Winter 2022 Issue of OSWEGO Alumni Magazine

OSWEGO ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT OSWEGO n VOL. 48, NO. 1 n WINTER 2022

YEARS

26

as

PRESIDENT

44 YEARS of

SERVICE

The Stanley Years

ON OUR CAMPUS

Hundreds gathered for the annual Green and Gold Day Campus Photo outside of the newly named Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall during Founder’s Weekend on Oct. 1.

Read more about the celebration on page 15.

Photo by Jim Russell ’83. Submit your own campus photo to: alumni@oswego.edu.

OSWEGO Alumni Magazine

Winter 2022: Vol. 48, No. 1 Publisher Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09

Photographer Jim Russell ’83

Editor Margaret D. Spillett

In Memoriam Compilers Jamie Kapuscinski ’09 Diane Schrader

Designer Jennifer Broderick

Contributing Writers Howard Gordon ’74 M’78 Linda Loomis ’90 M’97 Office of Communication and Marketing Contributing Photographers Kyle Hurley ’22 (16) Rose Gosselin Throop ’95 (45) Interns John Custodio ’22 Kayla Elfers ’22 Savanah France ’23 Chelsea Maldonado ‘22 Nick Vassenelli ’21

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CAMPUS CURRENTS

6 Alumni Couple Endow Summer Research Experience for Chemistry Students 7 December Commencement Ceremonies

8 Endowed Possibility Scholarship Pays Tribute to President Stanley 9 Silveiras’ Gift Continues Legacy of Support for Oswego 12 College Launches New Institute, Announces Second Grand Challenge 13 35th Annual ALANA Conference Focuses on Migration Stories 15 Founder’s Weekend: Celebrating 160 Years of Higher Education

On the cover: This illustration depicts SUNY Oswego’s 10th president, Deborah F. Stanley, looking back on her 26 years as president and 44 years of service to the college. The green-and-gold school colors overlay the college’s iconic Sheldon Hall, named for college founder Edward Austin Sheldon. Robyn Diaz, a graphic designer with SUNY System Administration, created the illustration, which was adapted from her original design that was presented to Deborah F. Stanley during the Founder’s Weekend Luncheon on Oct. 1.

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Office of Development and Alumni Engagement King Alumni Hall, Oswego, N.Y. 13126 Phone: 315-312-2258 Email: alumni@oswego.edu Website: alumni.oswego.edu

f facebook.com/oswegoalumni I @oswegoalumni t @oswegoalumni OSWEGO is published two times a year by the Oswego Alumni Association Inc., King Alumni Hall, State University of New York at Oswego, Oswego, N.Y. 13126. It is distributed free of charge to alumni, friends, faculty, staff and families of current students, with support from The Fund for Oswego. Printed January 2022.

OSWEGO Alumni Magazine is printed on recycled paper with inks that are non-toxic, contain no heavy metals, and are composed of bio-derived renewable resources ranging from 25-40% (as a percentage of total ink weight).

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37 FEATURE The Six Pillars of the Stanley Presidency

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CLASS NOTES

35 From the Archives

20-21 Academic Excellence

36

Alumni Bookshelf

22-23 Learner-Centeredness

37

Weddings

38

Kudos to President Stanley

42

In Memoriam

44

The Last Word

24-25 Campus Renewal 26-27 Successful Fundraising 28-29 Productive Partnerships 30-31 Caring and Inclusive Culture 32-33 Presidential Leadership 34

A Message of Gratitude

45 Oswego Object Editor’s Note: This special issue of OSWEGO Alumni Magazine documents some of the major accomplishments of the college during the tenure of SUNY Oswego’s 10th president, Deborah F. Stanley, and recognizes her remarkable leadership and dedication to the college over the past 44 years. The typical Class Notes section will resume in our next issue. Please send your updates to alumni@oswego.edu or fill out the online form at alumni.oswego.edu.

Have news to share?

Send us your news! We want to hear about your new job, promotion, marriage, babies, visits with Oswego alumni or even just a change in your address.

Submissions received between Jan. 1-June 30 will run in our fall issue, and between July 1-Dec. 31 in our spring issue.

To submit your class note, email alumni@oswego.edu, call 315-312-2258 or complete the class note form online at alumni.oswego.edu. You can also mail submissions to the OSWEGO Alumni Magazine, King Alumni Hall, Oswego, N.Y. 13126.

Please note: Class notes included in the magazine come from a variety of sources, such as alumni submissions, news releases, social media posts and news media reports.

ONLINE EXCLUSIVES magazine.oswego.edu

See exclusive content, including additional photos, multi-media stories and extended versions of some of the stories in this issue.

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From the President Time—a topic that I have been thinking about a lot as I wrap up my long tenure as president of this wonderful institution. I have been blessed to have had time—time to plan, time to gather resources, time to really establish connections, time to fail, time to regroup when failure happened, time to make an impact. There are so few opportunities when people can actually say they have had this wide swath of time to be able to do just that. My 26 years isn’t as much an accomplishment as it was a gift.

One of our time-honored traditions here at Oswego, the Torchlight ceremonies, marks the beginning and end of a student’s years on campus. Welcoming Torchlight occurs on students’ first night on campus, and we symbolically ignite their passion for discovery and knowledge by lighting candles from the Torch of Learning. We tell them during the ceremony that the next time they will gather as a group will be on the eve of their commencement. We remind students how fast their time on campus will fly by and encourage them to make the most of every day. Often, our Commencement Eve Torchlight speakers reflect on just how quickly their time at Oswego passed but also how much they were able to grow and transform during their college years.

Time enabled our confidence to grow as an institution and among the people here.

We could succeed because of our trust, loyalty and constancy, and because there was no deadline on success. There still is no deadline on success. That’s one of the big lessons I’ve learned as the leader of this college. Take your time. Think things over, set aside a problem and return to it from a fresh perspective. Often when you do, you learn new things, gain insights, get a clearer picture of the larger landscape and craft a better way forward. We have been able to accomplish a lot together, likely more than we would have been able to if we had rushed into decisions.

Because we have invested the time into caring for and learning from each other, we were better equipped to deal with emergencies when they arose. For example, no one could have predicted the COVID-19 pandemic, but we were able to rise to the occasion. Yes, we were prepared technologically, but we were also prepared as a community, who helped each other through difficult circumstances. We knew how to link arms and get ourselves through it. That speaks to the caring and compassionate culture that we have been able to develop and strengthen together.

When I first became president in the mid-1990s, I interacted with alumni from the 1930s and 1940s who provided insights into some Oswego qualities that seemed to transcend time. In their stories of Oswego, there was the familiar strand of learning by doing and of feeling connected to their faculty and to each other. Many of our students then and today were the first in their families to attend college. They were hard-workers who showed grit in the face of adversity and found ways around obstacles that threatened their progress.

Our alumni span multiple generations. Yet, you share strands from the same Oswego fabric. Our alumni—more than 90,000 strong—are one of our greatest resources, and you were a tremendous help to me. You gave me reconnaissance of what the institution used to be like, and gave me an idea of what it could be. You helped the institution, time and time again, by sharing your expertise, assistance and philanthropy. (continued on the next page)

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STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT OSWEGO Deborah F. Stanley, President Scott R. Furlong, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Mary Gibbons Canale ’81, Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement Vicki Cafalone Furlong ’08 M’10, Vice President for Administration and Finance Kathleen Kerr, Vice President for Student Affairs

OSWEGO ALUMNI ASSOCIATION INC.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Dana Segall Murphy ’99, President Kathleen Smits Evans ’84, First Vice President Phillip Grome ’89, Second Vice President Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09, Executive Director Edgar Ames ’68 Paul Austin ’92 Marc Beck ’93* Brad Bernstein ’89 Paul Brennan ’93* Harry Bronson ’82 Austin Byrd ’10 Michael Byrne ’79* Mary Gibbons Canale ’81** Shoy Colbourne ’09 Raelynn Cooter ’77 Emmanuel Cruz ’09 Justin Dobrow ’17 Thaina Gonzalez ’92 Howard Gordon ’74 M’78 Jennifer Warner Janes ’91 Rufaro Matombo ’12 Steve Messina ’91* Sandra Michaca ’13 Dresden Engle Olcott ’88 Dee McGowan Perkins ’85 Trudy Perkins ’93 Cathleen Richards ’09 Mark Salmon ’93* Dan Scaia ’68* Tucker Sholtes ’15 Jeffrey Sorensen ’92 Yvonne Spicer ’84 M’85 Deborah F. Stanley** Ron Tascarel­la Jr. ’06 Hank Volpe ’73 Sheneya Wilson ’15 M’16 Benita Zahn ’76 * At large

** Ex officio

OSWEGO COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC. BOARD OF DIRECTORS Mary Gibbons Canale ’81, President Rose Cardamone Crane ’81, Chair Doreen Mochrie ’85, Vice Chair Vicki Cafalone Furlong ’08 M’10, Treasurer Mark Baum ’81, Secretary Kathy Bower ’85 Bill Burns ’83 Jennifer Carey ’85 ’92 Joseph F. Coughlin ’82 Dianora De Marco ’14 M’15 Steve Doran ’82 Michael Durney ’83 Bob Garrett ’83 James F. Holland ’82 Aunrée Houston ’00 Jack James ’62 Matt Jenal ’78 Jeff Knauss ’07 Peter McCarthy ’82 Robert Moritz ’85 Colleen Murphy ’77 Jeff Ragovin ’00 Al Roker ’76 Susannah Melchior Schaefer ’90 Thomas Schneider Jennifer Shropshire ’86 William Spinelli ’84 Deborah F. Stanley Mark Tryniski ’85 Joe Yacura ’74

Campus Currents I am profoundly grateful to have my name attached to this campus in perpetuity. The naming of the arena and convocation hall is an honor that is incredible and humbling. But I also hope that our work here on this campus—in becoming learner-centered and aligning our programs, our fundraising efforts and our physical campus to support student success—is maintained and enhanced over time.

Leaving here is much harder than I expected it to be. I have always felt that my work here at SUNY Oswego and my work in higher education have been a blessing. It’s been a preferred way of life. It’s been the most worthwhile way of leading my life that I ever could have imagined. I am truly honored and grateful to have spent 44 years of my life with my Laker community. I love this place, and will never stop. But now I begin my next era.

Remember your time in college stays with you throughout your entire life. Whenever people ask, “where did you go to school,” you will say, “SUNY Oswego.” It will evoke many memories. But, if you’re currently involved with the institution, it will also evoke much pride, as you will be able to talk about its current value and its current work, which will be so important to you. Please make the time to stay connected to each other and this institution.

It’s time.

Deborah F. Stanley, president

Dr. Mary Toale Named Officer-in-Charge at SUNY Oswego

Deborah F. Stanley Named SUNY Interim Chancellor The State University of New York Board of Trustees on Dec. 20 appointed SUNY Oswego President Deborah F. Stanley as interim chancellor to lead the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States. President Stanley brings nearly 45 years of campus leadership to SUNY and began serving as interim chancellor on Jan. 15, 2022.

“SUNY has a long and rich history of providing students the opportunity and access to the highest quality education at our premier colleges and research institutions, and President Stanley is the right educator at the right time to lead this prestigious university system,” said SUNY Board Chairman Dr. Merryl H. Tisch. “With President Stanley’s decades of leadership, commitment to academic excellence and her unwavering support for students, she is wellpositioned to serve our 64 campuses with a proven record of accomplishments, integrity and intellect.”

The SUNY Board of Trustees is working with an executive search firm and has launched a global search for the permanent SUNY Chancellor.

SUNY appointed Dr. Mary C. Toale officerin-charge at SUNY Oswego, effective Jan. 1, 2022. Dr. Toale is providing continuing leadership to the college upon the retirement of long-serving President Deborah F. Stanley who was recently appointed interim chancellor of the State University of New York. Toale is serving as officer-in-charge at SUNY Oswego while the college searches for a permanent president.

Toale, who most recently had served as deputy to the president, has been deeply involved in and advanced all high-level initiatives of the President’s Office. Having served in several leadership roles, Toale has built close relationships with faculty, administrators and staff, while remaining focused on mentoring and supporting Oswego’s undergraduate and graduate students.

SUNY Oswego’s Presidential Search Committee has begun a national search for a permanent president and is working with SUNY and Academic Search to actively network and recruit prospective candidates.

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Chemical Bonds: Alumni Couple Endow Summer Research Experience for Chemistry Students “ The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” — Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst extremely important for both of us,” said Peter, who retired from his position of chief technology officer at Corning Incorporated and then taught at Cornell University for six years. He credits his summer research experience with Dr. Ken Hyde and the resulting five publications as key to his acceptance at Cornell University for graduate school.

What happens when you mix a white lab coat, the scent of old sweaty tennis shoes, knowledge of Italian food and long hours in a chemistry lab?

Well, for Peter ’75 and Andrea Guglielmo Bocko ’73 M’75, the combination yields a long and prosperous marriage, a pair bonded by gratitude for the summer research experiences at SUNY Oswego that brought them together and prepared them for their careers.

In appreciation of those experiences and the life they’ve built together, the couple established the Peter ’75 and Andrea Guglielmo Bocko ’73 M’75 Forever Award Endowed fund through a $500,000 gift to SUNY Oswego. The fund will support summer research opportunities for Oswego chemistry students.

The couple had previously established an endowed scholarship for one student to have a summer research experience and had provided additional annual support to help Chemistry Chair Fehmi Damkaci give more students research experiences. This most recent—and largest gift—will enable Oswego to provide paid summer research opportunities to chemistry students in perpetuity.

“The opportunities we had outside of the normal academic experience were

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“The lab work that occurs in the classroom is important, but it’s reproducing something that’s already been done and the students are simply trying to get the same results,” he said. “When you’re in the lab actually doing hands-on work, you have to integrate the theory you got from the books with problem-solving and your own senses. For example, you may feel a beaker and it’s warmer than you expected so you know that something is going on.”

Andrea added: “Summer research also gives students a chance to get paid while getting the experience to add to their resume and help prepare them—whether they intend to go to grad school or get a job. More and more places are expecting students to have had some hands-on experience.”

Plus, from her two decades as a high school science teacher and her work with an after-school program for students in Japan, she has witnessed the benefits of hands-on, minds-on learning, and how those kinds of projects can ignite curiosity, develop confidence and encourage deeper learning in students.

When the Bockos learned that their mentor and former professor, Dr. Gus Silveira had made a substantial gift (see related story on page 9), timed to pay tribute to retiring Oswego president of 26 years, Deborah F. Stanley, they checked over their finances and decided to make a transformational gift to the college now, too.

“We’re both crazy about President Stanley,” Peter said. “She’s been very kind to me. Despite all the pressures facing higher education, Oswego has thrived. I give Deborah Stanley credit for that. She’s a very well-rounded, practical, problem-solver—a perfect leader.”

Now back to the smell of stinky sneakers…

Andrea, who was a graduate assistant for Dr. Hyde, was working in the same lab as Peter on a dangerous inorganic synthesis with pyridine, which created a pungent smell of old sweaty sneakers.

Besides being the only female in the lab, everyone noticed when Andrea was there because of the smell her research created.

“What can I say? I’m a sucker for a smart, cute girl in a white lab coat whose research stinks,” Peter laughed.

Their Painted Post, N.Y., home is adorned with another piece of their Oswego history—a brick from old Snygg Hall. They painted it gold and wrote on it: “Snygg Hall, 1968-2014,” and on the other side: “Andrea and Peter Forever.”

“Chemistry is everywhere,” Andrea said.

“Everyone from hairdressers to nurses to environmentalists need to understand at least some basics of chemistry.”

Peter added: “When people understand some fundamentals of chemistry, they become critical citizens who can judge what they see and read. We get inundated with a lot of misinformation in the areas of medicine, climate change, consumerism. Having some basic understanding of chemistry and science can help you discern fact from fiction.”

Jennifer Ofodile ’19—Peter ‘75 and Andrea Guglielmo Bocko ‘73 M’75 award recipient

Campus Currents

Commencement Ceremonies Recognize 2020, December 2021 Graduates College Foundation Board of Directors, also earned honorary doctorate degrees in humane letters from SUNY for their service to the institution, the business world and society in general.

SUNY Oswego held two in-person Commencement ceremonies on Dec. 11 in the newly renamed Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall—one for December 2021 graduates, and a second, separate ceremony to officially confer the degrees upon members of the Class of 2020. Two accomplished alumni offered words of inspiration to the nearly 700 graduates at the two ceremonies.

“Strength of purpose and strength of character (AKA grit) have been the essential partners for you to obtain your academic degrees,” said President Deborah F. Stanley in her last address to graduates before her retirement. “Draw on the foundations that you have built while you’ve been here. Use your intellect well. Use it always in collaboration with others, with your determination and imagination. So that when your voice is needed—and it will be needed in your family, in your work, in your community—you are prepared and motivated to get involved and wrestle with the issues of our time.

They are ever-present and ever-changing and will forever need you.”

The 9:30 a.m. ceremony celebrating the Class of 2020 featured Jeff Knauss ’07, a serial entrepreneur, an angel investor and a co-founder of Digital Hyve agency and Profound (profoundmastermind.com). The 12:30 p.m. ceremony featured Mark Baum ’81, chief collaboration and commercial officer for the Food Marketing Institute— The Food Industry Association. Knauss and Baum, both members of the Oswego

Novelis Gift to Fund Two New Scholarships for SUNY Oswego Students

d

“I’m particularly honored to be a part

of today’s Commencement ceremony, the last that President Stanley will preside over, as she finishes out her extraordinary career and tenure on this campus—a campus that she leaves in a much better place than she found it. We’re all the beneficiaries of her hard work and dedication.

“Thank you, President Stanley, for all that you’ve done for transforming our campus, expanding our curriculum, enriching the lives of our students and providing much needed access to those in search of higher education regardless of their background or their socioeconomic status. Also as part of your legacy, you leave us as a diverse, inclusive and representative institution on sound financial footing with a growing endowment for future generations. Thank you, President Stanley.”

—M ark Baum ’81, chief collaboration and commercial officer for FMI— The Food Industry Association and 2021 SUNY honorary degree recipient

Novelis, an industrial aluminum company in Oswego, donated $150,000 to SUNY Oswego to endow two scholarships for students with financial need in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Gathering in SUNY Oswego’s Culkin Hall on Dec. 9, 2021, to celebrate the establishment of the Novelis Path Forward Scholarships were: (from left) Jeff Cruse, Novelis Oswego plant manager; Scott Furlong, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs; Deborah F. Stanley, president; Kristin Croyle, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Marianne Hromalik, associate professor and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Andrew Quinn, Novelis director of human resources; and Antonio Chagas, Novelis engineer and member of the college’s Engineering Advisory Board.

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Endowed Possibility Scholarship Pays Tribute to President Stanley An alumna and her husband, who wish to remain anonymous, donated $250,000 to establish the endowed Deborah F. Stanley Possibility Scholarship.

The scholarship will be awarded to a student from New York State who is pursuing a degree in a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) field. The scholarship provides support for tuition, room and board, as well as hands-on research through the Summer Research program and international service learning through the Global Laboratory.

The first Deborah F. Stanley Possibility Scholarship will be awarded to an Oswego student in fall 2022, and as it is endowed, it will be awarded in perpetuity and be a permanent part of President Stanley’s legacy on campus.

The couple established the scholarship to recognize the dedication and leadership of President Stanley, who retired in December. They said that President Stanley always remained focused on providing as much access to higher education as possible, especially through scholarships. Her work spearheaded the Presidential Scholarship program, the Possibility Scholarship program and the Path Forward Scholarship campaign.

Shown in a 2012 photo is Oswego’s original class of Possibility Scholars, from left, Katrina Debaun ’15, Sanjeev Kumar ’15, Aaron Matthews ’16, Sean Willson ’15 and Nicole VanDeuson ’14.

The couple was one of the first major supporters of the Possibility Scholars program when President Stanley launched it in 2009.

Stanley’s leadership. Since she became president, the endowment grew more than 3,000 percent from $1.7 million in 1997 to $60 million today.

The couple also acknowledged the remarkable progress the college has made in building its endowment under President

To learn more about the program, visit the Possibility Scholars website at oswego. edu/possibility.

National Grid Grant Supports College’s KidsTech Program Representatives from National Grid recently presented a check for $19,800 to support SUNY Oswego’s KidsTech program. Joining student teachers from the KidsTech program are (front row from left) technology faculty member and KidsTech cocoordinator Karin Dykeman ’91 M’99 CAS’19; Gwen Sanders, National Grid community relations coordinator; Wally Dengos, National Grid customer and community manager; technology faculty member and KidsTech cocoordinator Mark Springston; and Richard Bush ’92 M’97, chair of SUNY Oswego’s technology department.

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Campus Currents

Silveiras’ Gift Continues Legacy of Support for Oswego Dr. Augustine “Gus” and Beverly Silveira have made a gift to SUNY Oswego that will identify a lecture hall in the Shineman Center with their names. Their gift honors President Deborah F. Stanley.

“Deborah Stanley is my favorite of all time,” said Silveira, who served under five presidents in his 38 years in the chemistry department. “She and Michael [her husband] are faithful supporters of the college and constant advocates for students. When she announced her retirement, Beverly and I decided that instead of bequeathing the gift in our planned giving, we would release it now in recognition of her visionary leadership over the past quarter century.”

The couple already supports a fund created by Tom Weil ’66 that honors Silveira with three components: a chemistry scholarship; a research award in chemistry; and a distinguished alumni lecture series. Their generosity stems from their early 20th-century childhoods.

“After the Depression, my family had no funds for college. I held four jobs throughout my undergraduate years,” Silveira said.

“I vowed that I would do everything possible so that the best students would not have to work as hard as I did while earning a degree.”

Upon graduation from the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth in 1957, Silveira earned a Ph.D. at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and was recruited by nine institutions. He chose Oswego’s fledgling chemistry department after meeting Dr. Richard Shineman, founding chair, and seeing potential for a strong organic chemistry program.

Evidence supports his wisdom. Oswego was the first SUNY college to earn accreditation for chemistry programs from the American Chemical Society, and it was first to offer a master of science degree in chemistry. Silveira has won more than 50 grants and awards for the college and is largely responsible for its national and international reputation.

Silveira’s success is due to his total focus on students, said Michael Plante M’75, a former graduate student who collaborated with Silveira and 2010 Nobel Chemistry Prize awardee Ei-ichi Negishi. Plante and Silveira were co-authors on papers that were part of the evidence put before the Royal Swedish Academy of Science.

“We were proud to have a role in that award,” Plante said. “But what makes Gus unique is his brilliance as an educator—his high energy, magnetic personality and dedication to every class, lab and project.

“As his graduate laboratory assistant, I’d sit in on some classes to hear Gus lecture. I was amazed at how many students gathered after class to continue discussions with their beloved professor,” Plante said.

Silveira talks about former students as if he’s unfurling a scroll of celebrity names. Among them is Colleen Enwright O’Leary ’74, M.D., who credits Silveira with teaching her how to learn.

“I’ve always had an excellent memory, so I relied on that to assimilate new material rather than approaching problems analytically,” O’Leary said. “Gus taught me to be a critical thinker.”

Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus Dr. Augustine Silveira and his wife, Beverly.

“

Gus, I know when you’re happy.

You’re happy when you come home after a day with students.

— Beverly Silveira

“

“That translates across the sciences and all fields of study,” O’Leary added. “It is integral to the study and practice of medicine.”

O’Leary lauded Beverly’s warm, loving and caring ways: “She welcomed students into their home and nurtured us along with her own two daughters. Bev is the practical one, who holds Gus’s feet to the ground while his head is often in the clouds. Gus always seeks her wise counsel.”

Oswego’s administrators, faculty members and students can be grateful for that counsel. Silveira, consistently recruited by other colleges, including the University of California at Irvine, where he lectured during sabbaticals, was offered several lucrative posts at private and public institutions.

Accepting one offer, Silveira reconsidered after Beverly, realizing his days would be consumed with administrative tasks, said, “Gus, I know when you’re happy. You’re happy when you come home after a day with students.”

Although he continued to lecture across America, Australia and Asia, Dr. Silveira remained at SUNY Oswego where, as O’Leary declared, “He is a legend.”

Check out magazine.oswego.edu for “Top 10 Facts about Gus Silveira.”

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Noteworthy News Seven Earn 2021 Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence One SUNY Oswego student and six employees earned Chancellor’s Awards, the highest award for excellence given by the SUNY system.

The Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence are system-level honors conferred to acknowledge and provide system-wide recognition for consistently superior professional achievement and to encourage the ongoing pursuit of excellence. These programs underscore SUNY’s commitment to sustaining intellectual vibrancy, advancing the boundaries of knowledge, providing the highest quality of instruction and serving the public good.

Faculty and Staff:

Furlong Named Vice President Victoria L. Cafalone Furlong ’08 M’10 was named vice president for administration and finance after serving in the role on an interim basis since spring. Furlong, who succeeds Nick Lyons, is the first woman to serve in this role.

Initially hired as an accounts payable clerk more than 25 years ago, Furlong advanced through several positions, most recently working as associate vice president for finance and budget.

Jennifer Broderick

Angie Brown

Kate Wolfe-Lyga ’02

Three dedicated SUNY Oswego staff members—for whom a year of adaptation built up their previous years of service—earned the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service. The 2021 award winners are Jennifer Broderick, creative director of development and alumni engagement communications (Editor’s Note: Jen does a fabulous job designing and art directing this magazine!); Angie Brown, director of student health services; and Kate Wolfe-Lyga ’02, director of the Counseling Services Center.

Sherri Devercelly

John Kane

Shashi Kanbur

Described as an “invaluable asset” to SUNY Oswego, Sherri Devercelly of facility services earned the prestigious SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service.

Continuing work to elevate learning on the SUNY Oswego campus and across academia earned John Kane, director of the college’s Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) and a professor of economics, a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Faculty Service.

From studying the scale of the universe to inspiring students across the globe, SUNY Oswego physics professor Shashi Kanbur’s far-reaching efforts earned him the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities.

Student: Biology major Christian DiBiase ’21 earned a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence for outstanding work spanning classrooms, research labs and fieldwork to help others. DiBiase, who maintained a perfect 4.0 grade-point average while tackling demanding academic programs in his biology major and chemistry minor, maximized his opportunities inside and outside the classroom. Following graduation, he enrolled in a graduate physician assistant program at Barry University in Miami, with a goal of becoming a practicing physician assistant.

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Christian DiBiase ’21

Wincowski to Oversee Enrollment Management Joel Wincowski was appointed Oct. 11, to serve as interim executive director of Enrollment Management.

Wincowski has an outstanding record of growing student enrollment and implementing effective enrollment strategies for numerous higher education clients that he has served over the past 20 years as a senior enrollment management consultant.

Huynh Appointed Dean of Students

Christy Harrison Huynh ’98 M’08 was appointed dean of students, after serving in the role on an interim basis since February 2021.

She oversees the Office of Student Conduct, Office of the Dean of Students, and well-being educators. She also serves as chair of the Behavior Intervention and Care Team.

Drawing on nearly 20 years of experience at Oswego, she will enhance the student experience by providing support services that promote the personal development, academic success and well-being of all students.

Campus Currents

New Members Join Alumni Association, College Foundation Boards

Congratulations to the 2021 Oswego State Athletic Hall of Fame inductees! Pictured here are: (back row, from left) Brendan Edward Bryan McLaughlin ’09, Bob Hagan ’88 and Thomas Fitch ’71; (front row, from left) Maureen Kasperek ’06, Kathryn Carbonaro Rozak ’05, and Holly Kohler Duncan and Heather Kohler Valpreda, daughters of posthumous inductee Richard Kohler ’66. Not pictured is David Locascio ’63.

Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2021 Inductees:

Athletic Hall of Fame Induction The SUNY Oswego Department of Intercollegiate Athletics inducted seven former Laker student-athletes into the Oswego Athletic Hall of Fame during a ceremony Nov. 13 in Sheldon Hall Ballroom. They join the 127 previously inducted Lakers in the hallowed hall.

Nominations of alumni-athletes or former coaches (living or deceased) for future consideration are accepted online at oswegolakers.com. The website also has the full list of SUNY Oswego Athletic Hall of Fame Members.

• Thomas Fitch ’71 — Wrestling • Bob Hagan ’88 — Men’s Ice Hockey • Maureen Kasperek ’06 — Women’s Soccer • Richard G. Kohler ’66* — Men’s Basketball • David Locascio ’63** — Wrestling • Brendan Edward Bryan McLaughlin ’09 — Men’s Ice Hockey • Kathryn Carbonaro Rozak ’05 — Women’s Lacrosse *Posthumous Inductee **Unable to attend induction ceremony

Find the Founder!

In the Summer 2021 issue, the Sheldon statue can be found in the middle right portion of the photo of Fulbright award recipient Michelle Diblasio ’21 on page 13.

Grand prize winner of a College Store gift certificate and a Sheldon Hall print is James Naze ’90. Winning Sheldon Hall prints are John R. Pauldine ’62, Nancy Pirodsky ’69, Amy Sue Kanner ’81, Michael Jargo ’96 and Sarah McCrobie ’06.

A tiny replica of the Sheldon statue, pictured here, is hidden somewhere in this issue. Find the Founder and send us a letter or email with the location and page number, your name, class year and address.

We will draw one entry at random from all the correct answers and the winner will receive a $25 gift certificate to the College Store and a print of Sheldon Hall. Send your entry by March 15, 2021, to Find the Founder, Sheldon Hall, Room 215, 301 Washington Blvd., Oswego, N.Y., 13126, or email to findthefounder@oswego.edu.

The Oswego Alumni Association (OAA) and the Oswego College Foundation—the two nonprofits that work closely with the Division of Development and Alumni Engagement—elected new members whose expertise and connections will help advance the mission of the college and of the boards themselves.

The OAA, not-for-profit corporation that represents the diverse interests and needs of more than 90,000 alumni, elected three new members to three-year terms, effective July 1, 2021.

Joining the board for three-year terms are Brad Bernstein ’89, co-managing partner at Farber Blicht Eyerman & Herzog; Shoy Colbourne ’09, director of implementation for the Bronx Department of Education; and Dee McGowan Perkins ’85, owner of Bright Ideas CNY. Additionally, the following members have stepped down from their positions with the board, effective June 30: Amy Vanderlyke Dygert ’01 and Lisa Marceau Schnorr ’87. Marc Beck ’93, Mark Salmon ’93 and Dan Scaia ’68 have completed their terms, but will remain on the board as at-large members.

A not-for-profit organization that raises and manages private support to advance SUNY Oswego, the Oswego College Foundation appointed members for three-year terms, effective July 1, 2021.

New members are: Jennifer Carey ’85 ’92, the CEO and founding principal of JLC Environmental Consultants, Inc.; Aunrée Houston ’00, a certified life coach, a global creative and marketing operations executive and creative director; and Susannah Melchior Schaefer ’90, the executive vice chair, president and chief executive officer of Smile Train.

To learn more about the Oswego Alumni Association and College Foundation and their members, visit alumni.oswego.edu.

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College Launches New Institute, Announces Second Grand Challenge SUNY Oswego President Deborah F. Stanley officially announced in the fall the establishment of the SUNY Oswego Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice on the heels of the campus selecting its next Grand Challenges theme: Race, Racism and Social Justice.

The equity, diversity, inclusion and transformative practices of the institute are centrally connected to and motivated by SUNY Oswego’s strategic plan (Tomorrow Plan). As such, the institute will be a resource for the entire campus community to engage in activities that will increase student success, partnerships and academic and creative excellence as we continue to build an inclusive community and sustainable institution.

At the core of the institute is its mission to foster critical self-awareness, understanding of the identities and experiences of all community members, investigation of structural inequality and advocacy for transformative change. Activities of the institute will include training and programming sessions on topics including, but not limited to, social justice, equality and equity, cultural competence, civil discourse, cultural humility, implicit bias, micro/ macroaggressions, conflict de-escalation, intergroup dialogue facilitation, inclusive pedagogy, inclusive curricula, nonviolent communication and restorative justice.

The institute will work collaboratively with: • Students to create and offer resources, programs, events, training sessions and leadership opportunities; • Administrators, faculty, staff, employees, institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committees, and the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching to expand resources, programs, events, training sessions, best practices colloquia and other professional development opportunities on topics related to equity, diversity, inclusion and transformative practices; and • Institutional partners and stakeholders in Oswego, Syracuse and surrounding communities to expand resources, training and programs on topics related to equity, diversity, inclusion and transformative practices in the community.

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SUNY Oswego celebrated its continuing commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion with a ribbon-cutting to mark the official location of the recently established Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice. Pictured at the ribbon-cutting are SUNY Oswego President Deborah F. Stanley (second from left) with staff from the institute and members of the campus community.

According to Dr. Mary Toale, the newly appointed officer-in-charge and the college’s former affirmative action officer, the institute will be a vital resource for our community partners to improve our collective communities through transformative practices, and to expand the vital shared work within and across our communities.

The institute will also be a place where the SUNY Oswego community can engage in addressing the Grand Challenges of Race, Racism and Social Justice and propel the community forward. Beginning this fall and for the next three consecutive academic years, the Grand Challenges effort will give SUNY Oswego students, faculty and staff—across all disciplines, departments and divisions—a unique opportunity to deeply engage with multi-dimensional issues of the social construction of racial identities, complex systems of oppression and privilege, and societal transformation.

Grounded in shared goals, integrative skills and technologies, and an interdisciplinary approach to problem solving, the Grand Challenges Project reinforces the fact that today’s solutions need to include many

stakeholders across a spectrum of scholarship, creative activity and opinion. This is the second Grand Challenges topic that has been selected by the SUNY Oswego campus. The first, Fresh Water for All, was the topic of study and discussion from fall 2018 through spring 2021.

Over the course of the spring 2021 term, the Grand Challenges Oversight Committee in conjunction with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion engaged stakeholders across the campus community to develop multidisciplinary and multimodal initiatives related to race, racism and social justice. The committee invited all campus members to apply for micro-grants to add content to their existing syllabi or learning outcomes to courses, or to support collaborative, interdisciplinary or civic engagement projects involving the topic.

Check out magazine.oswego.edu to see longer versions of stories, more photos and video content.

Campus Currents Communication Studies Professor Named Fulbright Specialist Ongoing work on how corporations use individuals’ personal data in exploitative ways earned communication studies professor Ulises Mejias a prestigious post as a Fulbright Specialist to work on this topic with educators and audiences across the globe.

President’s Awards Honor Outstanding Academic Advisers Lindsay McCluskey of communication studies and Casey Raymond of chemistry are the 2021 recipients of the SUNY Oswego President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Advising.

Physics Professor Earns International Honor SUNY Oswego physics professor Carolina Ilie was one of 15 scholars selected as Sigma Xi Fellows, a prestigious honor for continued contribution to the international honor society and the field of scientific research.

The program from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and World Learning pairs highly qualified U.S. academics and professionals with host institutions in other countries to share expertise, strengthen institutional links, hone skills, gain international experience and learn about other cultures. It is a multiyear commitment, with Mejias joining the specialist roster from 2021 to 2025.

35th Annual ALANA Conference Focuses on Migration Stories The other tribute this year was a page in the program dedicated to a former SUNY Oswego employee Roosevelt Muhammad, who oversaw the ALANA Student Conference from 1991 to 2006 and who died Aug. 23, 2021. Ana Luz ’94 wrote a poem in honor of Roosevelt that was included in the program.

Building on this year’s theme of migration and courage, Jessica Hernandez ’18 and Kelsey Gillett ’14, who both work with Oswego’s Education Abroad program, encouraged students to experience an unfamiliar culture and country. In their Sept. 22 presentation about the “5 Big Fs of Study Abroad,” they addressed all five: fear, funds, faculty support, family and fit.

This year marked the 35th anniversary of SUNY Oswego’s annual ALANA (Asian, Latino, African and Native American) Student Leadership Conference, which took place Sept. 21–27, 2021.

Based on the theme “Migration Stories of Courage,” the ALANA Conference featured a range of presentations, performances, discussions and the 11th Annual Peace Walk.

This year’s program also featured two tributes. One was a page with thank-you messages for President Deborah F. Stanley from the ALANA Planning Committee, the ALANA community and the Student Association, and from Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors members who have been active in ALANA organizations, Thaina Gonzalez ’92 and Rufaro Matombo ’12.

Many of the individual events and presentations also included special recognition for President Stanley.

Following the 11th Annual Peace Walk on Sept. 26, the City of Buffalo’s first poet laureate, Jillian Hanesworth, performed four original spoken word poems, including “Ashe” written specifically in honor of Oswego’s Peace Walk. She stressed the importance of words and their power to shape the future generations.

Closing out the 7-day conference, Claudia D. Hernández, the author of this year’s Oswego Reading Initiative book Knitting the Fog, spoke to a standing-room only crowd in the Sheldon Hall Ballroom.

Hernández, who was raised in Guatemala before immigrating to Los Angeles, discussed how important the women in her life, primarily her great aunt and grandmother, are to her. Hernández explained how her relationship with these two women inspired her works in Knitting the Fog and her photography book, Women, Mujeres, Ixoq: Revolutionary Visions.

To read more complete coverage of the conference, check out magazine.oswego.edu.

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Media Summit Addresses Emergence, Future of Streaming Career Connectors:

Geselle Martinez ’17 (left) gives advice to a broadcasting student.

The 17th Annual Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit addressed audience expectations and the future of video streaming during the Oct. 27 panel discussion in Tyler Hall’s Waterman Theatre.

With a theme of “On-Demand In Demand: Audiences and the Future of Video Streaming,” the Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit featured an all-star panel presentation in Tyler Hall’s Waterman Theatre. Panelists included Jamie Duemo, the media and entertainment business development leader at Amazon Web Services; award-winning educator and filmmaker Chrissy Guest from Ithaca College; Renard Jenkins, WarnerMedia’s vice president of production integration and creative technology services; and Frank L. Palumbo ’83, vice president/account manager of local television for Nielsen Holdings. Justin Dobrow ’17, manager of

partner operations at Peacock, NBCUniversal, served as moderator.

The following alumni shared their experience and advice as Career Connectors following the panel: Travis Clark ’15, senior media reporter at Insider; Matt Stone ’15, segment producer at ABC’s Good Morning America; Kalie Hudson Dobrow ’16, senior social strategist at Edelman; Imani Cruz ’17, talent, casting and series development coordinator at MTV Networks; Geselle Martinez ’17, stage manager for CBS Mornings; and Carmen Mendoza ’17, commercial operations coordinator for AMC Networks—Sundance TV.

SUNY OSWEGO

Save the Date: Reunion 2022, June 9-12

EVENTS While planning for these events continues, please check the online events calendar for the most up-to-date information.

Feb. 12

Reunion 2022 Engagement and Philanthropy Committee Meeting

Feb. 19

Men’s Basketball Alumni Game

March 3

Oswego Alumni Book Club Author Talk

March 25–27

EOP 50th Anniversary Celebration

Apr. 2

Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors Meeting

Apr. 23

Reunion 2022 Engagement and Philanthropy Committee Meeting

May 13

Commencement Eve Torchlight Ceremony

While no one can predict the future, plans are underway for an in-person celebration of Reunion on the shores of Lake Ontario.

June 9-12 Reunion Weekend 2022 June 30

Fiscal Year Ends

Is your group or class celebrating a milestone anniversary? Who has already RSVP’d to attend?

Aug. 5–6

Blackfriars Alumni Reunion

Get the latest news about all things Reunion online at alumni.oswego.edu/reunion.

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Travis Clark ’15 (left in black mask) discusses print media with members of The Oswegonian.

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alumni.oswego.edu

Campus Currents

FOUNDER’S WEEKEND The first-ever Founder’s Weekend, Sept. 30 to Oct. 2, featured the return of the popular Green and Gold Day, a groundbreaking ceremony, a fundraising challenge from Al Roker ’76 and the naming and dedication of the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall.

This year marks 160 years since the college was founded as a teacher training institution in 1861 by Edward Austin Sheldon, who was born on Oct. 4, 1823.

Exclusive Online Content Check out magazine.oswego.edu for more photos, videos and content from Founder’s Weekend activities!

Business Symposium, Launch It Focus on Entrepreneurship

1861 Giving Challenge The Challenge: 861 donors in 1,861 min.

8 a.m. 9/30/21 — 3:01 p.m. 10/1/2021

SUNY OSWEGO

1861 GIVING CHALLENGE

The Results: 1,543 people in 1,861 min.

86 ES 1D ONOR NUT S IN 1861 MI = $303,925.41, including challenge gifts from Al Roker ’76 and Shane Facteau ’95.

Thank you for your support!

Two events, featuring successful alumni and the college’s next entrepreneurial success stories, unfolded on Sept. 30 during the School of Business “Building Communities through Entrepreneurship” symposium in the Park Hall auditorium.

Panelists included Bob Moritz ’85, global chairman of PwC; Phyllis Moore Holloway ’76 CAS’01, a business owner, longtime educator and non-profit leader; and Jeff Knauss ’07, co-founder of the Digital Hyve marketing agency.

An expanded version of the college’s annual Launch It student entrepreneur competition kicked off with in-person pitches following the panel. This session, along with two more on Oct. 1, allowed students to start building teams as they competed for a $2,500 top prize among other cash awards. Learn more by joining the SUNY Oswego Innovation Community platform on Engage, engage.oswego.edu, or emailing launchit@oswego.edu.

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FOUNDER’S WEEKEND Honorary Alumni

d

(excerpt from the resolution)

“President Stanley’s vision

“ WHEREAS, President Stanley and Mr. Stanley have established a warm and welcoming culture for all members of the SUNY Oswego family, and have made our alma mater a place we are proud to be part of;

and ability to get things done over the past 25+ years has been exceptional. Her leadership has led to increased enrollment, higher academic achievement, more diversity and a transformation of campus with the Marano Campus Center as a crown jewel. The students of New York are the ultimate winners!

What a model of leadership President Stanley has been. ”

HEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that T the Oswego Alumni Association hereby names Deborah F. Stanley and Michael J. Stanley honorary alumni of the State University of New York College at Oswego and invests them with the rights and privileges pertaining thereunto.”

— Dana Segall Murphy ’99, Oswego Alumni Association president, reading a resolution naming Deborah and Michael Stanley honorary alumni

— J im Triandiflou ’88, chief executive officer of insightsoftware and lead donor for the naming of the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall

Hewitt Hall Groundbreaking

d

“The campus is almost

unrecognizable from when I went to it. But even more important than the physical plant, is the pride and the academic excellence that Oswego is known for now.

It is a preeminent college that can hold its own, not just in this country but all around the world.

That is due not just to President Stanley but the team that she built and the inspiration she engenders. I cannot thank her enough for what she has done for my alma mater. ” —A l Roker ’76, Today show co-host

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The college celebrated another historic moment with a groundbreaking for the ambitious renovation of Hewitt Hall. The ceremony marked the official kickoff of the $80 million renovation of Hewitt to become a state-of-the-art home to the School of Communication, Media and the Arts’ broadcasting, design and cinema and screen studies programs.

The Oct. 1 groundbreaking ceremony featured remarks from President Deborah F. Stanley; Dean of the School of Communication, Media and the Arts Julie Pretzat; former SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras; New York State Assemblyman William A. Barclay; New York State Assemblyman and Alumni Association board member Harry Bronson ’82; Alexa Cox ’23, a dual major in broadcasting and mass communication and in political science; and Alex Brooks ’24, a broadcasting and mass communication major.

Developed with input from students, faculty and other stakeholders, the renewed Hewitt Hall has a target completion date of fall 2023 to host classes, labs, events and related activities that will further elevate the media arts programs in Oswego’s School of Communication, Media and the Arts. Exterior renovations are expected to be completed in 2022.

Arena Named in Honor of Deborah F. Stanley During the Founder’s Weekend Luncheon on Oct. 1, College Foundation Board Chair Rose Cardamone Crane ’81, announced that donors, led by the Oswego College Foundation board, raised more than $2.4 million to name the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall.

d

“I have had the distinct privilege

“This campus center, and in particular this arena and convocation hall, serve as the heart of the SUNY Oswego campus,” Crane said. “It is the place where students launch their academic careers during the annual Welcoming Torchlight Ceremony and where they conclude their careers during the annual Commencement ceremonies. This arena is the most fitting space on campus to recognize the indelible impact that President Stanley has made. We want her contributions to SUNY Oswego to live in perpetuity in a space that she helped make a reality. I am thrilled to announce the naming of the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall!”

d

“Dear President Stanley, I remember attending your inauguration. It was exciting to celebrate the ’changing of guards.’

What we didn’t know then, was that ‘the guard’, aka you, would come in—dynamic, powerful, determined, focused, loyal and ready to turn this college upside down and right side up again.

You’re blessed to be the epitome of leadership and excellence.

And you have the nerve to also be warm and kind. Lucky us, we experienced all of you up-close and personal. Thank you for leaving a legacy worth carrying on and on and on. ” —A unrée Houston ’00, owner and founder of Aunrée Jac lifestyle brand and Oswego College Foundation board member

of working closely with President Stanley over many years. She has always shared a clear vision of the incredible value of higher education and the ability of education to change the course of students’ lives. One of the hallmarks of her presidency— and indeed her legacy at Oswego—is creating a culture of philanthropy on this campus.

I thank her for her tireless work and unwavering commitment to this institution and extend my warmest wishes in her retirement.”

—R ose Cardamone Crane ’81, chair of the Oswego College Foundation Board of Directors

Scholars Brunch Celebrates Students, Benefactors, Stanleys

Approximately 225 attendees gathered on Oct. 2 in the newly named Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall for the 7th Annual Scholars Brunch, an event that recognizes student scholars and the benefactors who established privately funded scholarships for Oswego students. Speakers included, from left, student scholarship recipients Taylor Coiner ’22 and Michael Jean ’22, college President Deborah F. Stanley, emcee Mark Baum ’81, Dana Segall Murphy ’99 and benefactor Aunrée Houston ’00.

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THE SIX PILLARS of the Stanley Pres

Founding the Future for Oswego For 44 years, Deborah F. Stanley shared her passion for learning and her belief in higher education’s transformational power for students and society, as a member of the SUNY Oswego family.

In 1995, she began her long tenure as college president—second in length only to college founder Edward Austin Sheldon. During the past 26 years, she fortified the institution on several fronts, including elevating academic excellence, embedding a learnercentered philosophy, renewing the physical campus, building the college endowment through private philanthropy, leveraging external connections in mutually beneficial partnerships and establishing a caring and inclusive culture.

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In a time when the average tenure of a college president is 6 ½ years, SUNY Oswego has been incredibly fortunate to have had President Stanley at the helm for more than a quarter of a century. Her impact on this campus goes beyond continuing Oswego’s long history of providing access and opportunity; she, in fact, has founded the future for SUNY Oswego.

Quoting Sheldon, she not only raised the college to “its highest degree of usefulness,” Deborah F. Stanley has left a legacy of empowerment, resiliency, inclusivity, relevancy and resources whose impact will ripple through generations of Lakers yet to arrive on our lakeshore campus.

sidency

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE Pg. 20 – 21

LEARNERCENTEREDNESS Pg. 22 – 23

CAMPUS RENEWAL Pg. 24 – 25

SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISING Pg. 26 – 27

PRODUCTIVE PARTNERSHIPS Pg. 28 – 29

CARING AND INCLUSIVE CULTURE Pg. 30 – 31

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Academic Excellence will meet the 21st century poised as a standard “ We bearer of excellence, the epitome of a college faithfully committed to having our students take their place among the best educated in the world. Why would we undertake less? We have been forging this path all along. Your efforts from across this college have converged to define this destiny.”

—President Deborah F. Stanley, 1996 Better Than We Dared Believe

In 1995, at a time when New York state had fewer high school graduates, the public sentiment was critical of higher education and SUNY campuses were increasing enrollments to help balance their decreasing budgets, Deborah F. Stanley accepted the responsibility to lead SUNY Oswego. She supported the college as it made the strategic decision to accept fewer students, become more selective and build the student profile.

the percentage of freshmen with a high-school GPA of 95 or higher rose 22 points and the percentage of students with a GPA of 90 or higher increased 37 percentage points. (See related information on pages 32-33.)

In 1996, President Stanley initiated the Presidential Scholars program, using private funds raised from the Oswego Fall Classic, to help recruit the best and brightest students to enroll at SUNY Oswego by offering a generous scholarship to the top 10 percent of their high school graduating class. She worked with faculty and staff to develop a program to support first-year students to succeed academically and personally in the college environment.

“There is an element of risk in the path we have chosen; decreasing bids is certainly not a choice most other institutions are making at this time,” President Stanley said in her August 1995 Fall Opening remarks to faculty and staff. “Clearly, we are at a crossroads for higher education and we have no choice but to shoulder the great responsibility to maintain the quality and vitality of SUNY Oswego: not just in the short run, but for the next generation.”

She oversaw the development of four strategic plans to guide SUNY Oswego to unprecedented success as a highly regarded academic institution for students from all backgrounds with grand aspirations to change the world.

The calculated risk paid off. During her 26-year tenure, the average high school GPA of an incoming SUNY Oswego student rose more than 5 percentage points, the increase in

1995

Additionally, President Stanley has overseen substantial growth in the number of full-time faculty over the past decade. As a

1996

2000

Quest cemented as an annual celebration of campus-wide scholarly and creativeactivity. Today, Quest draws more than 350 participants.

Engagement 2000 strategic plan published 2007 School of Communication, Media and the Arts founded

2001 2007

1996

Engaging Challenge: The Sesquicentennial Plan strategic plan published

Engagement In Learning strategic plan published

2002 School of Business earns AACSB international accreditation

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former faculty member and provost, she has always valued the role our faculty plays in the academy and igniting the passion for learning in our students.

The student-faculty ratio dropped from 20-to-1 in 1995, to 16-to-1 in 2020, and the percentage of small classes (with 20 or fewer students) rose from 35 percent in 1995, to 56 percent in the 2021-22 academic year. That translates to more individualized attention for every student, and more opportunities for students to develop deeper connections to their faculty members as well as the subject they are exploring.

SUNY Oswego has been a leader within the SUNY system and among peer schools in developing new and innovative academic programs, such as becoming one of the first to offer some online courses and degrees, including the highly ranked online MBA. In fact, two of the majors with the largest number of graduates today—wellness management and human development—didn’t even exist in 1995, and several of the fastest growing majors, including finance, graphic design, human-computer interaction, software engineering, and electric and computer engineering, graduated their first classes during President Stanley’s tenure.

The college developed these new programs to produce graduates who have the skills employers seek and the tools to

address society’s emerging challenges.

So, despite the unique challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, 97 percent of 2020 graduates were in graduate school or working full-time, 84 percent in their chosen field of study. The success of our graduates and our academic excellence have led to several national and international accreditations for the college and its programs.

The exceptional quality and rigor of our academic programs have propelled SUNY Oswego in numerous college rankings and garnered several distinctions for our students and graduates, including being named a top producer of the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Award winners.

“ It’s amazing the accomplish-

ments she brought to the students, the campus, the SUNY system and all of the impact she’s had. As a result of her work, she has elevated the rankings of the school and achieved so many specific commendations, recognitions and accolades. Her focus on performance and taking things to the next level came across.”

While all of these academic accomplishments help to elevate the reputation of the college, President Stanley has always stressed the importance of the college mission to provide access and opportunity for students who are committed to earning a college degree.

“I don’t think the institution should ever judge itself by the grade point average or the SAT scores or the achievements of the students who come in,” President Stanley said. “We want to know that we have added value along the way, that we have enhanced our students’ desire to be lifelong learners, to excel, to achieve and to share their knowledge for the betterment of society.”

— Bob Moritz ’85, global chair of PwC and Oswego College Foundation board member

2014 Tomorrow: Greater Impact and Success strategic plan published 2019 SUNY Oswego named a top producer of Fulbright U.S. Student Award winners

2019 Electrical and computer engineering, software engineering programs earn global ABET accreditation

2015

2021

2018 First Grand Challenges Project: Fresh Water for All launched, a multidisciplinary investigation to solve complex problems

2021 Second Grand Challenges Project: Race, Racism and Social Justice launched

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Learner-Centeredness “ We have been careful to preserve SUNY Oswego’s mission as a place of learning where the academic endeavor is at the heart of all we do.”

—President Deborah F. Stanley, 1996 Better Than We Dared Believe

Long before “student-centered learning” became a catchphrase in higher education, President Stanley and the SUNY Oswego campus in the 1990s were re-examining the institution and putting students at the core of everything the campus does.

In December 2020, President Stanley announced the Laker Success Package to step up efforts to support students and their families who were facing unexpected challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The package included Imagine 2021, a robust virtual career development program that brought together alumni, employers, guest speakers and students for career exploration, skill building and professional networking. It also expanded the college’s Alumni Sharing Knowledge program to guarantee an alumni mentor to every student who desires one. President Stanley also spearheaded a variety of programs, including Upskilling in a Digital World, to connect students with alumni who shared invaluable insights about skills needed in today’s workplaces.

“Students to me are the driving force,” President Stanley said.

“Learner-centeredness became the concept by which we renovated the programs of the institution and the physical spaces. It is the lens we use to direct our decision-making and resource-allocation. How does this affect the student experience today and how will it deepen their learning for tomorrow?”

One of the first programs President Stanley initiated was the Oswego Guarantee. The original promise in 1995 committed to maintain stable costs for room, board and tuition; provide access to courses needed for on-time graduation; and keep class size small for more individualized attention. In 2013, the college added the $300 Oswego Graduation Return on Investment for students who complete their four-year degrees on time.

President Stanley also worked to ensure that the college met students where they were. That led to the establishment of the Syracuse Branch Campus, which enabled Syracuse-area residents to complete in-demand degree and certificate programs. SUNY Oswego was also among the first SUNY

1996

2003

Student success first-year experiences delivered

School of Business moves to renovated Rich Hall

2005 Media Summit launched

1995

2001 2006

1995

Festa Graduate Leadership Fellows founded

Oswego Guarantee launched

2001 Oswego Reading Initiative begins

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colleges to develop online degree programs, including the top-ranked online MBA. Oswego faculty developed courses for Open SUNY, a systemwide initiative to provide students with maximum flexibility and access courses and degree programs across SUNY institutions. The college also customized academic programs for working professionals, including an innovative MBA program for SRC Inc. employees that was delivered on-site at the company’s North Syracuse headquarters.

Over the past 26 years, the college has invested in student advisement, counseling and mental health programs to support the total well-being and success of our students inside and outside of the classroom. In addition to the establishment of formal programs or student support offices, the college community came together to implement the informal Ask Oz pop-up Student Support Center as a one-stop shop to help students with whatever questions or issues that they may have. The President’s Town Hall meetings gave students direct access to the key campus leaders who listened to and addressed student concerns.

Throughout President Stanley’s tenure, the college invested in resources to support student success. She encouraged the college to adopt new technologies, such as the Starfish Early Alert System that identifies struggling students and connects them to additional resources, improving their chances for success.

Through the Start Now program, the college also keeps alive the dream of a SUNY Oswego education for students who initially may have been denied admission. The program connects students to additional resources and coursework at partner SUNY community colleges until they are ready to transfer into SUNY Oswego, earning both an associate’s and bachelor’s degree in the process. These programs assist and empower students to meet challenges head on and overcome obstacles on their journey toward a college degree.

A hallmark of SUNY Oswego has always been hands-on learning, and this continued to flourish under President Stanley’s leadership. Programs such as the student-run Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit, Festa Fellows leadership program, the Oswego Reading Initiative and the Grand Challenges projects are just a few examples of how the college helps students integrate and apply their knowledge in real-world situations.

“When I became president, I was very interested in what was being written about studentcentered learning,” President Stanley said. “An important element of the concept was students feeling that someone was taking a personal interest in them. What we saw was that students started to achieve at different levels and they learned more, and what they learned became embedded for them in deeper learning. I’m very proud of this institution and the progress that we have made. Learner-centeredness is a living, breathing concept for us.”

“ If you’ve worked with President Stanley on a project, initiative or event, you are sure to have heard her ask a very familiar question—how will this affect our students? That learner-centered approach is at the heart of everything SUNY Oswego does.”

— Leigh Wilson, SUNY Distinguished Service Professor and SUNY Oswego professor and chair of the English and creative writing department

2009 College begins a Foundations of Excellence self-study project to enhance first-year and transfer student experiences

2020

2013

Laker Success Package announced

College implements use of the Starfish Early Alert System to identify and help struggling students

2015

2021

2008 SUNY Oswego Metro Center in Syracuse established, becomes branch campus offering complete degree programs in 2015

2021

2015 Customized MBA program for SRC Inc. launched

Imagine 2021 virtual career development program held

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Campus Renewal “ We will conquer space at Oswego State!

We will begin a multi-year initiative of refurbishing our campus.”

—President Deborah F. Stanley, 1996 Better Than We Dared Believe

Because of meticulous and consistent planning, SUNY Oswego has been exceptionally successful in securing state funding for our campus construction projects. President Stanley’s ambitious campus-wide renewal plan—now in its third decade—encompasses $1 billion in renovations and construction. Her impact will forever be felt on this campus as future generations of students, faculty and staff work, study and learn together.

President Stanley oversaw the implementation of wireless technology throughout campus, including in the residence halls.

Students arrived on campus with an expectation of fast, reliable internet connections for their laptops, phones, gaming consoles and other devices. The recent COVID-19 pandemic tested the college’s technological capabilities and proved that the college could work and deliver curriculum on campus and remotely.

President Stanley also responded to the changing needs of Oswego’s students and society. During her tenure, the world experienced a technological revolution with the internet becoming a driving force in all aspects of our lives.

In keeping with her commitment to student-centeredness, President Stanley and her leadership teams examined the physical campus. She recalls early in her presidency looking at an aerial map of the campus and taking a sticky note to what was then a parking lot in the center of campus. She marked the spot where she wanted to build a new student center. This new space would connect the eastern and western portions of campus; provide ample classrooms, an auditorium, student services, dining areas and space for student organizations; and offer a best-in-class centrally located arena for ice hockey, career fairs and most importantly, convocation ceremonies.

“There was a time in the mid-90s when we were asking how we could incent faculty to use computerization and have computers on their desks,” President Stanley recalled. “We needn’t have worried about that, because time took care of that pretty quickly. The conversation quickly became how do we pay for the computers people want on their desks?

We went from a $2 million a year every two years to a $10 million a year enterprise, and we had to renovate the campus.”

2003

2003

Rich Hall reopens as home to School of Business after $8 million renovation

Penfield Library’s $150,000 Lake E-ffect Cafe opens 2007 The $53 million Campus Center opens

1995

2001

1998 Initial Capital Plan written

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2003

2007

Johnson Hall reopens after $14 million renovation

Riggs Hall and Lakeside Dining Hall reopen after $10 million renovation

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Through her persistence and commitment to that vision, the now Marano Campus Center opened in 2007, and is home to the recently named Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall (see related story on page 17).

“Among my most cherished memories is opening the ice arena and convocation center in 2007 and shortly thereafter, breaking down the wall to officially open the ’spine’ of the Marano Campus Center,” President Stanley said. “I wondered whether it would function the way we had envisioned. Would this be the connector for campus members that bustled with activity?

“By the end of the week, it was indeed alive with people—passing through as they crossed campus, eating in the hearth room, going to their classes, studying in the quiet spaces and chatting in the lounges. It was remarkable to see how the landscape of student life and activity on campus had changed.”

Guided by the Campus Concept Committee’s recommendations, the college has strategically deployed capital funds to support student success, academic program needs as well as emergent facility developments such as lactation stations and gender neutral bathrooms. These upgrades and renovations have a direct impact on the college’s ability to deliver the highest quality education to students in an inclusive and supportive environment.

In addition to the creation of the Marano Campus Center and equally impactful to students and the physical appearance of campus was the construction of the Richard

S. Shineman Center for Science, Innovation and Engineering. The $118 million project provided a new 230,000-square-foot home for STEM majors, and also earned gold LEED certification for its environmentally friendly design, including the state’s largest geothermal well installation at the time.

The college also built The Village, a 68unit, townhouse-style complex, just south of the Gimmerglass Lagoon. Featuring a full kitchen, furnished living room and laundry unit in each house and a large commons building for leisure and studying, the Village townhouse complex offered a plethora of luxuries that were not available in typical residence halls.

President Stanley capped off her tenure with one final transformative renovation project—an $80 million campus renovation project that is turning the former Hewitt Union into the nation’s premiere facility for its School of Communication, Media and the Arts, and home for the college’s renowned broadcasting; graphic design; and cinema and screen studies programs.

“There have been many physical changes on this campus during my tenure—the buildings that are no longer, the ones that have been fully renovated and the new ones that we conceived and built together,” she said.

She leaves the college with a strong blueprint for the future, including having laid the groundwork for a network of geothermal wells and a renewable microgrid to hopefully become carbon neutral by 2050.

2010

“ I have seen, firsthand, this

campus become a living, breathing organism— maturing and growing alongside the needs of the students, faculty and greater society. Her leadership in this has been nothing short of astounding.”

— J eff Knauss ’07, co-founder of Digital Hyve and Profound, and Oswego College Foundation board member

2016

The $42 million Village Townhouse Complex opens

Tyler Hall reopens after $40.2 million renovation 2013 Rice Creek Field Station reopens after $5.5 million renovation

2015

2008 SUNY Oswego Metro Center in Syracuse opens

2021

2013

2018

The $118 million Richard S. Shineman Center for Science, Innovation and Engineering opens

Park and Wilber halls reopen after $68 million renovation 2021 Groundbreaking for $80 million Hewitt Hall renovation

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Successful Fundraising are redoubling our efforts to raise more scholar“ We ship funds to better support our students and their life goals, so we as a learning institution can deliver on our promise to society to develop an educated citizenry…who are lifelong learners committed to improving our world.”

— President Deborah F. Stanley, 2019 in announcing The Path Forward campaign

When Deborah F. Stanley became interim president in 1995, New York state had tightened the budgets for SUNY campuses, and many SUNY schools turned to tuition revenue via larger enrollments to balance their budgets. But not SUNY Oswego.

boards. She saw the benefit in leveraging the expertise and resources of the thousands of Laker alumni to maximize the college’s impact on students and in the world.

The strategy paid off. Over the past 26 years, she created a culture of philanthropy on the SUNY Oswego campus that has taken root and will continue to flourish well into the future.

Instead, President Stanley and college leadership decided to streamline programs and staffing where they could while making targeted investments that could pay dividends in the long-term future of the college.

President Stanley oversaw the evolution of annual fundraising efforts into more sophisticated and effective multi-year campaigns, beginning with Inspiring Horizons, which surpassed the original goal by raising $24 million.

Among her first efforts as president, she created the Presidential Scholars program to recruit and retain the highest achieving students, and assisted in raising funds for the program by participating in a range of philanthropic initiatives, including the annual Fall Classic Golf Tournament.

Guided by the institution’s commitment to student success and achievement, President Stanley launched the Possibility Scholars program, supported by a $5 million bequest, to attract strong students with financial need in New York state to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and give them an opportunity to apply their learning in hands-on, immersive experiences in international locations through the

She also invested in professional staff, including the establishment of a senior level vice president position to work directly with and support the efforts of the volunteers on the Oswego College Foundation and the Oswego Alumni Association

1996

2006

Presidential Merit Scholarships established

Marcia Belmar Willock ’50 Endowed Professor of Finance established 2000 Augustine Silveira Distinguished Lecture Series established

1995

2001

2007 2009

2000

2004

Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement position created

Cutler Family Public Justice Excellence Fund established

2003 Inspiring Horizons, first comprehensive fundraising campaign launched and ultimately raised nearly $24 million

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Possibility Scholarship and Global Labs program launched, including obtaining a $5 million anonymous bequest to fund it

Global Laboratory program. (To recognize President Stanley’s leadership in this area, an alumna and her husband established the endowed Deborah F. Stanley Possibility Scholarship in October. See related story on page 8.)

President Stanley recognized the important role that teacher-scholars play in igniting the passion for learning in their students and worked to secure the college’s first three endowed professorships to attract, retain and support superior faculty talent. She also worked with donors to secure support for such hands-on learning opportunities as the Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit, the Student Investment Fund, the Cutler Public Justice Excellence Fund, excellence funds for several academic departments and Student-Faculty Collaborative Challenge grants. Several named lecture series bring to campus some of the greatest minds in the nation and the world.

President Stanley conceived of a second comprehensive campaign, With Passion and Purpose, which engaged more than 16,00 donors and raised $43.5 million.

That included the college’s largest gift of $7.5 million from the Marano estate, which established the Marano Scholarships for first-generation college students.

Her impassioned plea via The Path Forward campaign in fall 2019 to raise more scholarship support for our neediest students led to the doubling of the number of need-based scholarships from

220 to 440 within two years—most of which coincided with a global pandemic— and, yet, was successful.

The pandemic also created unexpected challenges for many students, which led President Stanley and her leadership team to establish the Student Emergency Fund.

The college raised more than $365,000 since March 2020 and made awards to hundreds of students to help them cover unanticipated expenses and remain enrolled in college.

Perhaps most significantly, her vision and leadership in private fundraising led to the growth of the college endowment by 3,250% from $1.7 million in 1997 to more than $60 million in 2021, resulting in more funding for students and helping elevate an Oswego education from good to great.

In recognition of her tremendous contributions, specifically her exceptional accomplishments as a fundraiser for the college, a group of donors, led by the Oswego College Foundation board, raised more than $2.4 million to name the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall.

“It was extremely moving,” President Stanley said of the Oct. 1 naming unveiling. “To think about that being here in perpetuity is amazing to me. I am so grateful to these donors—many of whom were my students. That money will create an endowed fund that will enable the campus to keep up the unique equipment needs of this space. It’s incredible and humbling.”

“ I reflect on Oswego fundraising

before President Stanley and I think about how it stands today. Her leadership has led us to magnificence—magnificence that centers on the learner. She established from the ground up a meaningful and lasting culture of philanthropy at SUNY Oswego.”

— Jennifer Shropshire ’86, principal at Edward F. Swenson & Associates Inc. and Oswego College Foundation board member

2021 Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall announced, thanks to $2.4 million from alumni to establish a fund for the space and to honor the president

2014 2012

With Passion and Purpose, second comprehensive fundraising campaign publicly launched and ultimately raised $43.5 million

$5 million naming gift announced for Richard S. Shineman Center

2015

2021

2021

2019 2013 $7.5 million bequest realized, naming the Marano Campus Center

The Path Forward campaign launched to double the number of need-based scholarships

Endowment earns record return of 27.9% and helping to grow the endowment more than 3,250% from $1.7 million in 1997 to $60.6 million today

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Productive Partnerships education’s traditional mission in preparing “ Higher students and growing knowledge can more deliberately enhance the social and economic fiber of our communities when we align that mission with appropriate external partners.”

— President Deborah F. Stanley, 2013

As a public institution, SUNY Oswego has always embraced our mission of contributing to the common good and being an educational resource that lifts all segments of the population.

President Stanley has encouraged all facets of the college to connect with local, regional, state and national entities to create mutually beneficial partnerships. Her own leadership on such organizations as the American Association of Colleges and Universities, American Council on Education’s (ACE) Commission on Leadership, CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity, Operation Oswego County, New York State Campus Compact and several SUNY system committees has elevated the reputation of SUNY Oswego. Through her involvement with these organizations, she has shared SUNY Oswego’s successes and brought back best practices to infuse into our own operations and offerings.

She was also a charter signatory of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, and has used that public promise to guide all future construction on the SUNY Oswego campus. Fulfilling her commitment to reduce Oswego’s

1997

She also wanted to bring the college into the community. As a result of a unique public-private partnership between the college and Pathfinder Bank, the Business Resource Center opened in 2017 to offer a range of services to entrepreneurs, startups and established businesses at the hub of downtown Oswego’s east side. It also houses the college’s Office of Business and Community Relations, the Greater OswegoFulton Chamber of Commerce and the Workforce Development Board of Oswego County.

President Stanley became a charter signatory of the American College University Presidents’ Climate Commitment

2001 1997 Oswego joins SUNY Learning Network to offer online courses

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With its 700-acre campus and 76 buildings, SUNY Oswego is a valuable resource for the region, and President Stanley initiated the “Cruisin’ the Campus” program to integrate and embed the college’s arts, athletics, recreation and many other offerings in the community by opening up campus resources, facilities and programs to area residents.

2007

College hosts Global Energy Issues Forum “Electric Deregulation in the New Millennium”

1995

carbon footprint and to improve energy efficiency, all campus projects have since followed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) construction system to earn certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.

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2007 2007 Teacher Opportunity Corps funding begins; increased support in every renewal in 2010, 2013 and 2017 for a total of $530,000

Similarly, the college promotes students’ involvement in life happening off campus, especially through volunteering. Students also commit thousands of hours of volunteer service to such initiatives as Adopt-A-Grandparent, youth mentor programs, literacy programs, tax preparation assistance and many others.

ed Battle Buddy Center, and the college has a robust website for veterans that pulls together all college and community resources into one area. Such efforts have led to the college’s designation as a military friendly school and inclusion on best college for veterans listings.

President Stanley supported service learning—an educational experience that enables students to apply their knowledge in a setting or on a project that can provide tangible benefits to a community business or organization. These unique, and often multidisciplinary learning experiences have repeatedly earned the college the prestigious Carnegie Community Engagement Classification and listing on the Presidential Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

She encouraged the college to build pathways to new populations of students through articulation agreements and partnerships with community colleges, high schools and international organizations. These partnerships helped to diversify the college, support recruitment goals and create a more vibrant community of learners.

Additionally, President Stanley co-chaired SUNY’s Mental Health Task Force to help develop recommendations on how the SUNY system can make a measurable difference in addressing the mental health needs of students. During her tenure, the college won a federal grant of nearly $280,000 over three years to strengthen the college’s crisis counseling capabilities.

The college also created more direct pathways for students to communitybased mental health resources so that students had round-the-clock access to support when they needed it.

“ Deborah Stanley is a national

leader. Not too many presidents are presidents for 26 years, and she’s respected by her peers. As the chair of the AASCU board, she was leading a board of 17 college presidents and speaking for approximately 400 institutions that serve over 3.5 million students. AASCU institutions (regional comprehensive colleges and universities) are educating the new majority of Americans—the first-generation, low income and students of color. That’s why her voice is so important across the country.”

While aware of the college’s role as an economic engine for the region, President Stanley also recognized the reciprocal nature of being a good neighbor. She helped develop a shared vision across our campus for building external partnerships and worked to ensure that the college enriched the lives of the community and external partners, and those same connections enhanced the educational experience and growth of our students and campus members.

True to her student-centered philosophy, President Stanley has worked to connect the campus and our students to community resources. For example, the college worked with several agencies to turn its Veterans Lounge into a NYSID-designat-

— Dr. Millie Garcia, president of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities

2013 2010 Carnegie Foundation Community Engagement Classification first earned

President Stanley elected chair of CenterState CEO for economic development and business leadership

2016 Veterans Lounge adds Battle Buddy Center

2019 President Stanley appointed co-chair of SUNY’s Mental Health Task Force

2015

2021

2011

TM

The Village, on-campus townhouse residences, earns LEED Gold from U.S Building Council. All future construction on campus built to meet green building standards.

2016 SUNY Oswego establishes co-op program with Port of Oswego for business and science students

2017 Business Resource Center and Office of Business and Community Relations open in downtown Oswego

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Caring and Inclusive Culture is also the time to move beyond celebrating “ Itdiversity as our sole goal. The quality of a public institution of higher learning will also be measured by how well we forge and sustain a truly pluralistic community on campus.”

— President Deborah F. Stanley, 1996 Better Than We Dared Believe

Walking in the annual ALANA Peace Walk. Cheering for Laker ice hockey teams during Whiteout Weekend. Dancing to Pharrell’s “Happy” in the worldwide #HappyDay Challenge.

Chatting with the student groups who are tabling in the Marano Campus Center. Participating in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

Watching a Del Sarte student dance recital or an Artswego performance.

Catching up with alumni and friends at the annual “Come As You Were” BBQ at Fallbrook during Reunion Weekend. Donating to The Fund for Oswego during a 24-hour giving challenge.

Coming together to share, mourn and comfort one another in times of civil unrest in the nation and after such disasters as the 9/11 attacks, Hurricane Katrina, and other violence and natural disasters.

Establishing and following new protocols to protect the health of every community member.

Gathering for the Totally Teal Ovarian Cancer Awareness, It’s On Oz sexual and interpersonal violence prevention, Go Red for Women

heart health awareness or annual Green and Gold Day campus photos.

The list goes on, but these are some of the day-to-day activities that build a caring, inclusive community.

In her 1996 remarks to faculty and staff, President Stanley said: “Our working network is also a living community of real people. Certainly, we leave our imprint as educators but also as human beings … We must lead our students by example. We know that the more productively engaged and affiliated the students are, the more dedicated they are to succeed at college. We also know that the more social interactions students have with faculty, the more motivated they are to learn.”

One of President Stanley’s greatest accomplishments at SUNY Oswego was creating a culture of caring and inclusion that values diversity and differences and fosters communication and understanding among all Lakers.

“It is in our interest to be inclusive because we are so intertwined in everything we do,” she said in 1996. “Difference in our participants can serve to make us less brittle, more creative and more resilient as a whole.”

1998 Return to Oz, reunion for alumni of color, established 2005 Oswego Family Portrait taken

1995

2001 2001 Last official “Dirt Day” celebration, which would become today’s campus-based, college-sanctioned OzFest

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2007 2007 Men’s Ice Hockey wins NCAA Division III National Championship 2005 9/11 Memorial Garden dedicated

Today, the college has never been more diverse in student demographics, academic programs and extracurricular offerings. President Stanley eliminated walls between disciplines, and encouraged multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary courses and research.

She incentivized research that involves faculty and students—and even industry partners—working together.

She made sure that all stakeholders, most notably students, have a seat at the table to discuss goals, priorities and actions. Through shared governance, faculty, students, professional staff and administration work together in good faith to advance the college’s mission every day. A diverse group of employees, students and oftentimes alumni serve side-by-side on college committees, working groups and task forces to ensure that issues are addressed from a variety of perspectives.

“An organization is the interplay of people, not the hierarchy of people,” President Stanley said.

Particularly important to her was the inclusion of minority voices or those on the fringe of an issue. In fact, one of the key traits of any member of her leadership team was the ability to disagree with her or the prevailing thinking and defend their positions, even knowing that the decision could likely go the other way.

President Stanley has continued, yearafter-year, to guide the college to its most culturally diverse student body in

SUNY Oswego’s history. At the start of the fall 2020 semester, 31% of the total undergraduate and graduate population, including a record-setting 38% of the first-year class self-identified as culturally diverse. (See related information on pages 32-33.)

During her tenure, the college hired our first-ever chief diversity and inclusion officer, and created the first-ever Strategic Diversity and Inclusion Plan. Launched in fall 2021, the Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice will serve as the nexus of activity related to SUNY Oswego’s efforts to stand together to root out racism and enact positive change for our community.

“I’m enormously proud of the diversity that we’ve instilled and honor at this institution,” President Stanley said. “I think we do it the right way and I’m very proud of that.”

People on this campus go the extra mile to support each other and campus priorities. Whether it is organizing the longest conga line on ice or staffing eight separate commencement ceremonies to ensure our graduates can safely celebrate their graduation, President Stanley empowered people from across campus to work beyond their job descriptions or usual role to achieve more.

It is a culture that is tangible to those on campus. It has become known as The Oswego Way. Its roots trace back to President Stanley.

“ Leaders who are genuinely dedicated to [changing a culture] understand they cannot limit their choices and actions to reflect just their own culture.

We must bring those most affected by these decisions to the table. And when they’re there, we must listen to them.

President Stanley is that kind of leader. SUNY Oswego is forever changed because [she] sat at its helm.”

— Christopher Collins-McNeil ’16, founder and principal consultant at Collins-McNeil Group LLC and former Oswego Student Association president

2008 Hart Global Living and Learning Center hosts its first Global Awareness Conference

2016 Earns Top 20 ranking in Open Doors study-abroad

2021 Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice established

2015

2021 2017 Laker community breaks Guinness World Record for Longest Conga Line on Ice on live national broadcast of NBC’s Today show during Rokerthon 3

2018 First Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer appointed

2011 ALANA Peace Walk first held OSWEGO

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7 1 2 3 4

Ways to Be an Effective Leader (abbreviated from President Stanley’s original essay 9/5/13)

Foster a “why” mentality and culture.

And a “what if we didn’t do it that way” investigation. For me—turning an idea or a problem around to look at every side keeps us thinking fresh, encourages deeper analysis of situations and always yields new ideas.

Let it Steep. Give things—initiatives— decisions—impressions—time to brew. Often you won’t be able to have a “do over” so it will be best to make a clear-headed and informed decision as your first course of action.

Remember the Golden Rule. Value being human and express the value you have for others in words and deeds.

Pay it forward. It is incredibly worthwhile to spend time cultivating, encouraging and guiding the next generation so they will be ready— confident and experienced—to take the reins.

5 6 7

Make being a constant learner—a seeker of knowledge not just information—your main habit. Getting outside of your bubble can turn on a light bulb to understanding many other things in life and perhaps increase your insight about yourself.

Only taking action can achieve positive change. When you act, you might not hit the mark exactly—not all action makes positive change—but sometimes the best way to advance is to fall short.

Refill the well. Replenishment can come in many forms but we must be intentional about integrating our lives in this way to live a more satisfying and joyful life.

THEN

NOW

Alumni in 1998

Alumni in 2021

40,000 90,000 32

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Deborah F. Stanley, the 10th president of SUNY Oswego, is pictured here on the cover of the Fall/Winter 1998 issue of the OSWEGO Alumni Magazine in her inaugural regalia. The weeklong celebration of her inauguration included a community reception at City Hall, art exhibitions in Tyler Hall, the Fall Classic, Energy Issues Forum and the Sheldon Lighting Ceremony (see page 45).

THEN

NOW

Alumni from

15

Alumni from

Countries

Countries

in 1998

in 2021

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Lessons on Leadership My relationship with Deborah F. Stanley began through our husbands, who were both Oswego natives. We’d see each other out, we attended each other’s weddings, we lived in the same neighborhood, we had children at the same time and our daughters became best friends.

Focus on people. She was the first to call someone on her team who faced personal tragedy and to set aside work tasks to focus on the humanity of the moment. She values people and was so eager to understand our alumni and their perspectives. I loved watching and learning from those interactions.

Deborah had just become president of the college when I decided to rejoin the workforce part-time after having my twin daughters. I was hired to run the Fall Classic, which was the main fundraiser for the college and was a precursor to our full-fledged major gifts and development program. Looking back, I realize how fortunate I was to have had a one-on-one professional relationship with Deborah early on in my career here. She has mentored me throughout my time at SUNY Oswego, and she has helped to shape me into the leader I have become.

Lead by example. She expected excellence, but not perfection.

She never expected anything of you that she herself wasn’t doing. She always asked how she could help support me and my team in accomplishing our goals.

Here are a few lessons on leadership I have learned from my 25 years working with President Stanley.

Never stop learning. President Stanley was constantly reading, and encouraging us to connect with colleagues to discuss best practices, attend workshops and conferences, know everything you can and become an expert in your area.

Trust your team. She empowered me and asked me for my opinion on anything related to alumni and development. She’d say, “You’re the expert. You tell me what you think the options are.” She’s the kind of leader who builds your confidence and your belief in yourself.

Because she believes in you, you ultimately start believing in yourself, too. Support, mentor, encourage and trust your team.

President Stanley has built a strong team that she’s really positioned to lead. She unleashed us to be the best we can be to help the next generation of leaders, too, and to perpetuate that type of commitment and passion for our students and for higher education. That’s her legacy. Her legacy is what she has empowered all of us to do and become.

I’ve learned leadership from the best, and I have a deep and abiding respect for Deborah F. Stanley as a leader, a role model, a friend and an all-around person.

Be ethical and transparent. She was always honest and clear in what her expectation was.

Make time to plan. She helped me realize the value of strategic planning. She’d ask, how can you reach your goals without a plan?

She always started her planning from the place of what’s best for our students. That was the gold standard.

Mary Gibbons Canale ’81 Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement

Student Racial and Ethnic Diversity American Indian Asian or Pacific Islander Black or African American Hispanic Two or more races International

in 1995

in 2021

Percentage of freshmen with GPA 90 or higher

THEN

NOW

in 1995

in 2021

12% 49%

White/Caucasian OSWEGO

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A Message of Gratitude to the Stanleys:

’Our Unity of Place’ Defines the Laker Family “ Our unity of place, even though not of time, still links us. We are both daughters of this lake, this school, this house and perhaps this room. This place sparked in you a desire for learning that you cultivated and carried out into the world. That same spark took root in me here. And from this place I carry it upward and outward in an effort to do that which you have done for me and countless others. Pass it on.”

— Paige Stanley, daughter of Michael and Deborah F. Stanley, in a letter in 2011 to Mary Sheldon Barnes, the daughter of college founder Edward Austin Sheldon

Unlike other families, however, the Stanleys opened their home to many by hosting annual Reunion receptions, college and alumni events, and dinners for distinguished college guests. In short, they extended their family to encompass the whole Laker family.

F

or more than two decades, SUNY Oswego has been home to the Stanley Family. In 1998, Michael and Deborah moved into the president’s residence at Shady Shore with their two daughters Paige and Jacquelyn, then 12 and 10. Over the years, the family members have made memories together there, and shared milestones and celebrations from birthdays to holiday gatherings to births to weddings—all of the life events that many families celebrate together.

When care packages were inadvertently delivered to Shady Shore instead of a residence hall, Michael would take special care to protect the contents and make sure it was received by the intended recipient.

Michael and President Stanley attended nearly every college Reunion Weekend, oftentimes embracing that year’s theme by wearing coordinating attire or accessories to the Friday night “Come As You Were” Barbecue at Fallbrook. The couple recently presented on “Building Credibility, Caring, Character and Competence” at the American Association State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) Spouse/Partner Program Annual Meeting to share what they have learned about being a couple in leadership on a college campus.

During the Founder’s Weekend celebration in October, President Stanley credited Michael for always being available to “take the watch” when she grew weary or needed to focus on another task. She announced during the annual Scholars Brunch that she created an endowed scholarship in her husband’s name to honor his commitment to her and the institution.

Alumni leadership also paid tribute to the Stanley Family during Founder’s Weekend celebrations. Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors President Dana Segall Murphy ’99 read a citation passed by the board, declaring both Michael and President Stanley honorary alumni of SUNY Oswego.

Murphy also thanked him for being “the resident expert on the history of Shady Shore and all of its occupants” and for his decades of generous service and commitment to the SUNY Oswego campus community. On behalf of all Oswego alumni, Murphy and Oswego College Foundation Board Chair Rose Cardamone Crane ’81 dedicated a bench and a tree to Michael J. Stanley.

On behalf of the college community, we thank the entire Stanley Family for being part of the Laker Family and welcoming us into yours. Although time moves on, we will always share a “unity of place” and the spark for learning that traces back to the shores of Lake Ontario.

Pictured: Joe and Jill Bollettieri, son and daughter-in-law; Heidi Allen and Jackie Stanley, daughter-inlaw and daughter; President Stanley, Michael Stanley, husband; Paige Stanley, daughter; Blaise Hill ’15, grandson; Alexandra Hill, granddaughter; and Jennifer Hill, daughter.

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Class Notes

From The Archives Journalist, media critic for The New Yorker and award-winning writer Ken Auletta ’63 delivered the keynote address during the inauguration of SUNY Oswego’s 10th President, Deborah F. Stanley, on Sept. 9, 1998.

In his now prophetic remarks, he predicted some of the ways in which President Stanley would change this campus.

After his initial meeting with President Stanley, Auletta recalled: “I met an educator who understands that while the State University must strive for excellence and to attract students with outstanding grades, it must also attract the kind of diverse student body that provided people like me with such a rich education.”

He also described some qualities that leads a person to success. “ I learned that intelligent people are not just those who retain the most facts, but those who can discriminate among those facts. “ I learned that an attitude can be at least as important as perfect grades. The person who is hopeful, an optimist, will tend to take more risks than a pessimist. “ The person who has faith in themselves will tend to be steadier.

During the Founder’s Weekend Luncheon on Oct. 1, 2021, Auletta shared a recorded message as a bookend to his introductory remarks at the beginning of her presidency. He congratulated and thanked her for her leadership, saying: “ She’s done more than I could have imagined when I gave that speech in 1998.”

To watch the video of Auletta’s remarks to President Stanley, visit magazine.oswego.edu. “ The person who is passionate will tend to be a better persuader. That’s what you want in a college president—an optimist, who believes in students. “ A self-confident leader, who is unafraid to delegate and include faculty and students in her decisions.

“A person of passion. “ That’s what you are fortunate to have at Oswego, I believe, in Deborah Stanley.

A reformer, who nourishes a sense of community…I believe Deborah Stanley will make Oswego a better place.”

Do you have a favorite photo from your college days that you’d like featured in an alumni communication?

Send the photo and a description, along with your name and class year, to alumni@oswego.edu; or King Alumni Hall, Oswego, N.Y. 13126.

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ALUMNI BOOKSHELF Jeff Rea ’71

Jenn O’Connor ’91 and Erika Leveille ’95

The Shineman Legacy

Preventing Child Abuse: Critical Roles and Multiple Perspectives (Chapter 7, “Home Visiting to Prevent Maltreatment”)

Independently Published, 2021.

Following SUNY Oswego emeriti professors, Richard Shineman and Barbara Palmer Shineman ’65 M’71, The Shineman Legacy explores the vastly different childhoods of Richard and Barbara and their paths until they met, and their legacy at SUNY Oswego.

Karen Foresti Hempson ’73

Nova Science Publishers Inc., 2021.

The duo authored a chapter focused on maternal, infant and early childhood home visiting. These evidence-based prevention programs are free, voluntary and inclusive, and are proven to decrease child abuse and neglect.

Bean Pickers: American Immigrant Portraits

Keith Washo ’93

Karen Foresti Hempson, 2019.

In these eight true-life portrayals of Italian-Americans in the 20th century, Hempson’s creative non-fiction book details the reality of many immigrants.

Battling through the waves of other immigrants, prohibition, the Great Depression and World War II, the characters show the true grit that immigrants have in their quest for a better life.

Sound Emporium Studios, 2021.

Love song duet “Follow,” featuring vocalist and Washo’s wife, Chelsey Garrett, follows the idea of finding the one you love and showing your love by following each other upward and onwards in life.

Follow also features a music video at Tunnel Creek Winery in Roxboro, N.C.

Eileen McCartin Love ’76

In the Shadow of the Cedar—A Memoir Eileen McCartin Love, 2020.

At its heart, this is a story of two lives intertwined, those of a mother and daughter. The author recounts life under the canopy of her mother’s lively memories from another time and place.

Researching her mother’s past, the writer has a soul-altering encounter with the house on Cedar Drive, and comes away with a renewed understanding about the things that really matter.

Follow

We celebrate and share the success of Oswego alumni authors, illustrators and recording artists, who may ask their publisher/distributor to send a copy of the work to the Oswego alumni office to be considered for this column and our website, where cover photos of all works in this column will be displayed.

Jordan Steven Sher ’77 To see all book covers, please visit magazine.oswego.edu

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And Still We Rise—A Novel About the Genocide in Bosnia Atmosphere Press, 2021.

Based on real-life events in Spring 1992, the Kovacevics, a Muslim family in Prijedor, Bosnia, are targeted in the brutal campaign to rid Bosnia of non-Serbs.

The novel tells the story of the Kovacevics trying to survive the Omarska and Trnopolje concentration camps, before becoming refugees moving to Croatia, then Germany and finally Utica, N.Y.

SUBMITTING A CLASS NOTE To submit your class note, email alumni@oswego.edu, call 315-3122258 or complete the class note form online at alumni.oswego.edu.

You can also mail submissions to the OSWEGO Alumni Magazine, King Alumni Hall, Oswego, N.Y. 13126.

Weddings

Class Notes

Katie Marcy ’16 married Sam Cotton on Aug. 7, 2021, at Pomona at Blue Barn in Hilton, N.Y. From left are Emilia Chrostowska ’17, Caitlin Brodfuehrer ’14, April Manzella ’17, Jess Fatigate ’15, Haley Filippone ’17, Xavier Robles ’17, the bride, Maggie Graser ’17, Amanda Manzella ’16, Corinne Hildreth ’18, Brianna Ferrara ’17, Carla Carbone ’15 and Allison Derby ’17.

Katherine “Ellie” Webster ’13 and Tyler Rorabaugh were married on Aug. 21, 2020, in a small ceremony in Bourbonnais, Ill. The couple lives in Bradley, Ill., where Ellie is a fifth-grade teacher and Tyler is an electrician for IBEW 176.

Kassadee Paulo ’19 married Paul Bradshaw ’16 on May 29, 2021, in Oswego, where they first met. From left are Candace Fitzgerald M’19, the bride, the bridegroom, Emily Bradshaw ’22 and Katie Bradshaw ’20.

Kassadee is an editor for Oswego County Today.

Laura Benvenuto ’13 and Nick Treviso ’13 were married Sept. 5, 2020. On Sept. 5, 2021, they held their reception at City Winery DC in Washington, D.C. They reside in Silver Spring, Md.

Denise L. Weldon ’08 and Christopher A. Clark were married on Oct. 10, 2020, in the garden outside of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Charlotte, where they first met. Denise is a licensed property and casualty insurance agent and Christopher is a software architect.

The couple lives in Charlotte, N.C.

Hallie Gaffney ’16 married Brian Hand on Aug. 21, 2021, in a beachside ceremony in Key West, Fla. Standing beside Hallie in the photo are Elizabeth Schell ’16 M’18 and Rebecca Stroh ’16.

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Thank You and Congratulations, President Stanley!

I join the special tribute to President Deborah Stanley, on the occasion of her retirement as president of SUNY Oswego.

She has been a tireless and competent leader who placed Oswego on a leading position in the SUNY system, and projected it beyond.

I fondly remember my years at Oswego and appreciate how Deborah brought many of us, alumni, back to campus to enhance its prestige.

Deborah enthusiastically organized and participated in the launching of two of my books, when I was ambassador of Chile to the United Nations. I was thankful of such gestures on her part.

Oswego was an important part of my life.

Deborah contributed significantly to the development of that academic and human experience for students, faculty and administrative personnel. Best wishes on the new challenges she might face.

– Heraldo Muñoz ’72, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile (2014-2018) and former Presidential candidate 2021

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Deborah Stanley…”An Unequalled Visionary,” “A Consummate Leader,” “An Ardent Educator,” “A Supportive Mentor,” and “A Trusted Friend!”

I was so fortunate to have worked as deputy to the president during the early years of Deborah’s presidency. The vision she had for the college then has been brilliantly executed and reflectivity expanded into accomplishments that will stand the test of time.

Countless students have been impacted by her devotion to excellence and her perseverance to make SUNY Oswego “second to none.”

On a personal note, I will always be grateful for the opportunities she afforded me during my years at the college. She guided me, challenged me and opened doors that let me become an integral part of my alma mater … a school that I love!

Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement, Deborah. You have been a vital and vibrant player in SUNY Oswego’s history and your legacy will be reflected far into the college’s future!

– Carolyn Rush ’68, former deputy to the president at SUNY Oswego

My relationship with President Stanley has always been rooted in optimism. I first met her when I ran for Student Association President. One of the greatest lessons she taught me is that I don’t ever need to hold any official position in order to make change.

One year I did my first campus-wide leadership presentation for the ALANA conference. I was nervous not knowing who would show up to the presentation. I was just hoping at least a few students would show up. Not only did my peers show up, to my surprise, President Stanley and her leadership team came to my presentation.

It was such a meaningful experience, as I know there were a lot of events and places she could have been, but she made an intention to show up for me.

As a 20-year-old college student, that level of support was tremendous—to be seen and appreciated that way. Fast forward to my senior year, I was one of several students who was asked to join the president on the cover of the OSWEGO Alumni Magazine to culminate our Inspiring Horizons campaign for the college. I remember being seated next to the president at the bottom right corner and after the shoot she said, “You probably never thought you would be doing this your freshman year,” with a smile. It was such an honor to be on that cover and share in that experience. It’s by far one of my most treasured highlights of my time at Oswego, while a student and after.

Deborah Stanley has been a singular force in my life—at times a mentor, friend, confidant and advocate both for me, personally, and the work of restoring Central New York to its global economic relevance. Her voice has a power that is both rare and immediately recognizable. That she wields it so diplomatically is a testament to her humility and grace. Decades from now, Deborah’s imprint on our community will be rightfully acknowledged as indelible.

When I officially graduated before leaving campus, I met with President Stanley. I was anxious and unsure of the path ahead, but remained optimistic about my prospects. President Stanley encouraged my pursuits, reminding me that I made it past the hard part and to not be fearful. She reminded me to embrace the challenges and move through them as life will always run its course. I’ve followed that advice ever since. I wish her the absolute best in her next journey forward.

– Robert Simpson, (pictured on right) president of the CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity (CEO)

– Cameron Jones ’09, manager of development and integrated strategy/race and culture at ABC News

President Deborah F. Stanley’s first institutional strategic plan was titled “Better Than We Dared Believe,” and she made believers out of us! Navigating fierce winds of change for 26 years, President Stanley was our leader who threw her arms open wide to embrace public higher education and its place in society. She launched the force of Oswego’s students, faculty, staff and alumni to propel immeasurable transformational achievements growing our reputation and stature.

I was honored and proud to behold President Stanley lead SUNY Oswego to immeasurable heights in my roles with the college, most recently as vice president for alumni relations and development from 2006 to 2016. Twenty-six years later, Deborah F. Stanley was better than we dared believe and her exemplary presidential legacy is a testament to a bold, courageous woman who believed in the power of higher education.

I have always been proud of my Oswego education, never moreso than when I’ve been in the presence of Deborah Stanley. With her intelligence, her eloquence, her dignity and warmth, President Stanley has embodied for me all the greatest gifts the college has brought to my life. The gift of mentorship, for instance, and friendship, and, perhaps most profoundly, the gift of respect— respect for all of us who pursue an education in the hope of a meaningful life. I am so grateful to her for her dedication, her wit, her humanity. She has made our little college by the lake, and thus our country, our world, a better place.

– Alice McDermott ’75, award-winning novelist and Academy Professor and Richard A. Macksey Professor for Distinguished Teaching in the Humanities at Johns Hopkins University

– Kerry Casey Dorsey ’81, former vice president for development and alumni relations and former College Council member

Dear President Stanley, Congratulations on your retirement! My time at Oswego would not have been the same without you. I will remember how you were always available to your students and had such a presence on campus. Thank you for everything you have done for me and the Oswego community. Wishing you all the best!

– Darlene Le ’16, coordinator of Registrar Services for Harvard Business School’s Doctoral Programs

Edward Austin Sheldon may have founded Oswego in 1861, but Deborah F. Stanley put it on the map in the late 1990s and early 2000s. A large part of our present alma mater is due directly to her vision and leadership. Thousands of students have been influenced and educated while she has been a member of the faculty and president of Oswego; each, in some large or small way, has been the subject of her concern. Her unrecognized influence will indirectly ripple through our country for many years.

Deborah, please accept my warmest congratulations and my thanksgivings for your most outstanding service. As the 10th president, you have taken the college onward to an almost unimaginable series of significant growth and professional development initiatives. The Oswego campus today is wonderfully renewed, and the new and enhanced programs and degree offerings are especially indicative of what you have accomplished.

– Dr. C. Thomas Gooding, former vice president for academic affairs and interim provost of SUNY Oswego

I will never forget sitting in a restaurant in Studio City, California (just outside of Warner Bros. Studios) with President Stanley and Mary Canale in early 2009 discussing the importance of ensuring economically vulnerable people have more access to healthcare, education, etc. It was then that President Stanley told me about her concept for the Possibility Scholars Program. In her typical forward-thinking manner, she created a program that would, as she said, remove financial barriers for talented students looking to enter the sciences and provide meaningful experiences that would allow them to succeed after graduation.

Jane and I join a host of people, both within the Oswego community and many others, who wish the Stanleys a long and happy retirement.

Kudos to Dr. Stanley for her many innovations and particularly for her attention to ensuring diversity and inclusivity at Oswego. I wish her well in what I know will be an equally productive future.

– Davis Parker ’47, retired Webster (N.Y.) school administrator, Sheldon Legacy Society member, scholarship donor and long-time Reunion Engagement and Philanthropy Committee volunteer

– Lois Frankel ’73, bestselling author, executive coach and an internationally recognized expert in leadership development for women OSWEGO

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Thank You and Congratulations, President Stanley!

D.C. knows a CINC (commander-in-chief) when we see one.

I will always remember President Stanley for her cool-handed, steady leadership through unprecedented times. And she did do so with smarts, warmth and grace all while wearing a Lakers hockey sweater. An impressive feat! Congrats to our forever president on a career well done.

– Steve Levy ’87, Monday Night Football play-by-play commentator, National Hockey League play-by-play commentator and host, and ESPN SportsCenter anchor

And we have seen a bunch since 1995. Bill, George W., Barack, Donald and Joe. They come and go every four years or so.

Our Oswego CINC has reigned 26 years. Unelected, true but could be unanimously swept into office for another 26-year term by her loyalist and world-wide fan club.

Here in D.C. she knows us and our families … Jack, Mark, Hal, Claire, Clair, Bridget, Rick, Alice and over 400 more from Richmond, to Annapolis, Baltimore, Columbia, Capital Hill and the D.C. ‘burbs.

Some have fame such as Alice and her “Charming Billy.” Mark with his lording over the Food Industry. Others bring their fame down from The City … Al R., Ken A., Peter M., Bob G., Bob M., Steve D., Dianora D. and more to mingle with their CINC, too.

Deborah, you have graced us many times with your presence at D.C.’s Tower Club, City Club, Army & Navy Club, Baltimore Waterfront and in our homes.

And you have brought us to Capitol Hill to meet Chuck S. and the Chancellor. But it was you, Deborah, who commanded the room at the Rayburn Building as other SUNY presidents came by seeking your counsel and enjoying your charisma.

You have stood tall between presidential candidates (albeit cardboard cutouts) every four years at our D.C. signature alumni event, the Oswego Presidential Panel Discussion, ably moderated by our emeritus Bruce. We listened to your campus updates, which left us all swelling with pride and good cheer for what you and the “Party” has achieved over, not just four, but 26 years at Oswego.

Now it’s our turn to wish you, our CINC, good cheer.

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President Stanley, it has been such a pleasure to learn from, be inspired by and be given tremendous opportunities through your leadership at our institution. You have forever impacted the lives of the many individuals who live, work and attend our beloved university. Thank you for leaving a legacy of making Oswego an institution of excellence and caring deeply for our students’ success. Forever…#InDebWeStan.

As the CINC’s Navy might say, Deborah and Michael, we wish you, “Fair winds and following seas.” The Army wishes you to just, “keep rolling along” (into retirement). The Air Force suggests, you always “aim higher,” now glide gracefully into life’s next phase. The Marines applaud you for always being “first to fight” for the budget, social issues, academic excellence and conquering COVID. “Ooooh Raaaah.” The Space Force recognizes how you have indeed “commanded the (academic) universe.”

– Justin Dobrow ’17, manager of partner operations at Peacock, NBCUniversal

– Colonel Jack James ’62, U.S. Marine Corps (Retired)

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And all of your D.C. troops simply offer a collective, “Thank you, mission accomplished and well done,” as you and Michael depart your White House on Shady Shore.

As our beloved “CINC” you have commanded us well … now go forth and enjoy retirement.

I have been working at SUNY Oswego for almost 15 years, and in that time I have seen many positive changes that were made possible by President Stanley’s leadership. First, there are the many beautiful new campus buildings and facilities that create an inviting and stimulating environment. Next is the focus on diversity—both among the faculty and student body.

This enriches the classroom and campus community in so many ways. And, finally, the growth in our endowment helps ensure that future Lakers will be able to enjoy the kinds of experiences we’re fostering today.

President Stanley has been the beacon of light that has transformed Oswego to a highly competitive and welcoming community. Under her leadership we’ve cultivated generations of leaders who have gone on to do extraordinary things but more importantly always feel welcome to come home to Oswego. One of the greatest honors I received was presiding over a Torchlight ceremony and serving as a commencement speaker. I’m grateful for the “roots and wings“ that I received at Oswego and I’m proud to give back as a member of the alumni board.

I feel tremendous gratitude for the support that President Stanley has provided to me, my department and the entire campus community, and I consider myself extremely fortunate to have arrived at SUNY Oswego during her tenure. I want to offer my sincerest thanks and best wishes.

Enjoy your rest and retirement President Stanley for a job well done!

Sincerely, – Dr. Yvonne M. Spicer ’84 M’85, former mayor of Framingham, Mass.

– Dr. James Early, associate professor of computer science

Successfully leading a university requires a servant leader. Many claim this mantel, but few live up to it. But, over the past 25 years, I’ve got to observe the real deal in Deborah Stanley.

A servant leader prioritizes the growth of her community. It is always about the institution.

It is never about herself. Over two decades under her leadership, Oswego has developed a clear sense of who we are, the priorities of our core instructional mission and our power to transform the lives of the sons and daughters of New York.

Under Deborah’s leadership we strengthened our financial position so that we could fund what we dream; we revitalized our physical plan to put student needs at the forefront of every brick and every classroom; innovated our curriculum and leveraged our technology to enhance instruction and operations; and we instituted policies and procedures and planning that would support operations for years into the future. She has demanded continuous review of operations and planning to minimize barriers to student success and completion.

I ask you to raise your glasses in gratitude for the way that Deborah both served and led us, and warmest wishes for the next chapter—to Deborah Stanley!

On behalf of tens of thousands of Oswego alumni family members, including myself of course, I am privileged to have this space and opportunity to share sincere gratitude to President Stanley as she concludes her impressive tenure at our beloved alma mater.

President Stanley has consistently supported Development and Alumni Engagement efforts over the years to help our Lakers remain connected to the institution and to each other—seeing alumni as important and valuable stakeholders. She, along with her husband, Mr. Michael J. Stanley, have traveled across the country for alumni events, greeted alumni back on campus during Reunion Weekends and literally opened their home so generations of Lakers could experience the historic Shady Shore. They have both established a warm and welcoming culture for all members of the SUNY Oswego family, and have made our alma mater a place we are proud to be part of. Because of all of this, and more, it was an honor to witness the Oswego Alumni Association’s Board of Directors resolve to name both President and Mr. Stanley honorary SUNY Oswego alumni on Oct. 1—a title reserved for the few who truly bleed green and gold, though their paper diplomas may suggest otherwise.

Having started my own SUNY Oswego journey back in 2005, as a first year student...I have never personally known an Oswego without President Stanley’s leadership. She is woven into the identity of this institution—and while her absence will certainly be felt in the months and years ahead, we look forward to building upon the strong system she’s established as we forge ahead—and perhaps even seeing her at a future alumni event in the beautiful campus space that forevermore bears her name.

– Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09, executive director of the Oswego Alumni Association

– Dr. Elizabeth Schmitt, professor of Economics and chair of Faculty Assembly, edited from her Dec. 2 toast at the Faculty and Professional Staff Reception OSWEGO

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In Memoriam Jill J. McLaughlin Rakov ’40 of Brockport, N.Y., Aug. 2, 2019.

Una Kieffer Zona ’56 of Liverpool, N.Y., June 28, 2021.

Joyce P. Early ’70 of Baldwinsville, N.Y., June 23, 2021.

Margaret E. Weeks Godden ’43 of Fairfield, Ohio, Oct. 4, 2020.

Eileen Gore McCabe ’57 of Ticonderoga, N.Y., Feb. 2, 2021.

Kenneth E. Leggett ’70 of Mechanicville, N.Y., June 6, 2021.

Betty Reid Gallik ’45 of Hamilton, N.Y., April 27, 2021.

Jack Masten ’58 of North Creek, N.Y., June 16, 2021.

Margaret “Peggy” Clarke McNally ’70 of Marcellus, N.Y., April 19, 2021.

Ruth Agnes Stets Harrington ’48 of Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J., March 21, 2021.

F. Donald Eldred ’59 of Vestal, N.Y., Sept. 5, 2012.

Robert Coye M’71 of Kirkville, N.Y., June 3, 2021.

Thomas D. LaClair ’59 of LaFayette, N.Y., April 18, 2020.

Barbara Elinor “Ellie” Rauscher Denton ’71 of Sarasota, Fla., Jan. 31, 2021.

Barbara “Bobbe” Gilbert Bernstein ’60 of Greenfield, Mass., May 31, 2021.

Susan Rathbun Miles ’71 of Brewerton, N.Y., March 25, 2021.

Vivian Nancy Aubert Fernbacher ’60 of Chicago, Ill., Dec. 5, 2020.

Susan F. Shapess ’71 of Cato, N.Y., June 08, 2021.

Dr. Harold “Hal” E. Morse Jr. ’61 M’63 of Falls Church, Va., Jan. 5, 2021.

Bonnie Bach Burkett ’72 of Liverpool, N.Y., May 29, 2021.

Gilbert E. Wright ’62 of North Hoosick, N.Y., Feb. 21, 2021.

Paul Cirrito ’72 of Sunrise, Fla., Jan. 28, 2021.

Susan L. Howard ’63 of Canandaigua, N.Y., April 13, 2021.

Russell W. D’Entrone ’72 of Bethlehem, Pa., May 5, 2021.

Rosemary Dolores Camp Mastroleo ’63 of Naples, Fla., Feb. 10, 2021.

Terry R. Wells ’72 of Vero Beach, Fla., Feb. 6, 2020.

Peter Rooney ’63 of Ulster Park, N.Y., Jan. 5, 2021.

Raymond Michael Wuilliez ’72 of Hampton, Va., April 4, 2021.

Margaret “Peggy” Hart Tomasicchio ’63 of Stony Brook, N.Y., Jan. 26, 2021.

Glenda M. Blake ’73 of Binghamton, N.Y., May 12, 2020.

Brian Lewis Webb M’63 of Loudonville, N.Y., June 5, 2021.

James Gordon ’73 of LaPlace, La., Jan. 27, 2021.

Jacqueline Moller M’64 of Oneida, N.Y., June 9, 2021.

Toni Trunfio McCormick ’73 of Manlius, N.Y., May 2, 2021.

Nancy Shaver Banazek M’65 of Conroe, Texas, June 17, 2021.

Margaret K. Rickert ’73 of Albuquerque, N.M., June 29, 2020.

John G. Johnson ’65 of Minoa, N.Y., Feb. 4, 2021.

William E. Schoonmaker ’74 of Auburn, N.Y., March 6, 2021.

Carolyn M. Stalker ’65 of Binghamton, N.Y., Nov. 8, 2020.

Mary Katherine Swerediuk ’74 of Rome, N.Y., Feb. 24, 2021.

Gary R. Craner ’66 of Glen Head, N.Y., April 28, 2020.

Hercules “Herk” T. Master ’75 of Oswego, Feb. 13, 2021.

William S. Hickey Jr. ’67 of Webster, N.Y., Feb. 13, 2021.

Irina “Ren” Vasiliev ’76 of Bloomfield, N.Y., Nov. 7, 2020.

William P. Noun ’67 of Oswego, May 18, 2021.

John “Jack” J. Reed ’77 of Sarasota, Fla., Jan. 24, 2020.

Mary (Pat) Elizabeth Taylor ’68 of Prince Frederick, Md., March 30, 2021.

Paula Bean Reichert ’77 of Liverpool, N.Y., June 12, 2021.

David Lee Thibault ’68 of Orange, Calif., Aug. 22, 2020.

Thomas W. Vollmer ’77 of Webster, N.Y., Dec. 20, 2020.

Amelia “Amy” E. Vanca ’49 of Binghamton, N.Y., Feb. 12, 2021.

T. Paul Woolschlager ’49 of Boonville, N.Y., March 18, 2021.

Charles Harrington ’50 of Fanwood, N.J., April 24, 2019.

Harold Hutton ’51 of New York Mills, N.Y., Sept. 22, 2019.

Robert Alexander McDaniel ’51 of Bradenton, Fla., Dec. 1, 2020.

Herbert Emery Swords ’51 of Boulder, Colo., July 10, 2015.

Natalie Ringer Tatz ’51 of Old Bethpage, N.Y., February 2019.

Gilbert J. Gimbel ’52 of Maineville, N.Y., Nov. 25, 2020.

William A. Jerwann Jr. M’52 of Clifton Park, N.Y., Dec. 3, 2020.

Mildred H. Moksvold Mounce ’52 of Elkin, N.C., Jan. 5, 2021.

Jacob Nolfo ’52 of Albany, N.Y., Dec. 28, 2020.

Carol Levine Schuster ’52 of Bedford, N.Y., March 26, 2021.

Wilma Spinks Stedman ’52 of Chittenango, N.Y., Dec. 17, 2020.

Jeanne Keckeley Schilling ’53 of Cedar Falls, Iowa, Jan. 4, 2021.

Dr. Sanford “Sandy” Sternlicht ’53, Professor Emeritus of Theatre of Syracuse, N.Y., March 20, 2021.

Donald R. Corie ’54 of Northport, N.Y., April 15, 2020.

Curtiss B. Matterson ’54 of Falls Church, Va., June 10, 2021.

Richard L. Tallman Jr. ’54 of Norfolk, Va., June 18, 2021.

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Karen Arnold Holly ’78 of Gloversville, N.Y., Jan. 21, 2021.

Dean W. Brownell ’10 of Oswego, Jan. 4, 2021.

Anne S. Rust ’78 of Cazenovia, N.Y., June 30, 2021.

Bryan W. Ludwig ’13 of Colorado Springs, Colo., June 19, 2021.

Robert M. Becker ’79 of Sevierville, Tenn., Jan. 10, 2021.

Alice Boljonis, Professor Emerita of Reading, of Syracuse, N.Y., Dec. 15, 2020.

Mark J. Nadler ’79 of Sugar Grove, Ohio, Feb. 23, 2021.

Dr. John P. Demidowicz, Professor Emeritus of Spanish, of Oswego, June 18, 2021.

Leonard D. Casciano ’81 of East Syracuse, N.Y., May 6, 2021.

Roosevelt Muhammad, former Assistant Dean of Students, of Atlanta, Ga., Aug. 23, 2021.

Kathleen R. Jennings M’84 of Syracuse, N.Y., April 24, 2021.

Joseph L. Kanaley ’84 of Mexico, N.Y., April 27, 2021.

John T. Faulks ’85 of Sodus, N.Y., April 13, 2021.

Mary Rose Swarts Carney ’86 of Turin, N.Y., March 9, 2021.

Betty A. Muldowney ’86 of Cicero, N.Y., March 26, 2021.

Jeffrey Shannon ’86 of Watertown, N.Y., Jan. 13, 2021.

William J. Scott ’90 of Fayetteville, N.Y., April 24, 2021.

Robert Carl Spearing M’90 of Marietta, N.Y., Sept. 4, 2020.

Brett Warren Hall ’91 of Columbia, S.C., Feb. 29, 2020.

Joseph Vincent Prisco ’92 of Oswego, Jan. 16, 2021.

* Friends and family have established a fund in memory of this SUNY Oswego community member. Gifts can be made at alumni.oswego.edu/give or sent to the Oswego College Foundation, 215 Sheldon Hall, SUNY, Oswego, N.Y. 13126. Please indicate the name of the person you wish to honor.

To read a longer form obituary or to submit a remembrance, please visit magazine.oswego.edu.

SUBMITTING AN OBITUARY We will share the news of a SUNY Oswego community member’s death when we receive the information from a family member, friend or another source in the form of a previously published notice, typically from a newspaper or funeral home. Please send such notices to the Office of Alumni Relations c/o In Memoriam, SUNY Oswego, Oswego, N.Y. 13126; or email alumni@oswego.edu.

Teresa Anne Grabler ’95 of Abingdon, Va., Jan. 23, 2019.

Joseph A. Lepak Jr. ’95 of Syracuse, N.Y., Sept. 5, 2020.

Peter Frank Opperman ’95 of Central Square, N.Y., June 21, 2021.

Olympia O. Osborne ’98 of Brooklyn, N.Y., April 30, 2021.

Jennifer Kinzie ’01 M’05 of Norfolk, Va., Feb. 22, 2021.

Jo Anne Sala M’03 of Austin, Texas, Feb. 27, 2021.

Emily Joy Bobry ’04 M’07 of Rochester, N.Y., April 25, 2021.

James P. Cox M’06 of Syracuse, N.Y., May 28, 2021.

You lived here. You learned here.

Now, leave your legacy here.

By naming the Oswego College Foundation in your estate plans, you will create a meaningful impact that lasts well beyond your lifetime.

Learn more at alumni.oswego.edu/ plannedgiving or contact us at sheldonlegacy@oswego.edu or 315-312-3003.

The Last Word continued from page 44 In earlier years, which now feel like they raced ahead of me, I had followed the President’s advice and occasionally stopped by her office to chat. It was not lost upon me that, long before her inauguration as the college’s tenth president, Deborah Stanley was one of those handful of colleagues and friends who took special interest in the personal growth and professional development of colleagues. She had genuine interest in me and my work.

“Tell me about your challenges,” she would ask. “What’s the latest project you’re working on? And, let me know what assistance you need in order to realize your goals.” Those talks never really concluded. In reality they were mentoring sessions and leadership lessons. President Stanley’s office was the classroom.

When the President offered me the position on that day in 1996, she explained that she was confident about the background, ability and skills I could bring to the “table,” as a senior administrator. And, she added, “I need you at that table.” She was processing ways to build a collective vision for transforming the institution—not only its facilities, teaching and living spaces, its enrollments and funding and everything that would make the college a special and vital setting for every student and employee.

Going forward, we must have had hundreds of discussions about social equity; hundreds more about recruitment and retention of students, faculty and staff of color; and far too many other talks and many lessons learned for me to attempt describing them in this small space. Of course, she had hundreds and hundreds of talks with scores of other colleagues and stakeholders.

My 42 years of work at SUNY Oswego included the honor of serving 22 years as President Stanley’s executive assistant.

What happened to all of those years? I can only tell you that all of the memories are fresh and rewarding. l — Howard Gordon ’74 M’78 Howard Gordon ’74 M’78 retired in 2018 after 22 years as executive assistant to President Deborah F. Stanley, and is currently writing several books in his retirement.

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T H E

L AS T

Word

Memories of My Alma Mater and My Mentor How does time race by all of us so quickly?

What happened to all of those years?

What year was it when Provost Deborah Stanley stopped me in the hallways of Culkin Hall to ask how I was doing?

plan for—to use the idiomatic expression—hitting the pavement. After weeks of dead ends, the late Anderson McCullough, an English department professor and a mentor, tried to reassure me. “Don’t worry yourself. You’ll find something. I ’ve got a feeling you’re going to be around here for a long time.”

“Just checking on you,” she told me.

Years are difficult to account for; they often blur and fade. However, memories among years can be as fresh and rewarding as this morning’s cup of coffee waiting for me on a table next to this laptop.

After graduating from SUNY Oswego, I initially felt a tiny bit of regret that my undergraduate rite of passage had come to such a swift end. All of my friends were moving on, physically leaving the campus and the city. I was not. My regret was not disappointment that I, too, had not packed my own books and bags for travel to some next destination. Instead, I was lost in thought about the end of dynamic communal experiences constructed by social groups I belonged to, groups that augmented the quality of life for so many of us during college. Disconnecting from the special setting in which my peers and I thrived was inevitable. I knew the solidarity we created, the sense of well-being and fulfillment was over. School is school and work is work. Now, I would need a job.

All such memories remain fresh: Exchanging those final farewells—hugs and handshakes and promises to stay in touch with friends who headed toward their parents’ cars; walking slowly across the grass athletic field from commencement ceremonies at Romney Field House to the apartment on Fifth Avenue that I shared with the woman who would become my life partner; Eva carrying our five-monthold son Jumaane; and, my five-year-old sister Shawn holding my hand, while just behind us and in no real hurry to leave, our mother and father sauntered along, still glowing with pride and excitement over their son’s baccalaureate achievement. My thoughts about what the future held were briefly interrupted.

“Howard, are you coming back home to live with us again?” Shawn asked as she began skipping through the grass. She meant coming back to my hometown, Rochester, New York.

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The next years sprinted by me. Eventually, I would have unexpected opportunities to participate in rich and meaningful work experiences at my alma mater, working as a counselor in the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), as an assistant dean for arts and sciences, and as assistant provost for academic affairs. It was another mentor and friend, Betsy McTiernan ’69, who had encouraged me to apply for one of two EOP counselor openings.

“More school in ’swego?”

“You should do this type of work,” she explained. “It’s important work for our students, and it will be good for us and for you.” Betsy was prophetic and absolutely correct.

Yes, more school and work could certainly play big roles in making that future less uncertain. Immediately ahead for me was the prospect of entering a graduate degree program (I was awaiting a decision from the English department) while simultaneously launching a search for employment.

At the time, I had no idea of the type work I might do, but I needed a job in a hurry. I had a couple interviews lined up for local part-time employment and a very simple

Those particular memories are as vivid as an occasion more than two decades after commencement when President Deborah F. Stanley summoned me to her office.

It was the day she would invite me to become her new executive assistant and special assistant to the president for social equity. Frankly, the job offer was a total surprise. I recall mumbling and fumbling words for a moment before saying anything coherent. (continued on page 43)

“Can’t,” I told her. “I believe I’ll still be right here in school, studying for a couple more years and working somewhere nearby.”

The Sheldon Hall Cupola

OSWEGO OBJECT

With the lighting of the Sheldon Hall cupola and the historic statue of founder Edward Austin Sheldon on Sept. 8, 1998, Oswego State University returned to its roots on the eve of the inauguration of its tenth president.

The torch traditionally represents learning and the passing of knowledge from one generation to the next. At the Sheldon Lighting Ceremony as part of the tenth inauguration week of events, the torch was passed in a different sense to President Deborah F. Stanley.

A reader’s theatre performance titled “Oswego’s Ten Presidents,” adapted by Professor of Theatre Mark Cole ’73 from Dorothy Rogers’ two volumes on the history of Oswego State University, preceded the lighting ceremony. Master of ceremonies Steve Levy ’87, invited President Stanley and various members of the academic community to light their candles from the Torch of Learning.

The setting on the lawn in front of Sheldon Hall was enhanced with the return of the historic statue of Oswego State founder Edward Austin Sheldon, according to campus tradition, constructed with the pennies collected by New York state’s school children. The ceremony culminated in the dramatic lighting of the cupola of Sheldon Hall itself.

Sheldon Hall, the historic home of Oswego State, was opened in 1913. A site on the National Register of Historic Places, the building was closed in 1983 and was returned to campus use in 1998.

Now with the torch passed to a new president, historic Sheldon Hall, named in honor of Oswego’s first president, returns as a beacon to future achievements.

Text adapted from the Inauguration Program for Deborah F. Stanley, September 1998

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Faculty –HALL OF FAME– ing and mentoring students and even serving as the advisor of the Alpha Delta Eta sorority.

Deborah F. Stanley Deborah F. Stanley was a newly minted Syracuse University College of Law graduate with two young children in 1977 when she received a phone call from SUNY Oswego. The School of Business needed someone—in particular a female someone—to teach business law and help diversify the all-male faculty at the time. While it was a full-time, tenure-track position, Stanley initially saw it as an opportunity to help support her family while studying for the bar exam. Then she could practice law.

Or so she thought.

“I found my life’s work in teaching,” she said. “I loved it.”

And while she did pass the bar exam, became a licensed attorney and worked a few legal cases, she knew her true calling was in academia.

She threw herself into the life of the college, serving on faculty committees, advis-

“Right from the first day I walked on campus, I was being handed roles that were in addition to my teaching responsibilities. I was an attorney and was different from my other colleagues across campus,” she said. “I loved those roles. I got right into them. They were meaty. They were things I could wrestle with. I became very active in faculty governance.”

She also made connections with students—many of whom she would later work with in her role as president and several of whom donated toward an endowed fund to name the arena and convocation hall after her in October 2021.

Stanley said that in her role as professor, she tried to show that she cared about her students’ learning and their well-being.

“I hope that my interest in what they were doing and how they were doing allowed them to be more interested in themselves,” she said. “I would never say, nor believe, that the reason they succeeded had anything to do with anyone other than themselves. But the realization that other people notice you and were rooting for you, that

elevates you. It gives you a reason to go on even through difficult circumstances.”

She said she loved teaching and being a professor, but another unsolicited phone call a few days before Christmas in 1988 would provide another shift in her career path.

That was when newly appointed college President Stephen Weber asked her to become the executive assistant to the president, and help bridge the chasm between faculty and administration on campus.

“He wanted someone who was faculty with a capital F, and I was very involved with faculty governance,” she said. “I didn’t know anything about administration, but from the perch of the president’s office with a president who was very generous in allowing me to be part of everything that went on, I learned.”

Within five years, she went on to be named interim provost of the college in 1994, and then was named interim president in 1995 and officially assumed the role of president in 1997.

“I could have taken many paths, but being in the academy has allowed me to immerse myself in an endeavor that is greater than my personal achievements,” she said.

“Being connected to, and integral to the achievements, goals and life-planning of so many people as they begin their adulthood has been just amazing. That atmosphere is permeated by excitement and possibilities, and being a part of that has made everything so much more rich in my life.”