President’s Newsletter

Friday, November 15, 2024

It’s been another busy week of meetings both on and off campus, as well as some significant celebrations. On Monday our ROTC had a Flag Raising ceremony to honor Veterans Day. Drake Memorial Library celebrated their 50^th anniversary this week, which included informal talks by librarians and local residents, and the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) hosted a lunch to celebrate their successes, including their current number one ranking in the state for community impact and meeting their goals.

Amy Shema offered me an update on the work of the Presidential Task Force on Food, and it’s clear that a great deal of progress is being made in this area. They are on track to submit their report and recommendations by Spring Break.

I had my regular 1-2-1s with cabinet members and senior leaders this week, and met with the BSG leaders to talk about their plans for the remainder of the semester as well as preparations for the spring semester. I also attended Senate and JPBC, and I’m looking forward to today’s Budget Town Hall. This week’s cabinet meeting focused on the process improvement and updates that Mark Stacy and his team are putting in place in relation to procurement. I was grateful that he and Crystal Hallenbeck-McPhall were able to join the meeting to apprise Cabinet of their work.

The Chancellor convened a virtual meeting of Presidents, and we discussed a range of issues, including SUNY enrollment updates (for the first time in 15 years, SUNY has seen two consecutive years of enrollment growth). We also discussed the changing federal landscape, and we had an opportunity to hear more from the SUNY litigation team on Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests. I also met with a former SUNY president who is undertaking research for SUNY on college councils.

I met with the Full Professor Forum this week, and we discussed one of the major projects being undertaken this semester, which is a review of committees, including how membership of committees can be opened up to a wider group of people in a more intentional way. Cabinet discussed the forum’s ideas, and we agreed that in general, we’d like to see committees ask for volunteers in a more systematic way. I will update you on outcomes once this project is further along. The Full Professor Forum also asked that I make my communications to you more robust in some ways, and less diaristic, so I am going to be considering how best to do that. If you have suggestions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

I attended a variety of other events both off and on campus this week, including the play Ordinary Days, but in the interests of space, I’ll close here. We are getting ever closer to the short holiday break. I am grateful for your continued wisdom, feedback, and support.