Cayuga Community College Auburn & Fulton, New York
Collegian cayugacollegian@gmail.com
VOL. 67 ISSUE 16 FEBRUARY 23, 2021
MORE NUTRITION BENEFITS OPEN FOR STUDENTS
CAYUGABRIEFS FIRST STUDENT SENATE MEETING FEBRUARY 26TH
By Michael Perry, editor-in-chief
The first Spring 2021 Senate Meeting is scheduled for next Friday, February 26th at 11 AM. Representatives from all clubs are encouraged to attend the meeting, however only students can vote in Senate sessions. The Zoom Meeting ID is 4487 4288 . Faculty and Student Association spending updates will be provided at Senate meeting by Student Government Organization members. If any club decides to remain inactive for remaining Spring 2021 semester, please contact the SGO leadership.
College students are known for living on Ramen noodles and other cheap foods, but that may become a thing of the past. Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced a new opportunity for college students to access Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly known as SNAP. SNAP provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of those in need so they can purchase healthy foods. SUNY is partnering with the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance on this initiative to help fight food insecurity for low-income college students.
SOMA & THE CAYUGA CREATIVE-WRITING CLUB HOST EVENT
Michael Perry
Poet in fiction writer Jerry Mirskin will present a writing workshop on Wednesday, February 24, at 11 AM. In addition to the writing workshop, Mirskin will read from his latest collection of flash fiction and discuss aspects of craft and publication. Professor Mirskin previously visited the Fulton and Auburn campuses in the spring of 2017, when he read from his published collections, as part of the English and Humanities Division’s Visiting-Writers Series. To attend the event, please join us Wednesday, 2/24, 11:00am, on Zoom! Meeting #6263751992 — Mark Montgomery Montgomery@cayuga-cc.edu
GOVERNOR CUOMO EASES RESTRICTIONS ON SOME RECREATION In his latest email to New Yorkers to keep them up-to-date on COVID-19 news, Governor Andrew Cuomo cited all decisions are guided by science and data; and in light of the continued decreases in the infection and hospitalization rates, he is now able to take the steps in the state’s post-COVID recovery and bring back recreational industries with the proper safety protocols in place. For instance, he says indoor family entertainment centers will be able to reopen with 25 percent capacity and health protocols starting Friday, March 26th. Outdoor amusement parks can open with a 33 percent capacity starting Friday, April 9th. He also says day and overnight summer camps in New York State can begin to plan for reopening. The Department of Health will issue specific reopening guidance, including details on timing, in the coming weeks.
NOW RECORDING MONDAYS AT 4 PM!
ZOOM ID NUMBER
934 9197 6612
PHOTO BY MARY G. MERRITT
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
CAYUGA HONORED FOR COMMITMENT TO SUPPORTING STUDENT-VETERANS For the fourth consecutive year, Cayuga Community College has received a special designation recognizing the institution for its commitment to student-veterans and their families. This week Cayuga earned a 2021-2022 Military Friendly® School designation, an award applauding colleges and universities for supporting members of the military community with dedicated academic, career and financial services. The designations are awarded annually by VIQTORY, a veteran-owned small business, and the Military Friendly® Advisory Council, which includes leaders from the higher education and military recruitment community. Cayuga Assistant Director of Community Education and Workforce Development Emily Cameron, who also oversees the College’s Veterans Programming and Initiatives, said the College was proud of its efforts to support student-veterans and their families. “Everyone at Cayuga is appreciative and supportive of our veterans and their families. They are an essential part of our campus community, and we work each day to create a welcoming, supportive atmosphere for our student-veterans. We look forward to helping our student-veterans and their families in the year ahead,” she said. Cayuga offers diverse support services for student-veterans, which are currently set in a distance learning environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The College offers an online orientation designed for student-veterans to illustrate available services, and hosts monthly workshops featuring guest speakers outlining services and benefits available
at the College or in the community. Special online programming was also available during Veterans Week. The College also offers transition assistance, networking events, a Veterans Club, and opportunities to meet with trained personnel for assistance accessing educational financial benefits. As part of a regular internal evaluation, the College created a Student Veterans Support Team, comprised of members from all College departments. The committee works to determine how Cayuga can meet the needs of student-veterans and their families. “We’re continuously looking for ways we can improve our services for student-veterans and their families,” said Cameron. “It is a priority for us to constantly connect with our veterans and military-affiliated students, to make sure they have their questions answered and access to any services they may need.” More than a decade old, the Military Friendly® Schools list is determined by public data and survey responses from participating schools. Colleges volunteer to participate, and are assessed on their ability to meet thresholds in areas including student retention, job placement and loan repayment. Ratings are assigned in six categories: academic policies and compliance, admissions and orientation, culture and commitment, financial aid and assistance, graduation and career, and military student support and retention. Cayuga exceeded the Military Friendly® standards in all six categories. Out of more than 1,200 colleges and universities that volunteered, 747 earned a designation. For more information about Cayuga’s veterans services, visit https://www.cayuga-cc. edu/students/services/veterans/.
Cayuga Community College Registrar, Shannon Petrie, says to support this initiative, the college has implemented numerous actions to get the message out to students. She says students that fall within the parameters will receive an email once a semester providing them the information on their possible eligibility and the next step. The form the students need to fill out is on the college’s website, https://www.cayuga-cc. edu/SNAP/, and hard copies will be available in the Registrar’s Office. The website also gives a detailed description of student eligibility, and is a great starting point for students who would like to apply for SNAP. Andrew Poole, CCC’s Media Relations Associate, applauded the effort by Governor Cuomo, saying “Cayuga appreciates that Governor Andrew Cuomo and other state leaders have included college students in this expansion of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. We’re proud to participate in a program that will provide additional assistance to our students, and it’s a program we encourage all eligible students to consider.”
This program will provide students the ability to purchase healthy foods without stressing about their budget. According to a study conducted by the Wisconsin HOPE Lab, more than 33% of college students in the United States lack enough to eat. Without the proper diet, it can be tough to concentrate and stay focused in school. Baylee Wiler, a freshman majoring in veterinary technology at Medaille College, said she had SNAP previously and it helped out a lot. “It only covers food products so you can’t use it for toilet paper and stuff like that, but having the grocery part covered made it easy to get the essentials,”said Wiler. The administrators of the program say that student having the capability to afford food while attending college is tougher than most would think, but with this initiative students and their wallets can breathe a sigh of relief.
THE OFFICIAL STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER OF CAYUGA COMMUNITY COLLEGE