Knowing that students have questions about the voting process, and hoping to improve awareness and engagement around voting, the University’s ��has put together a [PDF] that outlines the specific deadlines and requirements for students.

Included in the “’Cuse Otto Vote” guide is information about the following:

• how to register to vote and when your state’s voter registration deadline is
• whether you need to request an absentee ballot and the requirements you must meet to be eligible
• how to get your ballot sent to campus and information on changing your mailing address and whether you should list your campus mailing address
• postmark and absentee ballot return deadlines for every state and which states offer online ballot tracking
• how to cast your ballot on election day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, if you plan on voting in ���ϲ�����

María Quiñones Rios

“It’s important that we acknowledge that voting is a right and we should all exercise that right,” says María Quiñones Rios ’25, SA’s communications director who is studying public relations in the .

“This was about making sure our students have all the information they need to make sure they can vote in the upcoming elections, and that they know their vote will count,” Rios says. “We see a lot of young people be disillusioned with politics in the United States and it’s really important to let students know that they do have a voice and that their voice is their vote.”

Additionally, SA has collaborated with the to ensure current students have the proper access to participate in the upcoming elections. NYPIRG has been conducting tabling in the Schine Student Center encouraging students to register to vote.

The SA is the official student governing and advocacy body for the nearly 16,000 ���ϲ����� and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry undergraduates.

Students in New York with additional questions about the voter registration process can visit the .

New Student Association President German Nolivos ’26 (right) and Vice President Reed Granger ’26 strive to get as many student voices as possible involved in the decision-making process on campus.

Listen. Learn. Lead.

Those three simple verbs were repeatedly emphasized by German Nolivos ’26 and Reed Granger ’26 during the spring general elections.

German Nolivos

Hammering home an effective message to ���ϲ�����’s student body was especially important since Nolivos and Granger were running unopposed. With no competition, the duo was essentially guaranteed to assume leadership roles as president and vice president. But they did not intend to simply coast to victory.

Rather, they worked tirelessly to convey the important role SA plays as a bridge that listens to student concerns and works with the administration to resolve them.

“We wanted the students to understand that we cannot effectively work without their input. We want to leave our mark on student government by focusing on these recognized student organizations and multicultural organizations that have been looking for help from the student body and the SA. We can strengthen the relationship between our students and student government,” says Nolivos, a Posse Leadership Scholar and first-generation college student studying political science in the and and public relations in the��.

“We needed to convince students to engage with the Student Association, and we campaigned on those values of listening, learning and leading. Our goal is to advocate for new policies that are effective in resolving the issues our students face, and to let the student body know how truly important our advocacy is,” adds Granger, who is studying photography in the Newhouse School and political science in the Maxwell School and College of Arts and Sciences.

Reed Granger

The message was well-received, as Nolivos and Granger were elected president and vice president, respectively, after garnering more than 90% of the votes. The SA is the official student governing and advocacy body for the nearly 16,000 ���ϲ����� and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry undergraduates.

Nolivos and Granger have held previous leadership roles on campus, and they are excited to hold these positions while striving to get as many student voices as possible involved in the decision-making process on campus.

The “listen, learn, lead” motto extends beyond a campaign slogan, influencing Nolivos and Granger’s main objectives as elected student leaders. For this upcoming academic year, their main goals include:

• listening to the voices of traditionally underrepresented student populations;
• learning from and engaging with the collective diversity on campus;
• leading by continuing to foster an inclusive, accessible and welcoming campus for all;
• improving campus safety, especially on South Campus;
• enhancing the quality of the food in the dining halls and continuing to provide students access to food through complimentary grocery trolley runs;
• helping the University reduce its carbon footprint while striving to achieve carbon neutrality by 2032; and
• creating changes that will enhance the student experience for all.

Nolivos and Granger sat down with SU News to discuss their goals for the academic year, offer their advice to new students on campus and share how their time at ���ϲ����� has fueled their growth as student leaders.

What will make this a successful academic year?

German Nolivos: My goal is always to empower the students who work under me, to make sure the Student Association’s 100 members know that they’re appreciated, and that the work they’re doing has an impact on our campus. For this year to be successful, we want the campus community to know who we are and that the Student Association can be a valuable resource for our students.

Reed Granger: To spread the word of Student Association to more students than ever before and continuing the good relationship we have with our administration. Being able to improve on what previous student leaders have done while continuing to advocate for the student body.

What’s one thing you wish you knew before you started your ���ϲ����� journey?

Granger: Time management. I don’t know if there’s an overall secret to time management, but I wish that before my first day, somebody told me about how to manage my time. Given my areas of study and my involvement on campus, everything I do, every meeting I have goes through my Google Calendar, even homework assignments. And I encourage new students to make sure you have some free time.

Nolivos: In the first couple of weeks on campus, it’s important that you build up your support system. You’re going to have opportunities to meet people from all over the world. Make sure you really take the time to find the people that you want to be there with you for this journey. This is the opportunity to become the person that you want to become. It’s a new chapter in your life. Give this 100% of your attention. One thing that helped me my first year was extracurriculars. Discovering your community will help you feel more connected to campus.

German Nolivos ’26 (left) and Reed Granger ’26 conveyed the important role the Student Association plays as a bridge that listens to student concerns and works with the administration to resolve them.

Are there any common mistakes for first-year students to avoid?

Nolivos: Think about the classes you’re taking, especially your required classes, and figure out which classes you should take first to set you up for future success. And from a social perspective, make sure that you’re treating this as the first page of the rest of your life. Be transparent with yourself on this journey. Be an open book with everything. You’re going to find people from different paths of life and different experiences than you. Make sure you’re always respectful of other people’s opinions and experiences and learn from them.

Granger: Don’t join too many clubs or take too many classes, you’re just overwhelming yourself while you’re still trying to learn what it means to be an undergraduate at ���ϲ�����. You can lose your sense of self while you’re trying to figure out who you are. Don’t put too much on your shoulders when you first get here.

How has ���ϲ����� helped you become the person you are today?

Granger: I’m a fully changed person since my first year. This campus has given me elements of friendship that I never experienced in high school as I figure out what I seek in friendships. Who do I want to spend time with? Why do I want to spend time with them? The true value of friendship and what it can do for your life is something that I truly have learned in the past two years here. Also the importance of making connections, whether with your classmates or your professors. So many of these connections are either involved in your career path or are going to be involved. Learn to maintain those connections. That’s one way the ���ϲ����� experience has changed me for the better.

Nolivos: I’m a political refugee. I arrived in this country six years ago. I always had trouble trusting myself and my abilities, and felt I was always going to be behind my peers. But ���ϲ����� made me realize how much power I have and how far I can push myself to become the person I want to become. ���ϲ����� has given me the tools to build that future for myself.

The 108 volunteers gathered on Feb. 23 at Skybarn on South Campus for a three-hour workshop to sand, drill and assemble wooden bunk beds. The group included 86 University students, 11 staff, faculty and retirees, plus 11 other members of the ���ϲ����� chapter of (SHP).

Student volunteers work on drilling boards as part of the SHP bed assembly work. (Photos by Amelia Beamish)

SHP, whose mantra is “No Kid Sleeps on the Floor in Our Town,” is one of 270 chapters nationwide. The organization’s mission is to build and deliver new beds and bedding to children who may have been sleeping on a couch or the floor, and who, in many cases, have never had a bed of their own.

The ���ϲ����� SHP group has partnered with the for Public and Community Service—the University’s hub for academic community engagement—for several years. Though the chapter has built and delivered 4,564 beds to ���ϲ�����-area children since it began in 2018, 870 kids are still on the waitlist. SHP leaders say 76% of the beds built here will go to children who live within two miles of campus.

Friday’s event was organized by (SUVO) president ’25, a dual public relations and psychology major from Norwalk, Ohio. She says this is the first time in a decade that SUVO has initiated a large-scale volunteer project, and it’s one that seemed to resonate with everyone who heard about it.

“Hundreds of children in ���ϲ����� are currently sleeping on the floor. We often take a bed for granted, but it can have such an impact on one’s overall physical and mental health,” Ceccoli says. “A bed is not something I’ve ever given a second thought. I crawl into my bed when I’m sick, need a safe place or want some alone time. SHP’s goal of providing children who need but don’t have that safe space is such a worthy mission that I’m humbled and honored to leverage student resources to help a community partner.”

In a different area, student volunteers sand boards.

advisors Karrie Catalino and Mackenzie Jackson encouraged Ceccoli to bring the bed-building initiative to campus. Planning began in September 2023. Ceccoli applied for Student Association funding and SUVO was awarded nearly $12,000 to cover the costs of all materials and bedding. Once SUVO started promoting the event, volunteers eagerly signed on, including Phanstiel Scholars, Our Time Has Come Scholars and Kessler Scholars. Others reached out, too, including the University’s Brighten a Day unit, the Construction Management Club and Jonathan French, associate teaching professor and undergraduate director in the chemistry department in the , Ceccoli says.

Past and Current Employees

Several current and retired University employees are involved as volunteers with SHP and have been instrumental in the local chapter’s efforts. In 2018, employees Jon Wright, now retired from , and Jeff Pitt ’91, director of information technology services at the College of Arts and Sciences, formed the chapter and still serve as its co-presidents. Back then, they approached Dave Hoalcraft ’85 to join them. A 36-year University employee who retired in 2021, Hoalcraft now volunteers as SHP’s shop manager and bed-building trainer.

SHP-���ϲ����� volunteers Dave Hoalcraft, left, a retired University employee and Jeff Pitt, right, a current employee, worked with SUVO president and student Claire Ceccoli to lead the project.

Pitt says he likes that SHP fulfills two needs in the community. “One is the obvious one of providing a warm, comfortable place to sleep for children in need. The second is subtler: providing an outlet for people who want to give back to the community but who don’t know how to get started.”

Hoalcraft says the group’s mission “was a direct bullseye for me [so] I jumped right in. I am ‘Forever Orange,’ so doing a bed build with students on campus means a lot to me. I get to help a lot of kind people build beds for children in our community and ultimately help get children their own beds. It is awesome that ���ϲ����� students give back directly to the children in the community where [the students] live.”

On-Campus Spark

This is the first time SHP has held a mobile bed build on campus, and Ceccoli thinks the location has been key to the success of the event. “I think it can sometimes be intimidating for students to get off campus,” she says. “SUVO is seeking to connect students to the community and to inspire them to volunteer by making this opportunity accessible. We hope they will continue beyond this event to help SHP build or deliver more beds.” SUVO plans to provide students with information about additional volunteer opportunities.

“This is a beautiful testament to the interest and passion ���ϲ����� students have for community engagement,” Ceccoli says. “I want to work in the nonprofit sector. This is so real for me and to think of the impact we’ll be making on these children’s lives and their families’ lives while amplifying SHP’s mission is wonderful. Quite literally, I’d do this for the rest of my life.”

Claire Ceccoli with Kathryn Bradford, Shaw Center employee and SUVO advisor

Kathryn Bradford ’06, Shaw Center administrative coordinator and SUVO advisor, says she is extremely proud of how Ceccoli used knowledge from her classes and her Shaw Center leadership development intern experience to take the project from idea to reality through diligence, passion and positivity. “Hopefully this experience will encourage more students to participate in community engagement as a continuing part of their educational experience and beyond,” Bradford says.

Are you engaged in a volunteer activity that is having an impact on the greater community? In upcoming editions of SU Today, we plan to profile some of our faculty, staff and students who are making the world a better place through community service. Please email internalcomms@syr.edu with your story.

Now in their final year at ���ϲ�����, Treloar and Nayrouz feel confident they can fulfill the campaign slogan they ran on—to amplify student voices and meet the needs of students—when the dynamic duo was elected president and executive vice president, respectively, of the . The SA is the official student governing and advocacy body for the nearly 16,000 ���ϲ����� and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry undergraduates.

Promising to amplify student voices and meet the needs of ���ϲ����� and SUNY ESF students, Will Treloar (left) and Yasmin Nayrouz are excited to serve as Student Association president and executive vice president.

Treloar and Nayrouz are excited to hold these student government leadership positions while striving to get as many student voices as possible involved in the decision-making process on campus.

“Throughout my time in Student Association, the one thing that keeps me going is��seeing the difference you can make on campus. Becoming SA president offered another opportunity to make a difference on campus, and it’s hard to turn that down,” says Treloar, who is studying economics and policy studies in the .

Treloar and Nayrouz have been involved in SA since their first year on campus. Before being elected to their current leadership roles, Treloar was speaker of the assembly and Nayrouz was vice president of university affairs.

They both credit their previous student government leadership roles with preparing them for the challenges of leading the SA.

Yasmin Nayrouz

“This organization has enabled me to make positive changes on campus, and I want to continue helping our students. Student Association advocates for and on behalf of students when speaking with administration to address student concerns—from Title IX policies to dining hall concerns—and by legislating to fund and create events or initiatives that support the well-being of our students,” says Nayrouz, a dual major who is studying English in the and public relations in the .

Serving as the leaders of the University’s undergraduate student population, Treloar and Nayrouz say the best way for them to have an impact is by listening to the needs of the students, making themselves accessible and working hard to ensure student concerns are heard and addressed.

With the fall semester underway, SA’s leaders continued a tradition started in the Spring 2022 semester, when the inaugural Student Body Needs Survey was delivered across campus. Treloar says the feedback from the survey has been tremendous, allowing SA’s elected leaders to put their fingers on the pulse of the student body.

The survey is just one way SA engages with ���ϲ�����’s undergraduates, but incorporating student feedback has guided the goals Treloar and Nayrouz have for the 2023-24 academic year.

Their main objectives include:

• following through on the Sustainability Report that was passed last year;
• continuing to foster an inclusive, accessible and welcoming campus for all;
• engaging with traditionally underrepresented student populations;
• supporting registered student organizations;
• improving the quality of the food in the dining halls and student accessibility to food through complimentary grocery trolley runs; and
• ensuring American Sign Language services are offered at all student events.

Will Treloar

They’re also looking forward to organizing on-campus events, including the Harvest Festival, Mental Health Awareness Week and the Fall and Spring Into Action volunteer efforts.

“This year will be considered successful if we’re able to get students involved in more University decision-making processes,” Treloar says.

“If our students know and feel that they can confidently come to the Student Association to address their concerns and make a positive impact on campus,” that will be a successful year, adds Nayrouz.

The goals are part of the University’s long-term sustainability plans and align with several recommendations made in a report by the Student Association released in December 2022. The report was developed after Chancellor Kent Syverud charged Student Association President David Bruen ’23 in late spring 2022 with making recommendations about the University’s sustainability practices and policies.

Highlights of the new goals include the following:

• Advance the University’s current net-zero goal from 2040 to 2032. To support this goal, the University will create a Sustainability Oversight Council to oversee and audit the office to ensure emission goals are met.
• Commit to dramatically reduce single-use plastics by the 2027-28 academic year through a phased approach.
• In a collaboration between the Student Association and the University, create an annual sustainability research competition, as proposed in the Student Association’s .

“These ambitious new goals set a high standard for where the University needs to be in terms of our climate action plan. We are committed to creating a more sustainable campus,” says Chancellor Kent Syverud. “I am grateful to David and all the students who worked on the report. Their leadership, insights and efforts, in partnership with Chief Facilities Officer Pete Sala and his team, will help the University in achieving our sustainability goals.”

Last year, the University released its , which documents progress and outlines strategies over the next five years for the University to edge closer to emissions neutrality.

In its report, the Student Association, which also worked with students from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry and Le Moyne College on the project, called on the University to “amplify and expedite sustainability and climate pledge efforts in response to current events, technological advancements and government incentives.” A student leader team of Student Association Sustainability Director Harrison Vogt, Vice President of Community and Government Affairs Ben Cavarra and Student Advocate Liv Curreri, led by Bruen, oversaw the development of the report.

“As members of the University community, and as part of the greater community, students play a role in helping to move forward ideas and promoting decisive action in creating a more sustainable future,” says Bruen. “With the University’s commitment and collaboration of our students, these goals are not only achievable but will be realized by all of us and make ���ϲ����� a national leader in sustainability.”

In helping to oversee the net-zero goal through Sustainability Management, the Sustainability Oversight Council will be composed of a representative from the Student Association, a representative from the Board of Trustees, the Chancellor and a faculty member with an expertise in sustainability.

As part of the Student Association recommendation for the creation of an annual sustainability research competition, students will have the opportunity to propose ideas in which the University can minimize carbon emissions. Students will submit proposals, which will be reviewed by a select panel of judges consisting of student leaders, faculty and staff. The winner of the competition will receive a prize.

In addition to the competition, faculty will also be able to submit their own proposals, to be reviewed by the panel of judges and University leadership, which will determine implementation at the University.

These advancements toward a more sustainable future will make ���ϲ����� a national higher education leader in sustainability.

Performace during the 2022 International Festival.

The and Student Association will host the annual on Sunday, April 2, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Goldstein Auditorium, Schine Student Center. Now in its third year, the festival will feature 10 student organizations and offer a wide variety of food, cultural exhibits and performances.

“The International Festival creates an opportunity for our campus community to connect with student organizations, build intercultural understanding, learn more about the cultural traditions of the student organizations participating, and celebrate our richly diverse student body,” says Juan Tavares, director of the Central for International Services. “The students have put a lot of work into preparing for the festival and we are looking forward to a great event.”

This year’s student organization participants include the African Student Union, Caribbean Students Association, Chinese Union, European Student Association, Filipino Student Association, Haitian American Student Association, Mexican Student Association, South Asian Student Association, Turkish Student Association and Ukrainian Club at ���ϲ�����.

Admission to the event is free and includes the schedule of performances and tabling exhibits. The event will also feature a full menu of food samplings from the countries, regions and cultures of the participating student organizations. The food samples are $1 each (cash only).

For more information, contact the Center for International Services at international@syr.edu or 315.443.2457.

Story co-written by Tessa Hodinger G’23, graduate assistant in Student Experience Communications.

The year 1968 was one of tumult and change in the United States, marked by the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, social unrest over civil rights and the Vietnam War and the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1968.

Charles Hicks as a student

It was also the year that Charles “Chuck” Hicks ’69, G’73 became ���ϲ�����’s first Black president of the Student Government Association (SGA)—a historic victory for the Bogalusa, Louisiana, native who came north for college to escape retaliation for his family’s civil rights activism.

Hicks’ father, Robert Hicks, was founder of the Deacons for Defense and Justice, the first Black group in the civil rights movement to carry guns for protection, started after the assassination of Malcolm X in 1965. The group was instrumental in organizing a successful boycott of white businesses in Bogalusa as well as the longest march for civil rights, from Bogalusa to Baton Rouge, which took 10 days to walk the 106 miles.

Hicks, the oldest of five children, was a sophomore at Southern University and a student leader when he was asked to withdraw from school or face expulsion, because “the school didn’t want any trouble.”

Hicks and his family were devastated, but soon learned of a summer program at Brandeis University for talented Black students from the south that led to full scholarships at private colleges and universities in northern states. Hicks was accepted, and after the summer program, landed at ���ϲ�����, where he was required to enroll as a first-year student.

Hicks had grown up in a segregated environment in Bogalusa and never had white friends. But with only 50 or so Black students at ���ϲ�����, he chose not to segregate himself. Outgoing by nature, Hicks immediately got involved on campus, serving on his residence hall board, his class council and started a chapter of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee to partner with Black community groups on various activities.

“Most students were from Northeast states. Being Black and from the South, I was something of a novelty,” says Hicks, who was rushed by numerous white fraternities. “People would sometimes say to me, ‘You’re not like the other Blacks we see or hear about. I had to tell them, ‘Yes, I am. We face the same struggles and problems.’”

As a junior, Hicks became the first Black president of University Union. “After that, everybody started asking me if I was going to run for student body president,” he says.

Hicks with Ray Rafalik ’70 and Amy White ’69, both members of the student committee to select a new chancellor in 1968. Hicks was an ex-officio member of that committee as SGA president.

Hicks beat his opponent in that election, 1,585 to 998, and set out on an agenda that included loosening rules around student behavior. “Even though ���ϲ����� was a liberal school, it was very restrictive from our perspective,” he says. “Students had a curfew. At the time, you could only stand in the dorm lobby to chat with female friends. That rule changed to allow coed visits, which meant you could go to someone’s room, but the door had to stay open. Then SGA advocated for coed dorms.”

Along with his leadership of the general student body, Hicks began working with other Black students to establish the Black Student Union on campus and organize a takeover of the administration building to demand an increase in Black students, Black professors and Black history courses. “The administration turned the electricity off on us, but they never let the city police in to clear us out,” he says.

Despite Hicks’ popularity on campus, he says he was viewed as an “agitator” in the wider community. “If I drove off campus, I would get pulled over and arrested,” he says. “In my last two years, I must have been arrested 25-30 times. I would call Dr. Sawyer and he would call an attorney who would get the charges dismissed.”

Michael Sawyer was a Maxwell School professor who in 1972 also became the University’s interim vice chancellor for student programs.

Over time, things began to escalate. After graduating with a degree in political science, Hicks began graduate school in education administration and was living in an off-campus apartment with friends. “One day police rushed into the house and said they found marijuana that was mine,” says Hicks, who was jailed. David Ifshin ’70, who succeeded Hicks as SGA president, organized a protest, and 200 students marched on the jail demanding Hicks’ release. “That made me even more of a marked person. Dr. Sawyer suggested that ���ϲ����� might not be the best place for me to stay to get my doctorate,” he says.

An arrangement was made for Hicks to double up on summer courses and take an oral history exam so that he could earn a master’s degree and leave. He subsequently earned a second master’s in library science from the University of Maryland and moved to Washington, D.C., where he had a 35-year career with the DC Public Library, primarily in the Black History Section of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library.

Civil rights activist Dorie Ladner with Hicks

Always a leader, Hicks served as president of the trade union for the DC Public Library, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and later as president of AFSCME District Council 20, the largest public sector union in the District of Columbia.

A well-known community organizer, Hicks is the founder and director of the D.C. Black History Celebration Committee, which celebrates Black history yearround, and was grand marshal of the 2021 Virtual D.C. MLK Parade. A speaker at the inaugural Million Man March, he is the founder of Bread for the Soul, the first and oldest Black AIDS organization in the city, and an active member of numerous organizations, including the NAACP, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Martin Luther King Scholarship Committee, the D.C. Commission on Aging, the Waterside Tenants’ Council and Stand Up for Democracy in D.C. In 2019, he was elected to the Washington D.C. Hall of Fame and his name appears on the Hall of Fame Walkway. In 2021, he was selected to be in a permanent exhibit at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library as a D.C. History Maker.

Hicks recalls his ���ϲ����� experience as an incredible journey, but not a totally happy time.

“My experience as student government president was both the best and worst of times,” he says. “There were a number of white students that were not pleased with me being the SGA president. “There were a number of more progressive African American students that felt I should focus solely on efforts to benefit Black students. And there were people who didn’t think that SGA should have been involved protesting the war in Vietnam. There were always adverse views on what I should focus on, but I addressed the pushback by saying that I was elected to be the student body president for everyone on campus.”

Reprinted with permission from the Winter 2022 ���ϲ����� Manuscript magazine

Yasmin Nayrouz

Yasmin Nayrouz is a junior, studying�� in the Newhouse School and in the College of Arts and Sciences.

This October, she received the Voyager Scholarship��from the Obama Foundation, awarded to students who bridge divides and work to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges.

Inspired by misconceptions surrounding migration, she’s currently working toward a career in policy advocacy for refugees and displaced families.

Their goal and primary focus? Striving to help make each student’s undergraduate experience the best it can be.

The makeup of the SA includes elected student representatives from each school or college on campus. Students who serve on SA have the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of their peers, and at the same time, gain valuable leadership experience.

The Student Association is holding its fall elections Oct. 3-7 to determine who will serve as undergraduate members of the student body government.

During each academic year, the SA’s Board of Elections holds two campuswide elections for students interested in serving in a leadership role. In the fall, elections are held to determine who will serve as first-year assembly representatives, while also filling any existing board vacancies. In the spring, elections are held for every elected seat, including the executive offices of president, executive vice president and comptroller.

The fall 2022 election starts on Monday, Oct. 3, and concludes on Friday, Oct. 7.

Hoping to include as many undergraduate students as possible in the voting process, students can cast their vote through a campuswide email, , on SA social media channels and through a QR code featured on both digital signage in the Schine Student Center and lawn signs on the Kenneth A. Shaw Quadrangle. SA representatives will also table in front of Schine throughout election week to answer any questions.

There are 30 candidates in the running for 19 SA seats, along with a few other seats that are open through the write-in process.

This fall, assembly representatives will be elected to serve from the following schools/colleges:

• Arts and Sciences
• College of Engineering and Computer Science
• SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
• Newhouse School
• Falk College
• College of Visual and Performing Arts

Additionally, elections are held to determine which students will serve as first-year at-large and at-large representatives for SA.

Those students elected will serve SA as part of the 66th��session of the student body government. They will hold their SA positions through May, when all of their seats will then be up for re-election in the spring.

An unknown, fast-spreading global health pandemic.

The sudden shutdown of campus.

Postponing Commencement for the Class of 2020.

Shuffling between remote and in-person classes.

Holding not one but three separate Commencement ceremonies for the Class of 2021 that practiced social distancing and followed COVID-19 safety protocols.

A national reckoning around race and social justice spurring nationwide protests, including on campus and in the City of ���ϲ�����, and a rise in hate crimes against some of the most marginalized communities.

It’s been anything but business as usual these last four years.

Weird.
Crazy.
Chaotic.
Surreal.
Exhausting.

Those are some of the adjectives used by Jonathan Danilich ’22, Cameron Joy Gray ’22, Diego Luna ’22 and Darnelle Stinfort ’22 to describe their time as undergraduates.

Leading up to Commencement, seniors Diego Luna ’22 (upper left), Cameron Joy Gray ’22 (upper right), Jonathan Danilich ’22 (lower right) and Darnelle Stinfort ’22 (lower left) reflect on their experiences at ���ϲ�����.

On Sunday morning, Danilich, Gray, Luna and Stinfort will be among the more than 6,400 undergraduates, graduate students, law students and doctoral students expected to have their degrees conferred inside the stadium before family members, friends and members of the campus community.

It marks the culmination of a challenging four-year period on campus, a time unlike any other in ���ϲ�����’s proud 152-year history.

Leading up to Commencement, we caught up with Stinfort, vice president of the Student Association, Gray, a ���ϲ����� Scholar and Our Time Has Come Scholar; Danilich, the past president of Otto’s Army; and Luna, an Our Time Has Come Scholar, to discuss being a ���ϲ����� student during these uncharted times.

Darnelle Stinfort ’22, Student Association (SA) Vice President

Before she arrived on campus, whenever Darnelle Stinfort ’22 heard people say they were using their time at college to find themselves, she was confused.

“Why does anyone need to find themselves? Don’t they know who they are?” Stinfort says, reflecting on her attitude during her first year on campus.

Back in the fall of 2019, Stinfort knew who she was, or at least she thought she did. As she prepares to receive a bachelor’s degree in biotechnology from the College of Arts and Sciences, she admits her four years have been “a reality check,” that she “doesn’t have it all figured out,” and that it’s OK to not have the answers to life’s questions.

Darnelle Stinfort ’22

“There’s always twists and turns. Life is full of the unexpected. You need to learn to deal with the unexpected challenges life throws your way. I’m learning to just get by one day at a time,” Stinfort says.

When the COVID-19 pandemic first hit, Stinfort had a hard time focusing on her courses. The sense of isolation was overwhelming. Stinfort also helped her father, a middle school math teacher, navigate technical difficulties he encountered teaching class on Zoom.

It was an anxious time, and that was before the protests calling for social justice following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others took over city streets across the country.

Hard work and dedication helped Stinfort thrive academically. But the constant reminders of deaths of Black men and women at the hands of a police officer became too much. Stinfort often burst into tears while scrolling through her Instagram feed, feeling completely overwhelmed.

Stinfort was ignoring her mental well-being and needed help. She reconnected with her faith, saw a counselor and ceased using social media. More importantly, Stinfort, who would minimize her own feelings because others were dealing with worse issues, allowed herself the grace to grieve and the right to feel the way she felt on a particular day

“I decided to get more into reading books that dealt with the social unrest in this country and the system in which we live. It gave me some clarity. Eventually, I regained my mental wellness, and prayer and reconnecting with my spiritual side definitely helped, too,” Stinfort says.

Stinfort is proud of what she and SA president David Bruen accomplished during the 2021-22 academic year, including the advocating for “Wellness Days” during each semester beginning in the fall of 2023; the grocery store trolley program that gave students complimentary rides to and from neighboring stores; and the resumption of the free Menstrual Product Program that supplies students with menstrual pads and tampons in bathrooms across campus.

She’s also proud of her new attitude, taking time to appreciate the resiliency required to make it to Commencement.

“I’m learning to celebrate myself. It’s okay to celebrate what I’ve accomplished and not just rush on to the next challenge. I feel more confident in being able to overcome future obstacles because of the lessons I’ve learned from these last four years,” says Stinfort, who wants to one day become a physician.

Cameron Joy Gray ’22, Our Time Has Come Scholar

“When are we coming back? Are we coming back? How do you do anything for school online? How are we going to shoot our sophomore films?”

These were some of the questions Cameron Joy Gray ’22 asked herself on that chaotic day in March 2020 when she and many of her peers made a mad dash to the Schine Student Center to collect boxes for packing up their belongings.

The timing was less than ideal. Gray and a classmate had each spent a few hundred dollars to cast and hire actresses for their production about middle school girls and female friendships.

Gray, a film major in the Department of Film and Media Arts in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, spent the first 10 weeks of the Spring 2020 semester mapping out her sophomore film project. Now, she headed home to Washington, D.C., to work on a condensed, four-week film project about a girl who discovers an old telephone in her attic that puts her in touch with people who were alive during the Cold War.

Cameron Joy Gray’s (center) filmmaking skills earned her a Chancellor’s Citation for Excellence in Student Research, and she was selected as a ���ϲ����� Scholar, the highest undergraduate honor the University bestows.

The project connected the mass hysteria and fear of the unknown surrounding COVID-19 with the Cold War and concerns over communism. It also prepared Gray for “the most difficult semester of her life,” the Fall 2021 semester.

Cameron Joy Gray ’22

Through it all, Gray persevered. In April 2021, Gray was named the recipient of a 2021 Beinecke Scholarship, an award that provides graduate funding and mentorship for juniors in the arts, humanities or social sciences. Gray was just the second Beinecke Scholar in ���ϲ�����’s history.

As part of her senior thesis film, Gray finally wrote her production about middle school girls and female friendships.

Gray’s filmmaking skills earned her a Chancellor’s Citation for Excellence in Student Research, and toward the end of her senior year, Gray was selected as a ���ϲ����� Scholar, the highest undergraduate honor the University bestows.

“It’s been crazy rewarding, crazy surprising and just crazy in general. Each year on campus has been completely different than the one before it,” Gray says.

“I’m proud of our class and our professors for adjusting and adapting to every challenge we’ve had to face. We’ve achieved so much. I’m grateful we were still able to come together and have those experiences, even in the midst of a global pandemic.”

Jonathan Danilich ’22, Past President, Otto’s Army

Otto’s Army has a reputation as one of the most passionate student sections in the country. As its president for the 2020-21 school year, Jonathan Danilich ’22 faced an unusual dilemma.

When Jonathan Danilich (center) was president of Otto’s Army, students weren’t allowed in the stadium to cheer on the Orange. So Danilich found new and creative ways to engage with students.

In August of 2020, then-New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo decreed that fans couldn’t attend games because of concerns over COVID-19 when college sports teams returned to play that fall.

When your job is to rile up the student section, but you can’t attend the games, what is the president to do? You find new and creative ways to engage with students.

Danilich expanded Otto’s Army’s presence on YouTube, Twitter and Instagram, and he and Otto’s Army’s leadership team live tweeted during ���ϲ����� games, organized video watch parties and competed with the opposition’s fans on YouTube.

Toward the beginning of the Spring 2021 semester, fans were allowed back inside the stadium to root for the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams.

Jonathan Danilich ’22

The hard work paid off for Danilich when, on Sept. 11, 2021, COVID restrictions eased and students and fans cheered on the Orange when ���ϲ����� hosted Rutgers University, the first football game with fans in nearly two years.

“It felt different having everyone back in there smushed together again. It felt really weird after all that time with no fans. But all I was focused on was the mission we needed to accomplish,” says Danilich. “You have to make the first game count because students won’t come back if it isn’t fun. People arrived early and we taught them our chants and we just me made it a raucous atmosphere. It was so loud and everyone had a blast. It felt really good being back.”

Danilich plans to use the skills he’s acquired through his time with Otto’s Army and the relationships he’s built with the athletics department to transition into a career in sports marketing.

“College is a time where you really find yourself, and these past four years have given me a chance to rethink what I want to do in life,” says Danilich, a broadcast and digital journalism major in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

“I wanted to do something that makes people smile. Being part of Otto’s Army these last four years has helped me do that. It changed a lot of people’s school experiences for the better, and I’m really proud of that.”

Diego Luna ’22, Our Time Has Come Scholar

The situation was dire for Diego Luna ’22.

Back in his parents’ home in Brownsville, Texas, COVID-19 cases were high. Luna felt isolated taking virtual classes, and he was missing the sense of community and camaraderie he felt with his friends on campus, especially in the Pride Union student organization.

Luna almost transferred out of ���ϲ�����, but thankfully, he stuck it out, making the most of a bad situation while recreating that sense of community in a virtual setting. Like the times Pride Union would hold drag shows and drag bingo nights virtually, in addition to starting new traditions like Netflix watch parties.

When classes resumed on campus and in-person activities were once again deemed safe, the time apart made gathering in person that much more special.

Diego Luna ’22

“When everyone finally got back together, it was such a strong and happy welcome back moment, especially for the students that were here during the pandemic. We had missed those in-person gatherings and interactions so much. The time apart made our bond even stronger,” says Luna, a biotechnology major in the College of Arts and Sciences.

That sense of community applies to the good times and the troublesome times, like when the country experienced a rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans, Blacks, the LGBTQ+ community and other historically marginalized members of society.

Luna, who identifies as queer, was proud of the conversations he observed during those difficult moments. Especially the ones that focused on all the ways we’re similar instead of our differences.

“A mantra of mine is ‘Five seconds of courage,’ from the movie ‘We Bought a Zoo.’ Five seconds of courage is all you need to get a conversation going. It’s easier said than done, but if you take a chance, talk to someone and really get to know them, regardless of their political or ideological beliefs, it’s surprising the levels of community we can create that way,” Luna says.

What advice would Luna have for his freshman year self?

“You’ll be challenged like you’ve never, ever been challenged before, and you will think this is the most impossible, emotionally trying time you’ll ever live through. But you will get through it. It’s been a great experience and I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. The amount of growth I went through is immeasurable, mainly because of the amazing faculty, staff and students who created such a welcoming environment,” Luna says.

In high school, Ellen Jorgensen was highly involved in the Green Club in her school and led initiatives that focused on waste reduction. She also developed education initiatives for her peers to give them a sense of responsibility regarding the environment.

“In high school, my passion for the environment developed out of concern for the planet and frustration with the lack of urgency around me. At that point, my love for science in the classroom and my dedication to environmental action seemed separate,” she says. “Today, the convergence of these passions forms the foundation of my academic and professional goals. … While I wasn’t aware of climate sciences as a career path back in high school, I now see it as a calling.”

Jorgensen, a sophomore double major in earth sciences and environment, sustainability and policy in the College of Arts and Sciences, a Coronat Scholar and a member of Renée Crown University Honors Program, is a recipient of a 2021 , which will help support her studies.

Named for Sen. Ernest “Fritz” Hollings of South Carolina, the prestigious award provides tuition support ($9,500 per year) and paid summer internships with NOAA to recipients. The award is designed to support students working in areas related to NOAA’s programs and mission. ��Students apply as sophomores, do an internship in their junior year, and receive support and mentorship throughout their undergraduate career.

“Receiving NOAA’s Hollings scholarship is an honor and affirms my passion for climate and environmental science. I am very excited to participate in their internship program to explore applications of climate science in the field,” says Jorgensen. “While I have certainly worked hard to reach this achievement, it is much more a testament to the immense support I have received from CFSA; the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences; my faculty mentor, Dr. Bhattacharya; and above all, my family.”

Jorgensen is also pursuing a minor in physics and says her majors and minor allow her to balance her focus on scientific studies of the climate with a grounding in policy. She is currently engaged in research in the Paleoclimate Dynamics Lab of Tripti Bhattacharya, Thonis Family Professor: Paleoclimate Dynamics and assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences.

Jorgensen works with Bhattacharya constructing temperature proxies for the mid-Pliocene, a period that may serve as a predictor of the challenges ocean ecosystems will face in the coming century. Their research uses alkenones, biomarkers produced by haptophyte algae sourced from ocean sediment, to generate new records of ocean temperatures. In the fall of 2020, Jorgensen focused on samples from a site off of the coast of southern California, extracting alkenones from these samples. “Working in an active laboratory, I have gained a much greater understanding of mechanisms by which discoveries are made in the field of earth sciences,” she says.

Jorgensen also received a grant last summer from the University’s Office of Undergraduate Research (SOURCE), which she used to review literature on alkenone temperature proxies and paleoclimate reconstruction. This summer, she will pursue new channels of paleoclimate research through a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program in a lab at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

Jorgensen is also involved in several community sustainability efforts. During the summer of 2020, she worked on a farm in North Carolina through WWOOF, an organization that provides small organic farms with volunteer help, to support sustainable, small scale food production and sell organic produce to local communities. During the academic year, Jorgensen is a volunteer with the University’s Office of Sustainability Management and manages the compost pile used by members of the University’s housing community. Currently, she is involved with the Student Association’s sustainability committee, with whom she has helped develop waste-reduction campaigns such as the promotion of reusable menstrual products for Earth Day later this month.

In all the work she does, whether in the lab or in the community, Jorgensen knows the importance of good communication. “I know that communication skills are an integral tool for a scientist aiming to make change,” she says. She sharpened her skills as the editor in chief of her high school newspaper and in her role as a writer at the University’s Blackstone LaunchPad, where she wrote stories about entrepreneurial projects.

After graduating from ���ϲ�����, Jorgensen plans to pursue master’s and doctoral degrees in earth and environmental sciences. “I will center my career around my passion for innovative climate research while opening pathways for communication with communities who will benefit from the research,” she says. Ultimately, she plans to lead her own laboratory focused on predictive climate sciences.

Jorgensen worked with the�� to apply for the NOAA scholarship. CFSA offers candidates advising and assistance with applications and interview preparation for nationally competitive scholarships.

“Ellen’s clear focus on understanding and mitigating climate change—a focus that structures her academic, campus, and community work—made her a clear fit for the NOAA Hollings Scholarship,” says Jolynn Parker, director of CFSA. “She is poised to make the most of the extraordinary mentorship and support that NOAA provides to Hollings Scholars.”

The 2022 NOAA-Hollings Scholarship application will open on Sept. 1. Interested students should contact CFSA for more information: 315.443.2759; cfsa@syr.edu.

Earth Day will be celebrated on April 22. Sustainability Management is collaborating with the Student Association Sustainability and Community Engagement Committees; the Department of Earth and Environment Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences; the New York Coalition for Sustainability in Higher Education (NYCSHE); the SUNY Student Assembly; and Bard College to bring an assortment of events to the campus community.

Environmental Justice in ���ϲ����� Virtual Panel
Tuesday, April 6, 6 p.m. ET

The Student Association Sustainability Committee and Community Engagement Committee will host a discussion with local leaders about environmental injustices that occur in and around ���ϲ�����. The panel includes:

• Deka Dancil, president of the Urban Jobs Task Force;
• Neil Patterson, assistant director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment;
• Catherine Landis, associated faculty at the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment; and
• Thomas Perreault, professor and chair of the Department of Geography and the Environment in the Maxwell School.

Students, faculty and staff interested in the event may .

Solve Climate By 2030 Panel Discussion
Wednesday, April 7, 6 p.m. ET
Sponsored by Bard College, NYCSHE and the SUNY Student Assembly

Students, faculty and staff are invited to join a regional panel discussion about how an ambitious Green Recovery based in state and local action can put us on the way to solving climate change by 2030. A panel of thought leaders will provide their perspective on what a Green Recovery in New York would entail, the one most impactful action that can be taken and how students can advocate for change. or for more information contact gogreen@albany.edu.

Waste-Free Menstrual Cycle Education and Menstrual Cup Giveaway
April 8, 15 and 22

The Student Association Sustainability Committee will table in the Schine Student Center to sign up participants for their menstrual cup giveaway. The Committee will be giving away 20 menstrual cup goodie bags, which include a menstrual cup, compact sanitizer, washing solution and bag. The tabling event will also provide information about having a waste-free menstrual cycle.

Lunch and Learn: A Look Behind the Scenes of Campus Recycling
Wednesday, April 14, 12:30 p.m. ET

If you are interested in what happens to your recyclables on and off campus, join Sustainability Management for a virtual Lunch and Learn to learn what really can be recycled, why it can be recycled and how it gets recycled. This session will reinforce Sustainability Management’s goals for increasing recyclables on campus and reducing contamination before it is sent to the recycling center. These figures also determine the ranking of the University in the Campus Race to Zero Waste—an annual recycling and waste reduction competition where colleges and universities compete from across North America. Sign up for the Lunch and Learn on the .

‘Cooking for the Planet’ Plant-Based Cooking Class
Tuesday, April 20, 6 p.m. ET

Join Meg Lowe, sustainability coordinator, and Claudia Cavanaugh, sustainability student intern, for an interactive, virtual cooking class. Learn about how a plant-based diet will help save our planet while making a delicious coconut curry. The class is free, open to the campus community and limited to the first 20 people who . Registrants will receive an email with the link to join and can pick up their ingredients at the Carriage House, 161 Farm Acre Road, on the day of the event.

‘David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet’ Screening and Panel Discussion
Thursday, April 22, 4 p.m. ET

On Earth Day join Sustainability Management and the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences for a free screening of the documentary “David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet” on Zoom. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion at 5:30 p.m.; participants can join the entire event or watch the movie on their own time and tune in only for the panel discussion.��

“A Life on Our Planet” serves as Attenborough’s “witness statement” through which he shares concerns for the current state of the planet and hopes for the future. Many are familiar with Attenborough as a faceless narrator, but in this film, you will go on a journey with him as he traces his 60 plus years as a naturalist, showing you the planet’s past and present biodiversity and the degradation humans have caused over the years.

Join the post-film panel discussion with ���ϲ����� Earth and Environmental Sciences professors, including:

• Professor Suzanne Baldwin, a geologist who investigates the rock record to reveal how the Earth has evolved over geologic time;
• Professor Melissa Chipman, a paleoecologist who uses lake sediments to study interactions between past climate, wildfires and permafrost thaw in the Arctic; and
• Professor Sam Tuttle, a hydroclimatologist who studies the movement and storage of water throughout the Earth system.

Pollinator Kit Giveaway
Wednesday, April 28, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

As a , Sustainability Management and the Bee Campus USA working group will be in the Schine Student Center on April 28 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. to hand out Pollinator Kits! Stop at the table to pick up a free kit and learn why planting pollinators is important. The Pollinator Kits include everything needed to plant herbs that help pollinators and can be transplanted to your garden or repotted to fit in your space. No registration is necessary.

For more information about sustainability at ���ϲ�����, visit the and follow @SustainableSU on , ��and .

Writer, speaker and playwright Wajahat Ali will lecture on “A Caravan of Unity in the Age of Hate: Building a Multicultural Coalition of the Willing” on April 15.

Celebrated nationally in May, honors and celebrates Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who have enriched America’s history and are instrumental in its future success. ���ϲ����� honors the month in April while the campus community is still together.

“Celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month is especially significant this year with the rise in Anti-Asian sentiment throughout the country,” says Huey Hsiao, associate director of multicultural affairs and the Kessler Scholars Program and AAPI Heritage Month Planning Committee co-chair. “Bringing these events to the campus community, I believe, is going to create an important wave of awareness and a desire to educate oneself more about the AAPI community.”

Events celebrate and offer educational opportunities surrounding AAPI culture, heritage, histories, cultural diversity, contribution and often underreported challenges of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

“We wanted to be very intentional in our discussions around intersecting AAPI identities,” says Nicholas Lee G’21, AAPI Heritage Month Planning Committee co-chair. “Our overall goal for this month is not only encouraging students to examine and make sense of their identities but also to figure out ‘Now that I’ve made sense of my identity, where do I go from here? How can I be a better advocate for my community?’ This is what we hope students will be able to take away from this month.”

The AAPI Heritage Month Planning Committee, the and cross-campus partners have combined their efforts to develop thought-provoking and relevant events for the campus community. Explore the complete list of events, learn more and register on the .

• Thursday, April 1, 5 p.m. ET:
• Monday, April 5, 12:30 p.m. ET:
• Wednesday, April 7, 7 p.m. ET:
• Friday, April 9, noon ET:
• Friday, April 9, 8 p.m. ET:
• Thursday, April 15, 7 p.m. ET:
• Saturday, April 17, 7 p.m. ET:

“The inclusivity and AAPI voices amplified during the month is truly empowering,” says Kimberly Ng ’21, president of Asian Students in America (ASIA) and AAPI Heritage Month Planning Committee member. “It is a space that allows for our shared AAPI experiences as a community while dissecting into our own individual connections to our cultural heritage.”

For more information or to request accommodations, please contact Huey Hsiao, by calling 315.443.9676 or emailing huhsiao@syr.edu.

Story by Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience graduate assistant Alana Boyd G’21, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

The service will be a time for the University community to embrace each other, name and claim its grief, remember the lives recently lost and connect with available resources in the midst of challenging times.

Participants will include University leaders; chaplains from Hendricks Chapel; student leaders; counselors; members of the Hendricks Chapel Choir; and other members of our community.

The service may be accessed on. It will also be streamed on the .

For more information or to request accommodations, contact Hendricks Chapel at 315.443.2901 or chapel@syr.edu.

Hastings and Golden will join Hendricks Chapel Dean Brian Konkol for a virtual conversation on Thursday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m. ET. They will discuss the mental health needs of college students as part of Mental Health Awareness Week.

The virtual event can be accessed with Facebook Live on����or��. Pre-registration is not required, and the conversation is free and available to all.

Hastings ’21 and Golden ’21 are the elected leaders of the Student Association’s 64th legislative session, which spans the 2020-21 academic year. Hastings, a secondary English education and English and textual studies dual major, is a longtime campus leader who recently earned the Unsung Hero Award at the University’s 35th Annual Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration in January. Golden, who majors in policy studies, political science and religion, has served in SA for several semesters and in the University Senate, as well.

Mental Health Awareness Week is a nationwide initiative led by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). This year, it will take place from Oct. 5-9, and Student Association has developed daily programming to inform students about dispelling stigmas, available resources and health habits. Learn more on the .

This will be the 16th installment of “Matters that Matter: A Conversation Series from Hendricks Chapel,” a virtual series hosted by Hendricks Chapel that brings local and national thought leaders together in conversation to discuss critical matters facing society. Learn more at��.

For more information, email Hendricks Chapel at��chapel@syr.edu.

“The Student Association, in collaboration with University Union and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, is honored to hold meaningful and impactful events centered around such a pivotal moment in our nation’s history,” says SA President Justine Hastings ’21. “We hope these events will get all members of our ���ϲ����� community to reflect and act forward toward the fight for racial/social justice.”

Events will include:

Friday, Aug. 28

• Screening of the National March on Washington from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET on the Quad (limited availability; no audio, closed captioned). .
• Spike Lee Virtual Speaker Event from 3 to 3:30 p.m. ET on the Quad (limited availability; no audio, closed captioned). To attend virtually, .
• On-Campus Solidarity March from 4 to 4:30 p.m. on the Quad (limited availability). .

Saturday, Aug. 29

• ���ϲ����� Racial Justice Panel + Discussion*, co-sponsored by the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, from 1 to 5 p.m. ET in Goldstein Auditorium in the Schine Student Center (limited availability). To join the event virtually, . Panelists will include representatives from the ���ϲ����� chapter of Black Lives Matter; OG’s Against Violence; Black Leadership Coalition of CNY; Alliance of Communities Transforming ���ϲ�����; ���ϲ����� National Action Network; ���ϲ�����’s Our Time Has Come Scholarship Program; and ���ϲ����� Police Accountability and Reform Coalition. Moderators will include representatives from the Student Association; #NotAgainSU; Renegade Magazine; the Student African American Society; and University faculty and staff.

Sunday, Aug. 30

• Screening of the movie “Selma,”* co-sponsored by University Union, at 5 p.m. ET in the Goldstein Auditorum in the Schine Student Center (limited availability). To join the event virtually, visit the .

*For the Saturday and Sunday in-person events, a limited number of free tickets are available at the . A ���ϲ����� I.D. card is required for entrance into the auditorium. Socially distanced seating will be available.

Masks are required on the ���ϲ����� campus, and those attending are asked to social distance by 6 feet. Protocol monitors will be present enforcing these requirements. Those not adhering to the requirements will be documented through the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities.

If you are in need of accommodations, or with any questions, email StudentAssociation@syr.edu.

Students John Jankovic, Roma Amernath, Sarah Li, Rebecca Goodsell, Vanessa Davila and Will Pritchett in Washington, D.C.

Seven members of the were recently in Washington, D.C., to take part in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Student Advocacy Days.

The event, held annually, provides an opportunity for students to learn about federal government issues impacting higher education and meet with policy makers to discuss their views.

The students met and spoke with policy makers from across the political spectrum, including senior staff for U.S. Sens. and , and U.S. Reps. and . The group also had breakfast with distinguished Maxwell School alumna U.S. Rep. G’70, H’87 in the Capitol.

“I was honored to host ���ϲ����� student leaders at my office on Capitol Hill, where they made their voices heard on a wide range of issues we face as a nation. It is always a great pleasure to hear from young leaders in New York taking action on topics that they are passionate about,” says Sen. Schumer. “With several SU alumna on my staff, I know first-hand that these students are well equipped to lead in the future.”

Patrick Magnuson ’00, clerk with the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies; Bob Henke G’97, staff director of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs; Zeelee Segura, John Jankovic, Rebecca Goodsell, Vanessa Davila, Roma Amernath, Sarah Li and Will Pritchett.

“The opinions of college students are important and their voices deserve to be heard in our democracy,” says Rep. Katko. “I was honored to host these ���ϲ����� student leaders. The conversation covered important local and national issues, including combating sexual assault on campuses, adequate financial aid options for students, the impact of I-81’s replacement on the ���ϲ����� community and the future of Social Security. I thank them for making the trip to Washington and will consider their concerns as I continue to legislate during the 116th Congress.”

While in Washington, the group also met several ���ϲ����� alumni, both Democrat and Republican, who hold significant and important congressional senior staff positions. The students used these engagements to ask the staff members about their personal experiences working in Congress and how to be competitive for congressional internship and employment opportunities.

John Jankovic, a junior political science major in the and the , took part in the trip. “Across our advocacy efforts, it was so reassuring to find ���ϲ����� alumni serving in roles that I dream of!” Jankovic says. “This trip reaffirmed my passion for public service and the importance of higher education reform.”

Rebecca Goodsell, also a political science major and program participant, sums up her views on the experience: “As a graduating senior about to enter the job market, the ACC Advocacy Days only reaffirmed my interests in politics and the Hill. I was able to visit D.C. for the first time and see the ins and outs of Capitol Hill thanks to ���ϲ�����, and I cannot wait to come back!”

Overall topics of discussion ranged from the higher education reauthorization act to student financial aid, higher education opportunity programs, Department of Education proposed Title IX regulation changes, Social Security and immigration reform.

Sarah Li, a junior policy studies and philosophy major in the Maxwell School and the College of Arts and Sciences, has a unique perspective on the trip. “As the only international student on this trip, it is very exciting to discuss current policies with U.S. policymakers,” she says. “I was able to understand advocacy and lobbying from a foreign perspective. The ACC trip strengthened my belief in becoming a lawyer and advancing legal systems to benefit citizens globally.”

The trip was organized by the University’s and the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience.

“The signs are in the most populated parts of the immediate ���ϲ����� [University] off-campus area,” says Obi Afriye, the GSO senator sponsoring the initiative. The signs are visible to students on Euclid Avenue and Clarendon Street from Comstock Avenue to Westcott Street; down Comstock Avenue from Euclid Avenue to Madison Street; and on University Avenue and Walnut Place from Waverly Avenue to Madison Street.

Each sign promotes safety resources, including DPS, ���ϲ����� Ambulance (SUA) and the ���ϲ����� Police Department (SPD). “Students may not realize whom to call in an emergency,” says DPS Chief Bobby Maldonado. “DPS will respond to any student call but does not have jurisdiction in off-campus neighborhoods. We are always a resource for students, and, if appropriate, dispatchers will contact the ���ϲ����� Police Department on behalf of student callers.

“SUA will respond to any student, and if SUA is out of service, the call will roll over to DPS,” he adds.

The signs also feature information about the LiveSafe mobile safety alert app. “LiveSafe is free for students to download and turns students’ phones into a mobile blue light,” Maldonado says. “Students can share their location with friends and family as they walk home, and they can also immediately contact DPS.”

Ofriye had the idea to improve off-campus safety resources after seeing an intoxicated student stumble home down Euclid Avenue last semester. “If something were to happen, I wasn’t sure she would be able to get help for herself,” he recalls. “This initiative is to remind students, and all those who live in our community, that ���ϲ����� does care and we are a community that will look after each other.”

The original idea was to increase the number of blue lights off campus, but Maldonado and Ofriye decided that a better resource would be to inform students of all of the safety resources available to them in a real-time emergency situation. “Sometimes students are out and about, especially in the East Neighborhood, and they don’t have access to quick resources or information about how to communicate in an emergency,” Maldonado says.

The safety resource signs were installed on existing street signs. DPS, GSO and SA have also teamed up to have printed cards with safety resource information created and distributed to students in the coming weeks.

The initiative took four months to complete. The $4,125 cost of the project was split among the three organizations, with DPS contributing $1,225, and GSO and SA each providing $1,450.

“When you think of community policing, this is really what it speaks to,” Maldonado says.

Ofriye says there are plans to expand the safety resource signs to more streets that house University students. “This is just a step,” he says. “Towards the end of the semester, we want to send out a survey to gauge student’s feelings towards the initiative as a whole and get feedback to discuss next safety steps.”

Every Monday in April (9, 16, 23, 30), the Dome will be open to students for Recreation Nights at the Dome from 8 p.m.-midnight.

At Recreation Nights at the Dome, the turf area will be available to students for open recreation play. To bring the fun, students can check out footballs, soccer balls and Frisbees for free to use on the turf. In addition to open recreation opportunities, there will be special tournaments.

Currently, there are two tournaments planned. On Monday, April 23, Recreation Services is hosting an Ultimate Frisbee Tournament. For more information and to register, access the . On Monday, April 30, there will be a Knockerball inflatable sphere soccer tournament. There is no registration required for this tournament; students are invited to stop in and play. While tournament play is occurring, students are still able to use the turf for open recreation.

Recreation Nights at the Dome started as an idea from James Franco ’18, president of Student Association. Through collaboration between Student Association, Carrier Dome staff, Recreation Services and the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience, this idea is now reality.

“Student Association is beyond excited that the University listened to our idea that will help create an unsurpassed student experience and make SU unique,” says Franco. “As our long winter continues,��Recreation Nights at the Dome will essentially provide an indoor park environment for students to participate in a wide range of activities or just hang out with others in a spectacular space.”

“With the great support from the Carrier Dome staff, we are excited to be able to work with Student Association and other campus partners to help provide students with a fun and uniquely ���ϲ����� recreational opportunity,” says Matt Hackett, director of Recreation Services.

Students coming to Recreation Nights at the Dome must bring their valid SU I.D. and enter through Stadium Control at the Dome, which is at Gate B across from Sadler Hall. Students must wear tennis shoes and cannot bring in food or drink.

For information about Open Recreation Nights at the Dome, including activities and tournament offerings, check on the and follow @BeWellSU on , and .

Items needed include:

• deodorant—men’s and women’s
• razors—men’s and women’s
• shaving cream
• shampoo and conditioner
• toothpaste
• toothbrushes
• shower gel/body wash
• soap
• feminine hygiene products

The is leading the effort as part of its “Spring into Action” campaign. Their hope is that this year’s campaign will encourage future partnerships between university and community entities. “The Student Association is thrilled to collaborate with University College for their 100th year celebration with a collection drive,” says John Beavins Woltman, a member of the Student Association. “We look forward to a successful event with cross-campus involvement, and believe that this is the beginning of a strong collaboration between SA, University College, campus and community organizations.”

As part of this event, on March 27�� restaurant on Marshall Street will donate 50 percent of its proceeds from 4 p.m. to close to the Rescue Mission.

“ has a long history of community engagement,” says Eileen Jevis, communications manager. “As we celebrate our 100^th anniversary in 2018, partnering with the Rescue Mission and the Student Association was a natural way to continue to strengthen our connections across campus and in the community. ���ϲ����� is a strong supporter of the Rescue Mission and we are pleased to be able to participate.”

“We appreciate ���ϲ�����’s dedication to helping those in need by collecting hygiene items for the Rescue Mission,” says Glenna Croy, director of Volunteer Services at the Rescue Mission. “Hundreds of hygiene items are given out to our clients each month so we are grateful for the members of the community that help us fulfill this need.”

University College staff will join students on March 30 in the atrium of the Schine Student Center to sort items collected. If you would like to volunteer to pick up or sort items, please contact Woltman at jbwoltma@syr.edu. For more information, contact Jevis at 315.443.3527 or ejevis@uc.syr.edu.

About ���ϲ�����

���ϲ����� is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, ���ϲ����� offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of ���ϲ����� is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Scheduled as one of the Orange After Dark events for the semester, the “Black Panther” movie premiere at the Regal Cinemas at Destiny was expanded to include a red carpet event for students.

As Marvel’s film “Black Panther” racks up record-breaking numbers in movie theaters across the nation, ���ϲ����� celebrated the movie premiere Feb. 15 with a record-breaking night of its own.

Scheduled as an��Orange After Dark (OAD) event, the “Black Panther” movie premiere was the most highly anticipated event of the series. Once announced, the Office of Student Activities heard from students and student organizations across campus seeking to make the night a special one, celebrating culture, artistry and the popularity of the movie.

Through the student-led effort and co-sponsorship by Student Association, the red carpet movie premiere expanded its capacity to 1,275 students, the most ever for an OAD event, and sold out in a little over a day. The ticket proceeds from the premiere were combined with the proceeds from Cuse for Good to benefit ���ϲ����� City schools.

Working with Student Association, Light on Ebony, National Pan-Hellenic Council, Mixtape Magazine, The Renegade Magazine and Femme Noir Magazine, the movie premiere at the Regal Cinemas at Destiny was expanded to include a red carpet event where students experienced a glamorous night.��This Hollywood-like experience included students moving down the red carpet while student-led publications and students acted as paparazzi, interviewed and took pictures of the attendees.

Uche Chukwuma ’18, president of Light on Ebony, was one of the lead student organizers for the red carpet movie premiere. Reflecting on the evening’s success, Chukwuma says, “I’m so excited and I’m so happy that we were able to do this. This is a big film and to be able to rent out the entire wing of the theater is great.”

“The movie premiere was a monumental occasion for our students and campus community, and the excitement surrounding it was like no other,” says Dave Sargalski, director of the Office of Student Activities. “The OAD staff and student board members and our student organization leaders worked incredibly hard to plan and host an incredible night.”

Tickets are $7 and are on sale now at the Schine Box Office and online at . A $10 ticket option includes $3 that is donated directly into the transportation fees for new American families attending the event.

Hosted by Student Association president James Franco and vice president Angie Pati, the Thrive Together Fair is an interactive event that features performances and speakers from campus and community, in a celebration of cultural diversity. The event will feature Olive Sephuma, director of the Center for New Americans, and Nada Odeh, a ���ϲ����� graduate student from Syria. A variety of cuisines from around the world will be available.

Thrive at SU is the student organization affiliate of Thrive Projects, a nonprofit that works with underserved and vulnerable communities around the world. The organization works to bridge the gap between the student body and the local ���ϲ����� community by collaborating with local nonprofits that serve marginalized communities in ���ϲ�����.

Each year, Thrive at SU partners with a nonprofit to raise awareness for the organization’s mission and work. This year, Thrive at SU is again working with InterFaith Works and its Center for New Americans, which provides resettlement and post-resettlement services to help refugee families reestablish their lives and overcome the barriers to successful integration in their new communities. All proceeds from the 2018 Thrive Together Fair will be donated to InterFaith Works.

“Thrive at SU firmly believes that the strength of ���ϲ����� is rooted in both its diversity and sense of togetherness,” says Thrive at SU president Amanda Chou. “Thrive at SU recognizes the important role that refugees play in the community and hopes this event will serve as a reminder that we are at our best when we face times of struggle together.”

Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) will be available. If you need an accommodation in order to fully participate in this event, please contact��Amanda Chou at aychou@syr.edu.

The three-­part event will occur on Saturday, Feb. 17, and includes a moderated social justice panel at��noon in Goldstein Auditorium. Immediately following, there will be a free lunch in Panasci Lounge featuring foods from eight diverse cultures. At 8��p.m. there will be a celebratory concert held in Goldstein Auditorium.

As a precursor to “Cuse for Good: Social Justice,” Orange After Dark, in collaboration with Student Association, Light on Ebony, NPHC, Mixtape, Renegades and Femme Noir will host a movie premiere of “Black Panther” on Thursday, Feb. 15, at Regal Cinemas at Destiny USA. Tickets will be $3, which will include the screening and transportation (including accessible buses) to and from the mall.

The lineups for the panel and concert, in addition to ticket prices, will be announced on Feb. 4. Tickets for the event will go on sale at the Schine Box Office the following day, Feb. 5 at 9��a.m. Tickets for “Cuse for Good” are open to students, faculty, staff and the public. All ticket proceeds from Orange After Dark’s “Black Panther” premiere and “Cuse for Good’s” panel and concert will be donated to three ���ϲ����� City Schools: Van Duyn Elementary School, Grant Middle School and Fowler High School.

American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation and Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) will be available at the moderated panel. If you require additional accommodations, please contact uuvicepresident@gmail.com.

For further questions or concerns, contact Keely Higgins, director of��public relations for University Union, at uupublicrelations@gmail.com or David Gilstrap, NPHC Social Chair, at cusenphc@gmail.com.

As part of , a $100 million initiative designed to advance academic excellence and the student experience, ���ϲ����� today announced steps it will take to enhance mental health counseling and services on campus.

Following significant discussion between University and Student Association leaders, the Counseling Center is piloting extended hours of operation for the spring 2018 semester. This semester, searches will also begin for four additional staff therapists and a psychiatrist. With the increase in staffing, there are also plans to create a Counseling Center satellite office at 111 Waverly Ave. The increase in staffing and extension of hours are part of broader efforts to strengthen and increase access to health and wellness services.

“Mental health is a critical component to addressing students’ holistic health and wellness needs. By extending hours, increasing staffing and providing group therapy options at later hours, we can increase the reach and opportunities for students to access the care they need and better support their capacity to be successful inside and outside the classroom,” says Dolan Evanovich, senior vice president for enrollment and the student experience.

“Mental health is integrated into every facet of students’ lives—from academics, social lives, and more. It’s often a crucial component and antecedent to a dynamic and successful education. Therefore, over the past few years, mental health has been a key priority for Student Association. We have worked with University leaders and campus partners to lead and discuss initiatives surrounding mental health, such as Mental Health Awareness Week. We are excited about these additional investments in mental health services and counseling because they not only increase access to essential resources, they also convey a powerful message that no student is alone, each student’s mental health is valued, and every student deserves help if they need it,” says Angie Pati ’18, Student Association vice president.

On Mondays and Thursdays, the center will remain open until 7 p.m. to accommodate more scheduled appointments. Additionally, the Counseling Center will host two evening group therapy options on these days.

With extended hours, the Counseling Center increases its capacity for scheduled counseling appointments, as well as broadens its hours of operation in ways that may be more convenient for students. The extended hours, increased appointment slots, and additional staff therapists can also support efforts to reduce wait times.

Coupled with the , the Counseling Center is looking forward to a robust spring 2018 schedule that offers more opportunities for students to seek mental health counseling.

As a start, the two group therapy options offered in the evening will be:

Supporting Students with Anxiety,��a weekly group for students experiencing symptoms of anxiety and difficulty with stress management that will be offered Mondays, 5-6:30 p.m.

Building Resilience,��a five-week skills and process group that provides students the opportunity to develop the strength and stamina to deal with life’s challenges that will be offered Thursdays, 5-6:30 p.m

To join a group, students must first contact the Counseling Center at 315.443.4715. Students will complete an orientation session prior to starting group. For more information on the different group therapy options, visit the Counseling Center’s Group Therapy webpage or contact Dr. Brown at clbrow01@syr.edu.

About��Invest ���ϲ�����

Invest ���ϲ�����: Advancing Academic Excellence and the Student Experience��aims to provide all students with a distinctive, world-class learning experience that prepares them for professional and personal success. The three-pronged initiative seeks to redefine the student experience, advance discovery and innovation, and expand opportunity for students of promise and talent from across the socioeconomic spectrum. To learn more about��Invest ���ϲ�����, visit��.

About ���ϲ�����

Founded in 1870, ���ϲ����� is a private international research university dedicated to advancing knowledge and fostering student success through teaching excellence, rigorous scholarship and interdisciplinary research. Comprising 11 academic schools and colleges, the University has a long legacy of excellence in the liberal arts, sciences and professional disciplines that prepares students for the complex challenges and emerging opportunities of a rapidly changing world. Students enjoy the resources of a 270-acre main campus and extended campus venues in major national metropolitan hubs and across three continents. ���ϲ�����’s student body is among the most diverse for an institution of its kind across multiple dimensions, and students typically represent all 50 states and more than 100 countries. ���ϲ����� also has a long legacy of supporting veterans and is home to the nationally recognized Institute for Veterans and Military Families, the first university-based institute in the U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of veterans and their families. To learn more about ���ϲ�����, visit��.

The Student Association’s new Diversity Affairs Committee wants students to consider joining in the work of the committee that began this fall. Photo by Steve Sartori

Diasia Kittrell-Robinson ’18 became the first director of diversity affairs for the Student Association during the 2016-17 academic year. During that year, she kicked off several projects for students, began serving on special University work groups and became a go-to person for other Student Association members on diversity issues.

She soon realized more representation was needed to better embody diversity on campus.

Diasia Kittrell-Robinson

“I’m a woman and I’m African American but that’s not the essence of diversity on campus. We have international students and LGBTQ students. We have issues of disability rights,” says Kittrell-Robinson, an international relations major in the and the .

“There’s all that intersectionality, and I thought it made sense to have a committee that could speak to all these issues,” she adds.

The cabinet agreed and, last April, the assembly unanimously voted in a committee of diversity affairs. Kittrell-Robinson and Khalid Ayaz Khan ’18 were appointed as co-chairs of diversity affairs.

More perspective

“The main focus of the committee is to have more representation and more perspective on diversity and inclusion on campus,” Kittrell-Robinson says.

Khan says they want to find more ways for different groups on campus to connect.

“We want to create a platform where students from different backgrounds and with different identities come together,” says Khan, an economics major in the College of Arts and Sciences who is also involved with the student organization Thrive at SU. “Students can interact with each other, learn about each other and promote that sense of inclusivity and diversity.”

The committee is open to any student. So far, they’ve had students from many of the University’s schools and colleges.

Khalid Ayaz Khan

“It’s not enough for me and Diasia to identify each problem on campus, so that’s where the Diversity Affairs Committee comes in,” Khan says. “We collectively come up with solutions.”

Diversity Week

During her first year in the position of the diversity affairs director, proposed by SA’s 59th Legislative Session, Kittrell-Robinson was named to the Chancellor’s Workgroup on Diversity and the Ad Hoc Committee on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)/Undocumented Students. She also organized a free bus trip to the recently opened National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., which filled up in an hour, and planned the Student Association’s first-ever Diversity Week in the spring.

To help bring groups together, she organized a collaborative dance workshop as part of Diversity Week; there was also a meditation workshop led by students and a movie showing of “Moonlight,” followed by a discussion of LGBTQ rights.

“For the Student Association, all of this is pretty new, which is exciting,” she says.

Since the start of the school year, the Diversity Affairs Committee has been working on a food and hygiene drive to assist students in need in the ���ϲ����� community and local shelters, partnering with NYPIRG and the Food Recovery Network.

They are also planning for another bus trip to the museum in Washington, D.C., which they hope will be an annual event, and they are also developing next spring’s Diversity Week. “We’ll build on Diversity Week and make it bigger and better,” Kittrell-Robinson says.

Diversity Week will also partner with Thrive at SU to incorporate the Thrive Together Fair into its events. The annual cultural fair, with its inaugural event last spring, celebrated diversity with a showcase of student organizations and community groups, with proceeds going to the local nonprofit group InterFaith Works, Khan says.

The committee is also hoping to broaden its reach in other areas.

As an international student, Khan has participated in the programs and orientations that serve international students, but he sees areas that could be strengthened. “I am confident there are ways in which we could improve the international student experience,” he says.

DPS dialogue

Other members of the committee are also interested in fostering more dialogue between the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and students to better support each other. A sub-committee is being created as part of SA’s Student Life Committee to focus on on- and off-campus safety and DPS-related issues and offer ways to report concerns that would be presented to DPS.

As the work of the committee develops and��it establishes short- and long-term goals, Khan says��its overall goal is to advocate for students. “We want to make students feel at home on campus and make them feel like they are being heard—and that their problems are being worked toward solutions,” he says.

Kittrell-Robinson wants students to recognize that SA cares and see the association as a resource.

“We do a lot on campus to serve the students and I would want the committee to engage the student body in a way that has never been done before,” Kittrell-Robinson says. “I want us to come up with things students are excited about and want to participate in.”

Students who are interested in participating on the committee can attend the meetings Thursdays at 3:30 p.m. in the Student Association offices at the Schine Student Center.

and are partnering to produce a special, live, one-hour event that will feature Student Association presidential candidates debating issues important to students, such as campus life, resources, safety, outreach and student programming. It’s Sunday, April 2, at 7 p.m. in the Joyce Hergenhan Auditorium in Newhouse 3. The debate is open to all ���ϲ����� students and will also be broadcast live on channel 14.1, the , and streamed online at CitrusTV.com and DailyOrange.com.

“We’re extremely excited to bring this event back,” says Nick Ross, general manager of CitrusTV. “It’s been nearly four years since CitrusTV sponsored an event such as this one, and we think it’s important to give students a way to hear from those who will be serving them once in office.”

CitrusTV’s Alex Amico and The Daily Orange’s Michael Burke will moderate the debate. During the program, audience members can submit questions for the candidates via Twitter using the hashtag #SADebate. Questions may also be submitted in advance. All questions, either live or submitted in advance, will be asked by CitrusTV’s Meghan Mistry throughout the show.

“As the governing body of more than 14,000 undergraduate students, Student Association plays an important role on the ���ϲ����� campus,” says Justin Mattingly, editor in chief of The Daily Orange. “The president and vice president of SA are two of the most notable student leaders on campus. And given that, we felt it was necessary to provide an outlet for debate as part of the upcoming elections. We’re excited to partner with CitrusTV to ensure the debate reaches all interested parties.”

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m., and the debate will last until 8 p.m. For additional information, contact CitrusTV General Manager Nick Ross at .

SA is covering the costs of security and custodial services for the additional 56 open hours. The initiative was championed by James Franco, SA Academic Affairs chair.

“Student Association is thrilled to see this long-desired initiative become a reality. The administrators for ���ϲ����� Libraries, led by Dean Seaman, were wonderful partners throughout the process, and Student Association thanks them for their support,” Franco says. “We look forward to seeing the positive effects this change has on the campus community and will continue to work with ���ϲ����� Libraries to create more impactful initiatives down the road.”

The event will analyze, discuss and create frameworks to address the most pressing challenges students on campus face.

The one-day conference is being hosted by the Student Association, Graduate Student Organization, Residence Hall Association and ESF Undergraduate Student Association. It will take place on Sunday, April 19, in the Joyce Hergenhan Auditorium in Newhouse 3.

The event will analyze, discuss and create frameworks to address the most pressing challenges students on campus face. According to the host student groups “by focusing on a commitment-based approach, we hope to empower and improve the ���ϲ����� experience for all, thus upholding our community’s values and strengthening our campus traditions.”

The event will offer an important opportunity for duly-elected student representatives and governing bodies, student organizations, ��and the student body as a whole to bring forth their ideas, opinions and concerns about important University issues. The Chancellor and his Executive Team look forward to listening, learning and discussing issues of student concern.

Student Association President Boris Gresely says, “We’re appreciative of the Chancellor’s support and are excited with all three branches—students, faculty, and staff—coming together for this conference to promote action, opportunities and a framework for change.”

Among the “action areas” to be highlighted at the conference are the following: “Defining Diversity & Inclusivity”; “Student-to-Student Accountability for Sexual Consent”; “Curing & Caring: Health & Wellness Campaigns”; “Imaginary Borders: Campus vs Community Safety”; and “Student Empowerment: Alternative Approach to University Governance.”

More information about the event can be found at .

Goldstein Alumni and Faculty Center

“Part of Chancellor Syverud’s mission is to expand the learning experience outside the classroom, and Chat & Dine is a great way to do so,” says Aysha Seedat, director of the Student Association Student Life Committee. “In this sense, students are able to learn and network in a different, more personal and relaxed environment.”

Chat & Dine occurs every Tuesday and Friday from 11:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m. Approximately 100 students, staff and faculty have participated in the program so far.

“The Chat & Dine was such a lovely experience,” says senior Maryann Akinboyewa. “I am the co-president of the newly formed Writing Program Student Organization. My executive board and I had spent quite some time brainstorming��activities we��could do with our faculty advisor, Professor Patrick Berry. When the notification about the Chat & Dine came out, I jumped at it! This was exactly what we��were looking for. I mean,��we all love to eat and for once, we could celebrate and chat with our faculty advisor outside of the context of class or work.”

“I think Chat & Dine helps the students relax and get to know faculty, staff and their professors without having to be in a classroom setting,” she adds. “It’s great being able to break bread with your peers and faculty. I am glad this is a program now because I think it will foster and encourage��new relationships and conversations.”

Students interested in inviting faculty or staff to lunch should start by gathering a group of peers and completing the application form on the . Once approved, students can select a date and time that works for the group and faculty or staff member they would like to invite. Student Association makes all the reservations. The last day for reservations in the spring semester is anticipated to be April 28.

For more information about the Chat & Dine program, contact the Student Association Student Life Committee at studentlife.syr@gmail.com.

Chancellor Kent Syverud announced the creation of the working group last month in response to resolutions passed last fall by the University’s Student Association and Graduate Student Organization.

The action was taken to address the student government groups’ belief that certain language in the current policy “is vague, overly broad and subjective, which restricts expression and stifles academic freedom by prohibiting the discussion of controversial yet important political, social and economic issues that form the basis of legitimate academic debate.”

In February, David Rubin, professor of communications and dean emeritus of the , accepted the appointment to lead the working group.

The other members of the working group are the following:

• undergraduate students Janine Bogris ’18 and Margaux Pavesi ’18, both students with the Newhouse School, who were appointed by the Student Association
• graduate students Amy Burnette of the and Zach Greenberg of the , who were appointed by the Graduate Student Association
• Crystal Bartolovich, associate professor of English, and James Duah-Agyeman, director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, who were appointed by the University Senate

The working group is charged with reviewing the issues raised in the resolutions and making recommendations to the Chancellor.

In their resolutions, the student governing bodies have asked for more specific wording that is less restrictive of speech and more accurately reflects the University’s commitment to freedom of expression, with the goal of enhancing “academic freedom and the quality of education.”

from on .

The action was taken to address the student government groups’ belief that certain language in the current policy “is vague, overly broad and subjective, which restricts expression and stifles academic freedom by prohibiting the discussion of controversial yet important political, social and economic issues that form the basis of legitimate academic debate.”

David Rubin, professor of communications and dean emeritus of the , has accepted an appointment to lead the working group. In addition to Rubin, the group will be comprised of two students appointed by the Student Association, two students appointed by the Graduate Student Association, and one faculty and one staff member, both appointed by the University Senate. The working group will be charged with reviewing the issues raised in the resolutions and making recommendations to the Chancellor.

“I appreciate the thoughtful concerns raised by the Graduate Student Organization and the Student Association regarding the language in this policy,” says Chancellor Syverud. “I agree that there is no room for ambiguity when it comes to our institutional commitment to freedom of expression, and I am confident that this working group will help to ensure our policies fully reflect that commitment.”

“Wide open, robust debate is at the heart of the learning process,” says Rubin. “I am delighted to accept this assignment and look forward to working with the committee to craft a policy that fits the 21st century and supports the goals of our institution.”

In their resolutions, the student governing bodies have asked for more specific wording that is less restrictive of speech and more accurately reflects the University’s commitment to freedom of expression, with the goal of enhancing “academic freedom and the quality of education.”

“The Student Association advocates free speech,” says Boris Gresely, president of the Student Association. “A precise definition of harassment will encourage students to confront and engage challenging topics, while a broad definition endangers free speech rights. Clarification of the ���ϲ����� definition of harassment will protect our students and organizations; the resolutions, passed by the GSO and SA, will modify the policy in that manner.”

“Protecting free speech in a responsible manner is crucial at any institution of higher learning,” says Patrick Neary, president of the Graduate Student Organization.�� “Overly broad policies, such as the current policy defining online harassment, need to be pruned to ensure they do not impinge on protected speech.�� A well-defined, narrow policy will allow the university to curtail legitimate harassment without the threat of eliminating the kind of robust discussion necessary on our campus.�� The GSO and SA resolutions call for modifying the current policy to create just such a well-defined notion of harassment.”

Student Association President Boris Gresely will now have the ability to email the undergraduate student body and post reports on the Student Affairs website. These new methods will provide the Student Association with enhanced ability to communicate with the undergraduate population, in addition to their social media accounts, website and committees.

“This semester, the Student Association has worked to create an environment of open dialogue between ourselves, the student body and the administration,” says Gresely. “These advancements in our potential avenues of communication will only add to the progress that has already been made, and continue to foster productive conversation.”

The Student Association consists of elected student representatives from each school/college that serve the interests of undergraduate students in all facets of University life.

These changes align with the ability the Graduate Student Organization president has had since fall 2010.

The RSO Recognition Program is the Student Association’s way of rewarding and recognizing these organizations.

Two RSOs will be chosen and each will receive a check for $100 that will be deposited into their miscellaneous account. The RSOs can then use this money however they please.

To apply, complete the application at . Anyone can nominate a group; you need not be a group member to apply.

Applications are due by Friday, Nov. 8, at�� 5 p.m.

Student Association President Alexandra Curtis recalls her first days on campus during the Chancellor’s Convocation for new students.

Alexandra Curtis ’14 sat in the Carrier Dome three years ago with her Flint Hall roommate, captivated by the words of the Convocation speakers. After hearing from the Student Association president, she turned to her new friend and said “I think I want to do that one day.” Curtis went to the student government office, met the staff and immediately felt at home.

On Friday, she was the one addressing the Convocation audience as Student Association president. Her dream became reality and, in turn, her lesson to ���ϲ�����’s newest students.

“I share this story with you because whether or not you find your home here with us at the student association, you will find your home here at ���ϲ�����,” Curtis said. “I’ve always said there is an organization here for each and every one of you.”

Curtis challenged students to get involved.

“Pursue something you’ve always been interested in. Learn about a different culture or do something you’ve only done in your wildest dreams,” Curtis said. “���ϲ����� will push you to go above and beyond all of your endeavors.”

Let it begin

Curtis was among several speakers, including Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor and Vice Chancellor and Provost Eric F. Spina, who addressed the 3,900 first-year and transfer students to campus in the official ceremony to mark the beginning of the academic year. On behalf of the SU community, Spina welcomed the new students into SU’s “diverse, caring and intellectually stimulating community.”

The ���ϲ����� Marching Band provided regal pomp and circumstance as the academic procession of deans, faculty and administration members entered the Dome to an audience of new students and their family and friends. (See below for an audio clip of the SU Marching Band’s performance of the alma mater with Jason Kammerer ’14.)

SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry President Cornelius (Neil) B. Murphy Jr. also spoke to the gathered students, who included ESF’s Class of 2017. Tadodaho Sidney Hill of the Onondaga Nation, Haudenosaunee Confederacy, gave a thanksgiving address in his native language and Dean of Admissions Maurice Harris presented the new students to Cantor.

“Today, as you begin a new and wonderful chapter of your lives, I charge you to have the courage and imagination to join us in Scholarship in Action. Explore new places, make new friends and discover new worlds,” Cantor said. “Your families and the admissions offices at SU and ESF assure us, Neil and myself, that you are ready and so are we.”

The Chancellor encouraged students to learn from and depend on each other, be inspired to achieve things together and be comfortable in being “clueless,” not always knowing the right answer. “I’m extolling the virtues of looking for the answers in non-obvious places and people, and of learning from a diverse community of experts, not just those with demonstrated pedigree,” she said.

Students can find examples in the current SU community, in which students and faculty are taking on such issues as bringing justice to Civil Rights Era murders, working to reclaim Onondaga Lake ecology and reinvigorating the Near West Side of ���ϲ�����, all with a contingent of varied community partners.

“You have chosen to come to an amazingly diverse, alive, honest, active place—a place that understands what it means to care about the world, about others and to learn by doing,” Cantor said.

Get used to “the ’Cuse”

Professor Timothy Eatman of the School of Education tells students “the ‘Cuse” is a very special place.

As they settle into their new homes and community, students were also encouraged by Timothy Eatman, a faculty member, to become familiar with the addition to their vernacular: the ’Cuse—and what that represents. “The ’Cuse is a very special place. And goodness gracious, are you poised for an amazing journey,” said Eatman, who is also the co-director of the national consortium based at SU.

Eatman recognized Cantor for the ways in which she’s exemplified the best of “the ’CUSE”—courage, understanding, sacrifice and excellence—as she concludes her tenure at SU later this year, before beginning her new role at Rutgers-Newark in January 2014.

“I salute you for your leadership on addressing pressing public problems, for example your role in bringing the ���ϲ����� community together to prioritize education, creating a national model that drew the president of the United States here to Henninger High School just yesterday,” Eatman said. [President Obama spoke in ���ϲ����� about his vision for making higher education more affordable and finding innovative ideas to make that happen, highlighting ���ϲ�����’s Say Yes to Education program in partnership with ���ϲ����� city schools and universities, including SU.]

Students can embrace the ’Cuse ideals as they begin their academic career at SU. “Members of the Class of 2017 take courage as you begin this journey. It takes real courage to ask, ‘How can I make the most difference?’ rather than ‘How can I make the most money?’ Courage to pursue work that both pays and matters,” Eatman said.

Eatman challenged students to take up Cantor’s earlier words of connecting their degree with something bigger than themselves to nurture their own needs and benefit society. “We must move beyond the often disconnected and less challenging comfort zones of traditional university education models to open up new thinking and channels for creating the world we need,” Eatman said.

The event wrapped up with a performance of SU’s alma mater by the SU Marching Band and Jason Kammerer ’14.

Curtis joined the SA her first semester on campus, and says that since then, running for president has always been a goal of hers. “I just felt very passionately about SA and what SA can do for the students,” Curtis says. “I definitely had it in the back of my mind that running for president would be something I would do one day.”

Curtis says that somewhere between managing current president Dylan Lustig’s campaign and becoming vice president, it became clear that she would run for president her junior year.

Curtis will assume her her role on Jan. 1, 2013,��and plans to continue initiatives started under the 56th administration, including the Readership Program, which enables the New York Times to be offered in every residence hall on campus for free. But Curtis also has some new ideas she wants to bring to SA.

One initiative Curtis is passionate about involves working with faculty and administration to change current University policies for��receiving academic credit and meeting requirements for summer internships. Curtis said it is difficult for students who do not have the appropriate faculty advisors to have internship requirements waived. She wants to establish an initiative that eliminates these roadblocks. Curtis says her passion for this initiative stems from personal experience and those of other students receiving internships that faculty could not approve.

Curtis also has goals specifically for the Student Association. “I would really want to see us reach 100 percent��as an organization,” she says, and particularly would like SA to bridge the gap between SU and SUNY-ESF. Full representation was attained under the 55th administration and reaching those numbers again is a goal, she says.

The idea of Curtis managing Lustig’s campaign was a conversation that stemmed from a venting session over bubble tea freshman year, she remembers. Having been frustrated by leadership in SA at the time, Curtis says she and Lustig decided to step forward and run to make a difference.

Now president of the 57th session, Curtis says, “It’s still crazy to look back on all of that, and think ‘wow, I’ve done all this, and this is where I am now.’”

Emily Pompelia is a work-study student in the Office of News Services.

Rapper XV, disc jockey RJD2 and student performer Delirium will provide musical entertainment during Mayfest. Delirium will lead the performances at 1:30 p.m., followed by XV and RJD2.

Students can enter a drawing for a chance to win prizes such as gift certificates for Amazon.com, Best Buy, iTunes, the SU Bookstore and local restaurants, and yearlong passes for two to University Union events. Drawing will occur from 3 to 3:30 p.m. Students must be present to win.

Free food and beverages will be available at the event. A limited amount of beer will be available to students age 21 and over at no charge (proof of age required). A student will show proof of age to Chestnut Security staff. If the individual is 21 or older, then the individual will proceed to the next step: the student will present his/her SU/SUNY-ESF I.D. to Chestnut Security staff who will verify the student by swiping the I.D. card and accessing the Odyssey System. The student will then receive a bracelet from an SU administrative staff person. A student arriving before 3 p.m. will be given a bracelet with 4 tabs that can be exchanged for 4 beers. A student arriving at 3 p.m. or later will be given a bracelet with 2 tabs that can be exchanged for 2 beers. Students can re-enter the beer area if they have a bracelet with tabs remaining on the bracelet.

Anyone who appears to have had too much to drink will not be served. All SU Food Services staff serving in the beer garden area have been trained in safe and legal service of alcohol by Responsible Server Training. This training includes recognizing the signs of intoxication, the personal responsibilities of serving alcoholic beverages, and refusal of service if warranted. The serving staff are Carrier Dome Concessions employees who have experience with the service of beer at Carrier Dome events.

For the safety of students and residents of the University area, throughout the day of Friday, April 30, all city ordinances will be strictly enforced by the ���ϲ����� Police Department in the Walnut Park area and along Euclid Avenue and in the East Neighborhood.

Walnut Park is located north of E.S. Bird Library and is bounded by Harrison Street to the north, Walnut Avenue to the east, Waverly Avenue to the south and Walnut Place to the west. Mayfest will take place rain or shine. The park and surrounding streets will be blocked off before, during and after the April 30 event:

• Walnut Place will be closed to traffic from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on April 30. Parking will be restricted from 4 p.m. April 28 to 10 p.m. on April 30.
• Walnut Avenue (from Waverly Avenue to Harrison Street) will be closed to traffic from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on April 30.��Parking will be restricted from 6 a.m. on April 29 to 8 p.m. on April 30.
• Marshall Street (from University Avenue to Walnut Avenue) will be closed to traffic from 9 a.m.��to 7 p.m. on April 30. Parking will be restricted from 10 a.m. April 29 to 8 p.m. on April 30.
• East Adams Street (east of University Avenue to Walnut Avenue) will be closed to traffic from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on April 30.

Alternate parking will be available in the Manley and Fine lots.

Dining note: Due to staffing and food needs for this event, Shaw and Brockway dining halls will close at 2 p.m. on April 30.

For more information on Mayfest, visit .