Winter 2024 OSWEGO Alumni Magazine

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ON OUR CAMPUS

In 1858, SUNY Oswego’s founder Edward Austin Sheldon paid $2,000 for eight acres of lakeshore land to build his family home. He constructed Shady Shore from a light wood frame embedded by concrete in 1857. From 1919 to the early 1930s, the house was only used for storage. Upon moving in, Ralph Swetman (President from 1933-1947) had the stone porch put on and changed the rooflines, adding a second story in the back. Since Swetman, every university president has lived in Shady Shore and made their own mark on its décor.

OSWEGO

Alumni Magazine

Winter 2024: Vol. 50, No. 1

Publisher

Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09

Editor

Margaret D. Spillett

Designer

Jennifer Broderick

Contributing Writers

Photographer

Jim Russell ’83

In Memoriam Compiler

Jamie Kapuscinski Scaccia ’09

Office of Communication and Marketing

Erik Wade ’09 (58)

Contributing Photographers

Victoria Kammer ’20 (49)

Office of Communication and Marketing

Illustrations

Adobestock (26, 27, 28, 29)

Interns

Lauren Royce ’24

Ariana St. HiIlaire ’23

Ethan Stinson ’22

Josephine Taylor ’24

Kiley Wren ’24

4

5

9

On

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18 FEATURES

18 Vision for the Future: Peter O. Nwosu begins his tenure as the 11th president of SUNY Oswego

24 Vision 4040: Expanding SUNY Oswego’s Promise

26

28

A Vision of Support: Award-winning principal Nicole Knapp Ey ’02 transforms her school through her positivity and leadership

Envisioning Potential in Students: Frank Maraviglia ’58 donates $2 million in recognition of his Oswego education, in support of future teachers

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/winter issue, and between July 1-Dec. 31 in our spring/ summer issue.

To submit your class note, email alumni@oswego.edu, call 315-312-3003 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.

31 CLASS NOTES

35 Envisioning Her Legacy: Dr. Yvonne Spicer ’84 M’85

42 Stellar Vision: Dr. Earl Bellinger ’12

44 Alumni Bookshelf

46 Weddings

50 Reunion 2023 Photo Gallery

53 In Memoriam

56 Last Word: Queer Eye for the Alumni

57 Oswego Object: President Nwosu’s Shoes

Back Faculty Hall of Fame Cover

From the President

Dear Members of the Laker Community,

It is my great honor to introduce myself to you in this, my first column for the OSWEGO Alumni Magazine. Let me start by saying how incredibly humbled and honored I am to be serving as the 11th president of SUNY Oswego — an institution founded in 1861 by Edward Austin Sheldon to serve the public good. 163 years later, this storied institution, perched on the beautiful and welcoming shores of Lake Ontario with a branch campus in downtown Syracuse, stands as a veritable symbol of the power of an idea. It is an idea engraved in a simple but powerful promise: to provide access to quality higher education that will transform lives, ignite new possibilities, enrich the civic and cultural life of the community and advance the regional economy of Central New York.

In September, I shared a bold plan for SUNY Oswego’s future — Vision 4040. That vision seeks to double the number of individuals who earn degrees and credentials from our current rate of 2,000 a year to 4,000 a year or 40,000 a decade, by 2040. In this issue, you will have the chance to read more about Vision 4040. The article illustrates in broad brushstrokes how this vision might be realized. I hope that you will consider your role in helping us achieve this goal — whether that is earning a new credential yourself, referring a student to us, supporting scholarships to help our students or working with your employer to hire Lakers.

You will read about two of our 93,000 alumni worldwide, whose contributions also advance our institution and whose visionary efforts are helping to shape a more positive future. You will read about Frank Maraviglia ’58, whose incredibly generous $2 million gift to our School of Education will help us better prepare more teachers, who in turn, will develop the talent needed to advance society. You will also meet award-winning elementary school principal Nicole Knapp Ey ’02, who views education as the profession that makes the biggest impact on the future of the world.

What’s clear to me in the short time that I have been here is that SUNY Oswego is a vibrant community of learners and scholars whose passion drives new discoveries; pushes the boundaries of what is known; questions traditional business, social and scientific assumptions; and advances the world by graduating people with a more humanistic perspective and inclusive approach to problem-solving. The alumni whom I have met so far have lived up to the description shared with me during the search process. They indeed are “fiercely loyal” to their alma mater and impassioned to ensure its future success. I look forward to partnering with you on the many initiatives that will elevate SUNY Oswego to the next level.

Thank you for your warm welcome and your enthusiasm for this wonderful educational institution. Let’s achieve greatness together!

Godspeed!

Peter O. Nwosu, Ph.D. President

STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT OSWEGO

Peter O. Nwosu, President

Scott R. Furlong, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

Cory M. Bezek, Vice President for Enrollment Management

Mary Gibbons Canale ’81, Vice President for University Advancement

Karen Crowe, Interim Vice President for Communication and Marketing

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

Phillip Grome ’89, President

Kathleen Smits Evans ’84, First Vice President

Shoy Colbourne ’09, Second Vice President

Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09, Executive Director

Paul Austin ’89

Paul Austin ’92

Marc Beck ’93*

Brad Bernstein ’89

Justin Brantley ’15 M’16

Harry Bronson ’82

Austin Byrd ’10

Michael Byrne ’79*

Mary Gibbons Canale ’81**

Raelynn Cooter ’77*

Michael Demas ’65

Justin Dobrow ’17

Adam Glaser ’00

Thaina Gonzalez ’92

Howard Gordon ’74 M’78

Jennifer Warner Janes ’91

Victoria Kammer ’20

Rufaro Matombo ’12

Steve Messina ’91*

Dana Segall Murphy ’99*

Peter O. Nwosu**

Dresden Engle Olcott ’88

Dee McGowan Perkins ’85

Cathleen Richards ’09*

Carolyn Settzo ’77

Tucker Sholtes ’15

Yvonne Spicer ’84 M’85

Hank Volpe ’73

Sheneya Wilson ’15 M’16

* At large ** Ex officio

OSWEGO UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION, INC.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Rose Cardamone Crane ’81, Chair

Doreen Mochrie ’85, Vice Chair

Vicki Cafalone Furlong ’08 M’10, Treasurer Mark Baum ’81, Secretary

Mary Gibbons Canale ’81, President

Peter O. Nwosu, Vice President

Kathy Bower ’85

Bill Burns ’83

Jennifer Carey ’85 ’92

Joseph F. Coughlin ’82

Dianora De Marco ’14 M’15

Michael Durney ’83

Bob Garrett ’83

Kendis Gibson ’94

James F. Holland ’82

Aunrée Houston ’00

Matt Jenal ’78

Jeff Knauss ’07

Marcus McFee-Walters ’17

Robert Moritz ’85

Colleen Murphy ’77

Jeff Ragovin ’00

Al Roker ’76

Susannah Melchior Schaefer ’90

Thomas Schneider

Jennifer Shropshire ’86

William Spinelli ’84

Jim Triandiflou ’88

Mark Tryniski ’85

Joe Yacura ’74

Tom Yates ’89

Campus Currents

Six Alumni Inducted Into the Athletic Hall of Fame

Spirits ran high in the Sheldon Hall Ballroom as five alumni-athletes reminisced about their days in Laker green and gold during the 2023 Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Dinner and Ceremony, with their family, friends and former teammates applauding from the “sidelines.” However, instead of wearing their Laker jerseys, they were dressed to impress.

Current Oswego State Field Hockey members Erin Schaefer ’24 and Abigail Redmond ’24 served as the co-emcees of the evening and bridged today’s Laker athletics to the historic greats of its past. The university officially inducted women’s volleyball and track and field athlete Heidi Armstrong ’08, basketball player Chad Burridge ’12, baseball player Andrew Clapp ’96, swimming and diving member Kevin Morgan ’08, women’s basketball and field hockey player Robyn Bramoff Mott ’04 and ice hockey member Jon Whitelaw ’13 M'18, who was unable to attend the event.

“This year’s honorees represent some of the best athletes in Oswego State’s long athletic history,” said Stephanie Lamb Folds ’07, then senior associate director of alumni engagement. “We are honored to recognize them today.”

SUNY Oswego’s Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Wendy McManus took a moment to recognize all former and current coaches as well as current student-athletes who attended the event. McManus also gave a warm thank you to the members of the selection committee.

To see all members of the Athletic Hall of Fame or to nominate alumniathletes or former coaches (living or deceased) for future consideration, visit oswegolakers.com.

Laker Community Surpasses Giving Challenge Goal

The Laker family successfully reached the goal of the 1861 Giving Challenge, securing the $60,000 gift from Dr. Tom Mahl ’80 and raising a total of more than $179,000 for SUNY Oswego.

The challenge coincided with the 200th birthday of SUNY Oswego founder, Edward Austin Sheldon.

“I can think of no better way to celebrate than by supporting SUNY Oswego students,” Dr. Mahl said in his email to the university community to kick off the challenge.

Among the supporters was Monday Night Football Play-by-Play Commentator and ESPN SportsCenter Anchor Steve Levy ’87 who made his gift and tweeted: “Where are my OZ people at? (Clearly, was not an English major) I just made my donation, hope you’ll do the same. Clock is ticking and we are out of time outs...”

Laker parent Karen Corcoran commented on LinkedIn: “As a parent of a current Laker, I’m happy to make my donation to this amazing university!! Let’s rally for the 1861 gift. Thanks Dr. Mahl!”

Current students helped build momentum by posting on social media accounts throughout the day, and students and staff members tabled at locations across campus to garner support for the challenge.

The 18 Telefund student callers reached out to alumni, parents and past supporters throughout the 1861-minute challenge.

Gifts supported more than 85 different funds, including departmental funds, athletic teams, Student Emergency Fund, S.H.O.P. on-campus student pantry, student scholarships and where the need is greatest. A total of 892 Lakers from 32 different U.S. states — and from as far away as Ramstein Air Base in Germany — participated in the challenge and donated $119,108 (not including the challenge gift).

"Thank you to everyone who supported SUNY Oswego and made this challenge a success," said Annual Fund Director Barbie Fike. "We’d like to extend a special thanks to Dr. Mahl for serving as our challenger and spurring other Lakers to come together to surpass our goal. Collectively, these gifts make a big impact on the students of SUNY Oswego.”

Pictured from left are: Andrew Clapp ’96, Robyn Bramoff Mott ’04, Heidi Armstrong ’08, Kevin Morgan ’08 and Chad Burridge ’12. Not pictured is inductee Jon Whitelaw '13 M'18, who was unable to attend the event.

Boards Announce New Members, Transitions

The Oswego Alumni Association, Inc. and the Oswego University Foundation, Inc. — the two nonprofits that work closely with University Advancement—announced the addition of new members whose expertise and connections will help advance the mission of the university and of the boards themselves.

The Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors, a not-for-profit corporation that represents the diverse interests and needs of more than 93,000 alumni, elected three new members to serve a three-year term, effective July 1, 2023.

Michael Demas ’65 of Queensbury, N.Y., is a retired educator, and the owner and operator of Saltaire Enterprises. He has been involved in Reunion Weekend, established a scholarship at SUNY Oswego and is a Sheldon Legacy Society member. As a student, he was a member of the Men’s Basketball team and was an elementary education major.

Adam Glaser ’00 of Sayville, N.Y., is a compliance manager for General Building Laborers’ Local 66 Trust Funds and licensed associate real estate broker for HomeDax Real Estate LLC. He has volunteered as a NYC Career Connections host and as an Alumni Sharing Knowledge mentor. As a student, he was a finance major and was involved with the National Honor Society for Business Administration.

Sandra Michaca ’13 and Ron Tascarella Jr. ’06 completed their terms and stepped down from their positions with the board, effective June 30.

The following alumni, who have completed their terms, will remain on the board as at-large members for 2023-24: Marc Beck ’93, Mike Byrne ’79, Raelynn Cooter ’77, Steve Messina ’91, Dana Segall Murphy ’99 and Cathleen Richards ’09.

Foundation Board Update

A not-for-profit organization that raises and manages private support to advance SUNY Oswego, the Oswego University Foundation appointed four new members for three-year terms, effective July 1, 2023.

Joining the board are the following individuals.

Alumni Awards Committee, he also served as an Alumni Admissions Ambassador and as the keynote speaker at the 2022 December Commencement Eve reception. While a student at SUNY Oswego, he was a finance major and was a Telefund caller and manager and a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

Jim Triandiflou ’88 of Cary, N.C., is a three-time CEO with more than 25 years of experience building technology companies as both a senior executive and a consultant to management, and currently serves as the CEO of insightsoftware in Raleigh, N.C. He mentors students and young alumni through the Alumni Sharing Knowledge program, shared his experience via the Oswego Alumni Podcast and provided the naming gift for SUNY Oswego’s James A. Triandiflou ’88 Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice. As a student, he was a marketing major and was a member of the Oswego chapter of the American Marketing Association, vice president of the Student Association and the student speaker during his Commencement ceremony.

Carolyn Settzo ’77 of Newtown, Conn., is a self-employed financial planner. She has served as an Alumni Sharing Knowledge mentor, established a scholarship at SUNY Oswego and is a Sheldon Legacy Society member. As a student, she was a business administration major and a member of the Women’s Volleyball team.

Additionally, the following members were re-elected to a new three-year term: Howard Gordon ’74 M’78, Yvonne Spicer ’84 M’85, Hank Volpe ’73 and Sheneya Wilson ’15 M’16.

Kendis Gibson ’94 of Miami Beach, Fla., is most recently a former morning news anchor for WFOR/CBS Miami. A recipient of the OAA’s Graduate Of the Last Decade (GOLD) Award, he has been active with SUNY Oswego, serving as moderator and a panelist for the Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit and in the “Voices of Diversity” program through the Alumni-In-Residence. As a student, he was a political science major and hosted his own show on WTOP-10 television station.

Marcus McFee-Walters

’17 of Syracuse, N.Y., is a financial professional with Equitable Advisors, formerly AXA Advisors, LLC. A member of SUNY Oswego’s GOLD Leadership Council and

Tom Yates ’89 of Key Largo, Fla., retired as the managing director at Wells Fargo Securities in 2022. A leadership donor to SUNY Oswego and a member of the Sheldon Legacy Society, he has served on the boards of the foundation's Investment Committee, the Athletic Alumni Association and the Oswego Alumni Association from 2013-2019. As a student, he was an accounting major and played men’s soccer.

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

Members of the OAA board and friends gather along the lakeshore to catch the sunset during Reunion Weekend 2023.

Campus Currents

Eight Alumni Selected to Receive Oswego Alumni Awards

The Oswego Alumni Association recognized eight alumni with 2023 Alumni Awards for their exceptional contributions to their respective professions, communities and alma mater.

“It’s always a great honor to recognize our wonderful Laker alumni community for their many accomplishments,” said Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09, executive director of the Oswego Alumni Association and director of alumni engagement at SUNY Oswego. “The dedication they regularly demonstrate toward providing service and going above and beyond in their careers never ceases to amaze me.”

The association’s most prestigious honor, the Distinguished Alumnus Award celebrates alumni who have gained national or international attention in their respective professions. The 2023 recipients are: Dr. Gary Baker ’95 of Columbia, Mo., associ-

ate chemistry professor at the University of Missouri and renowned research scientist; and William F. Precht ’79 of Miami Lakes, Fla., prominent marine scientist, conservationist and environmental activist.

For exhibiting a lifetime of both professional and civic leadership, the Lifetime Award of Merit was presented to: Cheryl Bird ’77 of Amherst, N.Y., founder and executive director of the Seneca Street Community Development Corporation; and Dr. Randall A. Pellow ’65 of Shippensburg, Penn., award-winning author and professor emeritus at Shippensburg University.

Receiving the Alumni Impact Award for his contributions toward advancing SUNY Oswego and its students was Paul Austin ’89 of Beacon, N.Y., senior manager of IBM’s WebSphere Development and an adjunct professor at SUNY Oswego.

Recognizing outstanding achievement in service to others, the Community Service Award was presented to: Suzanne Selkowitz Reek ’84 of Wantagh, N.Y., president of the Nassau Suffolk Chapter of the Autism Society of America; and Thomas Spaulding ’94 of Lowville, N.Y., insurance agent and highly dedicated volunteer for several local organizations and causes.

Honoring Graduates Of the Last Decade (GOLD) alumni who have enjoyed success and provided significant volunteer service to their communities, the GOLD Award was presented to Justin Dobrow ’17 of Astoria, N.Y., senior manager of partner operations at Peacock and co-chair of the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors’ Media, Business and Careers Team.

To read more about each of the winners, visit alumni.oswego.edu/awards2023.

Stay tuned for the upcoming announcement of the 2024 Alumni Award winners.

Four of the award winners were recognized during the University Update during Reunion Weekend 2023: Pictured from left are Oswego Alumni Association (OAA) President Phil Grome ’89; award winners Paul Austin ’89, William Precht ’79, Cheryl Bird ’77 and Suzanne Selkowitz Reek ’84; and Vice President of University Advancement Mary Gibbons Canale ’81. Dr. Gary Baker '95 will receive his award at a later date.

Thomas Spaulding ’94 with Vice President Canale ’81

Justin Dobrow ’17 (center) with wife, Kalie Hudson Dobrow ’16, and OAA Executive Director Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09 (right)

Dr. Randall Pellow ’65 (center) with Vice President Canale ’81 and OAA President Grome ’89 (right)

Eight Receive 2023 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence

Four SUNY Oswego students and four employees earned 2023 Chancellor’s Awards, the highest award for excellence given by the SUNY system.

The following SUNY Oswego students were among 193 students recognized in a ceremony with SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. on April 24 in Albany: childhood education-English major Kaitlin Flint ’22 of Ava, N.Y., zoology major Brooke Goodman ’23 of Goshen, N.Y., meteorology major Kaitlyn Jesmonth ’23 of Albany, N.Y., and psychology major Adriana Militello ’22 M’23 of Akron, N.Y. All of the students graduated summa or magna cum laude in addition to serving in leadership roles and maintaining active involvement in numerous campus organizations.

Outstanding work in customer service, technological projects and overall support recently earned Michele Chodubski May ’94 the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service.

Dedication to student involvement, engagement and growth has earned Michael (Mike) Paestella, associate director of leadership development, the 2023 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service.

Serving as a global expert and dedicated scholar, while advocating for digital human rights, earned SUNY Oswego communication studies professor Ulises Mejias the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities.

School of Education faculty member Carlo Cuccaro’s exceptional ability to teach, connect with students and provide professional expertise have earned him a 2023 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching.

All four were recognized and presented with their medals Aug. 22 during SUNY Oswego’s Opening Breakfast in the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall.

Physics

Professor Shashi

Kanbur

Earns SUNY Distinguished Professor Rank

A record of astronomical research accomplishments and providing stellar opportunities for students have earned SUNY Oswego’s Shashi Kanbur the rank of Distinguished Professor from SUNY.

For decades, Kanbur has studied the age and size of the universe through measuring pulsating stars — an endeavor that has created connections with scholars across the globe and propelled many Oswego student researchers to success.

“Dr. Kanbur represents some of the finest characteristics necessary for this professorship,” Scott Furlong, SUNY Oswego’s provost and vice president for academic affairs, wrote in a recommendation for the award. “His dedication and commitment to his students and to their success is a model for all to follow.”

Furlong noted that, at the time of nomination, Kanbur had published 78 peer-reviewed articles (51 as an Oswego professor), with 13 of them featuring Oswego student co-authors numbering 19 student researchers.

Kanbur earned a Ph.D. in astrophysics, as well as a bachelor’s in mathematics and astronomy, from the University of London. Between those degrees, Kanbur received a master’s in mathematical statistics from Stanford University and a diploma of mathematical statistics from the University of Cambridge.

Kanbur previously earned the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities.

Winners of the 2023 Chancellor’s Awards for Student Excellence are Kaitlin Flint ’22, Adriana Militello ’22 M’23, Brooke Goodman ’23 and Kaitlyn Jesmonth ’23.

Michele Chodubski May ’94

Carlo Cuccaro

Michael (Mike) Paestella

Ulises Mejias

Campus Currents

New Master’s in Higher Education Leadership Available

A new master’s in higher education leadership program at SUNY Oswego will build upon the traditional strengths of preparing classroom teachers and leaders by providing opportunities for professionals entering or advancing in this important career field.

Launched in spring 2023, the higher education leadership master’s degree is designed for individuals who wish to enhance their interpersonal leadership skills, improve their ability to utilize a data-informed approach to leadership and build collaborative skills to gain a strong and authentic framework for their future plans.

The Master of Science program provides a pathway for professional employment, advancement and leadership in a wide variety of careers. Classes will be delivered on campus and in the evening.

“The interdisciplinary program prepares leaders across all higher education sectors through a collaborative approach,” said SUNY Oswego Dean of Graduate Studies Kristen Eichhorn. “Students will benefit from courses and faculty providing a wide range of academic affairs, student affairs and administrative perspectives.”

The program draws on a hallmark of Oswego in hands-on learning, incorporating two internship experiences to complement the coursework. These experiences will span departments so students can engage in self-directed inquiry, problem-solving, critical thinking and reflection in real-world and creative contexts.

One of the first students in the program, Stephanie Hudson ’19 M’24 — program coordinator for SUNY Oswego’s Office of Student Conduct — looks forward to enhancing her career through the new master’s degree.

“Through this program I hope to learn the foundations of higher education, and skills that will translate into being a better colleague, and more importantly, a better resource for students,” Hudson said.

This 33-credit hour program provides coursework in higher educational history, student learning and development, leadership theory and research, with an emphasis on creating a more just, diverse, equitable and accessible learning environment.

Graduates will understand the historical and contemporary issues in the United States’ higher education landscape including access and affordability; will be able to analyze and evaluate campus policies and procedures related to diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice; and will demonstrate competencies in the theories of student learning and development, and strategic leadership principles and in the laws that affect colleges and universities.

Through field experiences, graduates will gain and enhance professional skills necessary to succeed in a variety of careers in higher education across academic affairs, student affairs, and alumni and development; community and non-profit agencies that support higher education and students transitioning to college; government agencies; and consulting firms supporting higher education.

Those interested in more information can contact program coordinator Peter G. Ghazarian at 315-312-3104 or peter.ghazarian@ oswego.edu; or visit the website at oswego.edu/programs/graduate/higher-education-leadership-ms.

Find the Founder!

In the Winter 2023 Issue, the Sheldon statue can be found in the top left section of the Green and Gold photo on the top of page 14. Grand prize winner of a College Store gift certificate and Sheldon Hall print is George Wilson '80. Winning Sheldon Hall prints are Genevieve Mayer Carpenter '87, Marcie Benjamin Brasier '87, Jean Bianda Weissman '71, Bruce Daugherty M'99 and Willard Bice '73 M'93.

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. The next five entries drawn will receive Sheldon Hall prints. Send your entry by April 1, 2024, to Find the Founder, Sheldon Hall, 301 Washington Blvd., Oswego, N.Y. 13126, or email findthefounder@oswego.edu.

One of the first students in the program, Stephanie Hudson ’19 M’24 — program coordinator for SUNY Oswego’s Office of Student Conduct — looks forward to enhancing her career through the university’s new master’s degree in higher education leadership.

Rankings Round-Up

Oswego Makes Big Move Up in U.S. News Rankings

SUNY Oswego climbed 15 spots to No. 39 in U.S. News and World Report’s 2024 Best Regional Universities in the North, according to the publication released on Sept. 18, 2023.

The university ranks among the top 15 in public colleges in the region, which includes public and private colleges throughout New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware.

For its ability to empower students to brighter futures, especially first-generation students, Oswego ranks No. 18 (up one spot) in the North in the Social Mobility rankings.

“The Oswego promise is about providing high-quality access to education, transforming lives and igniting possibilities, and this kind of recognition reflects the opportunities, support and value we provide students and families,” said SUNY Oswego President Peter O. Nwosu. “Our students are outstanding, and our faculty and staff deliver on the promise every day.”

SUNY Oswego also continues its place among the Best Value Schools in the North, recognizing its strong academics and student preparation at the more affordable SUNY prices.

Oswego’s support of veterans and active military members continues to earn recognition, with the university moving up to No. 18 (up one spot) regionally in the Best for Veterans

category. This complements several honors SUNY Oswego has received as a military-friendly and veteran-friendly university from national magazines and ratings services.

In addition, Oswego appears on the national U.S. News rankings for Top Undergraduate Engineering Programs, non-doctorate; Top Computer Science Schools; and Top Undergraduate Business Programs; as well as among best in the North for Best Undergraduate Teaching.

Rankings Improvements

The latest U.S. News rankings reflect a greater emphasis on access and outcomes, and less on exclusivity and other factors that proved more favorable to elite private colleges.

University’s Sustainability Efforts Earn STARS Gold Rating

Campus-wide efforts and continuous improvement recently earned SUNY Oswego the coveted Gold STARS (Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment and Rating System) status from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. This achievement establishes SUNY Oswego as a leader in higher education with sustainable practices.

The report particularly noted success in programs such as the composting initiative, Maple on Tap, BikeShare and the community garden, also known as the Permaculture Living Laboratory.

Learn more about Oswego’s sustainable practices at oswego.edu/sustainability.

“This year’s methodology does a better job reflecting the very good work that SUNY Oswego and many of our public peers across SUNY and CUNY are doing and have been doing for a very long time,” Nwosu said. “Some would say that marks an improvement on how relevant the lists are, but the higher ranking would not happen if SUNY Oswego wasn’t continuously improving upon our track record of success.”

The latest U.S. News rankings evaluated around 1,500 U.S. four-year bachelor’s degree-granting institutions on as many as 19 measures.

’Money’ Magazine 2023 Best Colleges List

SUNY Oswego was recently named to Money magazine’s 2023 Best Colleges list that recognized institutions based on quality, affordability and student outcomes.

“To help families make informed decisions about where to spend their tuition dollars, Money’s latest Best Colleges offers a practical analysis of more than 700 four-year colleges, focusing on affordability and student outcomes,” the magazine noted on its website.

In its four-star rating of SUNY Oswego, Money included statistics that showed the university’s responsiveness to student financial needs. It noted that 83 percent of students receive grants, with 17 percent earning a merit grant (an average of $2,270 per student receiving merit aid).

New Student-Led, Student-Run Café

Opens

on SUNY Oswego Campus

A new student-led, student-run café — the product of a SUNY Oswego business class — held its grand opening celebration in Rich Hall in spring 2023.

Called the Rich 'N’ Pour Café, the space represents a boost to student entrepreneurship experiences, a service for those in Rich Hall and beyond, and a campus-community partnership.

Students in the Management 444 class represent a board of directors who have made decisions on the big and little touches in the space that replaces the Wall Street Café, which closed in 2022, in the Rich Hall atrium lobby.

The Rich 'N’ Pour Café is staffed by more than 20 student baristas serving up Finger

Lakes Coffee Roasters-infused beverages and baked goods. The students in the class interviewed and hired the baristas, selected the menu and proposed the décor to provide a relaxing ambience that can also serve as a welcoming meeting space.

Irene Scruton, the assistant dean of the School of Business and director of MBA programs, teaches the course with community entrepreneur Ed Alberts M’92 M’97 serving as senior advisor. Scruton offered thanks to Auxiliary Services, led by Stephen McAfee M’16, for being such willing partners in helping develop plans.

The grand opening featured brief remarks, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, some specials and the welcome smell of coffee wafting through Rich Hall again.

Sustainability Office’s Composting Program Wins State Award

Kate Spector M’10, the university’s sustainability manager (left), and graduate assistant Deiarra Canty ’21 M’24 show off Comp(Oz)t buckets. This pilot composting program won the 2022 College Recycling Leadership Award from the New York State Association of Reduction, Reuse and Recycling.

In its first year, the composting pilot project diverted more than 80,000 pounds of food waste from landfills and incinerators, attracting many supporters and becoming implemented at all dining facilities.

Before the project, all food waste generated on campus was sent to a landfill or incinerator.

Campus Currents

Foundation Name Changes to Align with University Designation

On Jan. 1, 2023, SUNY Oswego’s official designation and name changed from a college to a university to reflect the broader range of undergraduate and graduate level programs offered by Oswego.

As a result of this name change, the Oswego College Foundation, Inc. — the not-for-profit corporation established for the advancement of SUNY Oswego — also legally changed its name. It will now be known as the Oswego University Foundation, Inc. The change was approved by the foundation’s Board of Directors and the state of New York.

All past financial agreements with donors will remain intact, and all future agreements and business transactions will use the organization’s new name. The name change will have no substantive effect on the workings of the foundation, its purpose or its operations. The federal tax ID/Employer Identification Number will remain the same.

The organizational logo and all materials have been updated to reflect this change.

For more information, visit alumni.oswego.edu/foundation. .

Students in SUNY Oswego’s Management 444 class hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony during an April 11, 2023, grand opening for the new Rich 'N’ Pour Café in the Rich Hall lobby. The class serves as a board of directors for the new student-led, student-run café, which serves Finger Lakes Coffee Roasters-infused beverages and baked goods in a relaxing ambience that can also serve as a welcoming meeting space in the home of Oswego’s School of Business.

Al Roker ’76 Returns to Campus to Teach, Tour and Telecast

America’s favorite weatherman and one of the university’s most loyal Lakers, Al Roker ’76 was on campus April 27-28, 2023, to teach, check out progress on the Hewitt Hall renovations and do some live hits for NBC’s Today show.

Students in CMA 490: Building an On-Air Career, which Roker co-taught with Prof. Michael Riecke, performed their “Live Ad Lib” assignment in the Al Roker ’76 Television Studio and were critiqued by the national media celebrity and meteorologist himself.

Each student took a turn delivering a “live” broadcast about a flooding disaster along 400 miles of the Mississippi River in front of a “green-screen” Fountain City, Wis. They were given eight facts about the situation and then had to deliver a 45-second report from the field without a formal script.

The students bounced from an on-camera shot to “B roll” footage — shot earlier in the day of the flooding along the river — back to an on-air wrap-up and toss back to the studio.

Natalie Barden ’24, a journalism major with a minor in business administration from Gansevoort, N.Y., volunteered to go first, and described the experience as “equally thrilling and terrifying.”

“Although doing a live hit in front of Al was nerve wracking, it was an incredibly valuable experience and I’m grateful to have been a part of it,” Barden said. “I learned so

much from my critiques and from listening to the critiques he gave my classmates.”

Roker encouraged them not to bring any written notes or talking points up with them when it was their turn in front of the camera.

“Once you become proficient at live shots, you can do anything,” Roker told the students. “Anyone who does live shots can anchor, but the reverse isn’t necessarily true. To do this well, you have to know your material. You don’t use a written script.”

Roker also suggested that students who were waiting for their turn should go into the Marano Campus Center hallway and practice.

Jolie Santiago ’24, a broadcasting and mass communication major from New City, N.Y., took his advice and left the studio to practice before her turn.

“I wanted to get comfortable with my facts of the hit and think of how I wanted to deliver it,” Santiago said. “I believe that helped a lot. I wanted to give this live hit my best shot and I did! Al appreciated my puns and extra tidbits that I added to enhance the ad lib.”

Many of the students received similar feedback from Roker and Riecke about the importance of preparing more off camera so that they can do a better job of ad-libbing and sounding more conversational on camera.

WTOP10 FAST FACTS

• SUNY Oswego’s student-run, on-campus TV station was founded in 1978.

• In 2007, the station’s current location, the Al Roker ’76 TV Studio, opened in the Marano Campus Center with support from the namesake alumnus.

• In 2016, the studio was upgraded to high-definition broadcast technologies.

• Approximately 200 students are involved in WTOP10-TV every semester.

• WTOP10 has 32 student leadership roles available every year.

“This is my second time teaching with Al, and it amazes me how quickly he makes the students feel comfortable,” Riecke said. “You have arguably one of the most widely known figures on American television, but before the end of the first class, students are chatting with him like they’ve known him for years.

“That connection is so important because students sense he cares,” he said. “So, when he gives constructive criticism, it’s easier for the student to say, ’he wants what’s best for me.’ Al is also honest with his feedback, and I think students are hungry for that. They know how competitive the job market is, and they want to put themselves in the best position possible.”

Following class, university leadership gave Roker a hard hat tour of the Hewitt Hall renovation. The $80 million project, led by Cannon Design, will provide 132,285 square feet of innovative teaching spaces, studios and laboratories for broadcasting, graphic design, cinema and screen studies and related programs within the School of Communication, Media and the Arts (SCMA).

Former Project Coordinator Amy Enwright carried a tablet to show the 3D renderings of the various classrooms and student spaces throughout the tour of the three floors of Hewitt. SCMA faculty members and administrators described how the spaces would be used and what technology they expect to have in the classrooms and labs.

Roker remarked on how far the program had come since he was a student in the 1970s.

Campus Currents

Early Friday morning, the Today show anchor did live broadcasts of his weather forecast from campus, including two live spots during the 8 a.m. hour with students and campus members. During the national TV broadcast, he gave a special shoutout to some signature Oswego strengths, including the men’s ice hockey team, the meteorology program, the broadcasting program and the business school.

“Shortly before his first live hit with a student crowd, a student presented Al with a Meteorology Club sticker,” Barden said. “Al also chatted a bit with members of the hockey team about their season. When he went live, he energetically showed the Meteorology Club sticker to the camera and mentioned the hockey team’s playoff run. It was really interesting to see the details he chose to include while on-air, in order to pull the audience into his surroundings and make the hit more engaging to watch. Obviously, he did a great job, and I really enjoyed getting to watch him work in-person and see the production set-up.”

Between the live shots, Roker shared advice with students.

“Enjoy this and take advantage of as much of this as you can,” he said, gesturing to the campus. “Whatever your major is, take as many courses that aren’t in your major … because that will make you a better individual.”

He said that he only took a meteorology class to fulfill a science requirement.

“I did not plan to be on television,” he said. “That’s another thing I’d say, be open to something different. My wife was a theater major and took a journalism class and that

changed the course of her life. You never know what’s going to spark your interest. Just be open as much as possible.”

The students in his class said they feel incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to take this class and learn from the best in the business.

“[The class has been] one of the best things I’ve done at Oswego by a long shot,” Barden said. “Al has been incredibly generous with sharing his time, knowledge and experiences with us, and I’ve learned so much from him. I’ve particularly enjoyed the way Al always welcomes our questions and answers them honestly. He does not sugarcoat harsh realities of working in TV news, but also gives us genuine advice in hopes of helping us succeed and eventually advance to a high level.”

Congratulations to Al Roker '76, who received the Sol Taishoff Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism from the National Press Foundation in February 2024.

Noteworthy News

University Leadership Announcements

Vice President for Enrollment Management

In May, Cory

M. Bezek joined SUNY Oswego as vice president for enrollment management. As SUNY Oswego’s chief enrollment officer, Bezek serves as a member of the President’s Cabinet; oversees the Offices of Admissions and Financial Aid; and provides leadership to strategically plan, develop, coordinate and implement SUNY Oswego’s comprehensive enrollment efforts.

With two decades of experience, Bezek most recently served as the executive director of enrollment services at SUNY Fredonia. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from SUNY Fredonia, a master’s degree in higher education administration from Vanderbilt University and a Ph.D. (ABD) in higher education administration from the University at Buffalo.

Affirmative Action Officer and Deputy Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer

Anneke McEvoy was appointed affirmative action officer and deputy chief diversity and inclusion officer in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Previously, she served as the associate director of the Triandiflou Institute and as the deputy coordinator in the Title IX office from fall 2019 through fall 2022.

In fall 2022, McEvoy served as a staff fellow in the Office of the President and, in June 2023, was named to the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ (AASCU’s) 2023 Emerging Leaders Program. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Wells College in Aurora, N.Y., and a master’s degree in TESOL from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, Vt.

Assistant Vice President for Workforce Innovation and External Relations

Kristi Eck was appointed assistant vice president for workforce innovation and external relations and now oversees the newly announced Office of Workforce Innovation and External Relations (OWIER), which spans both Oswego and Syracuse with office locations in the downtown Syracuse Campus at 2 Clinton Square and at 121 E. 1st Street and 34 E. Bridge Street locations in Oswego.

Eck, who had served as the chief of staff in the Office of the President since 2013, will carry forward her government and legislative affairs responsibilities and external partnership relationships. She remains a member of the President’s Cabinet and Council, where she continues to work closely with SUNY Oswego’s vice presidents, deans and relevant directors to advance the university’s engagement with external partners to attract and secure new resources for the institution and the region.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from Colby College and a master’s degree from Columbia University, Teachers College, and she completed the Institute for Management and Leadership in Education at Harvard University, Graduate School of Education.

Director of Operations in the President’s Office

Jamal Coleman joined SUNY Oswego as director of operations in the President’s Office in October. He serves on the President’s Cabinet and Council, as well as other campus committees and work groups, and works closely with the president’s senior leadership team, deans and relevant directors to advance Oswego’s institutional mission, vision and priorities. He most recently served as director of marketing at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Tennessee State University.

Interim Vice President for Communication and Marketing

Karen Crowe was appointed interim vice president for communication and marketing, and her appointment runs from Dec. 1, 2023, through May 31, 2024. With more than 30 years of experience leading communications and marketing departments in the education, government and non-profit sectors, she most recently served as assistant vice president for marketing and communications at the City University of New York Herbert H. Lehman College. Crowe holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from New York University.

SAVAC Captain, Biology Major Named 2023 Outstanding Senior Award Winner

Shannon Harris ’23, a biology major from Webster, N.Y., was selected as the winner of the 2023 Oswego Alumni Association Outstanding Senior Award. Harris, who maintained a GPA of 3.8, took advantage of many opportunities afforded at SUNY Oswego and beyond to explore her passion for medicine and caring for others.

Having served with the New Visions shadowing program at Rochester (N.Y.) General Hospital in high school, Harris immediately joined the Student Association Volunteer Ambulance Corporation (SAVAC) when she arrived at SUNY Oswego in fall 2019. She quickly earned the respect of her peers who also volunteered with SAVAC and became the administrative captain in April 2020. She plans to attend medical school.

Biology Major Earns SUNY EOP Ambassador Role

Biology major Naw Ka Paw Paw ’24 recently joined a distinguished list of SUNY Educational Opportunity student ambassadors, a role in which she advocates for and promotes this program that opens doors to higher education for students. She will serve as a mentor to other students and encourage high school seniors to enroll, help build on the established student EOP support network across the SUNY system and advise the Chancellor on strengthening the program.

Oswego Student Earns Statewide EOP Honor

Damien Nguyen ’23, a double major in human development and criminal justice, earned the statewide 2023 Norman R. McConney, Jr. Award for outstanding student excellence. This award recognizes Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) students who overcome obstacles to go above and beyond in their academic endeavors.

Technology Students Excel at National Conference

SUNY Oswego Technology Student Association (OTSA) members added more awards to their trophy case at the 2023 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association Conference in Minneapolis.

Awards included:

• First place in manufacturing

• Fourth place in robots

• Fifth in communications

• Fifth in teaching a lesson

In addition, OTSA President Bryleigh Beauchat ’24 won the award for Outstanding Technology and Engineering Education Collegiate Association Student Award.

Campus Currents

Student Filmmaker Receives Festival Scholarship

Connor Censak ’24, a cinema and screen studies major, received a 2023 Lake Placid Film Festival Student Summit Scholarship. Recipients of the scholarship, provided by Adirondack Film, do not receive funding toward their education, and instead receive an invitation to attend a student summit. The three-day festival includes a dinner, screenings of both normal-length and short films, workshops of student work and a concluding awards ceremony for recipients of the Student Summit scholarships.

Students Recognized with Four Statewide Broadcasting Awards

Zachary Nusimow ’23 M’24, broadcasting and mass communication graduate and current MBA student, earned two College TV awards, with a “Rich ’N’ Pour” package winning Best Use of Local News Video while “Run to Wonzones” was named Best Promotional Announcement or Series. For the second year in a row, Kyle Spisak ’24 earned the award for Outstanding Editorial/Commentary in the College Radio category, this time for “The Kyle Spisak Show-Syracuse Blunders.” Kaley Richmond ’24 received the Outstanding Classroom Digital Project award for “Roots of Rivalry: Oswego & Plattsburgh Hockey.”

University Celebrates Third Annual Founder’s Weekend

Several hundred members of the Laker community gathered together on campus to learn about the president’s vision for the university, share their school pride, reconnect with each other and expand their networks.

The Third Annual Founder’s Weekend packaged together several events that included students, alumni, faculty, staff, donors, board members and external partners.

The weekend kicked off Sept. 28 with President Peter O. Nwosu’s inaugural State of the University Address that highlighted accomplishments from last year and laid out his Vision 4040 — an ambitious plan to double the number of students from 2,000 to 4,000 annually, or 40,000 a decade, by 2040. See page 24 for more details.

Later that afternoon, President Nwosu accompanied Jim Triandiflou ’88 on the benefactor’s first visit to the Triandiflou Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice on the second floor of Penfield Library. He was greeted by the institute’s staff, including Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer and interim institute director Kendra Cadogan, and several students.

That evening, diversity strategist and author Curtis Hill delivered a keynote address for the 37th annual ALANA Multicultural Student Leadership Conference, “Planting Seeds for Tomorrow’s Leaders.” The conference also featured a networking reception of ALANA student leaders with members of the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors, break-out sessions and alumni panel.

On the following day, Syracuse City history teacher Don Little ’91 M’94 M’15 presented “Honoring our Founder: The Life and Legacy of Edward Austin Sheldon.” During his hour-long discussion, he shared highlights from the university founder’s life as well as some of Sheldon's biggest contributions to the field of education.

“Graduates from this university went on to build schools around the world,” Little said. “Dr. Sheldon literally transformed the educational system not only in our country but in places as far away as Japan.”

Attendees left Little’s presentation with a surge of Oswego pride, just in time to share it with hundreds of other Lakers who gathered for the annual Green and Gold Campus Photo.

Several dozen alumni also connected Sept. 29 for the start of an EOP Reunion, which included a welcome, tour, reception, interactive alumni presentations to current EOP students and a dinner/dance Saturday night.

President Nwosu welcomed back the EOP Reunion attendees during a reception that night in the Hearth Lounge of the Marano Campus Center.

EOP Reunion attendee and member of the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors Thaina Gonzalez ’92 shared how she and many other students from diverse backgrounds were thrilled to see SUNY Oswego appoint its first Black president and that his appointment represents another glass ceiling shattered.

More “firsts” were celebrated the next morning during the Scholars Brunch, as first-generation college student and scholarship recipient Courtney Wood ’24 and scholarship benefactor Jim Triandiflou ’88 delivered inspirational messages before a crowd of 275 student scholars, scholarship donors and board members.

“We are grateful to Oswego. We are grateful that Oswego created a foundation that we build our lives on. We’re grateful for the friends that we have,” said Triandiflou, who spoke on behalf of all the scholarship benefactors. “Something happened at Oswego that means a lot to us, that made us grateful. And gratitude is one of the greatest emotions in the world. If you want a happy life, you want to feel like that.

“To the students, we believe in you,” he said. “We believe in you and we want to help you fulfill all that’s ahead of you. So that you can feel some of the gratitude that we feel, years from now.”

— Jim Triandiflou ’88

Throughout the afternoon of Sept. 30, hundreds of students connected with alumni at ALANA and EOP events. Alumni presenters included: Justin Brantley ’15 M’16, Tori Kammer ’20, Dresden Engle Olcott ’88, Sheneya Wilson ’15 M’16, Dana Segall Murphy ’99, Thaina Gonzalez ’92, Ted Metellus ’97, Phillip White ’76, Denise Jordan ’77, Lawrence Watson ’74, Daniel Clark ’86 and Khadija Kulmiya ’21.

That evening, EOP Reunion attendees enjoyed dinner and dancing in The Space beneath Swetman Gymnasium in the Marano Campus Center.

Campus Currents

Meanwhile, Communication Studies alumni, emeriti and current faculty, staff and students gathered for a festive evening in the Sheldon Hall Ballroom.

The event featured student emcee, Clarissa Karki '25, as well as student remarks delivered by Nivieria Spearman '24 and the presentation of the Graduates Of the Last Decade Award to Justin Dobrow '17.

During the program, School of Communication, Media and the Arts (SCMA) Dean Jennifer Knapp announced plans to launch a campaign to help keep the newly renovated Tyler Hall and soon-to-be-finished Hewitt Hall equipped with the latest technology and media tool for students.

Fritz Messere ’71 M’76, dean emeritus of SCMA, provided an animated history of the Communication Studies Department and the evolution that led to the creation of the school in 2008.

The Founder’s Weekend celebration concluded Oct. 1 with the ALANA Peace Walk from Oswego City Hall to SUNY Oswego’s Marano Campus Center and remarks by alumna Magic Washington ’18, senior talent acquisition associate at Lattice.

“It feels good to be back,” Bryce Saba ’21 said. “I don’t get to play a whole lot anymore and have a lot of good memories playing on this field, so it’s always good to be around the guys again.”

On the Laker Turf field, former men’s lacrosse players squared up for an alumni versus current players game during the program’s reunion weekend.

VISION FOR THE FUTURE

Peter Nwosu’s first encounter with snow was memorable on several fronts.

The native of Nigeria had heard descriptions of snow as being similar to the frost inside his freezer. But seeing it fall from the sky as a student at Towson University in Maryland in 1985 was quite a different experience.

Although the hour was late, he recalls running to a classmate’s room and knocking on his door to share his excitement.

“My classmate said, ‘What, what, what — why are you waking me up?’ I said, ‘Look! Look out your window.’ So, he looked out and said, ‘Oh, Peter, that’s snow.’ And he went back to sleep.”

The next day, Nwosu experienced a different quality of snow as he was walking down some outdoor steps.

“I was descending the stairwell with another classmate — Samuel Brown (who is a professor today) — and then I slipped and rolled down,” Nwosu recalled.

As Nwosu lay there at the bottom of the stairs, Brown scrambled down to him to ask if he was OK. It would be a memorable bump.

“I remember being there for a moment and all he could ask was, ‘Are you Ok? Are you OK?’” Nwosu said. “Finally when I got myself up, I said, ‘Why didn’t you say sorry?’ And he said, ‘What? I didn’t do anything.’”

Nwosu was puzzled by Brown’s reaction.

Peter O. Nwosu began his tenure as the 11th president of SUNY Oswego, building on the solid foundation laid by his predecessors to create opportunities and ignite possibilities for more Lakers

“In my culture, when a person falls down or hurts himself or herself, our reaction is to say, ‘Ndoo’ in my language,” Nwosu said. “It means ‘I’m sorry.’ It’s like saying you empathize.

That’s how we show it. Now, notice how, whilst I have left Nigeria and I’m in the United States, Nigeria did not leave me yet. I was experiencing what we call a ‘cultural bump.’”

Nwosu was caught off guard by the “bump,” as he spoke English, was educated and thought he knew this new country. The incident sparked his interest and he wanted to better understand these cultural bumps.

“It was the curiosity and the search — in science and research, we say the search for truth — that led me to apply to Howard University to study intercultural communication,” he said.

So, after completing a master’s degree in liberal studies at Towson University, he enrolled at Howard University, excelling in his coursework and expecting to return to Nigeria with his newfound knowledge of intercultural communications.

However, his presentation of his research paper at a national communication conference led to a job offer as a faculty member at California State University at Sacramento, and his education changed the course of his life’s trajectory.

That has been a theme for Nwosu: Education has been a driving force in his life's narrative, and has taught him some invaluable lessons.

1 LOOK AHEAD

Nwosu credits his education as the force that presented new opportunities to him, and he often wonders where he would be today, if not for his education.

He was born one of nine children to his parents who were Igbos — a predominantly Christian people from northeastern Nigeria, which is home to more than 250 ethnic groups and equally as many languages. Of the nine siblings, only five — four boys and one girl — lived to adulthood.

Nwosu was born and raised in northern Nigeria, where a diverse mix of Christians and Muslims and a variety of ethnic groups lived.

“You grew up being respectful of differences,” he said. “It was pretty much a given.”

Although neither was college educated, his mom and his dad focused on the importance of education, and Nwosu thrived in the classroom throughout his schooling. He recalled being scolded by his father to turn off his light and go to sleep instead of reading, but his mother would step in and encourage the reading and learning.

“My parents, particularly my mother, valued education and wanted to make sure that we had that education,” he said. “It changes lives, opens doors. My parents also taught us lessons about humility, about respect. My mother made sure each of us knew how to cook, and we grew up learning to be kind to each other.”

He frequently read ahead in his academic books, so he could more fully engage in conversation with his teachers. Throughout his schooling, his classmates and even teachers gave him the nickname of “professor” because he could often explain the readings and assignments to his classmates as well as the teacher. He even recalls being asked privately to help grade his classmates’ assignments.

LESSON

PETER O. NWOSU

ADMINISTRATIVE ROLES

› SUNY Oswego, President, Aug. 2023

› CUNY Lehman College, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Student Success, 2019-2023

› Clark Atlanta University, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, 2016-2019

› California State University Fullerton, Associate Vice President for Academic Programs and Accreditation Liaison Officer, 2014-2016

› Tennessee State University, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, Institutional Planning and Assessment, 2010-2013

FACULTY POSITIONS

› California State University Northridge, Professor and Special Assistant to the Provost, 2004-2010

› California State University Northridge, Chair of Communication Studies Department, 2004-2007

› California State University Sacramento, Assistant Professor - Professor, 1990-2004

› University of California, Davis, Adjunct Professor, 1993-2004

› Cosumnes River College, Sacramento, Los Rios Community College District, Adjunct Professor, 1993-1998

PUBLICATION HIGHLIGHTS

› Beyond Race: A New Vision of Community in America (Tsehai Publishers at Loyola Marymount University, and Johannesburg, South Africa: University of South Africa Press, 2009)

› Transcultural Realities: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Cross-Cultural Relations (SAGE Publications, 2001)

› Communication and the Transformation of Society: A Developing Region’s Perspectives (University Press of America, 1995)

He took his education seriously, as he and his family saw it as a way to create new pathways in life.

One of his earliest memories of school was walking past bullet holes on the outside of his school — the result of the Biafra-Nigeria civil war (1967-1970) in which the Igbo peoples attempted to secede from Nigeria to create the Biafra Republic.

“My parents barely escaped,” he said. “As a toddler, I saw the horrors of war, and I have been very opposed to wars ever since. When the war ended, they fixed the inside of my elementary school in my little village. They left the outside bullet-ridden. The reason was, as traumatic as it was, they wanted us as young people to understand the horrors of war and traumas of war. We should always aim for peaceful dialogue to resolve issues, as opposed to picking up guns because the impact lasts forever. Violence begets violence.”

In addition to solidifying his beliefs as a pacifist, that early experience also informed his choice of research areas and careers — development through interpersonal communications and education.

2 LOOK FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

In his first academic position as a professor of communication studies at California State University at Sacramento, Nwosu brought lessons on cross-cultural communication to life in his classroom.

For example, he used the classroom’s individual chairs with desk arms to teach about cultural assumptions and privilege. One day he removed all the left-handed desk chairs, and asked his students if they noticed anything different about the classroom. None of the right-handed students noticed anything different, as

LESSON

Look Ahead: On Sept. 28, 2023, President Nwosu delivered his inaugural State of the University Address and announced his Vision 4040, which outlines an ambitious plan for the future.

the chairs looked and felt the same to them. Only the left-handed students recognized that there were no longer left-handed desk chairs available to them.

“For [the right-handed students], the privilege is almost invisible,” Nwosu writes in his book, Beyond Race: A New Vision of Community in America. “While they are aware that some of their classmates may be left-handed, that awareness is the extent of their knowledge. They are shocked then when their attention is drawn to the privilege they have enjoyed all this time.”

Bringing classroom lessons to life was very important to Nwosu. He focused much of his time as a faculty member and a consultant to applying his knowledge and research on intercultural communications in professional and societal settings.

He assisted several law enforcement agencies throughout California on managing differences and served on a task force established by then-Governor Gray Davis on addressing the disproportionate confinement of minority children in the juvenile justice system. He worked under the first African American Superior Court Justice, Alice Lytle, who was leading that effort, and his role was to enhance and advance issues of fairness and equity in the child welfare system.

“I loved what I was doing because I was making an impact,” Nwosu said. “And I was taking students and other faculty with me to help with this work. We were contributing, and we were doing the scholarship of application.”

During this period, he helped launch a bachelor's and master's program in intercultural and international communications at his university.

He also served for 10 years as editor of the peer-reviewed journal, Africa Media Review — the largest journal for communications on the continent.

“I had a colleague who was encouraging me to apply for more leadership roles within academia, but I was happy doing what I was doing,” Nwosu said. Although reluctant to apply initially, he found early success in his applications for administrative leadership roles.

But when he was selected to participate in the prestigious American Council on Education Fellows Program, a long-running academic leadership development program, the seed was more soundly planted in Nwosu that he could become a college president. Again, education had opened another door to him.

LESSON

3 LOOK FOR THE COMMON GROUND

His first career came through Nigeria’s National Youth Service Corps (similar to AmeriCorps or the Peace Corps), in which every college graduate served one year following graduation. Nwosu worked with the World Bank’s Agricultural Development Project in public affairs, editing the newsletter called Ruralscope.

“Every graduate of the university or college was required to serve the country for one year and you’re posted to a different state,” Nwosu said. “The idea was to build national unity, and if you lived among and within a set of people for that long, you’d build friendships that would last forever.”

That one-year position led to a full-time role as a public information officer and then as a senior public information officer. Part of his duties involved escorting journalists to one of the World Bank’s 17 agricultural development projects underway in Nigeria at the time.

“I got to know the country very well,” he said. “I really enjoyed the work.”

He also met ex-patriots from a variety of countries, including India, Bangladesh, the United Kingdom and the United States. Those interactions nurtured his desire to study abroad and learn more about the role of communication in agricultural development. His connections from the World Bank projects helped him get his Visa to study at Towson University, and altered his course.

“I’m very interested in the relationship between culture and human communication,” he said. “That is also what informs the way I lead.”

Look for the Common Ground: “Part of what [the James A. Triandiflou Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice] really stands for is the ability to educate us and inform us about what binds us all together,” President Nwosu shared during an Open House last fall.

Look from a Different Perspective: Nigerian native President Nwosu took the ice for the ceremonial puck drop before the Lakers vs. King's College (Pa.) men's hockey game on Oct. 14.

4 LOOK TO COLLABORATE

During his presentations on the SUNY Oswego campus since the start of his tenure in August, President Nwosu has repeatedly shared the maxim: “If you want to go fast, you go alone. If you want to go far, you go together.”

President Nwosu wants SUNY Oswego to go far.

He believes that open dialogue and frequent communication are integral for the university’s success, and he immediately set out to establish those communication channels and develop that culture.

In his first 90 days as president, Nwosu met with hundreds of individuals representing internal and external groups, including local, regional, state and national entities. He played a leading role at numerous events during Founder’s Weekend in September, including hosting his inaugural State of the University Address where he announced Vision 4040, a bold plan to increase upward mobility and advance regional economic development (See related story on page 24).

He has packed his schedule with meetings, presentations and networking events to introduce himself and his vision to as many stakeholders as possible. He also takes the opportunity to collect their ideas and feedback to help guide the university’s future actions.

“President Nwosu has a deep appreciation for our founder, Edward Austin Sheldon, and the contributions of generations of alumni who have made this institution what it is today,” said Mary Gibbons Canale ’81, vice president for university advancement. “Our alumni have been excited to meet him and support his vision for the future of SUNY Oswego.”

His collaborative approach, openness, eagerness and fast pace have grabbed the attention of other SUNY Oswego leaders.

“I find President Nwosu to be a very kind person,” said Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Scott Furlong. “He is a good communicator, and tells a convincing story regarding the need for growth that resonates with the community. He is always seeking to find improvements. He utilizes his people resources well.”

College Council Chair James McMahon said President Nwosu has hit the ground running at full speed.

“I’ve had campus members stop me and say, ‘Thank you for bringing him to us,’” said McMahon, who chaired the search committee and has served as chair of College Council for the past 15 years. “That really surprised me. He’s made such a positive impression in a short time. People are pleased. He has shared his vision, and he’s building consensus with all parts of campus and the community to move toward that goal.”

Faculty Assembly Chair and Professor of Economics Elizabeth Schmitt noted that President Nwosu has instituted some noticeable changes. For example, the meeting of the Budget Advisory Committee, which is made up of a representative group of campus members who meet in person, was live-streamed and the link shared out to the university community.

“He wanted to make sure that anyone who wanted to come listen and hear about things and and ask questions, would have the opportunity to do so,” said Schmitt, who also helped President Nwosu lead a town hall meeting for faculty and staff about the strategic planning process. “The town hall was something that he really wanted, as well. He’s very much about making sure everyone is informed and everyone has ample opportunity to participate.”

SAVE THE DATE for the Presidential Inauguration

Friday, Sept. 27, 2024

Plans are underway for a weeklong celebration of the inauguration of SUNY Oswego’s 11th president, Peter O. Nwosu. The historic occasion runs from Sunday, Sept. 22, through Sunday, Sept. 29, with the actual Inauguration Ceremony on Friday, Sept. 27. Stay tuned for more information, which will be shared online at oswego.edu/inauguration.

Look to Collaborate: President Nwosu partnered with alumnae Susan Applebaum Larkin ’85 and Dana Segall Murphy ’99, who co-hosted a presidential reception for alumni in November at their employer, Audacy, in Manhattan.

LESSON

5 LOOK TO TRANSFORM THROUGH HUMAN CONNECTIONS

Schmitt said she has been most impressed by President Nwosu’s stamina and surprised by his delightful sense of humor.

Many in the campus community have said President Nwosu is a great fit for SUNY Oswego.

“What jumped out to me was how he lived this transformative educational experience,” Schmitt said. “His standard of living, his experiences, what he’s been able to accomplish for himself and other people goes back to education. Here’s someone who comes in and who’s first generation to higher ed, and he has seen the power of transformation. He seemed like a great choice to set up the design, operations and vision to continue that transformation for others. His vision aligns with SUNY Oswego’s mission and commitment to the common good.”

In addition to a stellar resume and progressive experience as a faculty member to leadership roles, his story and the way he communicates about education stand out as exceptional and aligned with SUNY Oswego’s mission.

“I’m really looking forward to working with him to inspire our alumni to support our students and strengthen their connections to their alma mater,” Canale said. “He has a pulse on the needs of our students and wants to do everything in his power to help them succeed.”

McMahon also said Nwosu fits seamlessly into the SUNY Oswego community.

“What stands out to me is his experience as a first-generation student and his belief that the university transforms students into lifelong learners who leave the campus to do good in the world,” McMahon said. “He can relate to our students at all different levels. He’s smart and a quick learner, and he’s willing to

look at everything to see how we can improve. He’s going to do great things.”

Above all else, Nwosu’s kindness and warmth shines through in his interactions with others.

“Most of the candidates had very strong resumes and experience,” McMahon said. “He also has a good soul.”

Schmitt recalled joining SUNY Oswego in the mid-1990s and embracing the “friendly college by the lake” culture. From her seat beside him on stage, she watched President Nwosu during his first Commencement ceremony at SUNY Oswego in December.

“He’s just loving the day,” she said. “I was thinking about how many of these students are first generation and you can hear their families screaming in the background. And there he is, shaking their hands, and looking them in the eye and saying, ‘I’m so proud of you for what you’ve accomplished.’ And I’m thinking that’s probably something they’re never going to forget.

“So, we think of ourselves as a friendly institution where people matter, where we work together and not competitively to try to advance our mission,” she said. “His warmth has really fit into that vision as well with all kinds of different groups.”

Transforming Lives Scholarships

To mark the historic inauguration of SUNY Oswego’s 11th president, Peter O. Nwosu, the university community seeks to raise support for student scholarships and make a SUNY Oswego education accessible to more students. With your help, we can remove financial barriers and enable more students to transform their lives through higher education. Together, we can achieve President Nwosu’s Vision 4040 of expanding access to a SUNY Oswego education and in doing so, supporting the economic growth of the region.

Please help us welcome our new president by showing your support for current and future Lakers. Make a gift in support of the Transforming Lives Scholarships at alumni.oswego.edu/transforminglives.

Look for Human Connection: President Nwosu personally greeted many of the attendees at the annual Campus Community Breakfast in December.

VISION 4040: EXPANDING SUNY OSWEGO’S PROMISE

Bold plan seeks to double the annual number of graduates by 2040 to meet the needs of the CNY region

Even before Peter Nwosu officially started Aug. 15 as the 11th president of SUNY Oswego, he began meeting with current university leadership and formulating a vision for his presidency.

Director of Institutional Research and Assessment Deborah Furlong remembers her first exchanges with Nwosu from mid-July 2023.

In their first phone call, he asked her to explore trends that would move Oswego from graduating 2,000 students a year to 4,000 a year, or double the number of graduates.

Furlong mapped out how that growth might happen over the next 20 years or so, and sent him a graph of the growth that would be required to achieve the goal.

“It was during the time I was doing the math behind the graph that I wrote into my work journal ‘This is insane, but that’s just me,’” recalled Furlong, who was well-versed on higher education’s enrollment challenges due to fewer high school graduates and changing demographics, especially in the northeast.

“The one thing I learned while working on the president’s vision statement is that the global middle class is an untapped reservoir for those institutions (and countries) that can build the strongest pipelines the soonest,” she said. “I do think Oswego has the potential and ability to be this kind of strong conduit between the international economy and what has the potential to be a Micron-led economic boom here in Central New York. But, yes, I initially thought the idea was insane and I eventually showed [the president] where I wrote that note in my journal, knowing he would find it amusing.”

Nwosu did indeed find her journal entry amusing and has referenced Furlong’s comment multiple times in public settings before introducing Vision 4040, which establishes a pathway for SUNY Oswego to stabilize degree attainment of 4,000 awards per year — or 40,000 per decade — by the year 2040.

Unveiled at the inaugural State of the University Address, Vision 4040: Expanding SUNY Oswego’s Promise illustrates in broad brushstrokes how this goal to double the number of graduates can be achieved and why it is important for the region.

“What I envision for SUNY Oswego builds on the promise of access and opportunity; of meeting students where they are and helping them map out career paths; of sharing our resources with external partners and stakeholders for mutually beneficial outcomes; of driving the economy of the region by educating a skilled workforce; and of maintaining and sustaining our democratic society,” President Nwosu said.

He explained that the plan was needed to be ready to respond to meet the needs of the region. For example, he described how the percentage of Oswego County residents with bachelor’s degrees lags behind CNY and the state, so the university has an opportunity to increase the number of local residents it educates.

Additionally, with the expected $20 billion investment of Micron Technology over the next 10 years and the expansion of our current employers in the region, the five-county Central New York region’s population is predicted to grow by 5 to 10 percent, with some areas growing as much as 25 percent, in the next 20 years.

“During my first one-on-one meeting with President Nwosu when he started, he asked me about Micron and the region because I am an economist,” said Faculty Assembly Chair and Professor of Economics Elizabeth Schmitt. “I said, ‘This is my adoptive home as of 1995, and this is the single best piece of economic news that this region has received since I have been here. This brings people back to Upstate New York, and people are going to want to do all sorts of things. It’s not only tech people or programs that will benefit. This is a rising tide that lifts all boats.'”

The area’s relative climatic stability and access to fresh water are attractive to global manufacturers and employers, so other companies are likely to move into Central New York as well.

Vision 4040 also outlines an opportunity to tap into the burgeoning global middle class, which is expected to increase by 175 million people annually over the next decade, by recruiting more international students.

SUNY Oswego’s Vision 4040 preliminarily calls for an undergraduate enrollment of 11,000 students and 3,500 graduate students. These figures include residential, commuter and online students as well as part-time and full-time students, graduate students, certificates and microcredentials, and those who study at the Syracuse Campus and main campus.

The university will also focus on developing and marketing micro-credentials and certificate programs to deliver smaller sets of high-demand skills and to serve as a low-risk on-ramp into full degree programs. The Vision 4040 process will also explore the university’s ability to develop scaffolded programs — stackable credentials — in areas not typically included in a four-year institution’s portfolio.

The plan seeks to increase the percentage of adults in Central New York with a bachelor’s degree from 12 percent to the state-wide average of 18 percent through targeted marketing of offerings, providing flexible course structures and modalities, offering in-demand academic programs, showing career possibilities and communicating the power of education to transform lives.

Vision 4040 also suggests that SUNY Oswego recruits more students from overseas, particularly in countries that have ties to Central New York corporations and businesses.

“The pool of students in New York State that we traditionally draw from has been shrinking for decades, and then COVID happened,” said James McMahon, SUNY Oswego College Council chair. “Education is changing, and I’m pleased with what he’s doing to keep Oswego moving forward.”

Vision 4040 explores what changes are anticipated to unfold with the arrival of the Micron Technology chip plant into Clay, N.Y., and the company’s expected investment of $20 billion in the region over the next 10 years and up to $100 billion over the next 20 years, according to a October 2022 White House announcement on the landmark economic development project. This also includes the direct expected employment of 9,000 people and the creation of an additional 40,000 jobs indirectly.

The university’s plan considers what new degree programs and credentials might be needed in Central New York’s future, and how SUNY Oswego can evolve to meet these needs.

Nwosu stressed the benefits of higher education for students as well as for the region.

“Communities with higher educational attainment have less crime, reduced expenditures on public assistance programs, higher participation in civic and volunteer activities, more homeowners and more people with high-quality health insurance coverage,” he said.

“All of this speaks to the vital role that education plays in our democratic society,” Nwosu said. “We do more than teach students. We empower them to change their lives and their families' lives. Through education, we strengthen communities.”

For more information, visit oswego.edu/vision4040.

A VISION of Support

Award-winning principal makes an impact on her school through her positivity and commitment

When Nicole Knapp Ey ’02 became principal of Ellenville (N.Y.) Elementary School in 2018, she faced some unique challenges.

In addition to being new to the role of principal, she was new to the school and the district. Her first task was to get to know her faculty, staff and the 700 students at the school, learning who they are and what they have experienced and building trust with them.

“When she arrived, the school had not experienced consistent leadership in years,” said Rebecca Maher, literacy and instructional supervisor at the school. “Both staff morale and student performance data were dangerously low. Nicole began by articulating a clear vision of social-emotional support and high expectations for students and adults alike. Her confidence, competence, creativity and positivity had an immediate and visible impact on school culture.”

Ey hosted many breakfasts and informal gatherings with staff, curated a weekly newsletter to highlight the positive things happening in the school, as well as resources available, and launched recognition programs such as Champs, which celebrates student effort.

A year and half after Ey began in the role, she would confront another first — a global pandemic that shut down the normal operations of the school.

“It was a scary time,” Ey recalled. “Initially, no one knew what was happening. No one knew what to do. Beyond educating the children, we had a lot of concerns. How were we going to feed the kids? Who would stay in contact with them? How would we be able to ensure their safety? That was the biggest concern — their safety. For some of our students, the best and safest 5 to 6 hours of their day was when they were at school.”

Ey rallied her staff to help provide meals to her students for pickup at the school, and they even rode the buses and delivered food a few times a week to students at the bus stops. Children who didn’t have access to reliable wi-fi at home were given their classwork in printed packets, and school staff made home visits to check on the welfare of their students and to keep them feeling connected to their school family.

“I was very lucky to have built relationships with the staff here before the shut down, and they felt very supported,” Ey said. “I was going to walk with them through COVID. I wasn’t in front of them or behind them. We did it together.”

She made sure to keep in communication with her staff and worked in team-building exercises such as an online scavenger hunt into the faculty meetings. Her leadership through the pandemic helped strengthen her relationships with her entire school community.

“Throughout the considerable challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Nicole demonstrated calm, compassion, consistency and clear thinking,” Maher said. “For this reason, she is highly respected by both staff and leadership.”

Maher was so impressed with Ey’s performance that she successfully nominated Ey for the 2022 New York State Elementary Principal of the Year Award. In addition, Ey was one of only 41 principals nationally to be selected as a 2022 recipient of the National Association of Elementary School Principals’ National Distinguished Principal Award.

“I was so humbled to receive these awards,” Ey said. “You don’t get here without your team. Feeling honored was an understatement. To be in Washington, D.C., with principals representing the other states and hearing their stories, was an experience I will never forget.”

During the recognition events in Washington, D.C., Ey was selected to participate in the 2023 Lifetouch Memory Mission to Guatemala. During the service trip to Guatemala in January 2023, she and the team of volunteers helped a rural community build a more environmentally responsible school out of plastic bottles and inorganic trash. By the end of her trip, the team had installed 10,000 bottles, which will act as insulation for two new classrooms.

“That experience was life-changing — absolutely life-changing,” she said.

She explained how the children and their families had few material possessions, and many slept on the ground or on wooden pallets. Children attended school for three hours in the morning and returned to their homes to farm. While she was there, the school was on break so the children and many volunteers from the community worked side-by-side with the team of Americans to build the classrooms.

“They had desks from the 1950s and chalkboards, but kids were still learning,” Ey said. “They value education a lot, and they didn’t take it for granted, as we often do here. What was really eye-opening was knowing that these children were learning regardless of what tools or technologies they did or didn’t have. It’s all in how their teachers are teaching them.”

She also realized the importance of making a human connection.

“I made connections in a new country with children who speak a different language than I do,” she said. “It didn’t matter; they could see that I was showing up every day, just as I do back home. Their smiles and laughter filled my heart.”

She shared that she “left Guatemala with the mindset to live in the present, listen more and continue to lead with an open heart.”

“She continues to amaze me with the ease in which she captivates her audience,” said Ellenville kindergarten teacher Ann Mattracion, who was on the search committee that hired Ey.

Ey helps ensure that every member of the school can be successful.

“She recognized the different needs of our students and advocated for more support staff to help,” said School Counselor Andrea Hemstreet. “Through her leadership we have been better able to serve the needs of our school and our community.”

Sometimes that means she advocates for differentiated reading groups within the same class to help close the dramatic skill gaps in reading abilities among students. Sometimes that means assigning peer mentors who speak the same native language for the increasing number of English as a New Language (ENL) students. Sometimes that means trying something new and scrapping the entire effort if it doesn’t work.

“Our school has benefited from Nicoles’s presence in many ways, but I think the biggest change of direction I have seen is the focus she has put on academics,” Mattracion said. “Nicole has gone to bat time and time again, and continues to do so, to get what our building needs.”

Ey has been successful in securing the resources to do such things as launch new reading and math programs, ensure that the faculty had the training to successfully lead those programs and enable students to take field trips to enhance their classroom learning.

“At the end of the day I am going to do what I think is best for the children here and my staff know it,” she said. “Sometimes I might make decisions that they don’t love, but they know my heart is in the right place. I’m very open about asking for feedback. There’s a lot of respect. It’s a two-way street. I have never forgotten what it’s like to be a classroom teacher. That was my first love.”

ACADEMICS

“Our school has benefited from Nicoles’s presence in many ways, but I think the biggest change of direction I have seen is the focus she has put on academics.”

Ey is the kind of principal who dresses as the Elf on the Shelf and hides in a different spot in the school during the holidays; who wears an apple costume to encourage students to eat healthy; who makes sure the school has a spirited float in the 4th of July community parade; and who likes for every member of the community to feel welcome at her door. She created the school slogan, “Ellenville Pride is School Wide,” which is repeated every morning during announcements, and organizes a weekly “Funday Friday Riddle,” “Turkey in my Pocket” and other games that build school spirit and improve communication among school members.

— Ann Mattracion, Ellenville kindergarten teacher

Ey said she cherishes her chosen career as an educator. She thinks back to when she arrived at SUNY Oswego as an undecided student who transitioned into art education and then elementary education.

“I had the most amazing experience with my education classes at Oswego,” said Ey, who is a sister of Alpha Delta Eta sorority. “Hands down, my professors were just incredible, really incredible.”

While the pandemic was a very challenging time for educators, she said being an educator is one of the most impactful careers an individual can pursue.

“It’s the only job where you can impact everybody,” she said. “Every doctor had a teacher, every plumber had a teacher. You could probably go into some other career, and work less and make more money, but you’re not going to impact children the way you do in this profession. There’s nothing that’s going to make you more proud in your heart and more tired at the end of the day than this profession, too. But every day, you’re going to go home with a story or a moment that warms your heart and makes you realize you made a difference.”

ENVISIONING the Potential in All Students

Educator donates $2 million in recognition of his Oswego education, in support of future teachers

Frank Maraviglia ’58 was young when his father died, and he and his brother, Raymond ’61, became wards of the state.

He moved from one school to another and then finally to the Barker Boys School near Lockport, N.Y. The school featured a vocational program funded by a National Youth Administration grant, a depression-era federal agency supporting training for young people without a job or in need of training, according to a 2016 Union-Sun & Journal column about the school.

“I went to school in Barker, which I am very proud of,” said the 93-year-old Jamesville, N.Y., resident. “That particular school had its own aircraft and its own airfield, its own machine shop and its own dormitory.”

His early education set him on a path that led him to a successful career as an educator at the high school and college level. In December, he gave SUNY Oswego a $2 million gift in recognition of the exceptional education he earned at the university that helped him achieve a fulfilling life as an educator.

Those early educational experiences also inspired him to see the value and potential in all students, especially those earmarked for industrial arts programs.

When he graduated from SUNY Oswego in 1958, he became an industrial arts teacher at a high school on Long Island. He applied experiential credits earned during his service in the U.S. Army to finish his bachelor’s in under three years, so he was able to complete a master’s degree at Hofstra University with the remaining tuition credits from the G.I. Bill.

“I wanted to be a teacher, and I wanted to be a good one,” he said. “At that time, there was a bias against people taking shop, so I changed the word from shop to laboratory. I got the students

who were in industrial arts to participate in activities. I like to think I raised them up to be equal to any other student.”

Maraviglia tried to provide opportunities for each student to showcase their unique talents, even if it wasn’t tied to the coursework. For example, he created a basketball team for his students so they could gain the recognition of their peers. He also recalled allowing a young man, who struggled as a student, to bring his guitar into a class party.

“That right there changed his whole complexion as an individual,” he said. “From then on, he was recognized by the rest of the students. I gave him a chance to shine, and it helped him.”

As Maraviglia reflected on his life’s work as an educator first at the high school level and then as a tenured professor of landscape architecture for 35 years at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, N.Y., he said he always tried to focus on the students.

“If you emphasize the student, they can do more than what they think they can do,” he said. “That to me is what teaching is all about. The instructor is really just a catalyst to bring out their potential. I believe in the students.”

EDUCATION

“I want to try to provoke students to be more creative than what they’ve been doing. I want them to recognize their potential. I want them to shine by themselves.”

— Frank Maraviglia ’58

He said he hopes his gift to SUNY Oswego will reinforce that message across generations.

“Years from now, I want them to remember, that given a chance, a student will be able to materialize a lot more than what they think,” he said. “I want to try to provoke students to be more creative than what they’ve been doing. I want them to recognize their potential. I want them to shine by themselves.”

His gift established the Maraviglia Education Enrichment Fund in the university’s highly regarded School of Education, which will support scholarship and engagement opportunities for students as well as innovative academic programming from the faculty.

In recognition of the gift, the School of Education’s main entrance between Wilber and Park halls will be named the Maraviglia Atrium. The SUNY Board of Trustees approved the naming at its full board meeting on Dec. 5, 2023.

“Mr. Maraviglia’s generosity will make an enormous impact on the lives of our students and help produce more qualified teachers to address the teacher shortage in our K-12 school system and contribute immensely to the talent development needed to further advance economic development in Central New York,” said SUNY Oswego President Peter Nwosu. “We are deeply grateful for this transformative gift.”

The additional resources will enable the School of Education to develop more opportunities for students to learn and explore their field of teaching.

“The Maraviglia Education Enrichment Fund will infuse additional resources into the School of Education that will expand access and opportunities for experiential learning to more students,” said Oswego Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Scott Furlong. “His generous donation offers the school a fantastic opportunity to invest in innovative programming and academic experiences.”

Expanding creativity and innovative thinking were driving factors in Maraviglia’s teaching and his work as a consultant to such companies as IBM, AT&T and GE. A co-founder of the consulting firm Creativity Unlimited, he advised numerous global companies on employing creative problem-solving to advance their businesses.

“What I like about creativity and creative problem-solving is you’re always thinking about opportunities,” Maraviglia said. “There’s always more than one way to solve a problem. Possibility is more than the sum of its parts.”

Maraviglia said he is honored to have his name in such an awe-inspiring space on campus, and he believes his late wife, Gloria, (pictured at right with Frank on their wedding day) would “think well of what we’re doing here at Oswego.”

Maraviglia: to wonder

Frank Maraviglia ’58

Major: Industrial Arts

Occupation: Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry; Co-founder of Creativity Unlimited Service: U.S. Army Signal Corps from 1952 to 1954; UUP Executive Board member from 1981 to 1997; Everson Museum of Art; the Onondaga Nature Center; chairing the New York State Employee Assistance Program Advisory Board; among others.

Awards: 1984 recipient of the Oswego Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumnus Award; 1991 recipient of the New York State United University Professionals Excellence Award

The drawing of Frank inside the light bulb was a gift from one of his former students and hangs in Frank's home today.

“If you look up my name, you’ll see that it means ‘to wonder,’” Maraviglia said. “My hope is that in this atrium, students will wonder about and dream about their future. I am very humbled by the particular spot that will carry my name. But what’s important in all of this are the students. I believe in the students.”

School of Education Dean Laura Spenceley said Maraviglia’s gift will impact future teachers in perpetuity, and those teachers will inspire the next generation of students.

“It is fitting that the atrium in the School of Education, which will now be known as the Maraviglia Atrium, will carry the name of one of our distinguished alumni who spent so much of his career inspiring others through his own teaching,” Spenceley said. “Mr. Maraviglia’s gift will support all students in the school and enable us to deliver high-impact experiences that will prepare them well to be leaders in their own classrooms.”

A comprehensive photo depicting the Maraviglia Atrium in Park and Wilber halls

Come

back to the shores of Lake Ontario

The Oswego Family Reunion June 6 – 9, 2024

All class years, Greeks and groups are welcome!

Special Milestone Class and Group Reunions are planned for:

2003, 2004, 2005 – 20th

1999 – 25th

1984 – 40th

1978, 1979, 1980 – 45th

1974 – 50th

1969 – 55th

1964 – 60th

1959 – 65th

1954 – 70th

1949 – 75th

Beta Tau Epsilon – 85th Anniversary

Mu Beta Psi – 30th Anniversary

Phi Lambda Phi – 65th Anniversary

Swimming and Diving (men’s and women’s) – 60th Anniversary

Save the date and plan on joining us for Reunion Weekend, June 6 - 9, 2024!

Complete a Reunion News Note online at alumni. oswego.edu/reunion to update your classmates on your life after Oswego, to update your email address for Reunion correspondence and to let us know you’re planning to attend.

Registration for all Reunion 2024 events and on-campus housing will open in April 2024. Visit alumni.oswego.edu/reunion to stay up-to-date.

We’d love to hear what YOU would prefer Reunion Weekend to look like!

Take the Reunion Survey online at alumni.oswego.edu/reunion, or scan this QR code.

Save the date: April 8, 2024

Oswego will experience a very rare total eclipse of the sun. Learn more: oswego.edu/eclipse

From The Archives

Class Notes

Since 1962, SUNY Oswego has maintained a planetarium that provided access to knowledge and exploration of the skies to not only students and faculty but thousands of community members, as well. The original planetarium, founded by professor Dr. George Pitluga, was located atop Piez Hall and attracted more than 20,000 visitors a year. It was later named for professor Dr. Charles Jerred, who ran the Piez Hall planetarium for approximately 25 years.

Among its many claims to fame was the Summer Institute for Planetarium Directors, which Pitluga began in 1967 to help meet the need for planeteria directors as the United States was gearing up for the Space Race. In summer 1968, SUNY Oswego hosted the Summer Institute for Planetarium Directors for a group of 33 students who came from 14 states and British Columbia.

In 2010, the planetarium closed, as the university began to build what is now known as the Shineman Center for Science, Engineering and Innovation. During the three years between its closure and the opening of the new planetarium in Shineman, faculty relied on software such as “Starry Night” to teach their courses, according to the late Dr. Scott Roby, who was the director of the planetarium from 2001 until his death in 2022.

Today, the planetarium in Shineman Center, under the direction of professor Dr. Natalia Lewandowski, is a fully digital Spitz planetarium with a 24-foot projection dome, 180-degree field of view and a built-in 5.1 surround sound system. Actively used in teaching and educational outreach, the facility seats 35 people and offers a wide variety of shows to the campus and surrounding community.

Sources: The Oswegonian, March 19, 1965; The Oswegonian, March 24, 1988; The Oswegonian, April 16, 2010; oswego.edu/physics/planetarium

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.

Physics Professor Shashi Kanbur talks with a visiting 5th grade class from Oswego’s Leighton Elementary School in the Piez Hall planetarium in October 2009.

SUBMITTING A CLASS NOTE

To submit your class note, email alumni@oswego.edu, call 315-3123003 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.

Editor’s Note:

Due to changes to our typical production schedule, this Class Notes reflects submissions from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023. We apologize if the information has changed since submission.

We encourage alumni to submit their updates as we expect to resume our normal schedule in 2024. All submissions received between Jan. 1-June 30 typically run in the Fall/Winter issue; and submissions received July 1-Dec. 31 run in our Spring/Summer issue.

1940s

Davis Parker ’47 of Rochester, N.Y., celebrated his 100th birthday with a gathering of friends and family in August 2022. Davis was a loyal Beta Tau Epsilon brother, and served as a long-time member of the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors. He is credited with the idea of creating the Golden Alumni Society and special recognition ceremony during the 1997 Reunion Weekend celebration, and it continues to be a key element of Reunion Weekend for the 50th Anniversary class 27 years later. During his years as a student at Oswego, he was involved in the Ontarian yearbook, The Oswegonian, Student Council and Symphonic Choir, in addition to his membership in Beta. A dedicated educator and administrator, he retired as director of personnel in the Webster (N.Y.) Central School District in 1981. He was among the university’s most loyal donors and supporters.

Editor's Note: At press time, we learned the sad news of Mr. Parker's death. We run this note as a tribute to his many years of service to the university.

Murray Wilkow ’48 of Nassau County, N.Y., recently celebrated his 95th birthday. After teaching industrial arts in New York City, serving in the U.S. Army and teaching in Island Trees Union Free School District in Levittown, N.Y., he earned an Ed. D. in counseling and served as a counselor at Island Trees and Plainview then as a chairman of counseling at Roslyn. After retirement in 1984 he served as an adjunct professor of counseling at Hofstra University and a volunteer bereavement group leader until 2018 when his wife, Rita Miller Wilkow ’50, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. She passed away in March 2019. He is currently fully retired enjoying his children, eight grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

1950s

Theo E. Grant ’54 of of Pasadena, Texas, recently celebrated his 65th wedding anniversary with his wife, Mary Ann, wearing a vest of the Grant family tartan made from material he wove in a textile class during his college days at Oswego. At Oswego, he was involved in the Newman Club. He served in the U.S. Air Force.

1960s

Michael Demas ’65 of Queensbury, N.Y., is a retired educator, and the owner and operator of Saltaire Enterprises. He has been active by attending Reunion Weekend, establishing a scholarship at SUNY Oswego and becoming a Sheldon Legacy Society member. As a student, he was a member of the Men’s Basketball team. He serves on the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Randall A. Pellow ’65, Ph.D., of Shippensburg, Pa., received the 2022 Alumni Excellence Award from Pennsylvania State University College of Education, where he earned a master’s and doctorate. Dr. Pellow is a professor emeritus of Shippensburg (Pa.) University, where he taught from 1971 to 2004. He recently finished

his 28th book, a textbook titled A Tour of Communities Around the World (Penns Valley Publishers, 2022). He is also a 2023 recipient of the Oswego Alumni Association’s Lifetime Award of Merit (see related story on page 7).

Elizabeth “Betty” Seabury Wagner ’65 of Colchester, Conn., spent most of her career in human resources in the private sector and then transitioned into working for a Congressman in the federal government and Connecticut’s Department of Labor. She completed graduate work at the University of Connecticut. She recalled fondly skiing at Fallbrook in the winter of 1961 before the ski lodge opened in 1962. She also went riding in the indoor arena at Fallbrook in 1962-1963.

Ed Currier ’68 of Webster, N.Y., enjoys reading his OSWEGO Alumni Magazine. He wrote in after receiving the winter 2023 issue and seeing the From the Archives photo. He remembered jamming everything into his 1965 Ford, but believes the photo with the Zenith box contained an electric clock radio, not a typewriter as indicated in the caption. He shared that he studied biology and was involved with Alpha Phi Omega and Symphonic Choir.

1970s

Charles “Chas” Durant ’71, Ph.D., of Knoxville, Tenn. is a senior associate for the Center for Literacy Studies at the University of Tennessee. He was a resident assistant for Seneca Hall when it became a co-ed residence hall in 1970, the first one at Oswego.

Patrick R. Jacobi ’72 of Crossville, Tenn., retired in November 2012 after 30 years in the field of safety as a safety engineer for IBM, and then a safety consultant for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. Andre Jesequel ’72 of Atlanta, Ga., is a retired video/film producer/director for the training division of the Department of Homeland Security. He was a communications major as well as a DJ and salesman for WOCR.

Ina Armstrong ’73 of Chestnut Hill, Mass., remembers seeing snow for the first time as an Oswego student. The native of St. Croix in the Virgin Islands also invited classmates to come home with her for spring break. After graduating from SUNY Oswego, she worked as a procurement analyst for the U.S. Department of Transportation and then for a few defense contractors. She teamed up with classmates, Ed Balaban ’73 and Fred Musco ’73, to establish the Class of 1973 Spirit of Service Scholarship, which was established in 2023 in honor of the 50th anniversary of their Oswego graduation.

Debbie McCarthy Boland ’73 of Syracuse, N.Y., is a retired pediatric nurse practitioner at Upstate Medical Center. She is an Arethusa Eta sorority member.

James Ford ’73 of Gerrardstown, W.V., and his wife, Debbie Barker Ford ’73, shared an update on their lives since meeting at Oswego, marrying each other and raising their three children together all over the world. Jim, who was a member of the Laker men’s ice hockey team, spent many years helping to bring electricity to developing countries such as Bangladesh. He also spent time in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, and helped create training manuals to help the residents in those areas build out their electrical infrastructure.

Patricia “Patsy” Friend ’73 of Rochester, N.Y., taught for 20 years in the Rochester City School District and then worked as a counselor with the New York State Education Department. Today, she volunteers in the Rochester school district.

Mark Heagerty ’73 of Arvada, Colo., has been living in Colorado for 38 years with his wife, Kathy, for 36 of those years. They have two sons, Jack and Michael, who also live in Colorado. Mark has been working in the financial services industry for most of his years in Colorado, including stints as a branch manager for Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade. He currently works as a portfolio specialist for Fidelity Investments. He said he enjoys all the things that Colorado offers, including being a season ticket holder for the Denver Broncos.

Derryl Rankin Johnston ’73 of Chaumont, N.Y., was a social studies teacher at Penfield (N.Y.) High School and a teacher at Savannah-Chatham County Schools in Savannah, Ga. She also worked in medical transcription and coding at a hospital in northern New York.

Couple’s Loyal Support for Oswego Spans Five Decades

Marilynn “Lynn” Nagy Farrar ’61 and Neil Farrar cherish their memories of Oswego and have kept those connections strong 63 years after their lives carried them away from their lakeside city.

A native of nearby Solvay, N.Y., Lynn came to SUNY Oswego to study education at a time when New York state residents didn’t have to pay tuition but only had to cover their room and board. Her father’s salary at Camillus Cutlery and mother’s wages from Solvay Process Company were just able to cover that and her older sister’s college expenses.

“It was tight, but they made it work,” said Neil, who has been married to Lynn for 59 years.

Lynn said she loved the lakeside location of SUNY Oswego and had a great experience in her math and education classes for her major. She went on to have a fulfilling career as a teacher in Camillus, N.Y., and in the Rochester, N.Y., area.

Neil was called into active duty with the U.S. Coast Guard two years into his undergraduate work at Syracuse University and then was stationed in Oswego for a year. While in Oswego, he called on Lynn, who he knew from having gone to high school with her.

They began dating, and were frequent visitors to Rudy’s Lakeside Drive-In. Lynn used to walk on the break-wall out to the Oswego Harbor West Pierhead Lighthouse and maybe glimpse a certain sailor who was at the U.S. Coast Guard Lifeboat Station.

“We have many happy memories from Oswego, and we still make a point of

going to Rudy’s at least once a summer,” said Neil, who graduated from Syracuse University and worked for Eastman Kodak.

So, the couple said they happily answer the phone when a Telefund student from SUNY Oswego calls. Lynn enjoys telling the current student about her Oswego experience as well as hearing what is happening on campus today. They can’t quite remember if it was Telefund student caller, a mailer or just their desire to support Oswego that prompted their first gift to the university in 1981, but it’s been 43 years and not a year has gone by without the couple making a gift.

Because of their unwavering annual giving that spans five decades, they are part of the Loyal Lakers Society, an honor reserved for people who have made gifts to the university for at least five consecutive years.

“We are big believers in higher education and have benefitted from it,” said Lynn, whose initial gifts, she said, were of modest size. In 2014, she made a more significant contribution and established the Lynn Nagy Farrar ’61 Endowed Scholarship for a student in the School of Education with financial need and GPA of at least 3.0.

“It’s so exciting and rewarding to meet our scholarship recipient,” Lynn said. “They’re so thankful and full of excitement about what’s awaiting them in their careers.”

To make your own impact at SUNY Oswego, visit alumni.oswego.edu/givenow or call 315-312-3003.

Frank Fish ’75, Ph.D., of Downingtown, Pa., is the winner of the 2022 Ig Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on how baby ducklings swim behind their mother in single file to conserve energy (improbable.com/ ig/2022-ceremony). Frank is a professor of biology at West Chester University of Pennsylvania.

Kathy Jacobs Kingsley ’73 of Clarks Summit, Pa., reconnected with 50th Anniversary classmates during 2023 Reunion Weekend in June. She shared a bit about the diverse roles she has held throughout her career, including teaching in Spain and the Otisville prison as well as serving as a tour guide for the Royal Air Force and a reflexologist at the Waverly Wellness House. She is a member of Iota Xi sorority.

John Lesch ’73 of New York City continues to work as a social studies and special education teacher in Great Neck Schools. Early in his career, he spent four years teaching GIs on an American Army base in Germany. He returned to the United States and worked as a network service manager and account team center managers for New York Telephone, NYNEX and Verizon telephone companies.

Tom Milliman ’73 of Webster, N.Y., was an activities therapist at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.Y., before returning to his roots as an educator to serve as a technology teacher in Penfield (N.Y.) School District. His wife, Lynn Yovanoff Milliman ’73, stayed home for 10 years to raise their two sons, including Thomas “TJ” ’01 M’05 (who married Jill Breon-Milliman ’01 M’21), before returning to the classroom as an elementary education teacher in East Rochester.

Linda McCoy Nettleton ’73 of Locke, N.Y., taught first and third grade for 30 years, including in the Groton and Dryden school districts. After retiring from teaching, she became a technology consultant. She and husband, George ’72, enjoy spending time with her three children and five grandchildren.

Deb Roe ’73 of Brooktondale, N.Y., is retired from her position as assistant director of financial aid at SUNY Oneonta and from her full-time position at Cornell University in Ithaca.

Ellen Stengle Wahl ’73 ’74 of Oswego, came to SUNY Oswego from her home on Long Island in 1970 and never left. She was involved in women’s lib efforts on campus and served as a female carpenter on theatrical productions. She met her husband, Mark Wahl ’74, and remembers spending time at the Rathskeller. She served many years as the director of the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) in Oswego. She is the board president of the Ontario Center for the Performing Arts.

Michael Williams ’73 of Staatsburg, N.Y., is an attorney. He fondly recalls his time at Oswego, particularly with the Ski Club and his Sigma Gamma brothers. Early on, he changed from elementary education to English on his way to becoming a lawyer with the New York State Supreme Court. He shared how he leaned on his Oswego friends to help him following the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, and was grateful for their support.

Michael Flaherty ’74 of Raleigh, N.C., is a retired English and social studies teacher. He leads a daily morning meditation group at Kadampa-Center in Raleigh. He also regularly performs as George Harrison in a tribute band to The Beatles. Michael said he is grateful for his excellent undergraduate education he received while at Oswego.

Floyd “Wally” Roper ’76 of Endicott, N.Y., is president of the International Association of Workforce Professionals (IAWP). He retired from the New York State Department of Labor in September 2020. He has fond memories of his two years at SUNY Oswego, including having met his first, now late wife, Kim Collins Roper ’78. In addition to his volunteer work with IAWP, Roper is a life-time member of the Endwell (N.Y.) Fire Department and has served as its Fire Police Captain for several years. For over two decades, Roper and his wife, Mary Jury Roper, have co-emceed the Vestal Community Chorus concerts, and are members of the Board of Directors of the Johnson City (N.Y.) Senior Center.

Carolyn Settzo ’77 of Newtown, Conn., is a self-employed financial planner. She has been active by serving as an Alumni Sharing Knowledge volunteer, establishing a scholarship at SUNY Oswego and becoming a Sheldon Legacy Society member. As a student, she was a member of the Women’s Volleyball team. She serves on the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Steve

Sheffield ’78 of Crofton, Md., is a professor of biology at the University of Maryland. During a recent sabbatical leave, Steve has worked on many writing projects and research in study sites like West Virginia and Mexico. Steve will be in Baja California Sur and get the opportunity to check something off his bucket list, swimming with a whale shark. He recently wrote a chapter entitled “Identifying and Handling Contaminant-Related Wildlife Mortality/Morbidity Incidents” in the recently released 8th edition of The Wildlife Techniques Manual, a 2-volume set published by the Johns Hopkins University Press.

Golden Alumni Society Inductees — Class of 1973, Celebrating the 50th Reunion at Reunion Weekend 2023 — First row: Colleen O’Rourke, Deborah Keppel Engelke M’97, John Lesch, Linda McCoy Nettleton, Beth Tracy, Diane Lansing, Deborah (Debbie) Barker Ford, Jim Ford, Patsy Friend, Lynn Yovanoff Milliman, Tom Milliman; Second row: Deb Roe, Michael O’Krepka Jr., Fred Musco, David L. Johnston, Edward Balaban, Beth McGraw Toepp, Rick Toepp, Nancy Brown Lederman, George Lederman, Deb Korrie Martin, Judy Jenkins Cass M’79; Third row: Bob Beach, Janice LoPresti Beach, Ina Armstrong, Hank Volpe, Virginia Ginny Kane Calvert, Kathy Jacobs Kingsley, Maria Reitano Zinter, Dee Wood Dayger, Margaret Dewey Clark, Larry Clark

Karen La Roina Thompson ’78 of Kansas City, Mo., is retired from the Veterans Administration. Karen recently celebrated her 40th wedding anniversary with her husband, Spence ’78, who is retired from the U.S. Army and BNSF Railway. The couple, who met as students in Waterbury, now have four children and four grandchildren.

Peter Van Wart ’78 of Stanley, N.C., is a retired teacher. He said he moved to North Carolina in January 2019 and has been enjoying the “warm weather, virtually no snow and racing most of the year!”

Chris Brandmaier ’79 of Bellmore, N.Y., retired from a 32-year career as a marketing manager for Nikon. Chris now serves as a pastor at CenterPoint Church in Massapequa (N.Y.) Chris and his wife, Kathy, have six grandchildren.

Jan Pestle Schrader ’79 of Bloomfield, N.Y., retired on Dec. 31, 2022, after 37 years at Canandaigua National Bank and Trust. Some of her career highlights included 15 years as the bank’s corporate trainer and procedure writer, as well as operations support, call center manager and internal help desk manager. During the pandemic, she also sent weekly inspiration emails to all employees to lift spirits during the unsettling times. At Oswego, she played field hockey. She now enjoys spending time with her husband of 42 years, Steve, three children and six grandchildren, and is an active volunteer in her church.

Envisioning Her Legacy

Dr. Yvonne Spicer ’84 M’85 has been the first many times in her life. She was among the first women of color to major in industrial arts at SUNY Oswego. She was the first in her family to earn a doctorate degree. She was the first mayor elected in the city of Framingham, Mass., and the first African-American woman to be popularly elected mayor in Massachusetts.

But that is not what she wants to be remembered for.

“I have been the first of so many things in my life,” she said. “But more important to me, is that I hope I am not the last. I hope that I have paved the way for others — especially other women. I hope that I have set an example that shows others they can do anything. You have no limitations.”

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Spicer wants her legacy of service to extend beyond her own lifetime, and so she has named SUNY Oswego as a beneficiary in her estate plans. Through her planned gift, she will establish the Willie and Dorothy Spicer Memorial Scholarship to support a student with a financial need from New York City interested in pursuing a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) discipline.

The scholarship honors her parents. Although neither of her parents attended high school, they raised four children who not only graduated from high school but all graduated from college.

“They truly believed in education and often would share that education is your ticket out of poverty,” Spicer said. “The more education you have, the more opportunities you are afforded.” She said she appreciates being recognized for the estate gift and being part of the Sheldon Legacy Society.

“I’m glad to be a part of like-minded people who believe that part of our greatest legacy of living is service and opportunities to give back,” she said. Spicer currently serves as executive director of Life Science Cares (LSC) Boston, leading efforts to activate the financial and human capital of the life sciences industry to disrupt the cycle of poverty and inequality in Greater Boston.

She is able to draw on her past experiences as a city mayor, vice president for advocacy and educational partnerships at the Museum of Science in Boston and a STEM educator to help lift others out of poverty.

“Being a kid who grew up in poverty, I certainly understand the dynamics of poverty and what a difference it can make when people are generous,” she said. “It’s not a matter of needing a handout but a hand up, and it can make a world of difference. At this stage in my life to come full circle and do this work is truly a privilege.”

Similarly, Spicer said she is grateful to have garnered success in her career, and sees creating an estate plan as part of good life planning.

“I want to be able to say that I’ve done my part not only to contribute to the world and make it a better place, but I’m also leaving a legacy beyond my lifetime that will hopefully make a difference in someone’s life,” she said. “The scholarship does that, and that makes me smile.”

To learn more about estate gifts or establishing your own estate plan, visit alumni.oswego.edu/plannedgiving.

1980s

Paul “J.P.” Sciortino ’80 of Jeffersonville, Vt., has hosted a group of classmates from 1977-78 Funnelle Hall at his home for the past two winters for a ski trip to Smugglers Notch, Vt. He said the stories are the same, but funnier and take longer to tell. He credits their great experiences at Oswego that forged the bonds of friendship that have lasted 45 years and counting.

Ken Walker ’80 of West Massachusetts, N.Y., shared this photo of a group of Laker men’s lacrosse alumni who met up at a golf course in Florida, where Tim Roche ’77, now lives. Tim is credited with starting “Oswego Dirt Day” pig roast at Regans Lake back in the mid-70s.

Ken

Campagna ’81 of Liverpool, N.Y., is the news director at NewsChannel 9 WSYR in Syracuse, N.Y.

Christopher Slade ’81 of West Rutland, Vt., is one of a group of Lakers who met at Oswego and have maintained ties for 40-plus years. Steve Boulet ’81, Paul “J.P.” Scortino ’80 and he played on the varsity men’s soccer team, and he also forged strong connections with fellow industrial arts majors Brian Bonacquisti ’81 and Jeff Campbell M’80. They were among a group of 1977-78 Funnelle Hall Lakers who

gathered together last winter for a ski trip at Smugglers Notch in Vermont. Pictured are: Steve Boulet ’81, Paul Scortino ’80, Chris Slade ’81, Peter McDonough ’81, Jeff Campbell ’80, Skip Moosher ’81, Bill O’Brien ’81, Dave Fabiano ’81 and Brian Bonacquisti ’81.

David Krapf ’82 of Brechenridge, Colo., is the editor-in-chief for WorkBoat magazine. He was on the men’s soccer team and the rugby club team.

David Burnett ’83 of Sugar Loaf, N.Y., is an SAP financial and controlling systems analyst for Carl Zeiss Inc. He said he loves his job, as everyday brings on a new challenge for him.

Phil Kaplan ’83 of Knoxville, Tenn., is a college sports editor for Gannett-USA Today Network in the southern region. He also teaches sports journalism at the University of Tennessee.

Matt Kelsch ’83 of Boulder, Colo., is a consultant in meteorology, climate and hydrology at the World Meteorological Organization. He worked for 23 years as a hydrometeorologist at the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research in Boulder.

Barry Gliner ’84 of Syosset, N.Y., is the director of post-production for Warner Brothers-Discovery, headquartered in Manhattan.

Charlie Mitchell ’84 of Morrisonville, N.Y., shared this photo of a group of Laker alumni who all volunteer as mountain hosts at Whiteface Mountain, the greatest vertical ski slope east of the Rockies, which is located northeast of Lake Placid in the Adirondacks. Of the approximately 30 mountain hosts at Whiteface, they discovered seven are Oswego alumni — more than any other college. Pictured are (from left): Jonathan McDonald ’12, Charles Story ’79, Zach Dupree ’08 M’16, Charlie Mitchell ’84, Mark Desnoyers ’79, Tom Toole ’84 and Matt Crumrine ’20.

Matt Weiller ’84 of Arlington, Va., is the executive director of the Bureau of African Affairs at the U.S. State Department.

John Gray ’85 of Schenectady, N.Y., is an Emmy-winning journalist of 37 years and author. He is an anchor at WTEN-TV in

Lakers Represent on National Game Shows

Sean O’Gorman ’88 and his family, wife, Jill; daughters, Kyra, an accountant in Rochester, and Hannah, a doctoral student in clinical and school psychology at Roberts Wesleyan University; and son, Huck, who works at Novelis in Oswego, squared off on Family Feud on Nov. 16, 2022. Sean, the former owner of the Off Bridge Street Bagelry, served 22 years as a firefighter in the city of Oswego before retiring in May 2022. He and his wife live in Oswego.

Tom Winiarski ’91, president of Platform Monetization-Advertising Sales at NBCUniversal, competed on the national television quiz show, Jeopardy!, on May 16, 2023. He is pictured here with game host, Mayim Bialik.

Although neither Laker won, the university community was proud of their efforts!

Pictured are (front row from left): Paul Molano ’80, Paul Ehms ’81 and Peter Borzilleri ’78; (second row from left) Jim Murphy ’79, Don Fleming ’80,

Walker ’80 and Mike Krizman ’80; (third row from left) Dan Head ’81, Chuck Arena, Tim Roche ’77, Tim Head ’78 and Kevin Murray ’81. Jim

Albany, N.Y., and a columnist in the Capital Region Living Magazine. His third novel, Chasing Rome, was released in fall 2022, and a Hollywood director/writer is working on a script to turn his first novel into a TV movie.

Dee McGowan Perkins ’85 of Liverpool, N.Y., hosted a group of Oswego alumni, which she dubbed the “WOCR ’80’s gang,” at her home to celebrate 37 years of friendship. Dee is owner of the marketing and advertising company Bright Ideas CNY and host of the Oswego Alumni Podcast. Pictured are: Wendy Cobrda '87, Dee McGowan Perkins '85, Dennis Prechtl '87, Henry Seymour '87, Joan Pace '87, Larry Rubinstein '81, Nancy Berger Fox '85, Dan White '85 and Paul MacArthur '88.

Tracy Chamberlain Higginbotham ’86 of Warners, N.Y., is the founder and president of Women TIES (Together Inspiring Entrepreneurial Success) LLC in Syracuse, N.Y. She has spent 28 years bringing women entrepreneurs from across New York State to do business together. She added a Women’s Athletic Network division to the company 10 years ago to bring women in business together so they can participate in sports and adventures together.

Allan Shaw ’86 of Port Chester, N.Y., is a senior biopharmaceutical executive and board member working with companies, including Portage Biotech Inc. and CalciMedica. During his time at Oswego, Shaw played on the Rugby team and fondly recalls working with the Program Policy Board to plan concerts with artists including The Clash, James Taylor and the Jerry Garcia Band. He served as the Quest 2023 keynote speaker addressing the topic of how to approach healthcare with a business mindset.

Anne DiNoto ’89 of Arlington, Mass., is a compliance analyst at Boston University. She recently completed a one-week Moving Forward in Photography intensive training with National Geographic photographer Sam Abell at Maine Media Workshops to nurture a personal passion for photography.

ASK Me!

Philosophy on how to be your best

• Be proactive and avoid surprises

• Set clear objectives and empower people to achieve them

• Encourage people to think “outside the box”

• Work smarter, not harder

• Consider the risk/reward and take smart risks

• Make mistakes, but learn from them. Don’t make the same mistake twice.

• Maintain optionality

Allan Shaw ’86, chief financial officer of Portage Biotech, Inc. in his Quest 2023 keynote address

Share a little of yourself with others. Become an ASK (Alumni Sharing Knowledge) volunteer today. alumni.oswego.edu/ask

1990s

Tim Macdowall ’90 of Palm Coast, Fla., worked for Estee Lauder, but now does stand-up comedy shows, performing in such notable comedy clubs as Dangerfield’s in New York City.

Joy Melissa Holder ’93 of Elmira, N.Y., retired after 25 years as the official U.S. Senate photographer and moved to upstate New York to be with her family. While working in Washington, D.C., she earned an MBA at Liberty University.

Justin Shaw ’93 of Canandaigua, N.Y., is the director of communications at Nazareth College in Rochester (N.Y.), since February 2023. He previously served as vice president of client relations at Rochester-based Dixon Schwabl + Company, where he worked for more than 11 years. Shaw has served on the board of directors of United Way of Ontario County, and is a member of Leadership Buffalo’s class of 2019. He holds a master’s degree in public relations from Syracuse University.

Robert Utter ’93 of Manlius, N.Y., is the chief financial officer for Pyramid Management Group, one of the largest real estate developers in the Northeast. He served as the GOLD Giving Challenger and donated $20,000 to SUNY Oswego when more than 200 alumni made a gift during the month of March 2023.

Tara Seaman FitzGibbons ’94 of Oswego was appointed to SUNY Oswego’s College Council by New York State Governor Kathy Hochul for a three-year term. She serves as the business manager at FitzGibbons Agency LLC, a local and independent full-service insurance agency in Oswego. A dedicated community volunteer and graduate of Leadership Oswego County, she has served on many local not-for-profit boards, including the Richard S. Shineman Foundation and the Oswego Health Foundation. She is an avid cyclist, runner and enjoys spending time boating on Lake Ontario.

Matt Jablonowski ’94 of Johnson City, N.Y., is the English Department chair and curriculum coordinator for the Catholic Schools of Broome County.

La-Dana Jenkins ’94 of Bloomfield, N.J., works at Borough of Manhattan Community College. She graduated from New Jersey City University with an Ed.D. in Educational Technology Leadership. At Oswego, La-Dana was a part of the Black Student Union, PRSSA, WTOP and Delta Sigma Theta sorority, and she served on the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors from 2017 to 2020.

Aaron Alder ’97 of Sandwich, Mass., is the owner and agency principal of Bagnall Shaw Insurance in Lancaster, Pa. With over 6,000 clients and representing over 70 insurance carriers, he oversees the largest independent insurance agency in Lancaster, Pa. He has two children and has been happily married for 10 years.

Passion Drives Alumnus to Pursue Music, Arts Career

If you ever wanted to know how to make it in the arts, Christopher Maloney ’91 is your guy.

During an on-campus presentation about life as an artist last spring, Maloney commanded his audience’s attention.

“Look this way,” Maloney said. Everybody looked left.

“Now look this way, now look at yourselves,” Maloney said. So they did.

“I just made a whole room full of adults do this,” he said, making a funny face. He had demonstrated the power of audience command, which is something artists need to make a living.

Maloney currently heads the Practice Warriors, a music mentorship program that posts instructional videos.

Maloney surveyed the room for a show of hands from those studying various creative paths. From painting to broadcasting, hands went up.

“You people are crazy,” Maloney said. “Because it is a needle in a thousand haystacks trying to do this.”

Maloney shared a story of his Oswego days when he once sat in Lanigan 102 for a lecture with Dr. I. David Glick in COM101. The professor rattled off the careers that had alumni working in the thousands, but when Maloney asked if anybody had made it in music, Dr. Glick said that he wasn’t aware of any.

In that moment, Maloney said he knew the path to success wouldn’t be rose-colored and fanciful.

“It is gonna be evil, and a total mess, and yet here I am, 32 years after leaving Oswego and I wouldn’t want to change a thing,” he said.

Aside from running Practice Warriors, Maloney has made a few starry friends along the way such as Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jon Stevens of INXS.

Maloney shared 24 tips on succeeding as an artist that he’s picked up along his life’s journey. Each point covered a popular worry in the art field from questions about money to confusion about backup plans and “paths” — spoiler, there is no path in art careers, only “go forward.” The first and most important of these tips, Maloney said, was to keep expenses at a minimum.

“Keep your overhead low!” Maloney said. “Your ability to take advantage of opportunities as they arise, especially if they’re not well paying opportunities, depends on how much money you have to pay out every month.”

Maloney ended by describing how one of the greatest enemies to artists and people in general is playing the “if only” game.

“We look back at our lives and we go ’oh, this is the one pivotal moment, that I could have gone, and everything in my life would be perfect,’” Maloney said. “Life is a tapestry of events and things that happen … but you just cannot play this game. You make the best decisions at the time that you make the decision. And your life is the consequence of it.”

Michael Huynh ’98 M’03 of Mexico, N.Y., is a licensed fishing and camping guide and director of campus ministry for the Hall Newman Center at SUNY Oswego. He presented “You Never Fish the Same Water Twice” at Rice Creek Field Station in February 2023.

John Mannion M’98 of Syracuse, N.Y., was elected state senator for the 50th District of New York, representing parts of Onondaga and Oswego counties, including the City of Oswego. He served as a biology teacher for more than 25 years in the West Genesee Central School District in Camillus, N.Y., before being elected to the New York State Senate.

Heather Sunser M’98 of Fulton, N.Y., is a member of Barclay Damon’s real estate and financial institutions and lending practice areas; telecommunications, energy, cannabis, and hotels, hospitality and food service teams; and financial services practice group leader. She recently was appointed the leader of the law firm’s tax credits team.

Drew Scharoun ’99 of Auburn, N.Y., is the co-president of the Auburn, N.Y., chapter of the international nonprofit Sleep in Heavenly Peace, which builds and delivers beds to kids ages 3 to 17 at no cost to the families. In addition, he works full time on the laboratory support services team at MEDENT Inc. in Auburn.

Justin Wiedrick ’99 M’04 of Westernville, N.Y., was selected as a 2022 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. He is a mathematics teacher in the Adirondack Middle School in Boonville, N.Y. The award, one of the most prestigious honors in the nation for teachers, recognizes exemplary teaching and leadership in mathematics and science education.

Denise Zona ’99 of Baldwinsville, N.Y., is a Ph.D. psychologist and United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel. She recently left her position as director of human performance at the Air Force Safety Center and

became an aerospace psychologist and interagency advisor at NASA headquarters. She has completed two post-docs; one in clinical health psychology and the second in aviation psychology, which have made her the perfect fit for the Human Factors and Safety Culture position at NASA.

2000s

Adam Glaser ’00 of Sayville, N.Y., is a compliance manager for General Building Laborers’ Local 66 Trust Funds and Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker for HomeDax Real Estate LLC. He has been active as a NYC Career Connections volunteer and an Alumni Sharing Knowledge volunteer. As a student, he was involved with the National Honor Society for Business Administration.

Aunrée Houston ’00 of New York City serves as the vice president of account services and production operations for Paramount Global. He served as a panelist at the 2023 Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit, and is also a member of the Oswego University Foundation Board of Directors.

Maria Leaf ’00 of Arlington, Va., is senior engagement editor at the Washington Examiner and is a freelance anchor/reporter for 630 WMAL Radio. She was involved with WNYO, WRVO, WTOP and The Oswegonian.

ASK Me!

When you’re worried about failure, think of professional baseball player and Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson.

“Mr. October. Three home runs in one World Series game. Hall of Famer. New York Yankee legend. Did you also know he struck out over 2,500 times in his career? 2,597 to be exact. The most in Major League Baseball history. However, he is remembered for his accomplishments in the clutch. Why do I bring up Reggie Jackson? We all must experience failure to achieve success.”

Gabriel Almanzar ’05, creative director of CBS News, during his May 2023 Commencement Eve Torchlight remarks

Share a little of yourself with others. Become an ASK (Alumni Sharing Knowledge) volunteer today. alumni.oswego.edu/ask

Jill Frattallone Spadaro ’01 of Albany, N.Y., is the internal communications manager at Albany Medical Center. She began her 20plus years in the field of communication as a web producer at a local TV station in Albany, Capital News 9/YNN (now Spectrum News).

Brian Dwyer ’02 of Adams, N.Y., is a multimedia journalist with Spectrum News 1, covering the Watertown/North Country/ Fort Drum area. He has reported on a wide variety of sports-related stories across Central New York, from the Lake Placid “Miracle on Ice” U.S. hockey team to Syracuse University’s trips to bowl games, the NCAA tournament and the Final Four. Brian has also reported extensively on and from Fort Drum, including day-to-day operations, training, deployments, public works, and ceremonies to the stories of individual soldiers, units and the sacrifices they make. His career began at Oswego as a co-host of a local sports radio talk show on WNYO and as TV a sports anchor at WTOP-10.

CAREER SERVICES for Alumni

Alumni have free, lifetime access to all Career Services tools, including:

• Handshake: an online recruiting platform to connect higher education and employers

• CareerShift: an online tool that allows you to search, save and organize all elements of their job search in one place

• Specialized career coaches

• Career Services YouTube channel with an archive of helpful videos

• And more!

LEARN MORE: oswego.edu/career-services/ career-services-alumni

Reunion 2023 — 25th and 30th Cluster Celebration — First row: Joy Westerberg Knopp ’92, Jenn Woods ’93, Brenda Perry Jaynes ’92, Jennifer Harris Wainberg ’93, Jeanne LeGuillou Benson ’93, Bridget Curran ’92; Second row: Dara Altadonna ’93, Leah Hayer Darty ’93, Andrea Mody-Barres ’94, Maureen Dempsey-Frazer ’94, Laura LaMassa Fitzgerald ’93; Third row: Gayle Duffy-Cuomo ’93, Trisha Esposito Bjurmark ’93, Deb Fuchs Monahan ’92, Wendy McCammon Lee ’92, Russ Byer ’92; Fourth row: Emily Altmann Ceci ’92, Michelle Tackett Spinner ’98, Denine Colarossi Pappania ’92, Marc Beck ’93; Fifth row: Diane Kruse Bush ’92 M’99, Stacie Blackmer Rockhill ’93, Sixth row: Rich Bush ’92 M’97, Steve Rockhill ’94 M’99, Paul Austin ’92, Daniel Childers ’93, Robert Frailey ’94

Oswego Matters |

As a mother of two young children, I’ve grown accustomed to frequent transitions; to new beginnings; to change. It seems like one of the most common pieces of parenting advice shared is, “Everything is a phase.” Certain periods are markedly more challenging to get through than others (exactly how many “sleep regressions” ARE there?), while others you wish you could freeze in time and bottle up forever. But the great news is, I’ve come to realize … while many transitions can be bittersweet, you never really have too much time to dwell on how much you miss the past, because it’s already been replaced with a new normal full of its own wonderful qualities. It’s often impossible to categorize one as “better” than another, as they each come with their own pros and cons, without which each new stage wouldn’t be what it is — but it’s hard to pinpoint those aspects until you’re on the other side. Perhaps it’s this parenting outlook that helps me face inevitable change in other aspects of daily life — including at work … which, for me, of course, is at our beloved alma mater of SUNY

Joe Yerdon ’02 of Buffalo, N.Y., has been a National Hockey League writer for 15 years and was the Buffalo Sabres beat writer for The Athletic. He continues to be a sports writer, focusing on ice hockey for a variety of audiences via Substack.

Brian Drake ’03 of Clay, N.Y., was nominated for two awards by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, including football article of the year and podcast of the year for the “Fantasy Football Hustle.” Brian hosts a weekly radio show on SiriusXM and was hired by FantasyPoints.com to provide analysis for the coming football season. Despite all this, his drought in the Sigma Alpha Epsilon alumni league, of which Brian is sadly also the Commissioner, is nearing 10 years. Brian is too petty to shout out the Oswego alum who did win.

Eric Salmonsen ’03 M’07 of Milton, N.H., is a social studies teacher in the Dover (N.H.) School District. He launched Everything Is a Primary Source, a weekly podcast where all kinds of media ranging from

Oswego. The world shifts, new technologies emerge, staff members come and go, and the way we engage alumni continually changes as we learn from the past while keeping up with the current. While alumni can still remain connected with our university in all the traditional ways — Reunion Weekends, regional events, the Alumni Sharing Knowledge (ASK) program, Alumni Admissions volunteerism, etc. — there are also newer ways to engage — the Oswego Alumni Podcast, virtual events, the Oswego Alumni Book Club and more.

With every change comes the opportunity to “audit” a process or a program. We believe in looking at the past to learn what’s worked well and what hasn’t, and to let that serve as a foundation for the new and improved. (For example, if you’re returning for Reunion Weekend 2024, June 6 – 9, we believe you’ll find a fresh take on the schedule of events, mixed with the tradition of the “fan favorites.”) Is one way better than the other? It’s often tough to compare, as each new “era” often offers many pros that wouldn’t have been possible without the “era” that came before it.

Star Wars to Buddy Holly and the Crickets songs are fair game to be discussed and analyzed for their historical and cultural relevance.

Adekunle “Ade” Ellis ’04 of Congers, N.Y., is the associate director of CBS Sports. He is a three-time Emmy-winner for team coverage of the National Football League, NCAA Basketball and the Masters, and he specializes in live and taped TV broadcasts.

Lindsey Guile ’04 M’06 of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., was the featured artist in a special show, “Unruly Bodies,” at the Mary Cosgrove Dolphin Gallery at Worcester State University in Worcester, Mass. The exhibition explored concepts of self-image through the lens of contemporary feminist theory.

Gabriel Almanzar ’05 of New Rochelle, N.Y., is the creative director for CBS News. He delivered the keynote address at the 2023 Commencement Eve Torchlight Dinner and Ceremony. Winning a News Emmy Award in 2021 for “Best News

We’re officially in a new “era” here at SUNY Oswego — with incredibly fond memories of our past, and bright possibilities for exciting new landscapes ahead on many fronts. President Nwosu will lead our university into new opportunities and chapters in the years to come, while honoring our past and continuing to build on its successes.

Hindsight is 2020 … but the future is (Vision) 4040. I can’t wait to experience all of the new beginnings to come alongside you: our Laker family.

Laura Pavlus Kelly ’09 Executive Director Oswego Alumni Association, Inc.

Special: Bravery and Hope, 7 Days on the Frontline,” he was also instrumental in the rebranding and development of CBS Mornings’ new Times Square studio and the new CBS News streaming studio. He was part of the CBS Sports design team developing layouts for Thursday Night Football, Super Bowl LV, LIII and 50, for which he received a Sports Emmy Award in 2016 for “Best Technical Remote” by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. He serves on the School of Communication, Media and the Arts Advisory Board.

Yaw Ofori-Atta ’05 of New York City, is a television producer for CBS Sports. He also produces freelance content for many sports entities through his own production imprint, Eleven 0 Four Media. He was a resident assistant in Seneca Hall, math tutor for the Office of Learning Services and member of the Asian Student Association, Caribbean Student Association and Black Student Union, where he served as vice president his senior year.

Robert Palazzo ’05 M’08 CAS’08 of Palmerton, Pa., was named Pennsylvania’s 2022 National Distinguished Principal by the Pennsylvania Principals Association. He has been the principal at Panther Valley Elementary School in Nesquehoning, Pa., since 2017. He was instrumental in helping to launch full-day kindergarten and also implement a pre-kindergarten program. Prior to this role, he served as a school psychologist in the Palmerton Area School District from 2008 to 2017.

Sarah Kirnie Mastrangelo ’06 of Minoa, N.Y., is the first-ever chief people person at M.S. Hall and Associates, a Syracuse, N.Y.,-based company specializing in healthcare finance. She brings 15 years of experience to this role, having previously served as the vice president of operations at the Digital Hyve marketing firm in Syracuse.

Lawrence M. Nadel ’06 of Bayside, N.Y., is the director of fine and performing arts for the Glen Cove City School District on Long Island. He has directed various theatrical productions and taught theater arts for 16 years in schools and camps across the country, prior to arriving in Glen Cove. He was a former theater teacher and arts education liaison at the Queens School of Inquiry in Fresh Meadows, Queens, where he oversaw the execution of arts grants received. Lawrence was involved with Jewish Student Union, Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity, Sheldon Leaders, Presidential Scholars, Kappa Delta Pi and Omicron Delta Kappa while attending Oswego.

Jason Poland ’06 M’09 of Larchmont, N.Y., is the program director of the American Chemical Society of Westchester.

Christopher Thuman ’06 of North Tonawanda, N.Y., is a senior director of client services at Luminate, a company that provides independent engineering and technical/commercial advisory services for solar, wind and all types of renewable energy projects.

Matt Gardner ’07 of Syracuse, N.Y., is founder and CEO of hiline, an accounting firm specializing in services for over 100 clients and modern businesses, including streamers, social media influencers and startups. Gardner was recognized by Inc Magazine in April 2023 as one of the 10 Promising Business Leaders to Watch in 2023.

Love of Sports, Power of Friendship Fuels Alumni Podcast

With the power to reach mass audiences at the click of a button, people often turn to content creation as a quick and easy way to gain notability. For good friends Kevin Mooney ’00, assistant director of cash management at Cornell University, Jason Haimo ’00, a product manager for Haymarket Media Group, and Chris Daglis ’01, an administration compliance and quality specialist at Columbian Financial Group, it is all for the sake of bonding and having a good time.

“We’re not doing it to make money out of it,” Haimo said. “We’re just doing it for fun.”

Since December 2022, the trio has hosted and produced Throwing Bagels, a podcast devoted mainly to discussing sports. However, as stated on their website, the conversation may also veer off in other directions.

“They’ll talk about stuff that doesn’t involve sports, because hey, they need to take a breather every once in a while!” the podcast description reads.

The group’s interest in podcasting began after Haimo started a group chat often dedicated to discussing their favorite teams. Their passionate conversations, interest in sports and knowledge of broadcasting eventually culminated into their show.

“[We] looked into [podcasting] a little bit and decided ’Hey, what the heck?’” Haimo said. “Mostly to complain about the Mets.”

Sporting an affinity for New Yorkbased athletics, whether it be the New York Giants, Mets, Rangers and more, Mooney, Haimo and Daglis bank on their mutual love for sports, senses of humor and decades-spanning friendship to deliver their audience a fun, informative show surrounding one of their greatest passions.

Drawing from their experiences as broadcasting majors, the three have utilized their industry and university connections to bring on an array of diverse and knowledgeable guest speakers.

“We’re just lucky to know a lot of people in the industry,” Daglis said.

According to Mooney, the trio has prioritized Oswego-related subjects, including the famous Oz chicken patty, Laker athletics and popular faculty and courses, and they also feature fellow graduates on a regular basis to highlight their lives and careers.

“We want to show our appreciation for all of these hardworking men and women who have graduated from Oswego,” he said. “They deserve their chance to shine.”

The group’s love and appreciation for Oswego is even apparent in the podcast’s name, which hearkens back to their experiences as students witnessing crowd antics during hockey games at the Romney Field House. (Editor’s Note: The former tradition had Laker fans throwing bagels onto the ice after the home team scored during the Whiteout game against the Plattsburgh Cardinals in a symbolic gesture of feeding the birds.)

“When we were all brainstorming on what to call this podcast, we knew we wanted to talk to Oswego people who were around our age,” Mooney said. “We thought Throwing Bagels is perfect.”

By embracing their passions and alma mater in the podcast and exhibiting determination, the three have shown anyone can make their project a reality.

“[Just] be yourself,” Daglis said. “[If] us three old geezers can do a podcast, anyone can put together a podcast and be interesting.”

Astrophysicist, Yale Professor Credits Oswego with Setting His Course for Stellar Career

Earl Bellinger ’12 is one stellar guy. A quick review of his personal website details Bellinger’s many accomplishments, including 51 publications and 624 citations of his work, as well as his work as a postdoctoral research fellow at the prestigious Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics in Germany, a developer of the Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA) stellar evolution code and past teaching position at Aarhus University in Denmark. In January 2024, he joined Yale University as assistant professor in the Department of Astronomy. His research interests focus primarily on understanding the evolution of stars through the observation of their pulsations.

“These observations allow us to determine the ages and other properties of stars with unprecedented precision, which is driving a revolution throughout astrophysics,” he said.

Bellinger started out as a computer science student here at Oswego, but spent a great amount of his time working with astronomy professor Shashi Kanbur.

“I only became seriously interested in astronomy after meeting Shashi Kanbur,” Bellinger said. “He brought me to Brazil for two summers as a part of the SUNY Oswego Global Laboratory, which was funded by grants he had won from the National Science Foundation.”

Bellinger recounted the amazement he felt seeing the stars in the Brazil sky, away from light pollution. It was then that his passion was born.

Bellinger said that before stars, his first love was actually programming.

“I was not particularly interested in telescopes when I was young. I was much more interested in computers and philosophy,” Bellinger said. “I started programming already when I was a child, probably around the age of 8 or so, and that has remained both my greatest hobby and professional asset.”

Bellinger graduated from Oswego as an applied mathematics and computer science double major with concentrations in artificial intelligence and scientific computing. He earned a master’s degree in computer science at Indiana University, and a Ph.D. at the University of Goettingen in Germany. He did a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Stellar Astrophysics Centre in Denmark before acquiring a research position at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics.

“Oswego had a profound impact on my course through life,” he said. “I started working on variable star research as a freshman at Oswego under the guidance of Professor Shashi Kanbur, and I continue to work with him to this day.”

When he’s not occupied with the stars, Bellinger enjoys playing music in his free time. He can play the guitar, bass and drums, to name a few of his favorite instruments. But there is a connection between stars and music, too, Bellinger said.

“Many pulsations we see in stars are actually acoustic oscillations — i.e., sound waves,” he said. “Stars are making music! We can see their oscillations in the starlight we receive from them, and we can sonify them so that we can hear their sounds. The way we analyze stellar data also has very deep parallels with the way we analyze music.”

ASK Me!

The Importance of Study Abroad

“My study abroad experience was so significant for me because it was the first time I had really done anything on my own. It was a bit scary going in, but it helped me develop my sense of independence and responsibility for myself, as well as helped me learn a lot about myself and who I am outside of my immediate circle of family and friends.

Meghan Johansson ’08, artist management professional at Cherrytree Music Company working alongside such award-winning artists as musicians Sting and Shaggy.

Share a little of yourself with others. Become an ASK (Alumni Sharing Knowledge) volunteer today. alumni.oswego.edu/ask

Robert Ryan ’07 of Auburn, N.Y., is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. Robert graduated from Syracuse University in 2023 with a Master of Social Work and Graduate Certificate in Child Therapy.

Meghan Johansson ’08 of Astoria, N.Y., is an artist management at Cherrytree Music Company working alongside award-winning artists, including Sting and Shaggy. She was a member of the Del Sarte Dance Club and a resident assistant.

Kevin Fox M’09 of Brewerton, N.Y., has worked as a graphic designer at Hueber-Breuer Construction for five years. Kevin shared that he has an adorable black cat named Nova.

Priyadarshini “Priya” Ravindran ’09 is an international journalist who covered the Russian war in Ukraine.

Sara Weiler ’09 of Manlius, N.Y., made the 2022 CNY Business Journal 40 Under Forty list. Sarah is a legal assistant for Bousquet Holstein Law Services in Syracuse, N.Y.

2010s

James Lalino ’10 of Hoboken, N.J., is an independent journalist. He is a brother of Delta Kappa Kappa fraternity.

Stefen Short Esq. ’10 of Brooklyn, N.Y., is the acting deputy director of the Prisoners’ Rights Project for the Legal Aid Society in New York City. He is also an adjunct professor of law at Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. He was president of the Oswego Student Association, director of diversity for SUNY Student Assembly and a project leader with the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG).

Alissa Theleman Clark ’11 of Glenshaw, Pa., is the director of alumni career solutions at the University of Pittsburgh. Alissa was a resident mentor for Johnson Hall and a resident assistant for Riggs Hall and Mackin Complex during her time at Oswego.

Wojciech Milewski ’11 of Summerville, S.C., is the music director of Charleston (S.C.) Opera Theater and the music director of the Summerville Orchestra. He is the recipient of the 2019 Harold Farberman Prize and a finalist of the 2019 Los Angeles Conducting Competition.

Earl Bellinger ’12, Ph.D., of Amsterdam, N.Y., and Garching, Bavaria, Germany, was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics in Germany. He began in a tenure-track position of assistant professor in the Department of Astronomy at Yale University in New Haven, Conn., in January 2024. He is a developer of the Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA) stellar evolution code and a scientist working on the forthcoming PLATO mission. His research broadly involves various kinds of pulsating stars. (See related story on page 42.)

Kayla Lynskey Leska ’12 of Rockaway Park, N.Y., is vice president of public relations within the tourism practice at Development Counsellors International (DCI). She leads a team of nearly 20 communications professionals through the United States and Canada to implement destination public relations campaigns, while formalizing and expanding DCI’s public relations efforts to meet the needs of hotels, tour operators and cultural attractions. She is married to Nate Leska ’13, who is a large project account manager at ABB, a technology company focused on electrification and automation.

Emily Longeretta ’12 of New York City, is the senior TV features editor for Variety magazine.

Christopher McPherson ’12 of Brooklyn, N.Y., is the social media manager of organic and paid media for Netflix Queue.

Emily Forsythe Crandell ’13 of Oswego is a certified physician associate for Oswego Health at Oswego PrimeCare. She previously worked in Oswego at a private practice where she gained extensive primary care and outpatient experience. Emily is also a certified diabetes educator, which Oswego Health plans to utilize as they expand on programs for the Oswego community. She earned a Physician Assistant Master of Science in 2016 from SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse.

Omy Melo ’14 of Forest Hills, N.Y., is a video editor at Nickelodeon. He serves on the School of Communication, Media and the Arts Advisory Board.

EVENTS

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

March 23 Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors Meeting

Apr. 1–8 Laker Athletics Giving Week

Apr. 8 Total Eclipse of the Sun

Apr. 20 Reunion 2024 Engagement and Philanthropy Committee Meeting

Apr. 27 College-Community Orchestra Alumni Concert

May 10 Commencement Eve Torchlight Ceremony

May 31 Oswego University Foundation Board of Directors Meeting

June 6-9 Reunion Weekend 2024

June 8 Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors Annual Meeting

Sept. Presidential Inauguration Week 22–29

Sept. 26 Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors Meeting

Sept. 26 Oswego University Foundation Board of Directors Meeting

Sept. 27 Presidential Inauguration Ceremony

Sept. Men's and Women's Lacrosse 27–28 Reunion

Sept. Founder’s Weekend 27–29

Sept. Return to Oz Reunion 27–29

alumni.oswego.edu

Tom Murphy ’14 of Walworth, N.Y., is a senior project manager of Creative Operations at Partners + Napier Rochester, N.Y. He serves on the School of Communication, Media and the Arts Advisory Board.

Travis Clark ’15 of Burlington Flats, N.Y., is a senior media reporter at The Trade Desk, where he reports on all things digital media, brands and future of TV for thecurrent. com.

Paul Esden Jr. ’15 of Conway, N.H., is the New York Jets digital reporter for Heavy Sports.

Dylan Labadia ’15 of Central Bridge, N.Y., is a retirement consultant for Paychex USA in Albany, N.Y.

ALUMNI BOOKSHELF

To see all book covers, please visit magazine.oswego.edu.

Dr. Craig W. Fisher ’65

By the Scruff of My Neck Covenant Publishers, 2022.

Written by Beta brother and 2019 Oswego Alumni Lifetime Award of Merit winner during the last year of his life (he passed in August 2023), this memoir covers the author’s early life as one of five children who became wards of the state, seeing their mother twice over six years and their father once every two weeks for an hour. The book highlights the fun activities while barely skimming the top of the potential dangers. Fisher would survive his rough childhood to become an accomplished computer programmer at IBM and information systems educator at Marist College.

Sandra Justice Hall ’70

As Long As I’m Down Here, I Might As Well Put on My Shoes

Sandra Hall, 2022.

This memoir focuses on Hall’s life nearly 17 years after her second brain surgery in 2005. Her friends believe her to be courageous though she feels it was a matter of assessing what her quality of life would be without surgery. She writes about her long, daunting experience finding a brain surgeon, working with doctors who didn’t listen and realizing that this was going to be a frustrating process. She was determined to get well and hopes that her journey will help people find hope, and maybe even some laughter, while they are on theirs.

Thomasina Lewis Larson ’71

Island Connections: Aeolians in Amsterdam and Cortland New York Tomi, 2022.

Aeolians settled in a number of smaller New York cities. This book follows the first, From the Islands: From the Aeolian Islands to Oswego, NY 1880-1920, and depicts the islands and its people who emigrated at the turn of the 20th century. It highlights Cortland and Amsterdam, representative of the places they lived in and the lives they led in America.

Lawrence A. Wilson ’75 and Carolyn M. Merkel

Analytical Method Validation

Wessex Press Inc., 2022

This textbook contains essays on data integrity. Originally intended to focus on global standards and analytical methods for regulatory applications within the pharmaceutical industry, the book was expanded to explore the applications of Quality by Design theory to real-world problems that are bound not only by regulations, but by business constraints, professional ethics, time, resources and technology. They may serve as case studies for classes of advanced students.

Barbara Wold Varrato ’77

A Firefly’s Dream

Mirror Publishing, 2022.

This children’s book is the story of Fred the firefly who decides he needs to become a “better” bug after witnessing his best friend turn into a butterfly. Follow Fred on his journey as he tries to become something other than what he actually is, until a chance encounter with a strange bug who makes him wonder whether being a firefly is really all that bad. Varrato is currently working on her second and third children’s books.

John Gray ’85

Chasing Rome

Paraclete Press, 2022.

Always blazing their own path, newly engaged couple Chase and Gavin decide to spend the month ahead of their wedding in Rome with a local Italian family, learning the customs and filling their days with adventure. On a trip to the famed Colosseum, Chase and Gavin meet an elderly artist who offers them four riddles that he promises will unlock the most romantic places in all of Italy. They encounter heart-pounding intrigue and old-world charm on the ancient streets of Rome, and discover that almost nothing is as it seems. Will Chase and Gavin make it to their wedding on Christmas Eve or will they forever find themselves Chasing Rome?

Jennifer Rozines Roy ’89 and Julia Rozines DeVillers ’89

Meet Isabel and Nicki

Mattel/American Girl, 2023.

Written by real-life twins, this fulllength American Girl novel features twin sisters, Isabel and Nicki Hoffman. Isabel loves dancing with her friends, while Nicki prefers skateboarding alone. In December 1999, the girls create a list of challenges to complete before midnight on New Year’s Eve. But just before the new millennium arrives, disaster strikes. Will the most momentous night of their lives be a twin win or a sister setback?

Ezeleni Herrera ’14

I am a NaturaliSTAR!

Ezeleni Herrera, 2020.

The author’s first published children’s book aims to inspire young queens to embrace their natural hair. The book promotes self-love, self-acceptance and high self-esteem. Full of vibrant images illustrated by Renee Hunt, this book aims to teach these young girls how to give their beautiful hair the proper maintenance with love and care. Every NaturaliSTAR will learn to let their hair fall curly, coily or as a beautiful puff because no matter the hair type they are enough.

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 University Advancement office to be considered for this column and our website, where cover photos of all works in this column will be displayed.

Destiny Lynch ’15 of Lancaster, Pa., is an executive team leader of specialty sales at Target. She served as a Career Connector at the 2023 Dr. Lewis B. O'Donnell Media Summit.

Quentin Mariano ’15 of Nanuet, N.Y., serves as head electrician in the ongoing production of Good Night, Oscar, starring Will and Grace’s Sean Hayes, which opened on Broadway in April 2023. The job marks his first in a major Broadway production. Since 2015, Mariano has worked as a touring electrician for multiple stage shows, including Anastasia The Musical, Annie, Hadestown and The Phantom of the Opera sequel Love Never Dies.

David Owens ’15 of Oswego, is the contract illustrator and art director at Owens Design and Illustration.

Christy Somers ’15 of Astoria, N.Y., is a non-fiction television producer and is the story producer for MTV’s “Help! I’m in a Secret Relationship.” She served as a panelist at the 2023 Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit. She was part of the Greek honor societies Omicron Delta Kappa and Lambda Pi Eta.

Kalie Hudson Dobrow ’16 of Astoria, N.Y., is a senior supervisor of social strategy at Edelman in New York City.

Amanda Ebrahim ’16 M’19 CAS’19 of New York City is an account director at Fenton. She served as a Career Connector at the 2023 Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit.

Elaine Flowers ’16 of Washington, D.C., is a student systems and program analyst at the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education. She earned a master’s degree in higher education administration from Buffalo State and a Ph.D. in higher education leadership and policy studies from Howard University.

Jarrid Rockwood ’16 of Rochester, N.Y., is a financial advisor for Prudential Insurance Company of America. Jarrid was a member of the Psi Phi Gamma fraternity.

Natalie Brophy ’17 of Buffalo, N.Y., is the technology and startups reporter for The Buffalo News.

Alicia Hughes ’17 of Ransomville, N.Y., is a content writer at Mattress Firm and an associate editor for sleep.com, which is a blog focusing on sleep wellness. She earned a master’s degree in publishing from Pace University.

Class Notes

Tiffany Lerch ’17 of Verona, N.Y., is a cosmetology instructor at Madison-Oneida BOCES in New Hartford, N.Y.

Kimberly LaGatta Mancarella ’17 M’19 of Ithaca, N.Y., is an LCMS (liquid chromatography mass spectrometry) biologics scientist for Q-Squared Solutions. Kimberly was involved with Omicron Delta Kappa and the Chemistry Club at Oswego.

Marcus McFee-Walters ’17 of Syracuse, N.Y., is a financial professional with Equitable Advisors, formerly AXA Advisors. He serves on the Oswego University Foundation Board of Directors.

Jessica Mulder ’17 of Burbank, Calif., is a digital distribution associate at Universal Pictures Home Entertainment in Universal City, Calif.

Morgan Rumpf ’17 of Hollis, N.H., is director of marketing at DuraBill Trailers in Merrimack, N.H. She previously held roles as a former marketing manager for the Hudson Valley Renegades, a Minor League Baseball affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays, and chief marketing officer at C-Suite Executive Solutions LLC.

Shelby Gallaro Trudeau ’17 of Rochester, N.Y., is an academic advisor for the Rochester Institute of Technology. She was involved in the Student Association and It’s On Oz. She and her husband, Matthew Trudeau ’17, welcomed their second child, Caleb Matthew, in May 2023. Their son, Tony, turned 2 in spring 2023.

Emmanuel Agyapong ’18 of Oswego is a physical therapist at Robert Berkley Physical Therapy in Oswego. He earned a Doctor of Physical Therapy from Daemen College, and has an interest in sports rehabilitation. He founded the African-American Males Empowering Network (AAMEN) at SUNY Oswego, and returns often to campus to work with that group and uplift young black men on campus. He recently started his own side business called The EAxperience, which offers online fitness programs through an app as well as in-person trainings.

Christina Galvin ’18 M’19 of Manlius, N.Y., is an Emmy-award winning news producer and special projects producer at NewsChannel 9 WSYR in Syracuse.

Naomi Rodriguez Jose ’18 of Bronx, N.Y., is a full-time resettlement caseworker at the International Rescue Committee in New York City.

Weddings

Jaclyn Shyptycki ’16 M’17 and Bryce Bachus ’17 were married on June 18, 2022, in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Alumni in attendance included (from back left) Savannah Wilson ’17, Jon Russo ’16 M’18, Justin Schimek ’16 M’22, Chris Wood ’16 M’22, Michelle Winkelman ’15, Jimmy Albright ’17, Josh Sclafani ’17, Mike Piro ’15 M’17, Grey Ankenman ’18, Kailey Brigande ’16, Matt Stufano ’16 M’17, (Second row) Corinne Kelly ’15 M’19, Kelly Doering ’17, Jaclyn Shyptycki ’16, Bryce Bachus ’17, Rachel Long ’17, Sarah Balseiro ’16 (kneeling next to flag) Rachel Edic ’17 M’18 and Chris McDermith ’17.

Kasey Fuller ’19 married Dalton Bisson ’19 at Anchor Inn in Pasadena, Md., on July 16, 2022. They are currently living in Fairfax, Va., where Kasey is a 4th-grade teacher and Dalton works as a legislative aide for a state senator. Alumni in attendance (from left) are Kyle Fuller ’21, Connor Breese ’19, Noah Davidson ’19, Kimberly Long ’18, Dean Hyde ’71, Amelia DeJarnette ’19, Peter Humphreys ’19, Evan Lehman. In front are the bride and groom.

Caitlin Brodfuehrer ’14 married Matt Hann on June 25, 2022, at the Grange Building at the Hamburg Fairgrounds in Hamburg, N.Y. Fellow alumnae in attendance were (from left) Jessica Fatigate Mari ’15, Haley Filippone Norton ’17, Catherine “Katie” Marcy Cotton ’16 M’20, Brianna Ferrara ’17 and Amanda Manzella ’16.

Jenna Hanson ’12 and Stuart Seidel ’13 were married on Sept. 23, 2022, in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Alumni in attendance were (clockwise from back left) Christine DeLaMater Doyle ’97, Patrick Maynard ’12, Justin Earl ’12, Danielle Coriano Earl ’13, Chelsea Swearingen ’13, Matt “Pumpkin” Gogis ’16, Stuart Seidel ’13, Jenna Hanson Seidel ’12, Erika Hanson M’23 and Lisa Gonzalez ’94.

Miranda Nelson ’17 and Matthew Bartholomew ’17 were married on Sept. 10, 2022, in Vernon, N.Y. Miranda works as a senior admissions counselor at SUNY Oswego, and Matthew works as an inmate litigation specialist at the Federal Judiciary. The following Oswego alumni were attendance: (from left) Jacob Coggen ’18, Nicole Stephenson ’17 M’18, Katherine Knopp Prioletti ’18, Matthew Bartholomew ’17, Sahar Rajput ’17, Miranda Nelson ’17, Michael Mekker ’17, Troy Feldman ’16, Stephanie Pulaski ’17, Brielle Jodeit ’17 and Maeghan Bruyn ’17.

Kimberly LaGatta ’17 M’19 married Peter Mancarella ’19 at the Mason Jar in Vernon, N.Y., on June 25, 2022. Kimberly is currently a quality control chemist and an assistant team leader with Hanford Pharmaceuticals in Syracuse, N.Y., and Peter is a recruiter with J.A.S. Recruitment, also in Syracuse. Alumni in attendance (from left) are Daisie Bancroft ’18, Paulina Zielinska White ’08, Sofiya Pazycheva M’19, Jeffrey White ’08, Peter Mancarella ’19, Kimberly LaGatta ’17 M’19, Alexandra Messersmith-Mars ’17, David LaGatta ’89 M’94, Thomas Pickett ’16 M’18, Shannon Cilento ’15, Alison Taylor ’16 M’18, Keith Perry M’92 M’03, Elizabeth LaGatta Perry ’93 and Mary “Molly” Quinn Mytych ’98.

Christina Lynch Rodriguez ’14 and Ty Rodriguez were married in June 2022. Alumni in attendance included (from back left) Shannon Bandinelli ’14, Katie Blake ’14, Lexi Avery ’14, Nicole Leader Abbott ’14 M’18, Katie Siskin Mazzarella ’14, Madison Tuller ’14, Rebecca Doruszewski ’14, Aubrey Mulvey ’15, Sammy DiSalvo ’14 M’15, Nicole Azero ’14, Erin Turner ’14, (front row from left) Kristen Doruszewski ’16, Christina Lynch Rodriguez ’14 and Jennifer Carrieri ’14.

Kalin Hagedorn Moran and Matthew Moran ’17 were married on May 6, 2023, in Indianapolis, Ind. Alumni in attendance included (from back left) Anthony Dolce ’17, Sam Watkins ’17, Bobby Williamson ’18, Jordan McGee ’17, Max Collins ’17, Matt Raynor ’17, Dylan Kuhn ’18, Dalton Sargent ’18 (from middle left) Erin McNeely ’18, Matt Moran ’17, Ameen Smith ’16, Rebecca Thomas ’18 (from bottom left) Allif Karim ’18, Justin Dobrow ’17, Jackson Berner ’18 and Andrew Pugliese ’17.

Weddings, continued

SUBMITTING A CLASS NOTE

To submit your class note, email alumni@oswego.edu, call 315-312-3003 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.

Chelsey Mitchell and Adam Rosenbarker ’14 M’16 were married on Oct. 9, 2022, on the summit of Windham Mountain in the Catskills. Alumni in attendance were (top row, from left) Allen Wengert ’14, Travis Clark ’15, (middle row, from left) John Mongiello ’14, JoAnn DeLauter ’17, Benjamin Weiss ’14, Daniel Amorese ’14 (bottom row, from left) Christopher Walters ’14, Michael Tanzini ’14.

Perel Baral and Max Spitalnick ’11 were married Dec. 18, 2022, in Miami, Fla. He works in portfolio management at Anew in Houston, Texas, after earning an MBA at the University of Miami, and she is a cardiothoracic surgery fellow at Baylor College of Medicine.

Lisa Brigham and Craig Slosberg ’87 were married on Nov. 5, 2022, at the Hyatt Ziva in Cancun, Mexico. Alumni in attendance included (from left) Sue Davenport Streb ’84, Mark Streb ’87, Lisa Brigham, Craig Slosberg ’87, Patricia Yturraspe Buonadonna ’87, Joe Buonadonna, Patty McLaughlin ’87 and Eric Benishek.

Jessica Fatigate ’15 married Bill Mari on Nov. 4, 2022, at the Barn at Villa Venezia in Middletown, N.Y. Alumni in attendance included (from left) Corinne Hildreth ’18, Carla Carbone ’15, Caitlin Brodfuehrer Hann ’14, Haley Filippone Norton ’17, Xavier Robles ’17, Emilia Chrostowska ’17, April Manzella ’17, Amanda Manzella ’16, Maggie Graser ’17 and Brianna Ferrara ’17.

Susan Velazquez ’16 and Christophe Colmant were married on Aug. 14, 2021, in New York City. Alumni in attendance were (from left) Emily Karszes ’16 M’17, Benjamin Laine ’17, Chrystal Chung ’17, Heather Eldridge ’16, Melissa Gottlieb ’16 and Danielle Minnick ’16.

Allif Karim ’18 of Frederick, Md., is a producer/editor for WJZ-13 in Baltimore, Md. and former sports director at WDVM-TV in Hagerstown, Md.

Elena Kilgore ’18 of Lancaster, N.Y., is a copywriting and communication specialist at 1WorldSync. In February 2021, Kilgore began her business Other People Fund and its partner nonprofit organization, Support for the Psyche. The goal of the organizations is to help people pay for therapy and raise awareness of the inaccessibility of mental health care.

Samantha Longton ’18 of Orlando, Fla., is a social media content creator at Minion Media Group LLC in Winter Gardens, Fla. In Aug. 2022, she launched Longton Creative LLC, her own freelance company to provide her clients with a range of communication support.

Josephine Scherer ’18 M’19 of Manchester, N.Y., is a senior financial assurance advisor at DKB, a leading regional business advisory and CPA firm in Rochester, N.Y. A member of TeamDKB since 2019 and a certified public accountant since 2020, Josie has worked primarily with manufacturing firms and auto dealerships. She enjoys camping, hiking and live music.

Jaclyn McTigue ’19 of Selden, N.Y., is an IATSE production coordinator. She served as a Career Conector during the 2023 Dr. Lewis B. O’Donnell Media Summit.

Mike Petrie ’19 of Clinton, N.Y., is a certified drone pilot and technology education teacher at Camden (N.Y.) Central High School.

Jake N. Pieklik ’19 M’20 of Liverpool, N.Y., is an audit senior at Dannible & McKee LLP, a certified public accounting and consulting firm with offices in Syracuse, Binghamton and Schenectady, N.Y. He joined the firm in 2020 as a full-time employee after working as an intern the year prior. He is responsible for performing audits, reviews, compilations, examinations and employee benefit plan audits. Jake is a certified public accountant in New York State and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants.

2020s

Olivia Castañeda ’20 of Round Lake, N.Y., is stewardship coordinator at Sam’s Point Area of Minnewaska State Park Preserve in Ellenville, N.Y.

Loretta Golden ’20 of Smithtown, N.Y., is a communications associate at Girl Scouts of Suffolk County. She is involved in a variety of tasks, including interviewing people, video editing and production, creating graphic design using Adobe software and Canva, crafting social media posts, taking photographs and organizing events.

Josh Holfoth ’20 of Brooklyn, N.Y., is an associate producer of special projects at CNBC Events in Englewood Cliffs, N.J.

Sarah Mason M’20 of Woodmere, N.Y., is a remote-based senior research analyst at Aldade Inc., and she maintains a consultancy providing analytics and continuous improvement expertise, specializing in healthcare. She earned a master’s degree in

biomedical health informatics from SUNY Oswego, and a bachelor’s in electrical engineering from Penn State University. She is a member of Oswego’s Graduates Of the Last Decade Leadership Council.

Eyal Shamban ’20 of Cliffside Park, N.J., is the chief operating officer at Taam Eden Bakery.

Mary Buske Suits ’20 of Central Square, N.Y., is an academic and professional career advisor at Syracuse University. She is also a life coach and owner of Suits You Coaching. She earned a master's in higher education administration and student affairs and a graduate certificate in career and academic advising from Kent State University.

Koushank Harind Singh Ahuja ’21 is a strategy analyst of U.S. businesses at Prudential Financial in New York City. He graduated in 2022 with a master’s degree in marketing with a concentration in business analytics from Northwestern University.

Nicholas Schmitt ’21 of Cato, N.Y., served as a 2023 Summer Associate at Bousquet Holstein law firm in Syracuse, N.Y. He is in his final year of law school at University at Buffalo School of Law in Buffalo. He has previously interned for United States Senator Chuck Schumer in Syracuse, N.Y., as well as the Cayuga County District Attorney in Auburn, N.Y. He has served as the designated chairperson for the Town of Conquest Planning Board, where he works with the public and local officials to formulate proper zoning rules and regulations for the town.

Graduates Of the Last Decade (GOLD) gathered March 1, 2023, at McGee’s Pub in New York City to network, socialize and kick off the month-long Make Your Mark GOLD Giving Challenge. Pictured above from left are GOLD alumnae: Stephanie Gregorio ’20, Aeris Russi ’19, Dawary Ortega ’20 and Amber Johnson ’20.

Reunion Weekend 2023 Fun from

Class Notes

More than 550 alumni from 61 different class years ranging from 1962 through 2023 returned to the shores of Lake Ontario to celebrate Reunion Weekend 2023, June 8 - 11.

The celebration included 11 anniversary classes, 3 mini-reunion groups celebrating milestone anniversaries and many more mini-reunion affinity groups. The highest single class participation honors went to the Class of 1973, and the highest single affinity group participation honors went to Alpha Sigma Chi.

Alumni came from three countries (the United States, Canada and the Cayman Islands) and 24 U.S. states … and as far as Coquitlam, British Columbia!

Save the date to attend Reunion Weekend June 6-9, 2024. For more photos from last year’s reunion and for the latest on this year’s celebration, check out alumni.oswego.edu/reunion.

BHI Alumnus from Liberia Gains World of Experience

Otis Gbala M’23 became the first SUNY Oswego graduate who studied from Liberia when he crossed the stage during the university’s December 2023 Commencement ceremony. He earned a master’s degree in the biomedical and health informatics (BHI) program, and the coursework has already advanced the work he does with PREVAIL — the Partnership for Research on Vaccines and Infectious Diseases in Liberia, where he serves as data manager.

PREVAIL aims to use research to improve global health, with a mission to “conduct collaborative biomedical and public health research in accordance with best practices, to advance science, strengthen health policy and practice, and improve the health of Liberians and people worldwide,” according to the website for FHI Clinical, which coordinates the project.

PREVAIL’s partners include agencies from the West African nation and from the United States, and the U.S. National Institutes of Health provided funding to Gbala to develop his capabilities and to enhance the project’s clinical trials.

SUNY Oswego’s BHI program was one of the few options that dovetailed with what Gbala and the project needed, and he was very pleased with the experience.

“I am grateful for the comprehensive structure of the BHI program, which seamlessly integrates essential elements,” Gbala said. “This holistic curriculum not only fosters a deep understanding of the field but also cultivates a diverse skillset that proves highly relevant in the ever-evolving landscape of biomedical and health informatics.”

Through his work with PREVAIL, Gbala is developing a biomedical laboratory information system to improve the data management and architecture as well as data engineering and live analytics and visualization.

“I currently serve as one of the leads on the data management team, a role that has been greatly facilitated by my coursework in the BHI program,” he noted. “The knowledge and skills acquired at SUNY Oswego have proven instrumental in advancing biomedical research, enabling me to contribute effectively to our clinical trials in a variety of ways. Moreover, this education has opened doors for collaboration with international experts from the U.S., enriching my professional experience and expanding my network.”

Gbala also offered a lot of praise to his faculty members and other Oswego contacts who have shared their expertise and support for anything he needed.

“I am truly grateful for the opportunity to be here,” Gbala said. “Every aspect of what I am currently engaged in is rooted in the invaluable lessons and experiences I have gained at Oswego. This institution has not only equipped me with the skills I need, but has also prepared me for future opportunities. The wonderful people at SUNY Oswego have left a lasting impression on me, and I carry a lifelong appreciation in my heart. I aspire to pursue a data science Ph.D., with the ultimate goal of returning to SUNY Oswego to contribute to the community that has played a pivotal role in shaping my journey.”

For more information on the master’s in biomedical and health informatics program, visit oswego.edu/bhi.

Julia Keating ’22 of Buffalo, N.Y., is a news photographer/editor for Channel 4 News/ WIVB in Buffalo, N.Y.

Chelsea Maldonado ’22 of Woodside, N.Y., delivered a spoken word performance of her stories and poems entitled Redress to the Red Dresses, highlighting the issues of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) at SUNY Oswego in April 2023. She is a front desk attendant at New York Sports Club in Queens, N.Y.

Nicole Moriarity ’22 of Sarasota, Fla., is a real estate photographer for Zillow and a freelance sports and concert photographer. She also founded MoPhotosDesign, a graphic design and photography business.

Ethan Stinson ’22 of Adams, N.Y., is enrolled in the Goldring Arts Journalism and Communications master’s degree program at Syracuse University. He attended the 2023 Anomaly Film Festival to watch and review the indie horror film Sleep for the Rochester (N.Y.) City Magazine.

In Memoriam

Frances Milliken Cramer ’40 of Wyomissing, Pa., Jan. 21, 2023.

Harriet C. Rowell ’40 of Westdale, N.Y., Jan. 6, 2023.

Shirley Remington Collins ’47 of Suffern, N.Y., May 31, 2022.

Paul J. Dunn ’48 of San Antonio, Texas, March 20, 2023.

Mary “Elly” Maloney Brennick ’49 of Waterford, Conn., Feb. 2, 2023.

Mary Cornwall ’50 of Jacksonville, N.C., Aug. 29, 2021.

Harry A. Sturges ’50 of Ravena, N.Y., Aug. 11, 2022.

Rose Gargulio ’52 of Amsterdam, N.Y., Sept. 17, 2020.

Dr. Barbara J. Kardas ’52 of Naperville, Ill., May 20, 2023.

Joseph Drenchko ’53 of Rexford, N.Y., Feb. 8, 2023.

Marjorie J. Hollis ’53 of Pulaski, N.Y., Nov. 6, 2022.

Florence Stasiak Walpole ’53 of Tarpon Springs, Fla., Dec. 5, 2022.

Sylvia Nessman Milch ’54 of Delray Beach, Fla., March 24,2023.

Roland W. Ellis Jr. ’55 of New Paltz, N.Y., Sept. 16, 2022.

Neil M. MacDonald ’55 of Laurinburg, N.C., Jan. 19, 2022.

Richard Alan Nozell Sr. ’55 of Suffern, N.Y., Aug. 2, 2022.

Donald E. Fleming ’56 of Ballston Spa, N.Y., Oct. 15, 2021.

John H. Genauer ’56 of Mount Kisco, N.Y., March 16, 2021.

Joseph A. Guarini ’56 of Rome, N.Y., Nov. 18, 2022.

Mary Jean Hellenack ’56 of Herkimer, N.Y., Sept. 30, 2021.

Ernest “Ernie” L. LaBrake ’56 of Appleton, Wis., March 17, 2023.

Frank A. Mango ’57 of Media, Pa., Jan. 5, 2023.

Myron Phillips ’57 of Norwich, N.Y., Sept. 21, 2021.

Barry Wadsworth ’57 of South Hadley, Mass., Oct. 9, 2022.

Peter W. Zegel ’57 of Crestview, Fla., Jan. 7, 2021.

Hope Kelly ’58 of Milford, N.H., Nov. 26, 2022.

Eloise M. Kimpland ’58 of North Syracuse, N.Y., Sept 5, 2020.

Gordon A. Lenz ’58 of East Patchogue, N.Y., Nov. 11, 2022.

Robert P. Miller ’58 of Delmar, N.Y., July 22, 2022.

Margaret Glinsky Misevic ’58 of Camarillo, Calif., May 20, 2022.

Carl F. Spagnolo ’58 of Syracuse, N.Y., April 9, 2023.

Marjorie Mead Strother ’58 of Clay, N.Y., Nov. 7, 2022.

John E. Wadhams ’58 of Port Charlotte, Fla., Oct. 20, 2020.

Carlton J. Bell ’59 of Kingston, N.Y., Nov. 11, 2022.

Donald “Don” Cliffe ’59 of Cazenovia, N.Y., Nov. 7, 2022.

Louis V. Cordone ’59 of Buffalo, N.Y., Aug. 23, 2022.

Charlene Davis ’59 of Oswego, June 19, 2022.

Adrienne Meltz Favale ’59 of Joliet, Ill., March 13, 2021.

Alma Cady Jones ’59 of Nashua, Iowa, Dec. 7, 2022.

Gordon H. Levi ’59 of Johns Creek, Ga., Dec. 19, 2022.

Theila M. Shetler ’59 of Effingham, Ill., May 5, 2023.

Eleanor M. Thomas ’59 of Fulton, N.Y., Oct. 8. 2020.

Hugh B. Williams ’59 of Syracuse, N.Y., Jan. 17, 2023.

Linda Schultheis Crawford ’60 of Babylon, N.Y., July 9, 2022.

William O. Mehnert ’60 of Great Neck, N.Y., April 9, 2023.

Anna Bellantoni Napolitano ’60 of Greenwich, Conn., April 7, 2023.

William “Bill” H. Parmenter ’60 of Bradford, Vt., Jan. 19, 2023.

Margaret Testa Updike ’60 of Pittsburgh, Pa., March 2, 2023.

Elizabeth Mary Baker ’61 of Palm Springs, Calif., Sept. 24, 2022.

Lynda Mein Carney ’61 of Chaumont, N.Y., Oct. 5, 2022.

Leslie “Les” G. Ennis ’61 of Pittsburrg, Pa., Feb. 16, 2023.

Ford C. Seymour ’61 of Earlville, N.Y., Oct. 27, 2021.

Robert “Bob” L. Whitney ’61 of Bristol, R.I., Feb. 1, 2023.

Margaret Gilligan Alt ’62 of Sandpoint, Idaho, March 15, 2023.

Joyce Rodman Cyr ’62 of South Windsor, Conn., Oct. 24, 2022.

Wilhelmus G.M. Driessen ’62 of Rochester, N.Y., Oct. 24, 2022.

Lorna A. Froschauer ’62 of Westmoreland, N.Y., Dec. 11, 2022.

Edward J. Hardman Jr. ’62 of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Feb. 1, 2023.

Joan Majka Heinlein ’62 of New Hartford, N.Y., Nov. 14, 2022.

Jean Cooney Rath ’62 M’77 of Oswego, N.Y., April 12, 2023.

Ronald Saggese ’62 of Acworth, Ga., Sept. 3, 2020.

Alice Welling Schaffer ’62 of Savannah, Ga., Feb. 3, 2023.

Joseph S. Shambo ’62 of West Carthage, N.Y., June 20, 2022.

Cynthia Cummings Buckley ’63 of Jamesville, N.Y., Jan. 5, 2023.

Maryann T. DeMasi ’63 of Council Blfs, Iowa, March 13, 2023.

Gerald Denmark ’63 of Lake Worth, Fla., Feb. 2, 2023.

Ruth Dickey Foley ’63 of Lyncourt, N.Y., Dec. 24, 2022.

George Parry ’63 of Fulton, N.Y., May 26, 2022.

Joan Finkelstein Pauldine ’63 of Liverpool, N.Y., July 23, 2022.

Earl E. Schell ’63 of Fort Covington, N.Y., Aug. 31, 2022.

Alexander J. Bannerman ’64 M’68 of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Jan. 22, 2023.

Caryle Robbins Bethel ’64 of Sunapee, N.H., Sept. 21, 2022.

Michael J. Bookstein ’64 M’66 of San Carlos, Calif., Feb 2, 2023.

Dale L. Chapman ’64 of Parish, N.Y., Oct. 3, 2022.

Ann Lois Edwards ’64 of Cooperstown, N.Y., April 29, 2022.

Thomas L. Fredette ’64 of Baldwinsville, N.Y., Feb. 5, 2023.

Brenda Jochnowitz Henkel ’64 of Colorado Springs, Colo., Feb. 9, 2023.

Michelle Doswell Kourouma ’64 of Atlanta, Ga., July 17, 2020.

Kent J. Wallace ’64 of Oswego, March 3, 2023.

Bernard W. Brock ’65 of Lake George, N.Y., July 23, 2022.

Diann J. Dunham ’65 of Naples, Fla., Jan. 10, 2023.

In Memoriam, continued

Thomas J. Fineco ’65 of New Bern, N.C., Dec. 15, 2022.

Patricia Bristol Hisz ’65 of Gill, Mass., Feb. 6, 2023.

James C. Husted ’65 of Wappingers Falls, N.Y., Sept. 16, 2020.

Frank E. Johnson Jr. ’65 of Pulaski, N.Y., July 30, 2022.

Ellen Tierney Kane ’65 of Fulton, N.Y., Nov. 5, 2022.

Mary Lou Streeter Lee ’65 of Groton, N.Y., May 15, 2022.

Frank Lisco ’65 of Pinehurst, N.C., Dec. 18, 2022.

Ronald C. Ranum ’65 of Bangkok, Thailand, July 24, 2022.

William F. Zinger ’65 of Fairport, N.Y., April 19, 2022.

Joseph H. Johnson ’66 of Sarasota, Fla., Sept. 7, 2022.

Peter H. Ortell ’66 M’90 of Powhatan, Va., Aug. 20, 2022.

Suzanne L. Pohl ’66 of Scotia, N.Y., Sept. 21, 2022.

Evelyn L. Powell ’66 of Kendall Park, N.J., Sept. 27, 2020.

Linda Thompson Schaefer ’66 of Scotia, N.Y., April 16, 2023.

Richard J. “Dick” Walters ’66 of East Syracuse, N.Y., March 12, 2023.

Joseph A. Wawrzycki ’66 of Garrison, N.Y., Dec. 26, 2022.

Elaine Hempstead Gilmore ’67 of Deland, Fla., Aug.13, 2022.

Ann Quigley Schickert ’67 of Columbia, Md., June 6, 2022.

Warren “Moose” Bonnell ’68 of Skaneateles, N.Y., July 29, 2022.

Patricia Gallagher Clarke ’68 of Wescosville, Pa., Dec. 19, 2022.

Lloyd Cline ’68 of Ponte Vedra, Fla., July 18, 2022.

Dennis Linskey ’68 of Arlington, Va., Aug. 12, 2022.

Donna Sprague ’68 of Bradford, Pa., Jan. 4, 2021.

Cathryn Jones Whalen ’68 of Sarasota, Fla., June 10, 2022.

Daniel A. Gaworecki ’69 of DeWitt, N.Y., Jan. 1, 2023.

Francis “Frank” Daniel Herlihy ’69 of Glens Falls, N.Y., Nov. 8, 2022.

Thelma M. Johnson ’69 of Oswego, N.Y., Jan. 3, 2021.

Susan K. Shavalier Knobel ’69 of North Syracuse, N.Y., May 18, 2023.

Elaine Sykes Krenitsky ’69 of Fairport, N.Y., May 4, 2020.

James J. VanVliet ’69 of Milton, N.Y., Dec. 3, 2022.

Paul Benz ’70 of Endwell, N.Y., March 28, 2022.

Judith A. Bloch ’70 of Jacksonville, Fla., Nov. 29, 2022.

Carol Corso Bollinger ’70 of Prescott, Ariz., Sept. 29, 2021.

Janet L. Gray ’70 of Casa Grande, Ariz., March 19, 2020.

Jon B. Holcomb ’70 of Holmes Beach, Fla., Nov. 2, 2022.

Diane Vincent MacIntosh ’70 of Hudson Falls, N.Y., March 29, 2023.

Kathleen Hilton Murphy ’70 of Camden, N.Y., Sept. 26, 2020.

Edward D. Patten ’70 of Elmira, N.Y., Sept. 27, 2021.

Michael S. Waters ’70 of Fayetteville, N.Y., May 5, 2023.

Robert J. Fox Jr. ’71 of Ballston Lake, N.Y., March 31, 2023.

John B. Hurlbutt ’71 of Oswego, Sept. 12, 2022.

Donald R. Kastler ’71 of Hilton Head, S.C., Jan. 13, 2023.

Kathleen A. Lowery ’71 of Little Falls, N.Y., April 18, 2023.

William T. Molin ’71 of Greenville, Miss., Dec. 18, 2022.

Paul D. Moskowitz ’71 of Shoreham, N.Y., Jan. 29, 2023.

Marcia M. Patch ’71 of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Feb. 1, 2023.

Frederic A. Andrews ’72 of Arvada, Colo., Nov. 27, 2022.

Sister Kathleen M. DeBoalt ’72 of Peru, N.Y., Jan. 18, 2023.

Doris Allen Darden Gunsalus ’72 of Columbia, S.C., Oct. 4, 2022.

Walter J. Kaczor ’72 of Remsen, N.Y., July 10, 2022.

Amy Caputo Orser ’72 of Helena, Mont., Nov. 3, 2022.

Cathy D. Sagendorf ’72 of Poestenkill, N.Y., Oct. 17, 2022.

David R. Donaldson ’73 of Sodus, N.Y., March 26, 2023.

Tristram M.A. Goodsell ’73 of Rock Hill, S.C., Jan. 10, 2021.

Cornelius “Corky” Hyatt III ’73 of Pawling, N.Y., Sept. 25, 2022.

Thelma Wittig Parr ’73 of Glenfield, N.Y., June 17, 2022.

Rebecca Patterson ’73 of Kalamazoo, Mich., May 19, 2023.

Therese Bonner ’74 of Oswego, Dec. 10, 2022.

Ruth Defurio Brown ’74 of Leesburg, Fla., Dec. 7, 2021.

Robert F. Cosgrove ’74 of Alburgh, Vt., April 4, 2023.

Kathryn “Kay” Kemp DeRue ’74 of Palmyra, N.Y., April 7, 2023.

Carol Forbes Petersen ’74 of Camano Island, Wash., June 15, 2022.

Sharon A. Rasmussen ’74 of Loudonville, N.Y., Feb. 1, 2023.

Deborah D. Bobo ’75 M’88 of Baldswinsville, N.Y., Dec. 12, 2022.

David H. Crast ’75 of Phoenix, N.Y., Aug. 6, 2022.

Richard E. Tremblay ’75 of Oswego, Sept. 12, 2022.

Marien Oddi Canale ’76 of Geneva, N.Y., April 8, 2023.

Gary Herman ’76 of Fresh Meadows, N.Y. June 16, 2022.

Gerald A. Smith ’76 of Barnes Corners, N.Y., Sept. 13, 2022.

Margaret “Peggy” Tracy ’76 of Syracuse, N.Y., Dec. 23, 2022.

Marie Battaglia ’77 of Waterloo, N.Y., Dec. 14, 2022.

Thomas J. Cassant ’77 of Clay, N.Y., Aug. 27, 2022.

Edith Walker Hong ’77 of Tecumseh, Mich., Jan. 28, 2023.

Dianne M. Perez ’77 of Lander, Wyo., March 28, 2023.

Sister Sandra Tripp CSJ ’77 of Watervliet, N.Y., July 28, 2022.

Wendy Coates ’78 of New York, N.Y., May 30, 2021.

Mary Lynn Haggerty King ’78 of Petaluma, Calif., Feb. 19, 2023.

Christopher B. Wood ’78 of Pawling, N.Y., June 29, 2022.

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 University Advancement c/o In Memoriam, 215 Sheldon Hall, Oswego, N.Y. 13126; or email alumni@oswego.edu.

Keith A. Albrecht ’79 of Fortville, Ind., Nov. 30, 2022.

Salvatore J. Faggiano ’79 of Spokane, Wash., March 14, 2023.

Randall G. Hall ’79 of North Syracuse, N.Y., April 6, 2023.

John A. Lojewski ’79 of East Syracuse, N.Y., Aug. 8, 2022.

Glen Moore ’79 of Falls Church, Va., Aug. 6, 2022.

James W. Rhoades ’79 of Dumont, N.J., Dec. 1, 2022.

Cheryl Christoff Stubbs ’80 of Syracuse, N.Y., March 25, 2023.

Myrton C. Farr Jr. ’81 of Worcester, Mass., Dec. 30, 2021.

Angela R. Bowen-Colas ’82 of Amityville, N.Y., Feb. 16, 2022.

Michelle Reagan Lillestol ’82 of Palmdale, Calif., Jan. 31, 2023.

Cheryl Kompf Thomas ’82 of Liverpool, N.Y., Oct. 20, 2022.

Cheryl Reece Waterman ’82 of New Hartford, N.Y., Oct. 31, 2022.

Diane M. Lowery ’83 of Oswego, N.Y., May 3, 2023.

Karen Newhook Malisa ’83 of Goodyear, Ariz., Feb. 25, 2023.

Denise McIntosh Malone ’83 of Pinellas Park, Fla., Dec. 6, 2022.

David G. Morford ’83 of Binghamton, N.Y., Jan. 14, 2023.

Charles Golden ’84 of Hastings, N.Y., Nov. 6, 2022.

Robert L. Morina ’84 of Maybrook, N.Y., Nov. 7, 2021.

Elaine Mehl Trott Scutaro ’85 of Red Hook, N.Y., Sept. 17, 2022.

Robert F. Ciarelli ’86 of Manchester, Wash., April 23, 2023.

Dexter Jones ’86 of Astoria, N.Y., Dec. 19, 2022.

James A. Beck ’88 of South Huntington, N.Y., Nov. 19, 2022.

Theresa “Terry” Sullivan Chylinski ’88 of Jamesville, N.Y., Feb. 24, 2023.

Teresa Dowe Huggins ’88 of Clinton, N.Y., Aug. 4, 2022.

Jacqueline Wiant Page ’88 of Chatham, Mass., Aug. 3, 2022.

Vincent J. Priblo ’88 of Leonia, N.J., Feb. 28, 2023.

Stephen E. Sebbesse ’88 of Wantagh, N.Y., Dec. 5, 2020.

Cynthia Sweet ’88 of Troy, N.C., Feb. 15, 2021.

Michael A. Cohen ’91 of Pooler, Ga., July 20, 2022.

Anthony “Tony” Louise ’91 of Syracuse, N.Y., Feb. 27, 2023.

Michael R. Tetreault ’91 of Feeding Hills, Mass., Dec. 21, 2022.

Fr. Patrick K. Curley ’92 of New York, N.Y., Feb. 26, 2023.

Daniel B. Griffin ’92 of Oswego, July 30, 2022.

Rev. Jeanine M. Haven ’92 of Hannibal, N.Y., Nov. 24, 2021.

Leslie Carpenter Kolodziey ’92 of Rainbow Lake, N.Y., Jan. 12, 2023.

Michael H. Stanton ’92 of Cicero, N.Y., Nov. 27, 2022.

Sean P. Gleason M’93 CAS’98 of North Syracuse, N.Y., Nov. 23, 2022.

Jeremy Gorman ’93 of Liverpool, N.Y., May 12, 2022.

Jeremy Pitcher ’94 of Fulton, N.Y., March 28, 2023.

Shelley Shekerko ’94 of Las Vegas, Nev., Nov. 14, 2022.

William Patrick Skinner ’95 of Waterloo, N.Y., June 17, 2022.

Robert A. West II ’95 of East Syracuse, N.Y., Oct. 20, 2022.

Donald G. Martel ’97 M’01 of Oswego, Nov. 14, 2022.

Annette Murphy ’97 of Dade City, Fla., Aug. 12. 2020.

Anthony J. Remis ’97 of Kittanning, Pa., Feb. 19, 2023.

Amy Purdy Godleski ’98 of Vestal, N.Y., March 19, 2023.

Patricia A. Kushaney ’98 M’03 of Dade City, Fla., May 6, 2020.

Conliff Richard Cox ’99 of Baldwinsville, N.Y., Aug.19, 2022.

Gary A. Scheirer ’99 of North Syracuse, N.Y., Jan. 11, 2022.

Katrina Tokos-Vavra ’99 of Binghamton, N.Y., Oct. 10, 2022.

William D. Noone ’00 of Rochester, N.Y., Aug. 24, 2022.

Trisha S. Evans ’01 of North Syracuse, N.Y., March 19, 2023.

Suzanne Balduf Brogan ’02 of Syracuse, N.Y., Aug. 4, 2022.

Christa A. Eallonardo ’02 of Pooler, Ga., Dec. 20, 2022.

George J. Murphy ’02 of Altamont, N.Y., Dec. 6, 2022.

Julie Swan Biondolillo ’03 of Henderson Harbor, N.Y., April 10, 2023.

Glenn M. Gosier ’04 of Scotia, N.Y., Jan. 7, 2022.

Jaye Furlong O’Brien ’04 M’06 of Oswego, Nov. 25, 2022.

Jason Thomas Kiernan ’07 of Castorland, N.Y., Sept. 3, 2022.

Matthew Noonan ’14 of Syracuse, N.Y., Nov. 7, 2022.

Chyenne M. Tiller ’22 of Valley Stream, N.Y., Feb. 9, 2023.

Dr. Anthony W. Annunziata, Professor Emeritus of English, of Baldwinsville, N.Y., Nov. 22, 2022.

Dr. Ronald A. Brown, Professor Emeritus of Physics, of Oswego, Feb. 9, 2023.

Nicholas J. D’Innocenzo, Professor Emeritus of Sculpture & Design, of Oswego, April 25, 2023.

Dr. Paul Dussere, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, of Oswego, July 27, 2022.

Dr. Paul Hutko, Professor Emeritus of Psychology, of Oswego, Jan. 8, 2023.

Dr. Richard Izzett, Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Criminal Justice, of Oswego, Feb. 8, 2023.

Dr. George H. Koenig, Professor Emeritus of Modern Languages and Literatures, of Oswego, Dec. 30, 2022.

Dr. Karen Schroeder Nicholas, Professor Emerita of Medieval History, of Oswego, Dec. 2, 2022.

Dr. Eugene Perticone, Professor Emeritus of Counseling & Psychological Services, of Oswego, Feb. 25, 2023.

Dr. Patricia M. Peterson, Professor Emerita of Health and Physical Education, of Albany, N.Y., Dec. 18, 2022.

Dr. Scott Roby, Professor Emeritus of Physics and Astronomy and Planetarium Director, of Oswego, Nov. 20, 2022.

Dr. David J. Thomas, Professor Emeritus of Geology, of Oswego, Sept. 3, 2022.

Dr. Clarence R. Trexler, Professor Emeritus of Childhood Education, of Webster, N.Y., May 10, 2023.

Word

Queer Eye for the Alumni

I am a queer alumnus (Class of '09!) who now teaches in the Department of English and Creative Writing. While many of my stories of my undergrad involve the wonderful blizzards of Oz or the famous sunsets, some of my core memories center on the queer and trans community at Oswego. My vision for Oswego is to recover LGBTQ+ history on campus.

I returned to campus in 2022 as an assistant professor in the English department, teaching Shakespeare and medieval literature. I quickly became a member of the campus-wide LGBTQIA+ Working Group, a task force formed at the direction of the president to address student concerns about LGBTQ+ life on campus. We investigated the situation on campus and put together a set of proposals for the president, which we are now in the process of instituting.

During this investigation, I became fascinated by the situation of the archives of queer and trans history on campus. In Penfield Library’s archives, University Archivist Zachary Vickery showed me the archived papers of the Gay and Lesbian Association (GALA, now known as Pride Alliance) from 1988-1993. These papers are a chance survival, donated by an unknown faculty member to the archives. They present a beautiful history of queer and trans life at Oz, from AIDS organizing to social events. Letters from students — often anonymous — express their gratitude for GALA’s visibility. Many of these documents are painful reminders that queer and trans students experienced (and still experience) homophobia and transphobia at the university. Yet the archives also show that, despite it all, queer and trans people organized and celebrated their lives, made spaces for joy and changed the university for the better.

However, almost nothing remains of the organization from before or after this period, and no other set of archives really documents LGBT life at Oz. As an alumnus from 2007-2009, I remember purple “Out and Proud” shirts for Coming Out Day, regular Rainbow Alliance meetings and all sorts of sponsored events. Yet, there’s almost no trace of this in the university archives, and the Pride Alliance does not have records of their own.

I sifted through the archives of The Oswegonian, Student Association records and other records of student life. I’ve found traces going back to the early 1970s. In 1972, three years after queer and trans people fought back against police brutality at Stonewall, the Syracuse Gay Liberation group gave a talk at Oswego to 40 or so people. Shortly thereafter, there was a gathering of gay people at Oswego, with the intention of forming a similar organization. From then on, various organizations appear in The Oswegonian events calendar from time to time: Homophile Friends, Gay Brothers and Sisters of Oswego, Gay Alliance of Oswego, GALA, Transgender Splendor, Men’s Gay Support Group, Gays for Human Liberation, Oswego Gay People Discussion Group and others. Yet little record of their impact remains.

Professor Maureen Curtin and I will be running an LGBTQ+ Oral History workshop this summer that will overlap with Reunion Weekend June 6-9. We will train students and community members to interview LGBTQ+ alumni, emeritus faculty and community members. These interviews will live in the campus archives and be available online for those interested in LGBTQ+ campus history. We hope that alumni coming for Reunion Weekend will agree to be interviewed. Right now, LGBTQ+ history is under attack throughout the country, so it’s worth documenting how queer and trans people have always been here and have been a part of Oswego for decades. l — Erik Wade ’09

Erik Wade ’09, who double majored in history and English with a minor in medieval and renaissance studies, is an assistant professor of English and creative writing at SUNY Oswego. He received support from the Shineman Endowed Fund to build an archive of LGBTQ+ experiences across SUNY Oswego’s history, using recorded interviews of alumni and their firsthand accounts.

President Peter Nwosu’s shoes

Peter O. Nwosu came to the United States in 1985 to earn a master’s degree at Towson University in Maryland. On his feet, he wore these shoes. He has kept this pair of shoes as a permanent reminder of the “power of education to transform lives and ignite new possibilities.”

He has them in a display case near the window in his office on the seventh floor of Culkin Hall.

He shared the story of his shoes with the university community and with new students during his first Welcoming Torchlight Ceremony in August:

“As you may or may not know, I came to this country as an immigrant student seeking a better life through the power of higher education. If you ever stop by my office in Culkin Hall, I can show you the pair of shoes I wore on my feet when I came to this country from Nigeria so many years ago. I keep them to remind me of how far those feet have carried me.

“The ancient philosopher Lao Tzu said a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and so tonight, I invite you to join me on this journey of learning at SUNY Oswego.”

As he passes midway through his first year as the leader of SUNY Oswego, it is clear that he doesn’t intend to fill his predecessor’s “big shoes.” Instead, he acknowledges that everyone has had their own life experiences along their lives’ paths and that it is those unique experiences that enrich the campus and infuse new energy to build on past successes and carry SUNY Oswego into the future. During his remarks at the university’s Opening Breakfast in late August, he said:

“Each of us today has come in our own shoes, and education has helped to transform us … We have a moral responsibility to ensure that our students succeed. We’re changing their lives. We’re doing what we must do to ensure that we have a vibrant and strong community and that our democracy is strong. It is a beacon of hope to the rest of the world and the single most important product we export to the rest of the world is intellectual property. It’s education. That’s why they come. We are keepers and stewards of a promise handed to us by Edward Austin Sheldon 162 years ago. Let us expand that promise for the sake of our communities and beyond.”

King Alumni Hall

300 Washington Blvd. Oswego, N.Y. 13126

If OSWEGO is addressed to a family member who has graduated and no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, please clip the address label and return it with the correct address to the Oswego Alumni Association, King Alumni Hall, Oswego, N.Y. 13126, or email the updated address to alumni@oswego.edu.

Please recycle this magazine.

Faculty –HALL OF FAME–

Dr. Alfred Frederick

Dr. Alfred (Al)

Frederick, a Distinguished Service Professor, left a global impact on the world of education through his cross-cultural pedagogy and multicultural teaching. He died July 29, 2023, at the age of 85. The campus community celebrated his life on Dec. 1, with a cultural extravaganza featuring African drumming, R&B and Gospel singing, poetry readings, Caribbean Student Association Dance Team performances and personal reflections.

nated with the object learning method that the university’s founder Edward Austin Sheldon helped make famous.

“Culturally relevant education is using the knowledge base of your students, having examples to bring a level of understanding to the students,” wherever in the world you might be teaching, Frederick said in a 2020 news article. Using students’ knowledge base in the planning and teaching process automatically enhances their self-image, self-esteem, level of motivation, classroom performance and academic achievement.

The six-time Fulbright scholar came to SUNY Oswego in 1985 and shared his passion for teaching with the world both far and near — honored within the Oswego community and in Syracuse, as well as in Benin and Brazil for his tremendous impact in those nations.

A member of the university’s curriculum and instruction faculty, Dr. Frederick made cross-cultural communication, understanding and education his passion and life’s work. He developed the first multicultural education and culturally relevant teaching courses at SUNY Oswego, and focused on how to deliver cross-cultural education in meaningful and relevant ways that reso-

In January 2020, the African nation of Benin honored Dr. Frederick for his more than two decades of service with praise from education officials, support from many friends and former students, and general recognition of the contributions in educational publications and in schools the Oswego professor provided since his first Benin visit in 2000. Dr. Frederick’s overarching leadership of our institution’s relationships in Benin led to the first-ever SUNY Oswego education abroad program to Africa, starting in January 2008.

In 2017, Dr. Frederick earned the title of Citizen of the State of Piauí, an award bestowed by the northeastern Brazilian state’s Legislative Assembly for his more than 25 years working to improve education in the state of Piauí and elsewhere in Brazil.

Fluent in English, French and Portuguese, Dr. Frederick published numerous works on multicultural education, including his books, Curriculum and the Social-Cultural Context and Bridging the Gap Between Home

and School: A Paradigm for Monitoring, Assessing and Improving the Schooling Process for Culturally Diverse Student Populations. Colleagues recall him as a friendly and engaging man who was passionate about creating a campus that valued and practiced culturally relevant teaching while providing immersive cultural opportunities in diverse communities. He would bring in world-renowned teaching experts and broad perspectives while seeking to build bridges and greater understanding. He provided new perspectives and connections that opened students’ eyes, minds and hearts.

The International Center of Syracuse presented him its 2015 Outstanding International Educator Award for, among other things, his ongoing efforts to connect SUNY Oswego students with cultural and other activities in the community. He also earned a Syracuse Post-Standard Achievement Award in 2009 for these activities.

Dr. Frederick always credited his mother, Sallie Frederick, who moved with him from her job in the cotton fields to the small city of Opelika, Alabama, when he was 2, for insisting he obtain a college education and for his quest for intercultural understanding. After becoming his high school valedictorian, Dr. Frederick earned a bachelor’s degree at Northern Illinois University, a master’s degree at Columbia University and a doctorate at the University of Brussels, and he completed postdoctoral work at Harvard University.