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This month, I was honored to be a part of some of the events held during Alumni Weekend (which you can read more about below). I was asked to deliver some updates during the Alumni Association Awards ceremony and the 1889 Society reception. In preparing my remarks, I considered what the alumni in attendance would be feeling and thinking. Certainly, they'd be recalling fond memories and feeling nostalgic, but I also think the event probably sparked some contemplation about what makes SUNY Oneonta such a special place. One special enough in their lives that they still feel connected to and care about years and decades later.
I remarked that I believe our university has a caring ecosystem of opportunity, which is the special thread that links us all together. This ecosystem is made up of many different, but equally important parts. Our students bring new energy every year through their commitment to furthering their education and desire to expand their experiences. Our faculty and staff contribute by offering a robust curriculum, enriching and varied learning opportunities, engaging programming and support, coordination and execution of critical operations, and innovative improvements and maintenance of our organizational systems and facilities. Our alumni and friends provide generous support by donating time and money to ensure students have access to transformative educational and social experiences, cutting-edge spaces and tools, and essential financial and co-curricular support. The campus offers physical spaces for academic and creative excellence and serves as a cultural hub for our region.
All of these are critical components to an ecosystem of opportunity - a caring environment where students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends can grow, thrive and live. The articles below reinforce this concept. I hope you are enjoying the summer and look forward to continuing our efforts toward nurturing our ecosystem of opportunity as we enter our 135th academic year.
Sincerely,
Alberto J.F. Cardelle
President
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New System Transforms Dining Hall Food Waste into Renewable Energy
Cindy Lehr
Site Representative & Project Manger, Facilities Planning
The Office of Facilities, Safety and Physical Plant has partnered with Oneonta Auxiliary Services (OAS), Sodexo Dining, Facilities, Sustainability, and Casella Waste Management to install a Grind2Energy food waste management system in Mills and Wilsbach dining halls. The Grind2Energy system transforms food scraps into clean water and renewable energy. It also enables us to dispose of all types of inedible food waste – including fats, oils, grease, and most bones – faster, cleaner and easier. The Grind2Energy system is utilized by universities, sports venues, and businesses across the county to meet their sustainability goals. Notably, SUNY Oneonta is the first university in New York State to utilize this system.
Here's how it works. Organic food waste is collected and placed into a chamber. Under the chamber, the system grinds food waste into a slurry, which is sent to a holding tank outside of the building. When the tank is full, an automated monitoring system will automatically notify the service team to schedule a waste pickup. A liquid waste hauler transports the slurry to a local anaerobic digestion facility to be processed by recovering the water and converting captured methane into renewable energy. The remaining nutrient-rich organic material can be used as a beneficial natural fertilizer for local farms, thus creating a more sustainable way to dispose of food waste.
The Grind2Energy system will be installed in the Mills and Wilsbach dish rooms where it will process all pre- and post-consumer waste and scraps cleanly and efficiently. It will reduce the number of food scrap receptacles needed in the kitchens and prevent odor and pest issues due to its closed holding design. The automated monitoring system will dramatically lessen the frequency of food waste pickups, keeping truck traffic on campus to a minimum.
For further information or a demonstration of the Grind2Energy system, please contact Rebecca Molloy, Sodexo Director of Dining Operations.
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Cross-Campus Collaborations Create Successful Alumni Weekend
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Laura Lincoln
Director, Office of Alumni Engagement
Success! Thanks to the collective efforts of SUNY Oneonta faculty and staff, our 2024 Alumni Weekend went off without a hitch. Key contributions came from various departments, including Admissions, Facilities, Hunt Union, Sodexo Catering, and the Morris Conference Center. We would also like to recognize the architects behind the Alumni Hall remodel and our dedicated alumni volunteers. Thank you to the local downtown shops for their ongoing support and contributions to Alumni Weekend.
One of the weekend's highlights was the impressive turnout of alumni, particularly at events like the 2024 Alumni Award Winner Breakfast. This year saw one of the highest attendance rates since the COVID-19 pandemic. Many alumni were especially interested in campus tours and learning about the history of building renovations and updates. The feedback from alumni about their time on campus was overwhelmingly positive.
SUNY Oneonta's rich history deeply resonates with its alumni, who were eager to reconnect with the campus and their former classmates. The weekend offered alumni a chance to reminisce about their college days and celebrate their shared experiences.
The successful outcome of Alumni Weekend is a testament to the collaboration and dedication of all SUNY Oneonta departments. For this we would like to extend a heartfelt "thank you" to all who contributed their time and efforts.
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Sharing Student Success Stories Through Merit
We’re all proud of our students' unique experiences, achievements and accomplishments at SUNY Oneonta. Whether it’s studying abroad, earning a scholarship, being inducted into an honor society, giving back through community service, or being part of an athletic team, we want to celebrate all of the great things our students are doing.
The Office of Communication and Marketing uses a tool called Merit Pages to share news about accomplishments with students’ hometown media outlets, local government officials, high schools and family members. Students get recognition for their achievements while also creating an online profile—a Merit page—that serves as a positive, institution-verified online identity. This provides students with a visual resume showcasing their achievements, from enrollment through graduation, and makes it easy to share these achievements with family, friends, employers, former teachers, coaches, school counselors and staff from volunteer organizations and programs.
Promoting the fantastic accomplishments of our students in local media and social networks using Merit allows us to brag about our talented students, and spread the word about the valuable opportunities available on our campus. This academic year alone, we published 71 Merit achievements recognizing 2,143 students. These achievements resulted in 27,000 page views; positive mentions in 700 news sources—an ad equivalency of $12 million—and 1.52 million social media impressions!
We rely on collaboration with faculty and staff to find out about all the great things our students are doing. If you have an idea for a Merit achievement, please contact Kaleb Smith in the Office of Communications and Marketing.
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2023-2024 Athletics Recap
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Nicholas Jallat
Sports Information Director
The 2023-2024 academic year saw many accomplishments from our student athletes and athletics staff, both on and off of the competition floor.
In the fall, the men's soccer team reached the second round of the NCAA Division III Tournament, and two student athletes were named All-Americans. The women's cross country team took second at the SUNYAC Championships, and two runners qualified for the NCAA National Championship meet. Additionally, Oneonta won SUNYAC Women's Cross Country Coaching Staff of the Year. On the men's side, the Red Dragons had one runner reach the national meet. The women's volleyball team, with their exceptional performance, also earned All-SUNAYC selections. Similarly, the field hockey team picked up All-SUNAYC selections, adding to the list of achievements.
The winter season saw Oneonta wrestling earn its 15th All-American in program history, with junior Jack Ryan placing seventh at the NCAA Division III Championships in the 184 lbs. weight class. Ryan also was the SUNYAC Champion in the 184 lbs. Senior Isabella Fabrizio and Ejim Nnate were named NCAA Division III All-Americans at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships. Nnate earned First Team All-American after placing 7th in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.70 to become the first Oneonta hurdler to be All-American. Fabrizio, competing in her second NCAA appearance, took 16th in the shot-put competition with a throw of 13.16 meters to earn a Second Team All-American selection. Oneonta was also the distance medley relay SUNYAC champion for the men's and women's indoor track teams. Senior Aidan Kelly was the SUNYAC Champion in the heptathlon. The men's and women's basketball teams reached the SUNYAC Tournaments, and each had all-conference honorees. For men's basketball, senior Graham Wooden was selected for the prestigious SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence.The Oneonta men's and women's swimming and diving teams were named Scholar All-America Teams. The men's team also earned All-SUNYAC medals in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays. Mason DeLisio medaled in three events with the 50, 100, and 200 freestyle races.
In the spring, Nnate and Fabrizio repeated as outdoor track & field All-Americans, with both being second-team selections: Nnate in the 100-hurdles and Fabrizio in the shot put. The Red Dragons softball team reached the SUNYAC Tournament and won three of the conference's top awards. Senior Delaney Haley was the co-player of the year, Victoria Husey was the defensive player of the year, and Emily Brown was selected rookie of the year. Haley and Julia Serena were tabbed all-region as well. Oneonta baseball had three All-SUNYAC and all-region players, while the women's lacrosse team had two all-conference selections. Men's lacrosse picked up the SUNYAC Rookie of the Year in Thomas Hnis and had four selected to the all-conference team. The women's tennis team competed in the SUNYAC Tournament, and three players earned all-conference recognition. In men's tennis, one player earned all-conference honors.
You can read more about all of the above and stay up to date with all of the student athletes' achievements on oneontaathletics.com. We hope to see you at some competitions this coming year!
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SUNY Oneonta Among Money's Best Universities
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For the second year in a row, SUNY Oneonta was recognized as one of the “Best Colleges in America” by Money.com. Ranking among 745 other colleges and universities across the country, we were recognized for our commitment to providing a quality education at an affordable price and our American Talent Initiative membership. Also factoring into this accolade is our degree net pricing, which is “significantly lower than the average of all the schools Money evaluated.” Read more about this recognition.
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Cabinet Meeting Notes
Notes from meetings of the President's Cabinet are shared with the university community monthly in Notes from Netzer. Questions can be directed to president@oneonta.edu.
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