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class act Kristen Duggleby, assistant director of annual giving programs, said a committee of seniors led the event to energize the rest of the class to participate in fundraising. The Senior Class Giving Campaign started with the Class of 2010, but the first Class Act
looking ahead
Philanthropy Week kicked off on Monday with Class Act. Here are the events for the rest of the week.
Wednesday, April 2 • Phanstiel Lecture & Orange Circle Awards, 4 p.m.
Thursday, April 3 • Thank-a-Donor Day, all day • Philanthropy Week Scavenger Hunt, all day
Day took place last year, she added. “The Class Act initiative runs the entire academic year with a major focus and push second semester,” Duggleby said. “Class Act Day was started to put an intense emphasis on educating students about giving back to SU, having students make a gift to support what is meaningful to them and creating a buzz through social media.” Duggleby said the amount they’re able to raise varies year-to-year. Although the initia-
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governor biology on the pre-med track. After completing his MBA in finance in 1986, McCormick ventured into the business world. In 1994, he founded Saturn Partners, a company that finances early-stage businesses, in Boston. McCormick said his interest in business — and applying his scientific background to solving business problems — drove him toward finance. Eventually, his work made him realize that state government needed someone who is business savvy, leading him toward running for governor. “That approach to solving problems — breaking down a problem, bringing in experts and creating solutions — is what drew me to the political side of life. It’s that skill set that we desperately need in the public sector,” McCormick said. McCormick said he is where he is today because of those who have always been by his side. On long bus rides to and from games, his coach, Roy Simmons Jr., would talk to McCormick not only about specific plays, but also the direction of McCormick’s life and the effect he could have on people, he said. Simmons and many others took an interest in McCormick, shaping his life and influencing the character he has today. Throughout the years, McCormick said he still keeps in touch with his former teammates, both in the good times and the bad times. Earlier in March, one of McCormick’s teammates from both high school and college, Randy Lundblad, died after a two-year battle with liver cancer. McCormick traveled to Michigan, where he delivered the eulogy for his beloved teammate. McCormick was exceptionally close with Lundblad and his other teammates, considering that about half of them in 1983 were also seniors, McCormick said. “When that happens, you’ve been through the meat grinder for a lot of hours — thousands of hours,” he said. “So you can appreciate the kinds of bonds you get as team. Given the nature of lacrosse as a true team sport, you live together, you work together and you die together.” But not everyone was a fan of McCormick or his team. He said some people have a preconceived notion about student-athletes, despite
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tive is targeted toward seniors, all students can give back to support an area of SU, whether it’s scholarships, an individual college or student life, she said. “We want them to leave their legacy and give to what is important to them,” Duggleby added. Following the donation process, an email was sent to each donor, congratulating him or her and offering up the opportunity to share the accomplishment on Facebook and Twitter. The social media posts were used as a sign of pride, while also encouraging others to join in the giving. PJ Alampi, a member of the 2014 Senior Class Giving Committee, said he gave to the annual fund in order to make sure SU stays in top shape. “Giving back to SU is important because it provides years to come with the same amazing opportunities we, as seniors, found on the Hill,” he said. Simone Goldslager, a member of the Student Philanthropy Council, which hosts Philanthropy Week, said giving back to SU as a student is important because the school gives students many opportunities that others may not have. She added that everyone has their personal reasons for coming to SU, and their unique reasons to give back to the university. “We all have a story for why we came to SU. My dad came here, and I thought that SU presented me with the brightest future,” Goldslager said. “I think that when we think about the reasons why we came to SU, giving back isn’t something that’s hard to do — we want to do it.” acptachi@syr.edu
his teammates becoming successful businessmen, producers, lawyers and teachers. McCormick said he remembers talking to Bob McClure, a professor in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, about the issue, and McClure told him that people don’t realize how tremendous the demands of student-athletes are. “You have to be hyper-efficient; especially as a pre-med student, to get your work done and still perform every day at the highest level,” he said. It was a tough balance to manage, McCormick said. But, he added, the key to a great education is to be as deeply and intensely engaged as possible. “Regardless if it’s sports or music or programming or a club or a sorority, just go at it with your heart and your mind and your soul, and you’re going to get a lot out of it,” he said. “But you won’t if you’re passive.” Foley said he was a football coach at West Genesee when he met McCormick. Foley ended up becoming a counselor in the College of Arts and Sciences and would meet with McCormick to talk. But they lost touch after McCormick left SU until they reconnected in the 1990s, Foley said. After learning about McCormick’s success in business and his charity work, such as the Sean
There’s no hidden agenda. It really is him trying to do the right thing for his community. Tom Foley whitman executive associate dean
McDonough Charitable Foundation, Inc., he said he was amazed at what McCormick had accomplished and how he wanted to give back to the community by running for governor. Foley said he thinks it is tough to be an independent candidate, especially competing in a state like Massachusetts, where Democratic candidates tend to be more popular. Pete Wilson, the press secretary for McCormick’s campaign, said although McCormick has not had much experience in politics, his
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crimea “Promoting Democracy in Postcommunist Ukraine” provided further insight into the domestic policies that helped shape the current situation. “Before leaving, Yanukovych signed an interim agreement with other political leaders, one of them being Russian, which has since been used as leverage for invasion,” she said. However, Russian president Vladimir Putin and his supporters overlook the fact that the agreement was never signed and finalized, leading to condemnation from the West and its allies, she said. A big fear held by many Ukrainians is that Crimea will serve as a catalyst for Russian military to annex other areas, she said. Brian Taylor, an associate professor of political science at SU, said that many Russian elites claim the annexation is long overdue. Crimea was a part of the Soviet Union and much of the general populace speak and identify as Russian, unlike the vast majority of Ukrainians who identify as Ukrainian. After the discussion, sophomore international relations major Brendan Finlay outlined the complexity of the issue. “By letter of law, it was illegal but there may have been support in Crimea and annexation,” Finlay said.
Taylor said Putin may have “won Crimea but lost Ukraine,” as the invasion could have a polarizing effect of the rest of the nation aligning itself with the West. He elaborated that democratization means a huge upheaval of the current system. Putin’s agenda is slowly but surely growing more authoritarian with access to free media and political participation very marginalized in Russia, he said. “Growing interdependence is a check on aggressive behavior,” said James Steinberg, dean of Maxwell. “That being said, the more intertwined a nation is with Russia, the less likely it will be to act.” Steinberg added that ultimately, the nations believe that Putin will cave to their demands once the fiscal realities take hold. This proves to be a double-edged sword, as many nations in the region are not getting involved in the crisis because their economies could face the repercussions as well, he said. Countries in the Far East, namely China, have far too much invested in Russian markets to get involved, Steinberg said. Crimea also serves as a test for how powers like the U.S. will act when other areas of constant political realignment, he added. What needs to be addressed, he said, is the fact that without enforcers in the international community to punish aggressors like Russia, they will be able to continue without concern for their actions. omshaaba@syr.edu
jeff mccormick poses for a photo with his family. McCormick wants to create and maintain jobs as part of his platform for Massachusetts governor. courtesy of alex freedman
outsider perspective could benefit the Massachusetts government. “Others have said they have business experience, but not the experience growing businesses that he does,” Wilson said. “I think having a fresh look at problems that the state faces is one of his strong suits.” Mike Messere, the head coach of boys varsity lacrosse at West Genesee, first met McCormick when he participated in a summer recreation lacrosse program when he was in middle school. When Messere learned that McCormick was running for governor, he said he thought it was great because McCormick was the kind of person that people needed. “His whole life and his work were in business, in the business of developing businesses, the business of evaluating whether businesses were going to be responsible or viable,” Messere said. “That’s number one. Number two, he gets along with everybody. He’s very good at personal contacts.” But that doesn’t stop others from worrying. Foley said he had a friend run for Congress before and saw how people get “chewed up” by the process
because of how others generally treat politicians. Yet, McCormick’s announcement to run for governor didn’t surprise him, Foley said, because of McCormick’s real, good-natured ambitions. “There’s no hidden agenda,” he said. “It really is him trying to do the right thing for his community.” Wilson also noticed McCormick’s consideration for others since he started working with him. McCormick and Wilson attended a St. Patrick’s Day parade on Cape Cod with Wilson’s wife and baby. As Wilson’s wife struggled to carry both her son and a diaper bag, McCormick grabbed the diaper bag from her to help out. “That’s just kind of the guy he is,” Wilson said. Foley echoed similar sentiments, adding that there are some little things that the average person wouldn’t know about McCormick, like how he has competed in several marathons or how he has played minor league baseball. Said Foley: “He’s almost too good to be true.” ekmeyers@syr.edu | @Ellen_Meyers