NEWSBRIEFS Samantha Figgins ’11 is the subject of “Ten Minutes with Samantha Figgins,” which covers her daring move from Complexions Contemporary Ballet to the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater as she discusses setting her pointe shoes aside. “I’m at the beginning of a huge growth spurt,” she says.
URCHASE RECEIVES $765,000 FOR GREEN P INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS
Samantha Figgins ‘11
G O PANTHERS
Elizabeth Osowiecki
Over the winter, Purchase athletics picked up where it left off following an exciting fall season that included a championship title and NCAA Tournament appearance for the men’s soccer team program. The men’s basketball team advanced to the postseason for a seventh straight year. Women’s hoops was led by junior center Elizabeth Osowiecki, who was named to the All-Skyline 1st Team at the conclusion of the winter campaign.
Men’s and women’s swim also enjoyed a memorable winter. Panther sophomore Sam Jaffe, a year after being named conference rookie of the year, was named the league swimmer of the year. He led Purchase to a third-place finish at championships—the young program’s best-ever finish in men’s swim. The women also performed well under longtime Purchase coach Peter Nestel. Men’s volleyball was all action, with victories in Fall 2014 and Spring 2015—led by standout returner Kevin Carges, who is fresh off a pair of league weekly honors.
Kevin Carges
The winter season featured several Skyline Conference weekly honorees from men’s and women’s basketball and men’s and women’s swim, with the Purchase Sports Information Department selecting a pair of student-athletes for its honor roll weekly. They are posted on the website www.purchasecollegeathletics.com. Athletics also hired Brittany Balfour as the program’s new head women’s volleyball coach and Susan Kaminsky as the department’s new head women’s tennis coach. Both were previously assistants who have moved up and become head coaches within our program. Former men’s basketball standout and last season’s tournament most outstanding player Brittany Balfour David Haughton signed a professional contract overseas. Haughton played for the Rakvere Tarvas squad in Estonia. Estonia is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. He excelled and was named player of the week during the postseason. Achievements were also abounding for our student-athletes in the classroom, with 38 from the fall season garnering All-Skyline Academic Honor Roll honors and swimmer Anna Krol, who boasts a near 4.0 GPA, being named one of three campuswide to receive the prestigious Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence.
The Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) recently awarded Purchase College a $765,000 grant to implement green infrastructure and significantly improve storm-water management. Created by Governor Andrew Cuomo, the REDC has awarded more than $2 billion for economic growth and job creation during the past three years. Two major green infrastructure practices— bioretention swales and porous pavers—will be used to manage stormwater runoff from formerly impervious surfaces (parking lots and pedestrian paths). The bioswales will divert water away from the hardscape, while the porous pavement will allow it to permeate the surface instead of going down the storm drains. The project also has an important educational component. Faculty members from the environmental studies program will design comparative studies on water quality within and outside the project area, with data to be collected over a three-year period. Preliminary results of the studies will be included in the college’s Storm Water Master Plan and reported annually to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Tom Kelly, a senior energy manager, concludes, “This project has the potential to inspire the next generation of green infrastructure stewards, who will advocate for new environmentally resilient systems in many settings.”
URCHASE NAMED A 2015 BEST VALUE COLLEGE BY P KIPLINGER’S PERSONAL FINANCE Purchase College has been named to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance’s “100 Best Values in Public Colleges” for 2015. The ranking cites four-year schools that combine outstanding academics with affordable cost. Thanks to its high four-year graduation rate, low average student debt at graduation, abundant financial aid, low sticker price, and overall great value, Purchase ranks number 83 on the public colleges best value list, up from 89 in last year’s top 100.
IBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY CELEBRATES R RENOVATED SCIENCE LABS On Nov. 6, 2014, President Thomas J. Schwarz cut the ceremonial ribbon to reveal the major overhaul of two spaces in the Natural Sciences Building— the Marine Ecology Research Lab and the Watershed Science Research Lab. Provost Barry Pearson secured the $250,000 needed for the renovations following his pitch to the college cabinet.
(L to R) President Schwarz with Environmental Studies faculty members Susan Letcher, George Kraemer, and Ryan Taylor.
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