bupipedream.com | Januiary 31, 2023
NEWS
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Stenger announces new scholarships, programs “happy” from page 1 Stenger continued by describing the progress of existing infrastructure construction, as well as plans for future projects, including new facilities and the expansion of current buildings. This includes the completion of the thirdfloor renovation of the Glenn G. Bartle Library by fall 2024, a remodeled Old
Rafuse Hall by August 2023, the new welcome center by the main entrance finished by spring 2024 and a new lecture hall currently in design. Stenger reflected on the future of BU under new SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. “Somebody with the government and political skills [is] the leader that
SUNY needs right now,” Stenger said. “[King] is working really hard on the most positive budget proposal that came out of the Governor’s State of the State address. It is a onedollar match for every two dollars of endowment gift that we get.” The event ended with recognition of recent electoral achievements by
BU alumni. They include Hakeem Jeffries, ‘92, elected to minority leader of the US House of Representatives, Lea Webb, ‘04, elected to the State Senate and Donna Lupardo, ‘90, reelected to the State Assembly. Christopher Wen ‘07, a third-year graduate student pursuing dual master’s degrees in sustainable communities and public
administration, provided his thoughts about the announced initiatives to expand scholarship access. “These scholarships can make a world of difference in the lives of students and their families,” Wen said. “This is fantastic news. I’m glad more students will get the opportunity to pursue their passions through higher education.”
Earl Tampus, an undeclared freshman, said he felt larger scholarship endowments would have an impact on prospective students. “College is expensive, no matter your income level,” Tampus said. “I think that it will help people from lowerincome families believe that institutions can help them attend school.”
Heavy snow leads to canceled morning classes On Monday, BU classes were canceled until noon due to snow. Ella Connors news intern
On Monday morning, classes were canceled at Binghamton University until noon due to excessive snowfall. At 5:21 a.m., BU students received a B-ALERT notifying them of the cancellation of classes on Monday. Binghamton experienced four to six inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service, accumulating overnight and persisting lightly throughout the morning, prompting unsafe travel. The B-ALERT stated that faculty would notify students if they were to be holding classes remotely throughout the morning. OCCT buses were set to begin running at 10 a.m. Ryan Yarosh, senior director of media and public relations at BU, shared the steps that had been taken before making the decision to cancel classes. “It’s a team process, as representatives from about a dozen departments, including [the New York
State] University Police and Physical Facilities, gathered to assess conditions and also consider detailed National Weather Service forecast information,” Yarosh wrote in an email. Classes were canceled until noon, but snow continued to impact campus throughout the rest of the day. A power outage at the East Gym caused an early closing at 4 p.m., reopening on Tuesday at 2 p.m. Ground crews continued to work throughout the day to make sure walkways on campus were safe for students and staff. According to BingUNews, BU still utilizes certain services during snowfall that are crucial for students and maintenance of buildings, or services that support necessary research programs. Yarosh said safety was of “top priority” for the University as it responded to the weather. “The ground crews took action immediately, plowing and clearing roads and sidewalks,” Yarosh wrote in an email. Many students were seen making the most of the partial snow day. An Instagram post from the University featured a pair of students skiing and snowboarding down
With classes cancelled until noon, students pursued various snow-based activities on campus.
the hills of Mountainview College, while other students reported seeing a statue of Karl Marx outside of Hughes Hall in Hinman College. Serena Chan, a sophomore majoring in integrative neuroscience, said she enjoyed the time off and credited the cancellation to students that commute to campus. “Classes were canceled till 12 [p.m.], and I had
one Zoom class, so I just stayed in bed listening to it,” Chan said. “I’m pretty glad that they canceled classes because it was a nice surprise to wake up in the morning and see the email. I think they did it because a lot of people live off campus. I live in Hillside and the hill to walk downward is dangerous, and I remember the first day of classes when it was icy, a lot of people were falling.”
Others, like Samin Rahman, a junior majoring in biochemistry, had classes after noon. Rahman said he still enjoyed being able to head to campus later than he typically would. “That gave me more time to prepare for my classes that were later on in the day,” Rahman said. “I would say it was generally beneficial considering I live off campus and there was a lot of snow. It was a positive
andrés rojo staff photographer
decision in regard to offcampus students coming on campus for classes.” Over the rest of this week, it is expected that Binghamton will get about 9.58 inches of snow, as predicted by Weather 25. According to the Weather 25 website, a total of 22 snowy days will have occurred throughout January by the end of the month.
John B. King Jr. appointed as SUNY Chancellor King Jr. was appointed in December by the Board of Trustees. Adam Shemesh
news contributor
A new chancellor has been selected by the SUNY Board of Trustees.
In December 2022, John B. King, Jr. was appointed as 15th SUNY Chancellor by the Board of Trustees. King has previous experience in education, most recently serving as the Secretary of Education under former President Barack Obama. King, a New York City native, also helped to implement
Common Core Standards and Regents examinations as the New York Commissioner of Education from 2011 to 2014. After his appointment in December, King pledged to visit all 64 campuses in the SUNY System. On Jan. 17, 2023, he visited Binghamton University and spoke with President Harvey Stenger.
sourced by business insider SUNY Chancellor John B. King, Jr. has previously served as the Secretary of Education and New York Commissioner of Education.
“The University is a hub for battery technology innovation, which will help move the nation toward a more sustainable future,” King wrote in an email. “During my visit to campus, I was also impressed with the Decker School of Nursing. We need nurses across our state, and [BU] has been growing this school to help supply a new generation of health care heroes.” Going into the role, King outlined his vision to make SUNY “the best system of public education in the nation.” To realize this, he plans to focus on three distinct priorities. “First and foremost is student success, as well as research and scholarship — much like the battery research being conducted by Nobel Prize winner [and BU professor] M. Stanley Whittingham,” King wrote. “We must also ensure that diversity, equity and inclusion are embedded into everything we do at SUNY. And that all leads to my [final] priority — economic development and upward mobility for every student and our state as a whole.” Members of the BU community offered words of encouragement for King, and reinforced the importance of the relationship between SUNY and BU. Stenger was a member of the search committee that was tasked with replacing
interim Chancellor Deborah Stanley, who served for the entirety of 2022 following Jim Malatras’ resignation at the end of 2021. Stenger discussed the opportunity to work with Chancellor King going forward. “Chancellor King brings with him an abundance of experience in higher ed and the ability to help SUNY continue on a positive trajectory as it provides an accessible education for [New York state] residents,” Stenger wrote in an email. “I’m looking forward to working with him on SUNY’s next chapter of success.” Nia Johnson, president of the Student Association (SA) and a senior majoring in human development, emphasized the value of the University’s campus and services to the rest of the state. “What makes BU unique and important to the SUNY system is that [SUNY] utilizes BU as a hub of innovation, and uses many of our services that we provide,” Johnson wrote in an email. “For instance, at the height of the pandemic, [New York state] utilized Harpur’s Ferry as their backup EMT service in order to transport Binghamton residents — not only students — to hospitals in the area. In terms of innovation, [BU] is unique in a sense that we have our Koffman Southern Tier Incubator and Start-up Suite Facilities.”
Johnson also commented on the SA’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts. The SA works with SUNY leadership to address these issues through the SUNY SA, which features representatives from each school in the system. “We’ve been advocating for basic needs for students with disabilities, so for instance not all of the handicap buttons on campus work,” Johnson wrote. “The [Vice President for Student Success] office is going around campus and reporting non-functional buttons to admin and the DEI office. We have also done our due diligence in advertising the SA to BIPOC students, so they can run for these positions and use these positions to uplift the BIPOC community and their voices.“ Some undergraduate students also offered suggestions for improvement in the SUNY system, specifically at BU. Coral Braverman, a junior majoring in biochemistry, expressed frustration with financial aid options for students. “I would like to see them offer more choices for lowincome students [at BU],” Braverman wrote in an email. “Currently, the way financial aid is set up is hard to navigate and very timeconsuming. Hopefully, they can make a system that not only works for [BU], but every school in SUNY.”