of the spring semester. Thanks succeeding President Barbara Jean Morris, under whose to the diligence and dedication of the COVID Response leadership the College adopted a new mission statement Team—more than 50 faculty and staff members, and launched the fundraising campaign Grow. Thrive. Live. administrators, students, and other stakeholders who are The Future of SUNY Oneonta. I am grateful to her for setting tackling the myriad challenges COVID-19 presents—I feel this direction for the institution. It is clear and positive, an confident that the College is prepared for what lies ahead. aspiration worthy of our support. You can learn more about the Response Team’s efforts—as well as our plans to welcome students for the new semester— Serving the College in what is truly a pivotal moment is as on our coronavirus resource page, suny.oneonta.edu/covid-19. much an honor as it is a challenge. I spent my first days here I encourage you to take a look. on campus and in the community visiting with as many constituencies as possible. Listening. Learning. What I came SUNY Oneonta, despite last year’s setback, has maintained to understand—and everyone with whom I spoke made a an admirable financial position. This is the direct result of point of this—is that SUNY Oneonta’s students, their parents, thoughtful management practices throughout the College. the employees, our neighbors and partners in government Well before my arrival, there was in place a budget process and business, and our alumni all feel a deep connection to based on accountability, restraint, and the foresight to adjust the College. I’ve found here a loyalty that is uncommon and spending in response to the pandemic. I count myself lucky the determination, talent, and resiliency needed to overcome to be leading an institution where fiduciary responsibility is the greatest test of our time, COVID-19. the rule. In this work, I am far from alone. When my dog, Beckett, I am also thankful for the faculty who volunteered to offer and I arrived last fall, we were greeted warmly. Many of you a significant number of courses in-person this spring. This offered your heartfelt encouragement. This has meant a lot to was no small ask, but it was the right thing to do. Students me over the past few months. Tough times reveal character, and their parents were consistent in their feedback on this and I know that while everyone surrounding SUNY Oneonta point: They wanted a residential experience where students feels a sense of loss over the fall semester, we also share an would engage with their teachers and one another. We are optimism and a drive to move forward. providing that to the greatest extent possible, prioritizing safety and within the parameters of a spring plan that Back in November, I recorded a video to the campus has broad support across the College, within the City of community in which I said that SUNY Oneonta doesn’t Oneonta, and from SUNY. need saving. I hope these last several weeks have affirmed my assertion. My role here is to shape an effort that creates Finally, thank you to our leadership volunteers serving on lasting change and sees the College emerge from the the College at Oneonta Foundation and Alumni Association pandemic stronger, smarter, and more aware of its place in boards of directors. I arrived at the College last fall, and the hearts and minds of those it serves. you were among the first to make me feel welcome. Now I am asking you to join me in continuing the longstanding Along the way, it will be my job to tell students, parents, tradition of excellence through Grow. Thrive. Live. The Future alumni, donors, and everyone else about our successes and of SUNY Oneonta. This is ours for the making. where we’ve come up short. This is an extraordinary period for all colleges, facing tests that were unimaginable a year Dennis Craig ago. While I do not expect our performance to be flawless, Acting President know that you can expect transparency and the truth. SUNY Oneonta

2 Winter 2021 | Reflections From The Alumni Association Christine Warnquist ’71 Alumni Association President

Now, more than ever, it is so important that we maintain the fabric of a strong alumni community.

On behalf of the Alumni Association, welcome, Acting President distancing, we came together online to celebrate our newest Dennis Craig! With your experience as interim president at SUNY award recipients, recognize all they have achieved, and share in Purchase—and your success there guiding Purchase’s response to their happiness. the coronavirus pandemic—we are confident in your ability to lead Further, we embraced the power of technology and networking to Oneonta through the challenges of COVID-19 and reopen the adapt our five campus-to-career programs to continue to provide campus to our students for a safe and successful spring semester. opportunities for students. In the past, these programs enabled You have our support. current students to meet with successful alumni in their place As alumni, we have so much to be proud of in our alma mater. of business. With in-person meetings no longer possible, we First, there are the phenomenal and selfless efforts of the were able to bridge geographic (and COVID-19) boundaries and faculty and staff in helping our students through the incredible synergize these programs virtually. challenges of this past fall semester. We truly have so many good Moving forward, and for years to come, students will be able to people at the College. meet with alumni in various career fields both in-person and Further, we should recognize the many award-winning academic digitally. This type of interaction is invaluable for our students in programs. SUNY Oneonta is nationally recognized for delivering gaining new perspectives, building confidence, launching their superior education and value. The College is No. 21 on the 2021 careers, and in many instances developing long-lasting personal U.S. News & World Report list of best public institutions in the relationships. region and has also been named one of the 10 best colleges in In the not-so-distant-future, there will come a day when we are all New York state for job placement. We applaud the College. able to be together again. Until then, let us embrace the resources Now, more than ever, it is so important that we maintain the fabric of social media, email, digital platforms, and other means to of a strong alumni community, as evidenced by our first virtual remain in touch as alumni, students, faculty, and staff—our Alumni Association annual meeting. More than 70 alumni joined wonderful and strong SUNY Oneonta community. us for an update on the progress of the Alumni Association over the last year.

We also honored the many accomplishments of our 2020 award Christine Warnquist ’71 winners during our first-ever Virtual Alumni Association Annual President Awards Celebration. Unbowed by the necessity of social SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association

SUNY ONEONTA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2020-21 PRESIDENT PAST PRESIDENT Carolyn Cacciato ’79 Bob Raymond ’74 EX OFFICIO Christine Warnquist ’71 Daren Rylewicz ’93 Katie Dupuree ’07 STUDENT BOARD MEMBERS VICE PRESIDENT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Thomas Glennon ’09 BOARD MEMBERS Paul J. Adamo ’81 Ed Aluck ’95 Laura Madelone Lincoln AnneMarie Haumesser ’12 Francesca Lawless ’21 Dennis Craig Taylor Hogan ’14 SECRETARY BOARD MEMBERS Jessica Sinopoli ’20 SUPPORT STAFF Alice Maggiore ’10 Stephanie Peguillan ’15 Erica Skov Beams ’07 HONORARY Stacy Robinson Erikka Misrahi ’08 Kyle Beckley ’08 BOARD MEMBER TREASURER Coleen Moore ’96 C.L. “Three” Bollinger ’01 Jim Zians Drew McKay ’05 Judith Stern Palais ’81 Winter 2021 | Reflections 3 Across the Quad

Samantha Alberts ’22 Carly Wolfe ’21 Samantha Epstein ’22

Jessica Baron ’22 Madisyn Teti ’22

Erin Dunfield ’22 Abigail Julian ’24

Mikiya Murphy ’23 Olivia Riley ’21

Sarah Martello ’23 Carla Dadulla ’22 Ivanah Alexandre ’22 SUNY Oneonta Fashion and Textile students featured in Sustainable Fashion Week 2020

about sustainable living and his Spartan Made Quality Carry Sustainable Fashion Week line of handmade, high-end carry solutions. 2020 Brings Oneonta Bharath Ramkumar, assistant professor of fashion and textiles, was a member of the organizing committee and a co-editor of Voices to a Global Stage the event. SUNY Oneonta was well represented “Sustainable Fashion Week is a first-of-its-kind at Sustainable Fashion Week 2020. The showcase of ethically and sustainably made clothing six-day event streamed on YouTube and accessories and the people behind the scenes,” Premiere Sept. 11-16. Each night Ramkumar says. showcased collections from emerging “The event was created to show the world how people and established sustainable clothing from diverse backgrounds can come together to lead designers and vintage collectors, in a sustainable fashion revolution,” he says. “We in the addition to expert talks, musical and Fashion and Textiles program are so thrilled for our dance performances, brand presentations, students and others in the SUNY Oneonta community and other offerings. to have had this opportunity for their voice to be heard Janaya Nyala Josephs ’20 and her Janaya Nyala Josephs ’20 on a global stage. Our participation in this event is sustainable design collection were a testimony to how our community is committed to featured on Day 2. sustainable development through collaboration.” On Day 6, students from the Fashion and Textiles program SUNY Oneonta is a Sustainable Fashion Week partner in the Department of Human Ecology were featured, and an institution, along with the International Fashion Academy, awareness video created by students in the Revival of Apparel Rutgers University, the SUNY Fashion Institute of Technology, Club, with music by students in the music department, was and several other organizations. shown. That same day, Doug Reilly, director of SUNY Oneonta’s The recorded sessions from Sustainable Fashion Week can be A.J. Read Science Discovery Center, was featured in a short film viewed at www.sustainablefashionweek.us. 4 Winter 2021 | Reflections people have the experience of going on an annual family vacation,” Sorin says. “But while these vacations may be fairly universal American experiences, Black and white travelers went down parallel roads, and the experience for Black drivers on the road is something unknown to most white Americans. For African Americans, travel by automobile during the 20th century posed a paradox: Although cars freed them from the tyranny of the Jim Crow bus or train, they faced intimidation and even violence when they ventured out on the road.” Sorin started her research more than 20 years ago as an exhibition curator assembling visual records and oral histories of how the automobile provided greater mobility for Black Americans while further exposing them to systemic racism across the country. As she began her book, she approached Burns to work with her on a film. Sorin met Burns Ric Burns' Film Drawn while serving as commentator for his 1999 filmNew York: A From SUNY Oneonta Documentary Film. “Working with Gretchen on this film has been one of the great Professor’s Book joys of my life,” Burns says. “Nothing is more American than Film examines turbulent black the dream of mobility, which has throughout our history been experience on the road from 1930s-60s accompanied by the reality of racism. Sorin’s research has allowed us to assemble a moving, visual story that shows the The documentary Driving While Black: Race, Space and joy and liberation that accompanied the freedom promised by Mobility in America—co-directed by SUNY Oneonta’s the automobile and the daily struggle for Black Americans to Gretchen Sullivan Sorin ’75 and Emmy Award-winning seek their independence in a country that, to this day, does not filmmaker Ric Burns—debuted nationwide on PBS Oct. 13. fully acknowledge how systemic racism defines much of our The film, based on Sorin’s bookDriving While Black: African history.” American Travel and the Road to Civil Rights (W.W. Norton & Driving While Black uses archival material from the period— Co., 2020), explores the history of African Americans and the including film footage, photographs, advertisements, road automobile and addresses the current relationship between signs, maps, letters, and legal records—along with interviews African Americans and law enforcement. Sorin is director of African Americans sharing their personal stories and some of SUNY Oneonta's Cooperstown Graduate Program and of the country’s leading historians, authors, and journalists. Distinguished Service Professor at the College. The film also delves deeply into the history ofThe Green Book, The film examines the history of African Americans on the the travel guide authored by New York City mailman Victor road from the depths of the Depression to the height of the Hugo Green. From a first edition focused on the Northeast, civil rights movement and beyond, exploring along the way Green expanded his guide to include much of the country, the deeply embedded dynamics of race, space, and mobility in providing travel tips for African Americans driving, including America during one of the most turbulent and transformative safe and welcoming places to stop, dine, and rest, as well as periods in American history. places to avoid—given the potential for racially motivated The right to move freely and safely across the American violence. “Vacation without aggravation,” the book advised landscape has always been unequally distributed by race and African American families planning a road trip. powerfully contested in the American experience. “Driving Driving While Black is available on DVD. while Black,” the writer and scholar Herb Boyd says in the film, “entails so much more than simply driving while Black. It’s living while Black. It’s sleeping while Black. It’s eating while Black. It’s moving while Black. So, when we start talking about the restrictions placed on the Black movement in this country, that’s a long history. That goes all the way back to Day One. And so, you have to get to the root of it.” “I think this story resonates tremendously with Americans, both Black and white, because everyone understands and remembers driving or riding in an automobile, and many

Winter 2021 | Reflections 5 Sheridan Hollow Alliance Panel Discusses for Renewable Energy. Environmental Racism Established in 2000 with the generous support With Assist From of the late Dr. William Kaufmann and his late Documentary Mossville wife, Virginia ’44, the The annual Cornell-Gladstone-Hanlon-Kaufmann Lecture took Cornell-Gladstone- place in late October, featuring an online panel discussion on Hanlon-Kaufmann environmental racism combined with the documentary film Lectureship in Mossville: When Great Trees Fall. Environmental Education and Communication Mossville focuses on a centuries-old Black community in is supported by an Louisiana that is contaminated and uprooted by petrochemical endowed fund within plants. As the community comes to terms with the loss of the College at Oneonta their ancestral home, one man standing in the way of a plant’s Foundation. The purpose expansion refuses to give up. of the lectureship is to Oneonta students, faculty, and staff were encouraged to view bring to SUNY Oneonta the film in advance of the discussion; they could access it via international leaders in a secure link while community members were encouraged to environmental thought rent or buy Mossville. and education to interact with students and faculty on campus and to present a free public lecture open to members of the Panelists were E. Howard Ashford, assistant professor of campus and greater community. Africana and Latinx studies; Trevor Fuller, associate professor and chair of the Department of Geography and Environmental For more information, visit suny.oneonta.edu/geography- Sustainability; Mossville producer Katie Mathews; and Merton environmental-sustainability/lecture-series. Simpson, Albany County legislator and co-chair of the

Danny Noorlander, associate professor of history Community of Scholars School of Liberal Arts Recognizes Faculty Emily Riddle, assistant professor of human ecology School of Education, Human Ecology, and Sports Studies Accomplishments Innovative Pedagogy Award The Community of Scholars (COS) honors faculty research , assistant professor of finance and other scholarly/creative work, including publications Kai Chen School of Economics and Business (books, book chapters, peer-reviewed journal articles, and creative/other published works); professional contributions Outstanding Lecturer Award to the arts; and external grant awards. The fall COS showcase Justin Harnett, visiting assistant professor covered faculty accomplishments from July 1, 2019, to Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability June 30, 2020, and included the full listing of honorees and a presentation by the Scholar of the Year. The following Simphiwe Hlatshwayo Award for Outstanding individuals were recognized: Part-Time Instructor Scholar of the Year Valerie Bolger ’06, adjunct lecturer Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences Gretchen Sorin ’75, director of the Cooperstown Graduate Program and Distinguished Service Professor To view the 2019-20 virtual Community of Scholars School of Sciences recognition event—including congratulatory remarks by Provost Leamor Kahanov; an introduction of the Scholar Honorable Mention Scholars of the Year of the Year, Gretchen Sorin ’75, by Dean Tracy Allen; and Simona Giura, assistant professor of management, marketing, a presentation by Sorin—visit suny.oneonta.edu/grants- and information systems development-office. School of Economics and Business Michelle Hendley, reference and instruction librarian Milne Library

6 Winter 2021 | Reflections Handshake: A Fully Architecture of Oneonta Virtual Career Brought to Life in Fall Management Platform Exhibition Handshake has replaced DragonLink as SUNY Oneonta’s Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, SUNY career management system. Oneonta Cooperstown Graduate Program (CGP) Professor Cindy Falk and five CGP students worked with staff of the At oneonta.joinhandshake.com or by using the Handshake Greater Oneonta Historical Society over the spring and app, students can find jobs and internships, apply for summer to complete the landmark exhibition Building positions online, attend virtual recruiting events, and explore Blocks of a City: 100 Years of Architecture in Oneonta. career pathways through company reviews. The exhibition ran through Nov. 14 at the Oneonta History More than 500,000 companies recruit on Handshake. Center. It highlighted significant buildings and structures Oneonta has connected with hundreds of national erected in Oneonta between 1880 and 1980. Postcards, employers—such as National Public Radio, Goldman Sachs, photographs, maps, and drawings depicted the buildings and CVS Health—to provide our students with exclusive from their initial construction to their current state. Display access to open positions. Additionally, students can explore cases featured photos and plans for two unique Oneonta many local opportunities for jobs and internships to develop homes: the Armco-Ferro House at 34 Union St.—first seen their career while on campus. at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair Century of Progress—and For more information about Handshake, contact the Career the Lustron house at 251 West St., circa 1948 and built of Development Center at [email protected]. enameled steel. The exhibition was made possible through the generous support of the Future for Oneonta Foundation, the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce, and an anonymous donor.

Orgeron Joins Division of Student’s Photography College Advancement The Division of College Advancement welcomed Beth Orgeron Featured in Vogue as senior advancement officer in October. She works with alumni Photos by sophomore digital and studio design major and other individuals primarily in northeastern New York, the Adrianna Newell ’22 appear on Vogue magazine’s Midwest, and West, seeking philanthropic support to advance SUNY website, helping to illustrate an article about designer Oneonta’s mission in support of students, faculty, and institutional Gary Graham’s creations. The layout features a dozen programs. of Newell’s images of a young model wearing Graham’s vintage fabric creations. The article debuted July 23. It Orgeron joins Oneonta from SUNY Cobleskill, where she held a can be viewed at similar position in advancement. Previously, she served as dean of www.vogue.com/article/gary-graham-422-joyce-hong- Cobleskill’s library for 10 years and also was director of the Center for kong-collaboration-embroidery. Arts and Culture in Cobleskill’s Institute of Rural Vitality. Orgeron is a graduate of Louisiana State University. She and her family live in Oneonta.

Winter 2021 | Reflections 7 Students attending a Backpacks to Briefcases virtual event Virtual Programs Connect Alumni and Students Each year, the Alumni Association works with academic Sean Bernstein ’14 Christy Lamagna ’90 departments across campus to bring students and alumni Carleigh Bettiol ’08 John Lambrech ’93 together through employer site visits and in-person networking events. Students meet with alumni in finance, Peter Butchen ’84 Eric Lense ’07 accounting, law, entertainment, theatre, education, mass Brendan Callahan ’19 Alice Maggiore ’10 communication, and a number of other career fields. In Katharine Capozzi ’14 Kaylee May ’16 response to the COVID-19 health crisis, we are using Brian Clare ’89 James McAteer ’08 technology to broaden our programs and provide students with more networking opportunities. Emma Cohen ’18 Drew McKay ’05 Seth Crystall ’80 Larry Pestana ’11 "It's a privilege to hear the stories and advice from alumni about how to handle the professional world drawn from their Sean Daly ’11 Nancy Pierce ’77 years of experience. I can say confidently that they have Chelsea Dankner ’15 Nancy Robillard ’84 helped better prepare me and many other students for what John Doherty ’87 Alanna Sakovitz ’13 lies ahead once we graduate,” says , Jessica Sinopoli ’20 Stiven Espinoza-Hunter ’17 Meredith Schnur ’93 student representative on the Alumni Association Board of Directors and member of the Oneonta Future Alumni Remi Farnan ’15 Matt Sereno ’10 Network. Robert Gilman ’89 Heidi Shulman-Cohen ’81 Thank you to all the alumni who volunteered their time Thomas Glennon ’09 Andrew Tejada ’13 and expertise to virtual Campus to Career Programs, Vanessa Griffith ’13 Carla Webb ’09 Distinguished Alumni Lectures, and Red Networking events Michael Guido ’76 Kathryn Wood ’15 during the Fall 2020 semester: Kayla Hancock ’15 Alexandra Aiello ’09 Anne Holker ’78 Josh Bailey ’17 Tom Kane ’83 Please consider getting involved. For more Nicholas Barber ’19 Hannah Kinisky ’13 information about our volunteer opportunities, visit oneontaalumni.com/volunteer. Kyle Beckley ’08 Dana Kuznetzkoff ’83 Fund for Oneonta supports virtual engagement Even in this era of virtual learning, support for the Fund for Oneonta is critical so that the College can continue to provide these types of learning experiences to students. Career networking and internship opportunities continue to rank high on students’ list of college experiences that contribute to success after graduation. Oneonta’s Campus to Career Make your contribution to the Fund for Oneonta Programs wouldn’t exist without support from the Fund for today at www.oneonta.edu/give Oneonta. Throughout our College’s history, the SUNY Oneonta community has come together to help students succeed.

8 Winter 2021 | Reflections Virtual Alumni Association Awards Celebration Honors Alumni The Alumni Association honored 10 individuals at a virtual Christine Warnquist ’71, president of the Alumni Association celebration Oct. 22 that was live streamed via several social Board of Directors. media outlets. This annual College tradition typically takes Alumni Association board members Kyle Beckley ’08 and place during Alumni Weekend and honors a few of SUNY Taylor Hogan ’14 hosted the event. Their talent, energy, Oneonta’s most outstanding alumni, students, faculty, and and humor encouraged interaction throughout the evening. staff. More than 100 alumni and friends joined us for this A special guest, Acting President Dennis Craig, offered year’s special event. It was a one-of-a-kind, memorable heartfelt congratulatory remarks to all the award winners. The experience for all. celebration ended with an amazing musical presentation by “Although we were not able to celebrate in the traditional Luke Mock ’23 and 2016 The Voice contestant Ryan Quinn ’13. sense during Alumni Weekend, we still wanted to honor these Please join us in congratulating our 2020 Alumni Association 10 individuals for their professional accomplishments and award recipients: service to their communities, including SUNY Oneonta,” says

Emerging Leader Student Leadership Military Service Military Service Military Service Marc Schein ’09 Lianne Palais ’20 Charlotte Kinney ’64 Thomas Clements ’70 Ed Banovic ’68

Outstanding Commitment Outstanding Service Outstanding Service Red Dragon Spirit Excellence in to Diversity and Inclusion Current Faculty Emeritus Faculty Charles “Three” Alumni Service La-Tarri Canty ’01 Jennifer Bueche ’83 Paul Conway Bollinger ’01 Greg Floyd ’80

If you missed the celebration, you can view it here: youtu.be/1KDOwLGnKgc. Virtual Faculty Showcase Launched Life of the Mind (LOTM) is an annual event that spotlights year’s LOTM, faculty have submitted presentations in a the research and scholarship, creative activity, teaching, variety of formats to an LOTM virtual showcase. service, and integrated contributions made by our faculty To view the showcase, visit suny.oneonta.edu/grants- to the intellectual life of the campus community and development-office/life-mind. beyond. While we are unable to gather in person for this

Winter 2021 | Reflections 9 Trends in Higher Ed Funding Impact SUNY Oneonta's Budget

Over the past few decades, sources of revenue for U.S. State tax support began lessening during the Great higher education have shifted, as have the percentages of Recession and then stabilized around 2012, with dollars operations they fund. remaining flat ever since. According to the Pew Charitable Trusts report “Two Last year, state tax support contributed just 10 percent, or Decades of Change in Federal and State Higher Education $11.1 million, to Oneonta’s all-funds operating budget. This Funding,” state investments have declined, while federal year’s appropriation is not yet known, due to uncertainties investments have grown, “largely driven by increases in the posed by COVID-19 and the resulting federal assistance need-based Pell Grant financial aid program.... This swing to states. “We expect the level of support to change in federal and state funding has altered the level of public dramatically this year,” Piscitello says. “What that works out support directed to students and institutions and how higher to in terms of slice of the pie, as a percentage, remains to be education dollars flow…. The federal government mainly seen.” provides financial assistance to individual students and The news isn’t all bad: Despite the expected reduction specific research projects, while states primarily pay for the in state appropriations and about $19.7 million in losses general operations of public institutions.” stemming from the closure of campus, income from the Julie Piscitello, vice president for finance and 2019-20 winter session and the 2020 summer session administration, joined Oneonta in 2004. Back then, she says, remained stable. And, more significantly, this fall’s the state funded 19 to 20 percent of the College’s operations; enrollment, at 6,734 (mid-semester), was higher than in earlier years, that figure was as high as 25 to 30 percent. projected, topping last fall’s figure by about 200.

10 Winter 2021 | Reflections To make up for the shortfall in revenue, the College will As state funding makes up a smaller piece of Oneonta’s draw an extra $12 million from cash reserves, “an amount revenue pie, the percentages contributed by other sources higher than I’ve seen used in all my years at the College,” have shifted—most notably tuition, which went from Piscitello says. “Not having students on campus and providing 29 percent of revenue a decade ago to 36 percent operating remotely has made this a difficult year.” Adding to last year. Over that same period, student fees, dorm rent, the difficulty were new expenses necessitated by COVID-19: dining plan revenue, and facility rental fees provided As of mid-November, about $509,000 had been spent on from 26 percent to 29 percent, depending on the number testing supplies; masks, gloves, gowns, and Plexiglass of students living on campus in a given year. Smaller shields; technology; and facilities projects to allow for social fluctuations were seen from independent entities that distancing. support the campus: Oneonta Auxiliary Services dropped from 17 percent to 16 percent; the Research Foundation Piscitello notes, however, “We were in a solid position dropped from 6 percent to 5 percent; and the College at coming into the year. If not for that financial strength, we Oneonta Foundation increased from 2 percent to 3 percent. would be in a much worse place than we are right now. Our reserves will allow us to get through the year, look at it as a Also contributing to revenue is the State University one-time anomaly, and be ready to move on.” Construction Fund, which provides $4 million to $9 million a year for construction and capital maintenance of academic Unlike some institutions, Oneonta has not laid off or and administrative buildings. furloughed campus employees. (The Pew Charitable Trusts, drawing on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Even though we’re a publicly supported institution, reported recently that public colleges and universities direct taxpayer support to our operations is a small part sustained a 13.7 percent drop in employment from February of our funding,” Piscitello says. “Other sources of revenue to October.) It has, however, asked the campus “to spend make up 90 percent of our funding. So, donations that only on what is essential,” Piscitello says, to avoid having to support scholarships and other campus priorities are really dig deeper into reserves. important to the success of our students.” SUNY Oneonta Funding at a glance

Winter 2021 | Reflections 11 CAMP reunion in summer 2019 CAMP: 20 Years of Success Helping Migrant Students

Since its launch in 2001, the SUNY Oneonta College since 2004, spending many years as a recruiter and advisor. Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) has helped more than She visited farms in places like Brockport, Geneva, and 450 students from migrant/seasonal-farm-working families Sodus, where migrant families could be found, talking pursue their dreams of earning a college degree. Across with migrant children and their parents about CAMP and the country, CAMP can be found on 51 college campuses; Oneonta. And about possibilities. Oneonta has the “For this particular population, they don't go to college distinction of hosting because they don't think they can,” Leiva says. Many migrant the only one in New children think they aren’t smart enough to attend a four- York state. year college or believe their only life choice is to follow their Pathy Leiva ’18 is parents’ path working on a farm, she says. CAMP shows director of Access them another direction. and Opportunity Migrant workers in the state tend to be Hispanic, but there Programs, which are also smaller populations of Jamaicans and Haitians, as includes CAMP, well as immigrants from Bangladesh and Burma, and white the Educational families. Some are settled in a permanent location where Opportunity their children go to school, while others are constantly on Program, and the move, going wherever jobs are available. Access to College Excellence. She says The Oneonta program accepts 25 students per year. To for migrant students, qualify, the applicant or a member of their immediate family CAMP offers a path must be employed in agriculture, on a temporary or seasonal to a better life. Leiva basis, for the past two years or the applicant must have CAMP staff, 2019 has been involved participated in a Migrant Education Program (MEP). MEP with the program is a federal initiative, administered through state education

12 Winter 2021 | Reflections CAMP graduation, Class of 2017 Students are welcomed back in 2019 CAMP coffee break, with mentors and freshman students departments, that supports high-quality K-12 education Once they graduate, they become role models for current programs for migratory children, ensuring they graduate CAMP students. “We’ve had alumni return for student with a high school diploma or earn a GED. panels,” Leiva says. “They have good jobs and may have been gone for years, but they had such a great experience at To begin the process, CAMP staff meet with applicants and Oneonta that they want to give their love back by sharing their parents to discuss support provided by the program. their stories.” Staff members help families complete applications for admissions and financial aid and later assist students with They also share a special bond with the CAMP staff who their orientation to campus life. helped them succeed when they were undergraduates. “We keep in touch through Facebook, Instagram, phone calls,” CAMP provides scholarships of $3,600 to $3,800 for the Leiva says. “I’ve gone to their weddings. I’ve gone to their students’ first year. Of that, $1,600 goes directly to financial children’s birthdays. I get birthday cards, and sometimes I’ll aid. The rest is used for transportation (roundtrip bus get a Mother’s Day card. CAMP is a big family.” fare) so students can visit their families; books and school supplies; and a $20 weekly stipend that students can spend Leiva says that 20 years after CAMP began at the College, as they desire. the need for the program is as great as ever. So many lives, she says, would be drastically different had it not existed: Throughout their freshman year, students meet with an “Without CAMP, I think we would have lost some amazing advisor each week to ensure they have what they need and people.” are adjusting well to College life. They also meet weekly with an academic specialist who addresses special needs such as Funding for the first-year scholarship comes from a tutoring, writing help, or skills workshops. competitive federal grant renewable every five years. Any additional support for CAMP students for their sophomore, While CAMP scholarships cover only the freshman year, junior, and senior years comes from the College, largely in Oneonta’s CAMP office works with students throughout the form of donations for scholarships and other programs their undergraduate years, offering a welcoming space and to the College at Oneonta Foundation. To support CAMP, smiles for drop-ins and providing winter clothing and loaner visit oneontaalumni.com/give and designate your gift to the laptops if needed, as well as helping with extra expenses that CAMP Fund. may arise. For more information, visit suny.oneonta.edu/college- Leiva says CAMP helps not only migrant students but also assistance-migrant-program. their parents, who are put at ease knowing their children have an essential support system and a second family away from home. Through their success, Leiva says, Oneonta CAMP students improve their own lives and their families’ lives. And they serve as role models for other migrant worker children. The Oneonta students often meet and share their experiences with migrant high schoolers who come to campus for official Alumni of Distinction honoree Joe Poon ’78 visits. (front,center) in Philadelphia's Chinatown with the CAMP freshman class, mentors, and staff in 2014 Winter 2021 | Reflections 13 Graduates from any class year are welcome to join in the fun, learn about old traditions, and make new memories.

ALUMNI WEEKEND Grab your red and white Red Dragon gear and get ready for 2021not the right fit for you, we’ve worked with several local hotels the all-new Alumni Weekend experience! Reminisce about the to reserve room blocks; information on participating hotels, past and embrace all that is new at SUNY Oneonta. The Alumni rooms, and amenities can be found at www.oneontaalumni.com/ Association invites all alumni to return to campus for Alumni reunionlodging. Weekend 2021, June 11-13. Get Social ENJOY tours of campus and informative sessions. CELEBRATE with fellow classmates at our many alumni events. CONNECT To stay connected with your Red Dragon family and keep up to with faculty, staff, and other Dragons from all backgrounds and date on Alumni Weekend planning, follow us on: years. Alumni Weekend will feature some fan favorites from the • Facebook: facebook.com/oneontaalumni Cans ’n Clams Picnic (Clambake) to the Alumni Celebration Breakfast and, of course, Brooks’ BBQ. And lots of new fun is in • Twitter: twitter.com/OneontaAlumni store with kayaking, yoga, scavenger hunts, and more. Check • Instagram: instagram/sunyoneontaalumni out all we have planned for you in 2021, and reach out to us at [email protected] to learn how you can help. • YouTube: youtube.com/channel/ UCbh9usZ93cDdUnfN6bPYdkA Please note that some events (RedTalks, 1889 Society Reception, class celebrations, etc.) are not yet listed, as we continue to Volunteers develop and create an inclusive suite of programs. Our most Alumni Weekend Committee: Terri Berzin ’79, Charles up-to-date schedule of events and locations, a list of area hotels “Three” Bollinger ’01, Rebecca Capek ’11, Alice Maggiore ’10, with room blocks, and information about connecting with your and Judy Palais ’81. classmates can be found on our website: www.oneontaalumni. com/alumniweekend. Alumni Weekend Ambassadors The health and safety of our Red Dragon family is of the utmost Maureen Artale ’98 Britney Liddell ’08 importance. We will continue to monitor the ongoing COVID-19 Bill Bogatz ’74 Phyllis Macbeth ’66 health crisis, and we may need to adjust the weekend schedule as circumstances dictate. Thank you for your patience and Chuck Bogosta ’80 Alice Maggiore ’10 understanding as we strive to keep everyone safe. Rebecca Capek ’11 Stephanie Peguillan ’15 Registration Mark Delligatti ’75 Joan Pondofino ’61 Greg Floyd ’80 Carly Salzman ’17 Registration opens online Feb. 15. We are continuing to plan out event specifics (such as locations); once solidified, they will be Kathy and Duke Gallagher ’75 Corey Spector ’80 listed on our registration page. To access the registration page, Brandon Gidicsin ’18 Jeffrey Strauss ’71 go to www.oneontaalumni.com/AlumniWeekend2021. If you can't Tyler Itzkowitz ’15 Jonathan Winnicki ’06 access this web page, or would like a registration form mailed to Andrea Lamantia ’75 Jay Winuk ’80 you, please email [email protected] to request assistance. Lodging If you would like to join the crew of Ambassadors, please email Each year, we offer a variety of lodging options. If you want the us: [email protected]. full return-to-campus experience, we will be housing guests Alumni Weekend is funded (in part) by the SUNY Oneonta in Wilber Hall. Each room features double beds (twin XL). Alumni Association through charitable gifts to the Fund for Wilber Hall also features lounges, where you can catch up with Oneonta. classmates; a pool table; and an extra-large lawn for recreation. The Wilber Hall room rate is $50 per night. If dorm living is 14 Winter 2021 | Reflections Friday, June 11, 2021 7:00 a.m. Golf Tournament 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. 1-2 p.m. The Magic of Science, Session 1 Oneonta Country Club 2-3 p.m. The Magic of Science, Session 2 9 Country Club Road A.J. Read Science Discovery Center Join SUNY Oneonta alumni and friends at the Physical Science Oneonta Country Club for a beautiful day of The A.J. Read Science Discovery Center captain and crew golf. The day will begin at 7 a.m. is a free, hands-on museum for people with a breakfast buffet in the clubhouse. We will of all ages and abilities. Its mission is to kick off the tournament with a shotgun start at 8 connect visitors to the joy and power of a.m. If you do not have a team, we will match you the scientific process through authentic with other players. Prizes will be awarded at the and interactive exhibits. Spots are limited luncheon in the clubhouse. Club member pricing: for each of these family-friendly, hands-on $100. Non-member pricing: $120. sessions. Registration is required.

10:00 a.m. Tennis Tournament 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. Alumni Expedition: Biological Field Join us for the annual Alumni Weekend Station Tour Tennis Tournament. Bring your racquet; we Lakeside Farm and Upland Interpretive will supply balls and prizes! For more information, Center contact Bill Bogatz ’74 at [email protected]. Please 7027 State Highway 80 register for this event to help us appropriately Springfield, N.Y. accommodate all participants. Join us for a tour of the Hop House, 10:00 a.m. Alumni Expedition: Tour of Otsego Lake Upland Interpretive Center, and other Thayer Boat House Launch Thayer Farm buildings. If you would like 7016 State Highway 80 to participate in both the Otsego Lake Springfield, N.Y. Tour and the Biological Field Station Tour, Spend the morning in Cooperstown discovering we encourage you to bring a bag lunch. the secrets of Otsego Lake aboard the research Registration is required. vessel Anodontoides. You will learn about advances in lake science that are changing 2:30 - 3:30 p.m. Campus Tours the way we live, work, and play. If you are Take a 45-minute guided walk around interested in participating in both the Otsego campus, and see how the campus has Lake Tour and the Biological Field Station Tour, changed yet retained its traditional we encourage you to bring a bag lunch. Please beauty. The tour will leave promptly at register for this event to help us appropriately 2:30 p.m. Comfortable walking shoes are accommodate all participants. recommended. This event is on a first- come, first-served basis. 11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Alumni Weekend HQ Check-in for the weekend officially begins! 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. SOURS @ The Fox Alumni Weekend Headquarters is the The Copper Fox information and problem-solving center for 7 Market St. Alumni Weekend 2021. Have a question about Live it up like the good ol’ days and join an event? Want to know where the event you’re us for an Oneonta tradition: SOURS at the looking forward to is located? Stop by HQ for Fox. All alumni are welcome to celebrate, answers and more! Pick up your name badge*, reminisce, and reconnect with their friends. Alumni Weekend schedule, and free gift from Cash bar and complimentary appetizers Britney Liddell ’08 the Alumni Association. will be available. Registration is required. Phyllis Macbeth ’66 *Alumni Weekend events require the Alumni 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. Alumni Association Annual Meeting Alice Maggiore ’10 Weekend name badge for entry. Also, your Alumni Association Board President Stephanie Peguillan ’15 name badge allows you to take advantage Christine Warnquist ’71 invites you to Joan Pondofino ’61 of special pricing or events at designated join us for the Alumni Association Annual merchants in downtown Oneonta during Alumni Carly Salzman ’17 Meeting, which will include updates from Weekend. Check out the list of participating the Alumni Association Board of Directors Corey Spector ’80 merchants at Alumni Weekend Headquarters. and the election of new board members. All Jeffrey Strauss ’71 SUNY Oneonta alumni are encouraged to Drag ’n Go Lunch Noon - 1:30 p.m. attend. Jonathan Winnicki ’06 Stop by and grab a lunch, pick up your Jay Winuk ’80 scavenger hunt bingo card, meet new Director of Outdoor Programs Chris Shughrue, and 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. Golden Anniversary Reception paddle on the pond. Registration is required. Members of the Half Century Club will Early bird pricing: $10. After May 24: $12. welcome members of the Classes of 1970 and 1971 back to campus. Light Alumni Expedition: Paddlefest 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. refreshments will be served. Attendance Join Director of Outdoor Programs Chris is for members of the two celebrating Shughrue for an Oneonta paddling experience you classes and their invited guests only. won’t want to miss. Equipment will be provided to Registration is required. participants. Registration is required. Winter 2021 | Reflections 15 Friday, June 11, 2021 Saturday, June 12, 2021 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. 10:45 a.m. Cans ’n Clams Picnic RedTalk Series: Facilities Past & Future Kick off Alumni Weekend and summer with the fan Lachlan Squair, chief facilities planning favorite meal of the weekend! The all-you-can-eat and safety officer, will share campus dinner will not only transport you to the shores of images from over the years, offer an New England with the menu—including steamed update on current construction projects, and fried clams, clam chowder, various sliders, and talk about what’s to come. coleslaw, corn on the cob, and desserts—but will also feature terrific live entertainment. The first 10:45 a.m. Campus Tours two beverages are included; a cash bar will be Take a 45-minute guided walk around available. Registration is required. Early bird pricing: campus, and see how the campus has $30. After May 24: $35. Children (12 and under) early changed yet retained its traditional bird pricing: $10. After May 24: $15. beauty. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended. This event is on a first- 8:30 - 10:00 p.m. Return to the RAT After Cans ’n Clams, head down to the come, first-served basis. Rathskeller Pub (Waterfront) for its one-night- 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Alumni Expedition: Mountain Bike Ride only return. Reconnect and reminisce with Riders: Check in at Alumni Weekend friends and classmates and let the live music Headquarters for any last-minute updates, transport you back to the glory days! A cash grab a route map, and fill your water bar and light refreshments will be available. bottle. Ed Lorenz ’81 will lead the ride; for Registration is required. more information, email alumni@oneonta. edu. Registration is required. Saturday, June 12, 2021 7:00 a.m. Café Wilber Hall 12:30 - 2:00 p.m. Red Dragon BBQ Wilber Hall Lobby Bringing the world-famous BBQ to you! Light refreshments will be available to The most talked about meal in town guests staying in Wilber Hall. comes to campus; you have a choice of 7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Alumni Weekend HQ the famous Brooks’ chicken dinner, a Alumni Weekend Headquarters is the pulled pork dinner, or a chicken/pulled information and problem-solving center for pork combo dinner. Vegetarian and Alumni Weekend 2021. Have a question about vegan meals are available upon request. an event? Want to know where the event you’re Along with the delicious lunch, there looking forward to is located? Stop by HQ for will be entertainment, music, and corn answers and more! Pick up your name badge*, hole! Before heading out to other Alumni Alumni Weekend schedule, and free gift from Weekend events, be sure to stop by the the Alumni Association. dessert table. A cash bar will be available. Registration is required. Early bird *Alumni Weekend events require the Alumni pricing: $10. After May 24: $15. Weekend name badge for entry. Also, your name badge allows you to take advantage of special 12:30 - 2:00 p.m. Visions of the Past Display pricing or events at designated merchants in Celebrating more than 130 years of SUNY downtown Oneonta during Alumni Weekend. Oneonta, this exhibition offers a special Check out the list of participating merchants at viewing of archival photos, yearbooks, Alumni Weekend Headquarters. mementos, and issues of The State Times. Staff from the Milne Library’s Special 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Oneonta Farmers’ Market Collections will be on hand to answer any Kim Muller Plaza, Main Street questions you may have. Visitors will find delicious, locally grown farm products from the field to the table. 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. The Magic of Science, Session 3 A.J. Read Science Discovery Center Physical Science 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. Alumni Celebration Breakfast The A.J. Read Science Discovery Center Join your fellow alumni, plus faculty, staff, is a free, hands-on museum for people and friends, as we celebrate our 2021 Alumni of all ages and abilities. Its mission is to Association Award winners and a successful connect visitors to the joy and power of year of alumni-led initiatives, partnerships, and the scientific process through authentic programming. Hear how alumni volunteers have and interactive exhibits. Spots are limited enhanced the Red Dragon experience on campus for this family-friendly, hands-on session. and beyond. Our pinnacle milestone class (1970 Registration is required. +1) will be recognized during this program as well. This event is open to all alumni. Breakfast is included. Registration is required. Early bird pricing: $10. After May 24: $15.

16 Winter 2021 | Reflections Saturday, June 12, 2021 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. 8:00 p.m. Alumni Expedition: Nature Hike Pub & Grub Trail College Camp is a campus gem. Made Downtown Oneonta possible by President Royal F. Netzer (1951-70), Grab your favorite swag and head this 276-acre piece of land hosts several trails to the heart of Oneonta—downtown! along with a lodge. Hiking enthusiast and Stop by your old haunt for a pint, ITS Service Manager Jesse Arno has agreed enjoy a cold cheese slice at your to lead a hike up to College Camp for those favorite pizzeria, or visit a new ready to traverse. Those who choose to hike establishment. This is a self-guided up can either do a round trip or catch a shuttle event, but in order to get discounts, from College Camp back down to campus. registration is required. Registration is required. 2:45 p.m. Campus Tours Sunday, June 13, 2021 Take a 45-minute guided walk around campus, 7:00 a.m. Café Wilber Hall and see how the campus has changed yet Wilber Hall Lobby retained its traditional beauty. The tour will leave Light refreshments will be available promptly at 2:45 p.m. Comfortable walking shoes to guests staying in Wilber Hall. are recommended. This event is on a first-come, first-served basis. 8:00 - 11:00 a.m. Alumni Weekend HQ Alumni Weekend Headquarters 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. 1889 Society Reception is the information and problem- The Division of College Advancement and the solving center for Alumni Weekend College at Oneonta Foundation are pleased 2021. Have a question about an to invite 1889 Society donors to a special event? Want to know where the recognition ceremony. By invitation only. event you’re looking forward to is located? Stop by HQ for answers and more! Pick up your name 3:00 - 3:30 p.m. Class of 1970 +1 Toast at the Pillars badge*, Alumni Weekend schedule, Pillars Quad between Fitzelle and Fine Arts and free gift from the Alumni The Classes of 1970 and 1971 will gather to Association. toast friendships started 50+ years ago. Members of the celebrating classes and their invited guests only. A *Alumni Weekend events require the class photo will be taken for each class starting at 3 p.m., Alumni Weekend name badge for so please be at the pillars by that time to be included. entry. Also, your name badge allows Registration is required. Rain location: Morris Hall. you to take advantage of special pricing or events at designated 4:30 p.m. Alumni of Distinction Presentation of Honors for merchants in downtown Oneonta 2020 Honorees during Alumni Weekend. Check out The SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association will honor the list of participating merchants at select alumni who have distinguished themselves Alumni Weekend Headquarters. through their careers, service to their communities, and commitment to our 8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Yoga Unwind and center yourself before College at this evening’s celebration. Join us for dinner, heading home. This workshop open bar (beer and wine), and musical entertainment as is free to all participants, but we celebrate our most notable alumni. All alumni and registration is preferred so we can friends are welcome. Pricing: $35. After May 24: $40. accommodate all participants. This is a business formal event.

5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Red Gown BBQ 8:30 - 11:00 a.m. Bon Voyage Bingo & Brunch Join Ambassadors Mark Delligatti ’75, Enjoy a delicious brunch complete Kathy and Duke Gallagher ’75, and Andrea with champagne! The best way to Lamantia ’75 for a relaxing evening on the cap off a fun-filled weekend is with Wilber Hall lawn. Don’t forget to pack a lawn an all-you-can-eat meal partnered chair. Traditional BBQ fare and lawn games with everyone’s favorite brunch will be provided. Registration is required. pairing—BINGO! Registration is Early bird pricing: $10. After May 24: $15. required. Early bird pricing: $10. 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. 7 to 8 p.m., Stars & Sundaes After May 24: $15. 8 to 9 p.m., Stars & Sundaes 2 9:30 - 11:00 a.m. Class of 1980 Send-Off Perna Science Building Lobby College Camp Join Joshua Nollenberg, assistant professor of Stop by the campus’ hidden gem, physics, for a journey into the cosmos in our College Camp, and enjoy the state-of-the-art digital planetarium. Following company of fellow classmates and the program, enjoy sundaes on the first floor of a tasty breakfast. Registration is the Perna Science Building. Seating is limited required. Early bird pricing: $10. to 12 for each session, so please register to help After May 24: $15. us accommodate all participants. Winter 2021 | Reflections 17 2020 Alumni of Distinction Honorees to Be Recognized During Alumni Weekend To help keep our alumni safe and reduce the transmission affiliations, and careers have of COVID-19, the SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association honored the College’s legacy of postponed the 2020 Alumni of Distinction Presentation excellence. The honor illustrates of Honorees originally scheduled for Oct. 16. We invite the great value of the academic all alumni to join us in celebrating these exceptional experiences at SUNY Oneonta. individuals during a special event June 12. The Alumni of Distinction honor recognizes just a few Scan with a QR Code reader on of the thousands of alumni who have made significant your smart phone to visit the contributions to society and whose accomplishments, Alumni of Distinction website! Congratulations to All 2020 Alumni of Distinction Honorees!

Nicoletta Caferri ’78 (English) Mary Ann Hildebrandt ’75 (General Studies) Jennifer Low ’92 (Political Science) Assistant District Attorney, Retired President and CEO, Vice President, Queens District Attorney’s Office Gateway Community Industries Inc. Smile Farms Inc.

Robert Mackey ’87 (Secondary Education) John McAlary ’86 (History) Farrukh Quraishi ’75 (Sociology) Superintendent, Executive Director, Chief Operating Officer, Unadilla Valley Central Schools New York State Board of Law Examiners Brock Communications Inc.

Lisa Soeder ’80 (English) Kimberly Springle ’08 Granville Thompson ’68 Attorney, (History Museum Studies) (Elementary Education) Soeder & Associates LLC Director/Archivist/Curator, Retired Teacher, Charles Sumner School Museum and Archives Connetquot Schools 18 Winter 2021 | Reflections Alumni Association Announces 2021 Award Recipients The SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association has established so that I can be a part of honoring our fellow alumni each awards in several categories to honor alumni who bring year,” says Carolyn Cacciato ’79. distinction to themselves and our alma mater through their We look forward to recognizing the 2021 Alumni outstanding personal and professional achievements. Association Award recipients June 12. All are welcome “The Alumni Association remains hopeful that our alumni to join us for the Alumni Celebration Breakfast. For more community can celebrate the achievements of these information about this and other Alumni Weekend events, deserving recipients at an in-person event this summer. visit oneontaalumni.com/alumniweekend. I'm proud to be an Alumni Association board member and chair of the Alumni Awards and Scholarship Committee Congratulations to the 2021 Alumni Association Award Recipients! Excellence in Alumni Service Red Dragon Spirit - Group Patrick Brown ’78 The Grau Family: Governmental Law Firm Partner Monica ’88 Brown and Weinraub PLLC Interim Director of Residential Life and Director of the First-Year Experience and Orientation Outstanding Service - Current Faculty SUNY Oneonta Charlene Foley-Deno Assistant Professor Bill ’89 SUNY Oneonta Executive Director, SICAS Center SUNY Oneonta Outstanding Service - Current Staff Scott Segar Madeline (Maddy) ’19 Technical Director Admissions Officer SUNY Oneonta University of North Georgia Outstanding Service - Emeritus Faculty Grayson ’20 Loraine Tyler ’69 Former Member of the School Programs Team Retired Professor and Chair of Human Ecology The Adirondack Experience: The Museum on Blue SUNY Oneonta Mountain Lake Honorary Alumna Student Leadership Melanie Rose Jessica Sinopoli ’20 Co-Founder Sales Assistant Perna-Rose Foundation Cetera Investment Services LLC Outstanding Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion Humanitarian Gretchen Sorin ’75 Jay Jacobs ’77 Director of the Cooperstown Graduate Program and President and Owner Distinguished Service Professor TLC Family of Camps SUNY Oneonta Meaghan Shannon-Vlkovic ’89 Emerging Leader Vice President and Market Leader, Southeast Araya Henry ’13 Enterprise Community Partners Coordinator of Teen Programs Whitney Museum of American Art Military Service Richard Choppa ’83 Red Dragon Spirit - Individual Senior Director of Global Sales and Marketing Jay Davidson ’69 Boeing Co. Author and Retired Teacher San Francisco Unified School District Winter 2021 | Reflections 19 GROW. THRIVE. LIVE. THE FUTURE OF SUNY ONEONTA

For over 130 years, we have made a consistent, collective investment in our students’ interests, well-being, and success. We launched this campaign to accelerate our pursuit of helping students and faculty achieve their academic and life goals.

20 Winter 2021 | Reflections Campaign Surpasses $17M

Grow. Thrive. Live., the College’s campaign goal. campaign to raise $25 million over five years to enhance Dollars donated to the College at our students' educational Oneonta Foundation are dollars experience, was about well spent. An independent to launch publicly this audit conducted in 2020 past spring, just as found that 96 cents of every the pandemic struck. dollar raised goes directly Realizing the new and Goal: to student scholarships immediate student $25,000,000 and programs, with needs arising from Raised only four cents going COVID-19, the toward administrative campaign realigned to date: and related expenses—a its priorities in rate far superior to the March. New emphasis $17,689,297 80-cent industry average. was given to the This means that 96 Student Emergency percent of all funds given Fund, which provides to the College at Oneonta non-tuition grants for Foundation directly support urgent expenses, and the our College's mission. Student Success Scholarship As of Dec. 1, 2020 Fund, which provides tuition “Oneonta has a critical role to assistance to those faced play in providing a reasonably priced with emergencies or extenuating education to those who may otherwise circumstances. never be able to attend college and overcome financial or other adversity,” saysJerry Bermingham Individuals, corporations, and foundations have ’83, secretary of the College Foundation board. generously supported those funds, enabling the “Although Oneonta has a sizable endowment for a College to provide students with more than $180,000 state school its size, we still have a long way to go to in emergency support. In the words of one recipient: ensure ongoing scholarships, internships, and student “The Student Emergency Fund shows how much and faculty research.” SUNY Oneonta cares about its students.” “Enabling young people to achieve their dreams has been one of the most gratifying experiences of my Other funding priorities include new and existing life,” says College Foundation board member Carol scholarships, the Fund for Oneonta, and the Denson ’64. Denson, who previously established an Unrestricted Endowment “Fund for the Future.” endowed scholarship, is now endowing an unrestricted Fund for the Future in her name. As of Dec. 1, more than $17.6 million had been raised in support of academics, career preparedness, and The campaign runs through June 30, 2023. For more access and affordability—71 percent of the $25 million information, go to suny.oneonta.edu/GrowThriveLive. + $ 7,158 73 $3M+ Campaign Donors New Scholarship Funds Annual Support for Students

Winter 2021 | Reflections 21 SUNY Oneonta students have a hunger to learn, discover, think, and do. But we cannot meet their needs if we do not provide them with opportunities to complete significant research and learn from the sharpest minds. Increasing the funds available for student research and faculty GROW. development will help transform a good education into a great one. Our students will grow intellectually. Lisa Hornick ’18 In her first position, as stage technician Designs Put Students Center Stage for Norwegian Cruise Lines, Hornick “did At the 2018 SUNY Undergraduate Research theatre on the ocean for six months and Conference (SURC), held at SUNY Oneonta, got to visit all these awesome countries three Oneonta students presented A Look and islands.” That was followed by stints Behind the Curtain: The Elements of Theatrical as company management assistant for Design. Bard SummerScape at the Fisher Center of the Performing Arts in Annandale-on- Lisa Hornick ’18 presented her lighting designs Hudson, New York, and—until theatres for the faculty show Barefoot in the Park, while went dark due to COVID-19—company Kenneth Brooke ’20 presented his set designs, manager for the George Street Playhouse, and Evelynn Pinneo ’18 presented her costume an Equity house in New Brunswick, New designs, for the musical Honk! Jersey. As lighting designer for Barefoot in the Park, The recipient of two scholarships, Hornick says the SURC Hornick worked closely with her professors and other presentation wouldn’t have happened without support faculty members. “I was treated like a professional lighting from the Fund for Oneonta and the SUNY Oneonta designer, which was awesome, because it gave me real- Unrestricted Endowment. world experience,” she says. “A lot of opportunities at Oneonta are made possible by Hornick, who holds a dual degree in theatre and mass support from endowments and donors,” she says. “I’ve communications (now media studies), used the confidence always been extremely grateful for those opportunities. she’d gained to secure a job in the theatre industry My college experience would have looked a lot different immediately after graduation. “I knew I could articulate without them.” what I’d learned in my classes and the hands-on experience I’d gained through practicums and student shows.” Maurice Odago Conference Attendance Produces quantities of toxins such as cyanide and fluoride. Odago’s presentation gave an ‘Stronger, Better Scientists’ overview of the group’s other efforts to With faculty development support from the synthesize compounds for anion (negatively SUNY Oneonta Unrestricted Endowment, charged ion) sensing. Maurice Odago, associate professor of The ACS meeting, which draws more than chemistry and biochemistry, and Zachary 10,000 participants from across the globe, attended the American Peterson ’20 offers myriad professional development Chemical Society’s (ACS) Spring 2019 opportunities for both students and faculty. National Meeting & Exposition in Orlando, Florida, to present their research findings. “In preparing for the meeting, students grow a lot, because the quality of their presentation must be up The support, which covered transportation and lodging to par with the expectations of the ACS,” Odago says. “It costs, helped fill in gaps left by the expiration of a helps them become stronger, better scientists.” national grant, which had funded Odago and his students’ attendance in the past. Additional support for Peterson’s Faculty find the experience equally beneficial. “When your attendance came from the Caroline ’67 and David work is peer reviewed,” Odago says, “you get ideas, and you D’Antonio Student Travel for Excellence Fund. get challenged by what you’re doing. You learn a lot, you make improvements. Collaborating with others helps you Odago and his research group study molecular sensing. see things from a different perspective. Peterson’s paper, “Moving Anion Sensing Toward the Finish Line,” detailed his efforts to develop sensors “And when you bring new knowledge back and share it that could detect the presence of infinitesimally small with your students, you keep them on the cutting edge.” 22 Winter 2021 | Reflections An Oneonta education stretches far beyond campus. Students learn even more from internships, faculty-led field trips, professional development, and study abroad experiences. Your gifts help students afford pivotal experiences and make career connections. THRIVE. This is the edge they'll need to succeed after college. Our students will thrive socially. Caroline D’Antonio ’67 Long-Ago Investment Pays New Distinguished Production of a Play, and Outstanding Director of a Play. Dividends “When you study something in college, you In the 1930s, a small boy received Pfizer don’t get to use it until you’re out in the real stock for his first birthday. Almost a world,” D’Antonio says, in explaining her century later, proceeds from his lifelong rationale for the fund. “This takes them into fascination with the stock market financed the real world while they’re still students, myriad opportunities for SUNY Oneonta when they can come back to the classroom students. and ask questions and further develop their The late David D’Antonio was married to thoughts and ideas.” Caroline ’67. Together, they established Caroline and David, both of whom were teachers, shared an endowed scholarship and the Caroline ’67 and David a passion for education and a commitment to investing in D’Antonio Student Travel for Excellence Fund, which future generations. assists students with costs incurred for professional travel. “When a student attends Oneonta, it's going to leave a Among the most recent of hundreds of trips sponsored by mark on their life—improve their life—no matter what they the fund: Students traveled to Boston for the International do,” she says. Genetically Engineered Machines (iGEM) Giant Jamboree; sang Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 (Resurrection) D’Antonio is a recipient of the Alumni Association’s at London’s Southbank Centre; and presented The Wolves Humanitarian Award, which recognizes SUNY Oneonta at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, graduates who provide extraordinary service for the winning awards for Outstanding Production Ensembles, benefit of others. Kidane Haile ’21 Internship Helps Haile Embrace moved to Buffalo for the summer to immerse himself in the environment and be available His Heritage to meet with clients in person, should the Working with refugees as a summer intern opportunity arise. at the International Institute of Buffalo (IIB) Which it did, when Haile joined IIB staff gave Kidane Haile ’21 a newfound passion. in delivering gift baskets to clients—an After earning an associate degree and experience, he says, that will stick with him. before enrolling at SUNY Oneonta, Haile, an “Seeing the appreciation on clients’ faces international studies major, spent three years and feeling their love and appreciation—what working in a group home with teenagers who community support can do for people—was had mental health diagnoses—a job, he says, just amazing.” that changed his life and ignited his desire to give back. Haile’s internship was made possible by a grant from At IIB, Haile helped refugees from Eritrea, Ethiopia, the Dewar Foundation Fund for Internship Support, Myanmar, and the Middle East access services and secure which covered his credits and living costs in Buffalo. The employment. fund, earmarked for residents of Otsego and contiguous “Growing up, I often shied away from the fact that I, myself, counties, “made the internship the best it could be, without am an immigrant,” says Haile, who was born in Eritrea and my having to stress over finances,” he says. moved with his family to the United States when he was 2 Ultimately, Haile hopes to do humanitarian work “or work years old. “Last summer, I learned to fully embrace it.” for IGOs (intergovernmental organizations) that make Although he worked remotely due to the pandemic, Haile policies and advocate for vulnerable populations who really have it tough.” Winter 2021 | Reflections 23 Education is the path to a better life, but too often cost blocks the way. Today, more than 80 percent of Oneonta students have financial need, and our students graduate with an average of $26,196 in loan debt. Gifts to increase scholarship funding and our Unrestricted Endowment, and annual gifts to the Fund for Oneonta, help keep SUNY Oneonta affordable, accessible, and inclusive, and help provide our students LIVE. with the college education needed to pursue their life dreams. Our students will live purposefully. Drew McKay ’05 It’s a Family Affair and on the board’s Finance and Executive committees. He also volunteers at receptions Drew McKay ’05 got an early taste of for admitted students and participates campus life when, at age 10, he visited his in Backpacks to Briefcases, an annual sister, Alison McKay Squiccimarro ’97, and networking event for business students in spent the weekend with her in Huntington New York City (this year’s edition was held Hall. “I loved the campus, the area, being up virtually). there in the fall,” he says. A longtime donor to the Fund for Oneonta, he When he returned as a student, continuing supports the Fund “because it’s unrestricted, a decades-long family tradition (older which allows the College to allocate resources brother Dominick Lanza graduated where they’re needed most.” in 1989), McKay “found a new family waiting for me. Faculty and administrators took me under their wing and “Giving to the Fund for Oneonta is the least I can do for shepherded me through the Oneonta experience.” the College, which has provided me with so many great memories and a solid degree (in sociology),” he says. Now, McKay, senior project manager for the Hunter “Oneonta left a profound impact on my life and on my Roberts Construction Group in New York City, works to family’s life. And for that, I am forever grateful.” give current and prospective students a similar, or even better, experience. Will the family tradition continue? McKay isn’t taking any chances. His two children, ages 5 and 2, “are already decked McKay serves as treasurer of the Alumni Association Board out in Oneonta swag. I bring them to campus every chance of Directors (again following his sister, a former treasurer), I get.” Micaela Honsinger ’21 Honsinger Brings Student generous and compassionate they are” and “the passion they have for Oneonta.” Voice to College at Oneonta She credits the financial support she received Foundation with changing the quality of her college As a student board member of the experience, noting that while the Presidential College at Oneonta Foundation and Scholarship “got me through the door,” the the recipient of multiple scholarships, cumulative effect of the three awards made it Micaela Honsinger ’21 gets to experience possible for her to study abroad for a semester donors’ generosity from both sides. at the University of Salamanca, Spain. Honsinger, an adolescent education and There she found the immersive language Spanish major who plays on the women’s experience she’d hoped to get before soccer team, receives three scholarships: a Presidential graduation—living with a host family, attending classes Scholarship, which covers tuition and is renewable for four with international students and native Spanish speakers, years; an Alumni Association Scholarship, which covers and traveling throughout Spain. fees; and a Damascene Book Cellar Scholarship, which Honsinger longs to one day return to Spain, either to visit covers the cost of books. or to teach English as a second language, a field she plans On the College Foundation board, which she joined to study in graduate school. in 2019, Honsinger brings a student perspective and “The experience of studying abroad will stick with me my advocates for future aid recipients. When meeting alumni, entire life,” she says. “Donors should know that when they she says, she has been singularly impressed by “how give to a college, they’re making a long-term investment

in students’ lives—it doesn’t end after four years.” 24 Winter 2021 | Reflections Get to know our campaign co-chairs

Pat McCann ’75 Linda McCann ’76 Former President and CEO (retired), Former Director of Library Services (retired), Weston Solutions Bucks County Community College About me: About me: After graduating from Oneonta with a bachelor’s I graduated from SUNY Oneonta in 1976 with degree in economics, I went on for a master’s degree a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, in economics at Binghamton University and an MBA earned a master’s degree in library and at Virginia Tech. I spent my career working in the information science at Catholic University, environmental industry and now am mostly retired, and have enjoyed a career mostly in higher serving on two company boards. I am proud to be a education. I have very happy memories of co-chair of the Grow. Thrive. Live. campaign alongside my time at Oneonta, which include meeting my wife, Linda, and look forward to raising $25 million my husband, Pat, and the many lasting and that will prepare our students for success by enhancing meaningful friendships I formed. their educational opportunities. Why I believe Grow. Thrive. Live. is important How SUNY Oneonta made an impact on my life and to SUNY Oneonta and our students: career: I was fortunate enough to graduate without Oneonta was transformational for me. I was a first- student debt. Many of today’s Oneonta students generation college graduate in my family, and Oneonta are forced to take on excess student loan was an affordable option for us. I not only got a great debt, and they struggle. The availability of education but also gained lifelong friends. And the best scholarships, emergency funding, and other part is that I met my wife there as well. forms of support can make a huge difference in students’ ability to reach their personal and Why I give back: professional goals. I have been involved with the College Foundation for What you can do to help: about 10 years and have seen how Oneonta remains a special place. It is still a beautiful campus with a caring I hope that you will join me, Pat, and thousands faculty and staff who are making a difference for tens of other Red Dragons in making a financial of thousands of students. We have seen the impact commitment to our students by giving from that charitable gifts have on the lives and education of your heart and participating in Grow. Thrive. Oneonta students. That is why we give back and have Live. The Future of SUNY Oneonta. made Oneonta a priority in our charitable giving. State University College at Oneonta Foundation Corporation This is our legal name, and it is important that this name be used in wills, retirement plans, life insurance policies, and all other estate planning documents that name the College as a beneficiary of a gift or bequest. For more information about how you can give to SUNY Oneonta now or in the future, please contact:

Paul J. Adamo ’81 Tim Hayes Beth Orgeron Benjamin Wendrow ’08 Vice President for Senior Advancement Senior Advancement Director of Development College Advancement Officer Officer and Donor Relations [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Division of College Advancement Ellen Blaisdell Jill Mirabito 308 Netzer Administration Building Associate Vice President for Director of Gift Planning SUNY Oneonta | Oneonta, NY 13820 College Advancement [email protected] Phone: 607-436-2535 | Fax: 607-436-2686 [email protected] www.oneonta.edu/advancement

Winter 2021 | Reflections 25 OUR Hearts GO OUT TO THEM

In what one participant describes as “an amazing outpouring of volunteers,” more than 200 employees from across campus rallied to run the testing center; set up a helpline to respond to parent calls; deliver meals, packages, and prescriptions to students in quarantine and isolation, even do student laundry. Never was the College’s care and compassion for students so vividly on display as when COVID-19 moved in shortly after opening day.

Residence halls opened for the fall semester Aug. 17. By Aug. of Finance and Administration, one of about 15 volunteers 18, the first case had been identified. And by Aug. 25, about who took the calls. “I could find information for people 250 students had tested positive, creating the need for all who were calling. I could take the time to listen, to relieve students to be immediately tested. some anxiety. And if they had a concern that needed to be elevated, I could identify who could help.” The helpline, run Melissa Fallon-Korb, director of the Counseling, Health and in a Microsoft Teams environment, was supervised first by Wellness Center, established a mass testing center that Fallon-Korb and then by personnel assistant Tracy Hartwell. ran daily for the next two weeks. The center was led first by Fallon-Korb and then by Tracey Ranieri, director of athletics; A separate team of some 60 employees, also working in both were assisted by more than 75 employees who received Microsoft Teams, made care calls. “Our role was to reach on-the-job training. Lachlan Squair, chief facilities and safety out to students in the quarantine and isolation halls and officer, and Peter Booth, environmental health and safety make sure they had regular contact with someone at the officer, played critical roles, with Booth giving daily safety College who could be sympathetic and understanding, and talks to employees and ensuring that they wore masks, also recognizing that they might need somebody to talk to gloves, and gowns, as needed. “Being able to test on this and not know where to go with their questions,” says Sue scale saved people’s lives,” Fallon-Korb says. “We couldn’t Clemons ’78, associate vice president and controller and have done it without them.” an organizer of the grassroots effort. The team continued to operate throughout the fall semester, contacting new As calls began to inundate the health center, a helpline freshmen and transfer students to help acclimate them to the was established to divert calls of a non-medical nature Oneonta community. (On-campus classes were suspended so that sick students could quickly get through to health Sept. 3.) care providers. The helpline fielded administrative and procedural questions, along with “high-intensity, emotional “Oneonta is all about that quintessential, exemplar calls, so that folks who needed to be boots on the ground residential experience, and this wasn’t that experience—it could concentrate on what our students needed,” says was not what we wanted for our students, and our hearts Elaine Lowe, administrative staff associate for the Division went out to them,” Lowe says.

26 Winter 2021 | Reflections Graig Eichler, assistant director of business services for the Morris Complex, oversaw the transport and relocation of students in quarantine to Matteson Hall and students in isolation to Tobey Hall—about 400 in all. Some 20 employees worked directly with the students, delivering meals, medication, and just about anything else they needed. Additional employees picked up packages for them at Dragon Express. Others delivered meals to students at the Marriott, where some were staying. Still others cleaned rooms after students vacated. “From Aug. 30 through Sept. Assistant Athletic Trainer Lauren Stephenson at the 10, we worked 16-hour days,” Eichler says. SUNY Oneonta COVID-19 testing site To let students in quarantine and isolation know they were in people’s thoughts, Michelle Thibault, director of “You can only characterize it as heroic,” Fallon-Korb says. continuing education/summer and winter sessions, led “They showed up every morning, even though many were in an effort to assemble and distribute goodie bags; she was the age range where COVID could be really dangerous. They assisted by a small group of colleagues that included did it because they cared about the students and the safety her husband, Robb Thibault, director of student life and of our campus. To me, that’s the definition of courage.” leadership/Hunt Union, and Maureen Artale ’98, College registrar. The Office of Continuing Education and Summer Sessions and the Student Association donated tote bags, while offices from across campus donated promotional items such as Frisbees, stress sticks, and lip balm. Staff and faculty also donated hundreds of dollars of food items ranging from cereal to granola bars to popcorn. “When the stress of all of this is making you blue, just remember we are here for you!” read the enclosed card. “Despite their direct exposure to many, many students with COVID-19, no employees got infected, which was a remarkable achievement,” says Squair, who, in addition to his role with the testing center, helped establish the command structure and operations for Matteson and Tobey halls. “We provided staff volunteers with masks and other PPE (personal protective equipment) and made it as safe for them as we could.” Associate Director of Donor Relations Karen “Many people here are deeply invested in this institution,” Munson and Coordinator of Affinity Programs and he says, in explaining the all-out volunteer effort. “They put Reunions Michelle Hansen at the SUNY Oneonta the welfare of students and the institution above their own COVID-19 testing site personal safety.” Winter 2021 | Reflections 27 Mystery Photo Contest

Give us your best guess at Do you recognize this [email protected] and tell us about one of your place on campus? favorite little-known places on campus! We look forward to revealing the mystery photo Hint: With cold weather location and locations our approaching, you would be wise to readers share in future issues of Reflections and on our social cozy up in this location. media platforms.

28 Winter 2021 | Reflections Beyond the Pillars SHOW YOUR PRIDE Leave your legacy with a brick in the Alumni Brick Garden

find out more at oneontaalumni.com/brickgarden 1944 1961 Esther (Jones) Davis and Stanley Davis celebrated their Jerry Englebardt has sung in 49 countries. His work is on 72nd wedding anniversary in May 2020. YouTube, Soundcloud, Facebook, and Instagram. He is a retired teacher and performed a show in a small hotel in San Francisco, where he was accompanied by a ukulele player.

1957 Joan (Sledjeski) Pondolfino and nine friends from the SUNY Oneonta Alpha Sigma Beta Class of 1961 held their Mary Lou (Cammisa) Henderson retired from teaching 2020 reunion via Zoom. Usually 12 people from the group in the Fairfax (Va.) County School System in 1970. In the gather in a different location each year, but plans had to intervening years, she has had assignments in Germany and change due to COVID-19. Pondolfino says the group still had White Plains, N.Y. She is back in Virginia. fun and looked and sounded great. As always, they enjoyed learning about each other’s lives and experiences since they had last met.

Winter 2021 | Reflections 29 Craft YOUR A GIFT LegacyTHROUGH YOUR WILL HELPS OUR STUDENTS ForeVer

YOUR 1968 1974 Kenneth Blom and his wife, Carol, are gardening and bike Alumni of Distinction honoree Harry Craft riding while they wait for the pandemic to ease. Bradshaw Matthews consulted on the Commonwealth Monument Project, A GIFT which commemorates the 150th Legacy anniversary of the ratification of the THROUGH 15th Amendment. The monument is the first of its kind and was unveiled YOUR WILL at the Pennsylvania state capitol. HELPS OUR Matthews is a founding member of the U.S. Colored Troops Institute for Local and Family “I am supporting the college with aSTUDENTS planned gift as a way to acknowledge History and serves as president and senior fellow of its sister organization, the American Society of Freedmen my appreciation to all the fine studentsFore I’ve Vknowner over my 38 year career.” Descendants. Faculty Emeritus Art Palmer enjoyed a long and distinguished It is his way of giving back to SUNY Oneonta, and to help Sharon Suhocki career as a member of the Earth Sciences department. Over future generations of students. You too, can create and 1970s Parslow (left) and Cindy many years, he saw firsthand the transformational impact that enduring legacy at SUNY Oneonta, without affecting your ITK brothers met for a socially distanced lunch. From left: Wadach, who were education had on his students. In addition to endowing a current finances. Please consider naming the College at Tom Thornton ’70, John Fusco ’72, Dan D’Amboise ’70, quadmates during their George Werthmuller ’70 (sitting), Pat Gabriel ’70, Greg freshman year in Grant Scholarship for Excellence in Geology and Earth Science, Oneonta Foundation as a beneficiary of your estate, TIAA Hall, met recently for Aidala ’72, Bruce Morrison ’70, Keith Stewart ’73, Ralph generously supporting the SUNY Oneonta Research Fund or other retirement plan. Your future gift will qualify you (Phi Delta), and . Photo by lunch in Utica. It was the Dallara ’70 Joe Muehl ’72 Chuck and Faculty Development Fund, Art has established a legacy as a member of our Netzer Planned Giving Society. Leonelli ’73. first time they had seen each other in 45 years. gift to the College at Oneonta Foundation in his estate plan 1971 GiV e back to s U n Y o neonta F or what the colleG e has meant to Y o U . Thomas Holowach retired in 2019 after 18 years of 1976 “I am supporting the college with a planned gift as a way to acknowledge producing shows and managing the Paliku Theatre at John Tinghitella and co-author Nicole Martin published Windward Community College in Hawaii. my appreciation to all the fineFor students more inF ormation,I’ve known please over contact: my 38 year career.” No Fear Negotiation for Women, a simple, effective, James Proper has relocated from Charlotte to Chapel Hill, and repeatable tool designed to help women achieve a Jill Mirabito, Director of Gift Planning N.C., and is enjoying his four grandchildren and his “ideal negotiation mindset and advance their careers. Faculty Emeritus Art Palmer enjoyed a long and distinguished It is308 his wayNetzer of givingAdministration back to SUNY Building Oneonta, and to help retirement job” teaching math courses for Strayer University. SUNY Oneonta | Oneonta, NY 13820 career as a member of the Earth Sciences department. Over future generations of students. You too, can create and Phone: (607) 436-3107 many years, he saw firsthand the transformational impact that enduring legacy at SUNY Oneonta, without affecting your Email: [email protected] education had on his students. In addition to endowing a currentoneonta.edu/giftplans.org finances. Please consider naming the College at Scholarship for Excellence in Geology and Earth Science, Oneonta Foundation as a beneficiary of your estate, TIAA generously supporting the SUNY Oneonta Research Fund or other retirement plan. Your future gift will qualify you Pathways and Faculty Development Fund, Art has established a legacy as a member of our Netzer Planned Giving Society. To SUNY Oneonta’s gift to the College at Oneonta Foundation in his estate plan Second Century (1990-2015) GiV e back to s U n Y o neonta F or what the colleG e has meant to Y o U . Now available in hard copy For more inFormation, please contact: and digital versions! Jill Mirabito, Director of Gift Planning 308 Netzer Administration Building Order Yours at SUNY Oneonta | Oneonta, NY 13820 Phone: (607) 436-3107 oneontaalumni.com/book Email: [email protected] oneonta.edu/giftplans.org 30 Winter 2021 | Reflections Craft YOUR A GIFT LegacyTHROUGH YOUR WILL HELPS OUR STUDENTS ForeVer

YOUR YOUR Dianne (Christie) Pinney retired after a 40-year career in YOUR 1977 Craft Le Sueur, Minn., as a children’s and public librarian. Upon her retirement, she was awarded the 2020 William G. Asp Kenneth CountessCraft and Vicky Countess have been married Craft Distinguished Career Award by the Minnesota Library for 33 years and are now grandparents. The couple live in Association.A GIFT Orlando, Fla. Ken’s marketing consultancy,Legacy The Countess A GIFT A GIFT Group, is now in its 20th year; he specializesLegacy in coaching THROUGHAlumni of Distinction honoree Patricia Legacy clients to become better marketers. He has been named THROUGH THROUGH YOURTurner , WILLprofessor of African American several times as Constant Contact’s top trainer for email YOURstudies WILL and of world arts and culture/ YOUR WILL marketing and social media. HELPSdance at UCLA,OUR wrote an essay in July HELPS2020 for OUR UCLA Magazine about the late HELPS OUR Joseph P. Paoloni and his STUDENTSU.S. Rep. John Lewis, a recipient of the wife, Lisa, welcomed their STUDENTSUCLA Medal. “I am supporting the college with aSTUDENTS planned gift as a way to acknowledge first grandchild, Skylar ForeVer Grace Rifenburgh, with their ForeVer my appreciation to all the fine studentsFore I’ve Vknowner over my 38 year career.” daughter Dr. Ashley (Paoloni) Rifenburgh in September 1978 2020. Joe is retired from Ciba- Faculty Emeritus Art Palmer enjoyed a long and distinguished It is his way of giving back to SUNY Oneonta, and to help Alumni of Distinction honoree Greg Schem is president and Geigy as director of pensions, career as a member of the Earth Sciences department. Over future generations of students. You too, can create and CEO of Harbor Real Estate Group. He served on the California trusts, and investments and Marine Life Protection Act Initiative commission and is an many years, he saw firsthand the transformational impact that enduring legacy at SUNY Oneonta, without affecting your has served as the Wappinger ambassador to AltaSea, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing the (N.Y.) town clerk since 2014; education had on his students. In addition to endowing a current finances. Please consider naming the College at “blue economy.” he previously served as a Scholarship for Excellence in Geology and Earth Science, Oneonta Foundation as a beneficiary of your estate, TIAA Wappinger town councilman generously supporting the SUNY Oneonta Research Fund or other retirement plan. Your future gift will qualify you and deputy supervisor. Lisa is and Faculty Development Fund, Art has established a legacy a Dutchess County legislator. 1979 as a member of our Netzer Planned Giving Society. The couple celebrated their gift to the College at Oneonta Foundation in his estate plan 32nd wedding anniversary in Gary Oventhal celebrated his 40th year with Bank of November. America/Merrill Lynch. His grandson Brady was born in March 2020. “I am supporting the college with a planned gift as a way to acknowledge GiV e back to s U n Y o neonta F or what the colleG e has meant to Y o U . “I am supporting the college with a planned gift as a way to acknowledge “I am supporting the college with a planned gift as a way to acknowledge my appreciation toA GIFTall the IN fineCarolyn students Cacciato I’ve ’79, known a member over of the my SUNY 38 Oneontayear career.” Alumni my appreciation to YOURall the WILL fine Association students board I’ve andknown the Netzer over Planned my 38 Giving year Society,career.” established my appreciation to all the fineFor students more inF ormation,I’ve known please over contact: my 38 year career.” a bequest scholarship to support students with financial need. By ALLOWS Jill Mirabito, Director of Gift Planning Faculty Emeritus Art Palmer enjoyed a long andestablishing distinguished thisIt is scholarship his way of giving in herback will to SUNY using Oneonta, our legal and name,to help State Faculty Emeritus Art Palmer enjoyedYOU a TOlong and distinguished Faculty Emeritus Art Palmer enjoyed a long and distinguished 308 Netzer Administration Building career as a member of the Earth Sciences department.University Over CollegeIt isfuture his way atgenerations Oneontaof giving back of Foundation students. to SUNY You Oneonta, too,Corporation can and create to help and, Cacciato It is his way of giving back to SUNY Oneonta, and to help RETAIN SUNY Oneonta | Oneonta, NY 13820 careermany as years, a member he saw of firsthand the Earth the Sciences transformational department.maintains impact Over that control future overgenerations the assets of students. during You her too, lifetime can create and and provides career as a member of the Earth Sciences department. Over future generations of students. You too, can create and CONTROL enduring legacy at SUNY Oneonta, without affecting your Phone: (607) 436-3107 many years, he saw firsthand the transformationalimportant impact that futureenduring support legacy for at SUNY our students. Oneonta, without affecting your many years, he saw firsthand the transformational impact that enduring legacy at SUNY Oneonta, without affecting your education had on his students. In addition to endowing a current finances. Please consider naming the College at Email: [email protected] education had on his students. In addition to endowing a education had on his students. In addition to endowing a Scholarship for Excellence in Geology and Earth“SUNY Science, Oneonta currentOneonta gave finances. Foundation me the Please confidence as consider a beneficiary naming and of leadershiptheyour College estate, atTIAA skills to currentoneonta.edu/giftplans.org finances. Please consider naming the College at Scholarship for Excellence in Geology and Earth Science, Scholarship for Excellence in Geology and Earth Science, generously supporting the SUNY Oneonta Researchthrive Fund socially, Oneontaor academically, other Foundation retirement as andplan. a beneficiary laterYour future professionally. of giftyour will estate, qualify TIAA I youestablished Oneonta Foundation as a beneficiary of your estate, TIAA generouslyand Faculty supporting Development the SUNY Fund, ArtOneonta has established Researcha scholarship aFund legacy or inother my retirement will to remove plan. Your the future financial gift will qualify barrier you so that generously supporting the SUNY Oneonta Research Fund or other retirement plan. Your future gift will qualify you YOUR future studentsas coulda member access of our theNetzer same Planned high-quality Giving Society. SUNY Oneonta and Faculty Development Fund, Art has established a legacy as a member of our Netzer Planned Giving Society. and Faculty Development Fund, Art has established a legacy as a member of our Netzer Planned Giving Society. gift to the CollegeCraft at Oneonta Foundation in hiseducation estate plan that I feel grateful to have received. I want students who gift to the College at Oneonta Foundation in his estatemay notplan otherwise be able to attend SUNY Oneonta to have the gift to the College at Oneonta Foundation in his estate plan opportunities I had.” Legacy Carolyn Cacciato ’79 GiV e back to s U n Y o neonta F or what the colleG e has meant to Y o U . GiV e back to s U n Y o neonta F or what the colleG e has meant to Y o U . GiV e back to s U n Y o neonta F or what the colleG e has meant to Y o U .

For more inFormation, please contact: For more inFormation,Jill Mirabito, please Director contact: of Gift Planning For more inFormation, please contact: Jill308 Mirabito, Netzer Director Administration of Gift Planning Building Jill Mirabito, Director of Gift Planning 308SUNY Netzer Oneonta Administration | Oneonta, Building NY 13820 308 Netzer Administration Building SUNYPhone: Oneonta (607)607-436-3107 436-3107| Oneonta, NY 13820 SUNY Oneonta | Oneonta, NY 13820 Phone:Email: (607) [email protected] 436-3107 Phone: (607) 436-3107 Email:oneonta.edu/giftplans.org [email protected] Email: [email protected] oneonta.edu/giftplans.org oneonta.edu/giftplans.org Winter 2021 | Reflections 31 1979 1984 Mark Ventrone is the Lawyers in the Classroom Chair for Heather Palmer’s Full Many a Flower: The Remarkable the New York State Bar Association. He also recently became Diaries of Eugenia Reed was released on Kindle. Reed’s the managing partner for Cote and Van Dyke LLP. diaries cover 1906-38 and show that the words of everyday people are as important as those of more famous people. 1980 Alumni of Distinction 1985 honoree Greg Floyd’s son Theodore Huntington published the book Doug Maxwell in Billy Floyd was named March 2020. It’s described as “a feel-good, sports, science- Best TV News Anchor by fiction, superhero and love story that is akin to ‘Captain the Wyoming Association America’ meets ‘Field of Dreams.’” of Broadcasters. At almost the same time, Greg was Alumni of Distinction honoree David Liban’s new film,A named Best TV News Feral World, follows a young boy and a mother on a journey Reporter or Anchor by through a post-apocalyptic world. the New York State AP Association. 1987 Steven Boucher is an assistant professor of business at 1981 Herkimer County Community College. Alumni of Distinction honoree David Daly met Tracy Stopler’s book My Brother Javi: A Dog’s with Fulham Football Club Tale won the Best Book Award in the Animals Coach Scott Parker and and Pets category of the 37th annual NABE had a chance to hold the Pinnacle Book Awards. The competition for Championship Cup. independently published books is organized by the National Association of Book Entrepreneurs. Phil Porter retired from Mackinac State Historic Parks. He worked there for 49 years and began his career as a 19-year-old 1988 guide at Fort Mackinac. Dennis Bellantoni recently retired from the New York City Department of Education. He served as a teacher, dean of students, assistant principal, principal, and high school football coach in his 30 years as an educator, he plans to work as a consultant and continue coaching football. He 1982 lives in East Brunswick, N.J. Alumni of Distinction honoree Ronald Garan published the book Floating in Darkness: 1991 A Journey of Evolution in published the story “Three Burgers” in November 2020. It’s a sequel Corey S. Pressman the May 1, 2020, issue of the food journal Gastronomica. to his critically acclaimed first book, The Orbital Perspective, and “adds the perspective of inner space to take the reader on a profound journey of discovery. It addresses fundamental aspects of the evolution of society and humanity and serves as a call to action to help steer the trajectory of our society toward a future we would all want to be a part of.”

32 Winter 2021 | Reflections 1995 2011 Daniel Rommer served his last shift Taretonye Korokeyi operates a pop-up Nashville hot fried for the SUNY Oneonta University chicken stand called Cluck if You Buck in the Landing Bar Police Department in August 2020. and Grille in Fairport, N.Y. He also served as assistant director of the Otsego County Law Enforcement Academy. 2012 Joshua Herzenberg works in the Korean Baseball Organization as pitching coordinator and quality control 1997 coach for the Lotte Giants. Edwin D’Alessandro retired as a child abuse investigator 30 Under 30 honoree Jared M. Reynolds with the Oneida County Child Advocacy Center. He now has announced the launch of the RM Law works part time as an officer in the Rome (N.Y.) City School Group LLC in Chicago. Although based in District. Illinois, Reynolds plans to soon obtain his New York license to practice law, allowing him to serve clients throughout the state. 1998 His practice focuses on personal injury, wrongful death, nursing home/elder abuse, Sheryl Ferguson-Nichols has been and general civil and commercial litigation, while his partner promoted to associate vice president of focuses on corporate work for startups, entrepreneurs, small student engagement and success at Beacon businesses, and private equity/venture capital funds. College in Leesburg, Fla. Korey Rowe filmedAsteroid , a feature-length movie, in Oneonta with co-director Dylan Avery during summer 2020.

2001 30 Under 30 honoree Samuel Spokony was Lauren Roseman recently earned the degree of Master named vice president of media and content of Science in Education with distinction from Hofstra for The Real Estate Board of New York in University. She is employed at the Donald and Barbara October 2020. He previously served as Zucker School of Medicine, where she works with students senior vice president of Marathon Strategies pursuing a medical degree. and as communications director for New York City Council Member Margaret Chin. 2003 Gregory W. Sydoriw, associate professor of humanities at 2014 SUNY Morrisville, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award Lucas Palmateer is a New York State environmental for Excellence in Teaching. conservation officer in Greene County.

Joseph Reed is assistant coach for the U.S. Military 2006 Academy’s Black Knights track team, working with sprinters. Richard Hyde was promoted to director of marketing and communications at St. Mary’s Heathcare in Amsterdam, N.Y., 2015 in March 2020. Jack Chesebro, a 30 Under 30 finalist, spent last summer on Oneida Lake. With his family, he 2009 installed a dock and lift system at their camp. Ashley Connors was named Working Mother of the Year by 2019 RSM, a top 10 accounting firm. Anjelle Martinez is pursuing a master’s degree in environmental education at the Richard Gilder Graduate School at the American Museum of Natural History. She also 2010 administers the Secondary School Field Research Program Willis Patenaude is a reporter for the Times-Register in at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. Elkader, Iowa. Winter 2021 | Reflections 33 12MONTHS BIG IMPACT Become a Red Dragon Sustainer! Monthly recurring giving lets you spread your support for SUNY Oneonta over 12 months, and provides a steady stream of funding to support a variety of programs that benefit students:

Access and Experience A transformative college experience means students need more than necessities. Your generosity provides students with the resources and opportunities they need, such as scholarships and internships.

Beyond the Classroom Experiences outside the classroom are just as important to a student's education as classroom learning. When you support student research, study abroad, or participation in conferences, you help students reach their potential.

Career Opportunities Securing that first professional job after college can be challenging. Your generosity provides career networking opportunities to help students improve their employment prospects.

Become a Red Dragon Sustainer today! Learn more about monthly recurring giving at www.oneontaalumni.com/recurring

34 Winter 2021 | Reflections Celebrations

Nicholas Sharr ’13 and Alyssa (Dubbs) Sharr ’15 were married on Oct. 22, 2017, and had their first child, Joella Grace Sharr, on Sept. 24, 2020.

Thomas Young ’12 and Devon (Kinley) Young ’11 were married in Lake George, N.Y., in 2017. The couple lives in Westchester County, New York, and are expecting their first child.

Elizabeth (Krein) Clark ’15 and Ryan Clark were married on July 25, 2020. Alumni in attendance were (from left) Nate Scarinzi ’10 (photographer), Rose Shapiro ’14, Emily Prendergast ’15, Maria Neely ’15, and Katelyn Pattwell ’15.

Brian Mead ’17 and Emma Karaman Mead ’16 were married in August 2020 before their dog Maggie and a small socially distanced crowd. They look forward to a larger celebration once it is safer.

Winter 2021 | Reflections 35 Celebrations

Brad Menard ’04 married Jessica Messano on Sept. 19, 2020.

Jill (Dornbos) Roik ’07 and her husband, Doug, welcomed twins Anthony and Allison on April 2, 2020.

Shawn Evanson ’11 and Stephanie (Motz) Evanson ’11 were married on June 29, 2017. Bridesmaids were Danielle (VanRaamsdonk) Slesinski ’11 and Deirdra Luedke ’12. Groomsmen were T.J. Treharne ’11 and Anthony Paulo ’11.

Katelyn (Getty) Pattwell ’15 married Michael Pattwell on Aug. 12, 2018. They were joined by Oneonta alumni (from left) Liz (Krein) Clark ’15, Maria (Guccione) Neely ’15, Michelle Eckler ’15, Kristin (Borsch) Pulichene ’14, Emily Prendergast ’15, Brittany Weiner ’16, James Mayott ’15, Laura Fahs ’15, Kiersten (VanSteele) Cooper ’14, and Derek Swehla ’15.

36 Winter 2021 | Reflections Edward Rubin ’54 passed away on July JV and varsity baseball at Chenango In Memoriam 11, 2020. Valley High School. Martha (Wright) Knopf ’38 passed James Turnbull ’54 died on April Grace (Knapp) Abatayo ’63 died on away on July 25, 2019. She was an 16, 2017. He served in the U.S. Army Sept. 28, 2019. She was an elementary elementary school teacher for 35 years during the Korean War and was a school teacher with the Hawai`i State in Williston Park, N.Y. teacher and guidance counselor for the Department of Education for many Fonda-Fultonville (N.Y.) Central School years and became a special education Mary (Fellows) Zeyak ’46 died on Jan. System for 30 years. teacher at Mililani High School 9, 2017. before retiring. She also taught adult Wanda (Filer) Beach ’57 died on April education classes and was named Mary (Hendee) Allen ’49 died on 7, 2006. She volunteered for many Teacher of the Year by Wahiawa Adult Sept. 3, 2020. She remained connected organizations, including the American Education. to her sorority sisters and moved back Red Cross, AARP, and Hospice. She to Oneonta in 1994. was a past president of the Grace Margaret (Doyle) Giglio ’63 died on Hospital Guild in Morganton, N.C., Feb. 1, 2020. Elizabeth (Merges) Marko ’50 passed and a past officer of the Glen Alpine away on Sept. 26, 2020. She was Women’s Club in Glen Alpine, N.C. Larry Hill ’63 died on Aug. 21, 2018. dedicated to helping students achieve He taught third and fourth grade their goals at SUNY Oneonta. She and Frank Langton ’57 died on May 28, and was vice principal at Ephratah her late husband, John, were generous 2020. He practiced personal injury law Consolidated School. He also taught to the College, giving to the Elizabeth for four decades in Detroit. fifth grade at Northville Central School Merges Marko ’50 Scholarship, the in Northville, N.Y. Fund for Oneonta, and the unrestricted Karl Jacobsen ’59 passed away on endowment. She was one of the April 11, 2020. Joan (Trehy) Pritchard ’63 passed College’s most loyal donors, with 40 away in fall 2020. She was a former years of consecutive giving. Marjorie (Miller) Van Deusen ’59 aerospace company executive. died on July 29, 2020. She and her Joan (Curlis) Moore ’51 died on husband, James, ran Southern New Helene Boelling ’65 died on Sept. 30, Sept. 26, 2020. She worked in child York Claim Services in Oneonta. 2018. She began teaching in Troy, N.Y., development and the psychiatric unit and after a year returned to her alma at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody Dolores (Towsley) Grenier ’60 died mater of Hutchinson High School College Hospital and was executive on April 28, 2019. She taught middle before commencing, in fall 1968, her director of The House of Friendship, an and high school home economics in 35-year career teaching English and adult daycare program for disabled and New York, Connecticut, and Maine. literature at Herington High School in mentally ill adults in Nashville, Tenn. Herington, Kan. She retired in 2003. William Selzer ’60 died on March 22, David Devine ’52 passed away on Sept. 2018. He began his teaching career in Alecsandro Boschetti ’65 died on Oct. 23, 2018. He served in the U.S. Marine 1961 at Gardiner Manor Elementary 8, 2015. Corps in World War II and the Korean School in Bay Shore, N.Y., and taught War. He was an elementary school second to sixth grade over a span Stephen Abrams ’66 died on May teacher and principal, primarily in Bay of 35 years. Upon his retirement, he 1, 2020. He was a founding father of Shore, N.Y., and a director of personnel and his wife, Paula, moved to Jay, Alpha Phi Omega and WONY and for BOCES. N.Y. to be closer to his children and taught elementary school for 34 years grandchildren, and he spent many in Suffolk County, New York. Robert Eschler ’52 died on Sept. 24, summers at Santa’s Workshop as the 2017. A U.S. Army veteran serving blacksmith and show supervisor. Joan (Yackel) Gorsin Carriere ’66 from 1946-47, he was superintendent of passed away on Dec. 11, 2019. schools at Northville Central School in Robert Zemkin ’60 died on March Northville, N.Y., from 1969-84. 25, 2014. He served in the U.S. Army. Judith (Kaschak) Decker ’66 passed Zemkin and his wife, Evelyn, owned away on Aug. 11, 2020. She was an Joan (Raffa) Langton ’52 passed away a farm in Stamford, N.Y., and he elementary school teacher in the Vestal on Aug. 6, 2020. She was active in the taught fourth grade for many years at Central School District in Vestal, N.Y., Town of Ulster Library and the Clinton Stamford Central School. for 35 years. Avenue United Methodist Church in Kingston, N.Y. Art Stina ’61 passed away on Sept. 7, Lee Peters ’66 died on Aug. 9, 2020. He 2020. He was a teacher for 35 years and established the Onondaga-Cortland- Shirley (Bowman) Wennagel ’53 died lived in Binghamton, N.Y., for many Madison BOCES in Syracuse, N.Y., on Feb. 16, 2019. years. An outstanding shortstop on the and was the most senior district SUNY Oneonta baseball team, he went superintendent in New York state when on to coach Little League as well as he retired.

Winter 2021 | Reflections 37 Patricia (Ely) Weeks ’66 died on Florence (Geller) Mandelbaum ’72 career as a home service director for Oct. 8, 2020. She achieved national died on Aug. 10, 2020. She enjoyed a the United Cerebral Palsy Association prominence as an expert in technology long nursing career in both New York and as an advocate for developing transfer. Weeks served on the board state and Florida. programs and services for children and of directors of the Association of adults with disabilities. University Technology Managers Patrick Rooke ’72 died on Oct. 26, and was the organization’s president 2012. He was employed with PAR Marjorie Moon ’74 died on May 2, in 2003. She was chair emeritus of Technology in New Hartford, N.Y., and 2020. She was a Franciscan Sister of the the board of BioStrategy Partners Herkimer High School in Herkimer, Atonement in Graymoor, N.Y. and served on the boards of Temple N.Y. University’s Fox School of Business Elizabeth Tiger ’74 died on Oct. 23, and the Ideas x Innovation Network, Elaine (Warszawski) VinZant ’72 died 2018. She was a lab technician for which provides resources for emerging on July 7, 2020. She raised two children Dairylea Corp. in Delhi, N.Y., and in the technology and energy companies in Kansas. science department at SUNY Delhi. in Chester and Delaware counties in Wendy Whaley-Sauder ’72 passed Robert Vitkus ’74 died on June 22, Pennsylvania. away on July 13, 2019. In the 1970s, 2020. He was an oral surgeon in Linda Moran ’67 died on July 9, she began working as a psychologist Central New York. 2020. She taught at Ichabod Crane in Maryland. She spent the last two Patricia Howe ’75 died on April 25, Elementary School in Columbia decades of her nearly 50-year career 2012. County, New York, for more than 30 as a child psychologist and special years. educator supporting the communities of Cornwall, Ripton, and Weybridge in Steven Jones ’75 died on June 2, 2020. His law practice served several Karen (Sission) Baker ’68 died on Vermont. municipalities and school systems. He June 11, 2019. She enjoyed teaching was an instructor at SUNY Morrisville. teens. She taught at Weber State Naomi Dyer ’73 died on July 15, 2020. She worked for PAR Technology in University and at Satellite High School Robert Mandresh ’75 passed away on in Satellite Beach, Fla. Rome and New Hartford, N.Y., as a software engineer focusing on projects June 30, 2019. He practiced podiatry first in Roanoke, Va., and then in Janet (Moore) Bowen ’68 died on for the Air Force Research Laboratory. Indianapolis. In addition, he taught June 17, 2020. For 37 years, she was a anatomy and physiology at Ivy Tech home economics teacher at Edmeston Ronald Ruland ’73 died on June 14, Community College in Indianapolis. Central School in Edmeston, N.Y. 2020. He taught middle school and high school English at Cobleskill- Ronee (Brimberg) Brimberg-Clark Barbara Gill ’69 died on July 6, 2020. Richmondville Central School in ’76 died on June 5, 2014. For 29 She retired from a long career teaching Schoharie County, New York, for 23 years, she worked at the Family and elementary school in the Patchogue years. Children’s Society in Binghamton, N.Y., Medford School District on Long where she supervised the Sexual Abuse Island. Margaret Branigan ’74 died on Sept. 8, 2020. She taught at Andes Treatment Program. Russell Schneider ’69 died on July 26, Central School in Andes, N.Y., before Monica (Ferrone) Bush ’76 died 2020. For most of his professional life, concluding the last 20 years of her on Sept. 5, 2020. She was a family he was a systems analyst. teaching career at Delaware Academy Central School in Delhi, N.Y. consumer science teacher in the South Elsie Gabo ’70 died on May 22, 2020, New Berlin, Schalmont, and Bethlehem after a long illness. After graduating Stephen Diffendale ’74 passed away Central School districts in New York’s from Oneonta, she taught reading on Oct. 22, 2019. A U.S. Army veteran, Capital District for 30 years. for 35 years in the Dover, N.Y., district he served two tours in Vietnam with William Coon ’76 died on July 18, where she grew up. the U.S. Army Special Forces. 2020. He worked for the U.S. Geological Michael Cook ’72 died on May 16, Margaret Evans ’74 died on Sept. 20, Survey in Ithaca, N.Y., for 38 years. 2013. His lifelong passion for reading 2020. She was voted Miss New York Robert “Duffy” Dyer ’77 passed away led him to a long career in education, State Fair as a teen. Evans became a suddenly on Oct. 15, 2020. Dyer was most recently as a reading teacher nurse cadet while in high school and retired from Nationwide Insurance and at Jennie F. Snapp Middle School in pursued her passion for nursing at lived in Glen Allen, Va., with his wife, Endicott, N.Y. Syracuse General Hospital, graduating as an RN in 1948. After earning a Gigi (Grygo) ’77. Judith (Smith) Dobbie ’72 died on BS at SUNY Oneonta, she pursued June 30, 2020. She was a food services her graduate education at Syracuse manager in the Hudson Valley. University, leading to her 22-year 38 Winter 2021 | Reflections Shellee Handley ’78 died on Sept. 18, Yvonne Chandler-Colby ’89 died on 2011. She served as dean of institutional Sept. 25, 2020. After graduation, she Faculty & Friends analysis at the National University of lived in Queens, N.Y., and served as George F. Alverson died on May Health Sciences in Lombard, Ill., where a probation officer until she and her 26, 2019. He was an educational she earned a chiropractic degree. At the husband, , moved to her Dean Colby ’89 psychology professor at the College. time of her passing, she was pursuing hometown of Fly Creek, N.Y., following a master’s degree in advanced clinical the birth of their first child. Betty Jean Baker died on July 24, practice and was an emerging advocate 2020. She worked in food services at died on March for increased accessibility to healthy Edward Smith ’89 the College. foods. 27, 2020. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music education William Grimes died on July 29, Barbara (Freytag) Clark ’80 died on at SUNY Oneonta and Binghamton 2020. He worked in the College’s Oct. 12, 2020. An elementary school University, respectively, and returned maintenance department. teacher, she taught at various Catholic to his hometown of Glen Cove, N.Y., schools in the Utica, N.Y., area and to begin his teaching career. In 1991, Edith Harrison passed away on July retired from Columbus Elementary he became the full-time band teacher 25, 2020. She retired as the SUNY School in June 2019. at Landing Elementary School. An Oneonta dean of students in 1958. accomplished musician outside the Audrey Evans ’80 died on Sept. 11, classroom, he joined the Northwinds John Hayen died on Oct. 7, 2020. A 2020. Her career included working as a Symphonic Band in 2007 and became three-year starter at goalkeeper for the statistician for Sterling Winthrop Drug its principal clarinetist. Binghamton University men’s soccer Inc. and Omnicare Clinical Research team, he was the goalkeeper coach Inc. and as a research scientist for the Franklin Tinklepaugh ’93 died on for SUNY Oneonta. For more than New York State Department of Health. Aug. 17, 2020. He was a former trustee 20 years, he worked at Town Square She also taught dance, starting out and deputy mayor of the Village of Media Group in Oneonta as a senior as an assistant teacher for Robin’s Endicott, N.Y., and worked as a New marketing consultant. He was well- Academy of Dance and Exercise; she York State Department of Labor known for his live sports broadcasts, then taught for more than 20 years at employment counselor. morning sports reports, and radio The Dance Experience. auctions. Christopher Green ’97 died on Oct. 6, Richard Smith ’82 died on Sept. 6, 2020. He lived in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Paula Holleran died on Aug. 25, 2020. 2020. and worked the last 10 years for ACE She taught psychology at the College Workforce Technologies. for 30 years. Mary (Becker) McCaffrey ’85 died on Nov. 18, 2020. For 19 years, she worked Sam Benedict ’16 died on Aug. 9, 2020. Mark Piekarski died on Aug. 25, 2020. at the Wainscott School in Wainscott, At the time of his passing, he worked He worked in the College’s Division of N.Y., as a secretary and district clerk. for Love and Hope Animal Sanctuary Advancement before moving to Santa She also was the administrator in Franklin, N.Y. Fe, N.M. for JMcC Ltd., her husband Jay’s landscaping business. Deborah Schwabach died on July 9, 2020. She taught writing at SUNY David Lipton ’86 passed away on Oneonta, Syracuse University, SUNY May 28, 2020. He obtained a JD from Cortland, the University of Delaware, Syracuse University and was admitted and the Marist College program at to practice law in New York, Florida, Oneonta Job Corps. Washington, D.C., and Georgia, which was his home and the location of the Alice Siegfried died on July 18, practice he founded in 1993. 2020. She was a potter, gardener, and activist. She and her late husband, Suzanne Vermette ’86 died on June 13, Richard, endowed numerous awards for 2020. She was a historical educator at students and faculty at the College. SUNY Oneonta and for the New York State Historical Society. Edith Sutton died on Aug. 11, 2020. She worked for the College's maintenance Joyce Amell ’87 died on July 17, 2020. department. She was a business tax analyst for the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

Winter 2021 | Reflections 39 ALUMNI profile Latisha Nero ’09 'I Love When the Light Bulb Clicks': D.C. Teacher Latisha Nero Enjoys Showing Her Students Success Is Attainable From an early age, light bulb clicks, whether Latisha Latisha Nero, teaching sixth-grade knew she wanted it clicks in September or Nero ’09 math at Jefferson Academy in to be a teacher, thanks in it clicks in June, there’s Washington, D.C. large part to what she saw always that moment. And in her third-grade teacher: that tells me that what I’m “I remember being in Miss doing matters,” she says. Davis’ class, and she was “The best part of teaching amazing. She just made school for me: knowing that I so much fun for us.” can show my students that success is attainable This early impression of and being able to watch it teaching would lead Nero happen.” to SUNY Oneonta—noted for its excellence in teacher Nero graduated magna preparation—and a BS in cum laude from Oneonta childhood education 1-6, with in December 2008, a concentration in chemistry. finishing a semester early. She is now in her seventh year That following January as a sixth-grade math teacher and continuing through at Jefferson Middle School June, she was a long- Academy, part of the District term substitute teacher in of Columbia Public Schools Queens, New York, in the system. And really enjoying it. same public school where she had done a semester “I love the light bulb of student teaching the moments for my students. I think that what happens a lot fall before. And then in August, she landed her first full- of times—especially in my current situation because I’m time position, at Graham Road Elementary School in Falls teaching in a middle school—I’m receiving students from so Church, Virginia; she remained there for five years before many different elementary schools with so many different moving to D.C. and Jefferson Academy. learning experiences. And some of the students love math and are really strong, and for other students math has been Facing the challenges of COVID-19 really hard for them. And it’s sometimes hard for parents to explain,” she says. “So, it’s nice to be able to give students As is true for teachers everywhere, COVID-19 has provided an opportunity to be successful and to show them ‘Yes, this challenges for Nero and her Jefferson colleagues. But she looks really hard now, but I promise you by the end you’re credits the school for being well prepared to manage remote going to love this.’” instruction during a pandemic. “Jefferson is a really good school in terms of the structures we have in place and have And in that moment, when Nero sees that her students truly had in place with our family relationships. We prioritize comprehend, comes a sense of satisfaction. “I love when the developing trusting partnerships with families and were

40 Winter 2021 | Reflections able to provide the support that our students needed,” she says.

With students learning from home, Nero has had to change how she plans her instruction. “I’ve had to learn technology,” she says with a little laugh. “I’m a very old-school teacher, where I was all about paper and pencil, especially in math. So, I’ve had to become more familiar with technology tools, finding the best tools that support teaching math virtually, knowing that our students have to show work and have to see what I’m doing and be able to write on the screen.” It helps that Nero holds a master’s degree in technology integration in education, earned at Nova Southeastern University in 2016.

“I love teaching sixth-grade math. That’s my passion but it’s now a matter of being innovative, adapting and making sure that I’m using the technology tools in the best possible way,” she says. “Teaching has been Latisha Nero and her husband, Sean Trent challenging, but it’s been going better than I would have expected. Our students are so help those who come after her just as those who came before motivated and want to learn, and our families are doing the were able to help her. best they can to communicate and support from home.” Nero attended Oneonta with scholarship support. She Fond memories of Oneonta remembers an early encounter that has stuck with her: “It was my freshman year; we had a scholarship recipient Nero lives in Southeast D.C. with her husband, Sean Trent. dinner, and my family attended. I was able to meet two of the She tries to return to Oneonta every year or so, usually for alumni who contribute to the Class of 1960 Scholarship. It activities involving her sorority. She is a member of the Mu was just such an amazing experience to know that these two Sigma Upsilon Sorority Inc., as well as the Omicron Delta random people whom I had never met before were so excited Kappa national leadership honor society. “I have a lot of fond about me being an Oneonta student and being here and memories. I am still close with a lot of the ladies from my learning. And they wanted to know what I was studying and chapter,” Nero says. “Just recently, the ladies who I pledged wanted to provide me with financial support so that I could with, we celebrated our 14-year anniversary. We are still do this.” extremely close.” Which is why, Nero says, it’s important to her to support Nero also remembers the friends she made in “block,” the 25 the College. “I know that my school helped me to be where childhood education students who learned together as a unit I am today, and so I feel I have to give back, to give that in the spring of her junior year, the last semester before she experience to someone else,” she says. “I also worked at began student teaching. “It’s almost like we were elementary phone-a-thon, so every time the phone-a-thon kids call me school students, where our cohort went to all of our classes and they’re like, ‘Hey, I’m calling from Oneonta,’ I was that as one group,” she says. person on the other end of the line when I was at school, talking to alumni. So, I always feel like, yes, you all have to “Oneonta had such a reputation about its teacher education go through your speech, I love talking to you, whatever it is, program—being so tough and really preparing you for real- whatever you’re asking—I’ll donate.” world teaching with the amount of work we had to do,” Nero says. “It was really hard, but we all had each other and could “It’s important for everyone to do that, especially if you push through, and it definitely helped prepare me for the real directly benefited and are successful because of what you world. I felt very prepared to handle the workload after going studied and learned and the guidance you received at through my program at Oneonta.” Oneonta,” Nero says. “It’s important that we pay that back and help others be able to do the same.” Importance of giving back For information on the Fund for Oneonta and to contribute, Nero says she appreciates that career preparation and all visit oneontaalumni.com/give. that Oneonta made possible. And she believes in giving back to her alma mater, through the Fund for Oneonta, to Winter 2021 | Reflections 41 Reflections SUNY Oneonta Oneonta, NY 13820-4015

SUNY Oneonta Oneonta, NY 13820-4015 607-436-2526 • 607-436-2124 www.oneontaalumni.com Email: [email protected] Save the Date! Mark your calendars and join fellow Red Dragons from all over the world for our

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