PEACE, Inc.

is a nonprofit, community-based organization that serves nearly 10,000 clients in Syracuse, Onondaga County and portions of Oswego County. Its mission is to help people in the community realize their potential for becoming self-sufficient.

Give-A-Holiday

This program offers individuals and groups the opportunity to brighten up the holidays for families in need by supplying gifts during the holiday season through either a gift basket or a monetary donation. Syracuse University employees can . PEACE, Inc. will pick up baskets on campus on Monday, Dec. 16 from 9 to 10 a.m. and from 1:15 to 2:15 p.m. If you’re unable to drop off your gifts on campus, we invite you to visit the PEACE, Inc. Eastwood Community Center during the following times:

• • Friday, Dec. 13: 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Monday, Dec. 16: 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Monetary donations can also be made online on the��.

For more information or questions, please contact PEACE, Inc. at 315.634.3740 or��giveaholiday@peace-caa.org.

United Way of Central New York

is an innovative and collaborative local nonprofit organization that drives solutions to the most pressing human service community needs of Central New York.

��CNY Care Package Project

• The drive is now underway. Last year, this project collected enough donations to create 850 care packages. United Way needs your help to reach its 2024 goal of 1,000 care packages for people in need in our community. You can get involved by purchasing and donating personal care items at Syracuse-area Wegmans stores, via an Amazon wish list or by making a monetary donation at .

Salvation Army

��is a nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting human needs without discrimination and encouraging and empowering those in need to reach their full potential. Each year, The Salvation Army of Syracuse helps provide Christmas food and toys to nearly 10,000 people with the help of dozens of community partners.

Holiday Programs

• : Each year, more than 1,200 teens receive a gift at The Salvation Army’s Christmas Bureau. You can help by donating a gift for a teen (ages 13-18) that ensures everyone can experience the magic of the holidays. To support this goal, The Hayner Hoyt Corporation has generously agreed to match all donations up to $25,000.
• : Now through Christmas Eve, there are 24 Red Kettle locations across Onondaga County. Want to help ring the bell? Sign up now as an individual or as a group at .
• Monetary donations can also be made online through .

For additional information or questions, please contact Deanna Delmonico at 315.479.1162 or��deanna.delmonico@use.salvationarmy.org.

InterFaith Works

is a nonprofit organization that provides services to address the needs of people who are vulnerable, low-income, targets of oppression and refugees who arrive through the federal refugee resettlement programs, fleeing war, political repression and famine. InterFaith Works also strives to address the needs of the frail or elderly, those in prisons, hospitals, and nursing homes, and to address hunger and housing needs.

Gift Basket Initiative

This fiscal year, InterFaith Works has resettled 1,015 refugees. Through the initiative, donors are asked to create a gift basket that will be given to families they serve. Some gift ideas for the baskets include:

• Gift cards: $20 or more to Walmart, Target or Tops;
• Food items: Honey, jam, crackers, hot chocolate, sweets, chocolates, candies, tea, cookies or graham crackers;
• Warm items: Gender-neutral scarves/hats, warm socks/gloves or throw blankets;
• Personal/household items: Disposable razors, lotion, shaving cream, key chains, water bottles, laundry baskets, detergent, cutting boards, dish towels or towel sets;
• Fun items: Board games, cards or new toys.

This can be used to document the items being donated and should be included with the basket. All baskets must be delivered to the InterFaith Works offices (located at 1010 James Street, Syracuse, NY 13203) by Friday, Dec. 13, at 4 p.m. For more information, contact Rhonda Butler at 315.449.3552 ext. 127 or rbutler@ifwcny.org.

Photo courtesy of stock.adobe.com

Staying in Central New York for Thanksgiving break? Check out our guide for exciting activities and the best spots to order Thanksgiving take-out if you’d rather skip the cooking.

Local Takeout Options

Want to skip all the meal preparation? Many local restaurants are offering delicious takeout options for the holiday, but don’t wait, get your orders in ahead of time.

• (Orders due by 5 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 22)
• (Orders due by Friday, Nov. 22)
• (Orders are first come, first serve, once form is completed, someone will contact you to confirm)
• (take out available on Nov. 28 from 1-4 p.m.)
• , Onondaga Blvd location (Orders due by 5 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 25)
• (Orders due by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 26)
• ��(Orders due 48 hours in advance, Wednesday and Thursday pick-up options available)

Fun Activities for All

If you’re looking for something fun and festive to do to kick off the holidays, this list of activities has something for everyone.

Photo courtesy of Critz Farms’ Facebook page

Address: 3232 Rippleton Rd.- State Route 13 South, Cazenovia
When: Friday, Nov. 29, through Sunday, Dec. 15, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
Admission: Free
Details: Open for Christmas tree and wreath sales including cut-your-own trees complete with wagon rides and full service baling and tie-down. Don’t forget to stop by the cafe, gift shop and tap room while you are there!

Address: Clinton Square, 161 Genesee St., Syracuse��
When: Friday, Nov. 29, 6 p.m.
Admission: Free
Details: The celebration will include the lighting of the 42-foot tree in the heart of downtown Syracuse and performances by local musicians.

Photo courtesy of CNY Regional Market’s Facebook page

Address: CNY Regional Market, 2100 Park St., Syracuse
When: Saturday, Nov. 30, 7 a.m.-2 p.m.
Admission: Free
Details: Celebrate local artisans and producers while discovering a wide variety of fresh produce, handmade crafts and unique gifts just in time for the holiday season.

Photo courtesy of Lights on the Lake’s Facebook page

Address: 106 Lake Drive, Liverpool
When: Now through Monday, Jan. 13, 2025
Admission: Tickets range from $10-$20 per carload and are to be
Details: Lights on the Lake is a two-mile long drive-thru show featuring hundreds of holiday displays with over 600,000 lights! Sections include a larger-than life Land of Oz, a twinkling fantasy forest, holiday traditions, a fairy tale magic grand finale and more! Over 40,000 vehicles drive through the show each season, making Lights on the Lake one of Central New York’s favorite holiday traditions. Enjoy your favorite sounds of the season during your visit by tuning in to Sunny 102.1, the official radio station of Lights on the Lake.

Photo courtesy of The Wild Animal Park’s Facebook page

Location: 351 S. Clinton St., Syracuse
When: Saturday, Nov. 30, 3-9 p.m.
Admission: $5, tickets can be��
Details: SKY Armory makes small business Saturday shopping easy when they bring together 70+ of Central New York’s artisans and makers under one roof for an evening of entertainment, food, drinks and shopping.

Location: 201 East Washington St., Syracuse
When: Sunday, Dec. 1, 1-5 p.m.
Admission: Free
Details: Experience festive music, yummy treats and handmade gifts for all.

Photo courtesy of skaneateles.com

Location: 7621 Lakeport Rd., Chittenango
When: Now through Jan. 1, 2025 (dates vary, check the )
Admission: $16.99-$19.99 per person, pay at the door when you arrive
Details: Come take a walk through The Wild and see the animals who can tolerate the cold along with beautiful festive lighting displays.

Location: Village of Skaneateles
When: Every Saturday and Sunday from Nov. 30-Dec. 24, including Fri, Nov. 29, from noon-4 p.m. and Tuesday, Dec. 24, from noon-2:30 p.m.
Admission: Free
Details: Get into the holiday spirit with roasted chestnuts, theater, caroling, pictures with Father Christmas and more at Dickens Christmas in Skaneateles.

“Spending time with my grandparents was really an important part of my childhood, and it helped me develop a lot of compassion and respect for older adults in our community,” Sako says.

Katarina Sako ’24 speaks with a participant in the recent Age Well Days event (Photo by Charles Wainwright)

Sako’s interactions with her grandparents, including more recently as part of her family’s role in caregiving, planted the seed for her interest in her work assisting older adults through the creation of community programming.

Sako is an volunteer through . As a community organizer, Sako works to improve how older adults get connected to services that can help them thrive.

“I’m able to look at systemic issues in our society and how that impacts older adults and their health,” says Sako, who is also working to strengthen and expand a coalition of aging services organizations. “Because you can’t really address one facet without addressing the model.”

As an undergraduate student, Sako was initially interested in researching memory from a psychology perspective. She joined a lab at SUNY Upstate Medical University, and through that work, Sako decided to focus on neurodegeneration and dementia from a biology perspective.

“When you’re talking about dementia, which is my hope to study as a geriatrician, it’s not just focused on the biology—you can’t just address things from a biological perspective,” she says. “You really need to look at the entire person.”

The skills utilized in her current role took shape during her time on campus, where she majored in biology and neuroscience and minored in Spanish in the .

Katarina Sako demonstrates an apple crisp recipe during a recent Age Well Day event in Syracuse

Sako volunteered as a telehealth consultant over the summer with InterFaith Works. She created a pilot program to help older adults gain the skills needed to navigate telehealth appointments, which gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There are a lot of benefits offered by telehealth, such as not going in person to your doctor’s appointment, which can be especially helpful if you have mobility issues,” says Sako. “However, technology issues can be really challenging for many older adults.”

The AmeriCorps VISTA program is focused on reducing poverty in the community. Sako’s skills and experience made her the perfect fit for the community organizer role.

Lori Klivak, senior director for the Center for Healthy Aging at InterFaith Works, was Sako’s supervisor in her telehealth consultant role and later introduced Sako to the community organizer opportunity, where Klivak��continues to be Sako’s supervisor.

One of InterFaith Works’ initiatives is the Greater Syracuse Aging Services Coalition, which started in 2020 to unite aging services organizations under one umbrella.

One of the ways Sako reaches out and makes connections is through Age Well Days, an event that brings community services together for older adults. During the most recent event, held on Sept. 24 at Park Central Presbyterian Church in downtown Syracuse, attendees were served a healthy lunch (including a salad made by Sako). They heard presentations from community organizations on health, digital literacy, voting and food assistance, while Sako demonstrated how to make a healthy (and tasty) apple crisp. Attendees took home fresh produce.

“These are opportunities for lower-income older adults in the community to receive important services. The goal is to have people actively enroll in things,” says Sako. “For example, if you need food assistance or you are experiencing food insecurity, let’s enroll you in SNAP. We want to ease this enrollment process because as much as we have these resources available, the number of older adults who are actually enrolled in these programs is low.”

A timeline of Age Well Day events is still being determined, but Sako plans to hold the events at three different locations throughout the community. The Sept. 24 event focused on eating well, and funding was provided by the Syracuse Onondaga Food Systems Alliance.

Sako believes the project has a lot of longevity. “You could compare it to a resource fair, but it’s really meant to be a more intimate setting where we’re connecting with the participants who are there,” she says. “It’s affirming the dignity of all races, all religions and recognizing the diversity that is Syracuse and Onondaga County.”

“My hope is that in forming these connections, we’re able to build long-term partnerships for the Greater Syracuse Aging Services Coalition,” Sako says. “Our goal is promoting aging well in the community and reiterating that ageism doesn’t have a place here.”

Klivak says that Sako’s work is helping to fill a critical gap between services and knowledge. “We have programs, we have support, we have things in place in our community that can help older adults who age better,” she says. “But there’s a gap between what people understand or know about what we have and actually providing those services. And we don’t have all the services in all the right places.”

“Our goal is to improve the way that we, as service providers and program providers get information out, connect with communities and build relationships with communities so that they feel comfortable coming to us,” Klivak says.

It’s also raising awareness about what older people need that goes beyond the conventional wisdom that may focus on food or heat assistance or health care. There are other needs, such as AIDS and HIV prevention, digital literacy and voting issues that are not at the forefront of people’s minds.

“You may think of food or help with heat, but you’re not thinking about how it may not be easy for them to get on a computer or a smartphone and access these resources,” Klivak says. “We tend to think about aging through the lens of death, disease and decline, but that’s not the full story.”

Older adults are the number one voting bloc, the number one volunteering demographic and 42% of the local tax base, Klivak says. “These are people who are helping raise their grandchildren, helping their neighbors and who want to communicate with friends who have moved, all sorts of things,” she says. “And we want them to thrive.”

Klivak says as more outreach and connections are made, everyone is learning how to move the conversation forward and change the narrative to be more age-positive and age-friendly.

Klivak says that Sako has been a good fit for her role. “She is pretty fearless,” she says. “She jumps right in, asks really good questions and then just gets to work.”

Her title, community organizer, illustrates her mission to build relationships. “This is about making change, and change happens when people trust you,” Klivak says. “Her primary role is to be out and about in the community, meeting people, learning what’s going on, getting people interested in what we’re doing. And she has taken that seriously.”

Ultimately, Sako believes that, through her work, she is honoring her grandparents. “I think my grandparents could also benefit from Age Well days, definitely,” Sako says. “I think that they’re happy that I’m trying to make a difference.”

At a crossroads – Adirondacks, NY (Photo by on Instagram)

Fall in Central New York (CNY) is full of fun and delightful opportunities. Whether you’re eager to witness the , wish to partake in a festival or enjoy a fun fall activity, we’ve crafted an extensive guide to ensure your fall experiences with friends and family are unforgettable!

Festivals and Events

Address: Rowland Road, Lafayette, New York 13084
When: Oct. 12-13, Saturday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sunday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., with an apple pancake breakfast starting at 7 a.m. both days
Admission Fee: $6 per person; 12 and under are free. Parking is also free.
Details: The Apple Festival is a fun weekend for the whole family. The high quality of the exhibitors, uniqueness of products offered and diversity make it a hit for all ages!
(Photo courtesy of their��)

Address: 7900 Green Lakes Road, Fayetteville, New York 13066
When: Saturday, Oct. 19
Admission Fee: Free but the CNY Food Bank will be collecting donations
Details: Get in the Halloween spirit by driving through the Pinewoods campground to see all the fun and spooky decorated campsites! This is a drive-thru only event.

Address:��Rosamond Gifford Zoo, 1 Conservation Place, Syracuse, New York 13204
When: Oct. 12-13, 19-20 and 26-27
Admission Fee:��$7-9 depending on when and where you purchase your ticket. Note: Admission to the zoo is not included in the ticket price. You will be required to purchase a ticket to the zoo unless you are a member upon arrival.
Details: This is a “kooky-not-spooky” daytime Halloween celebration. The zoo transforms into a hauntingly fun destination for the whole family with trick-or-treat stations, creepy crawly animal encounters, keeper chats, games, activities, photo opportunities and a costume parade. Wear costumes and bring treat bags for this fall-favorite event!
(Photo courtesy of their )

Address:��3232 Rippleton Rd., State Route 13 South, Cazenovia, New York 13035
When: Through Oct. 20
Admission Fee:��$6-10 per person (plus fees); depending on what day of the week you visit
Details: Experience the quintessential fall season at Critz Farms—the perfect place to bring the family and soak in everything fall has to offer. They have pumpkin and apple picking, a tasting room, fresh sweet apple cider, farm animals, a gift shop with fall decor, playgrounds and of course their famous corn maze! Additionally, on the weekends, they also have food available in the café, wagon rides, live music, cider-making demonstrations and a cow train ride for children.�� There is truly something for everyone.

Address:��7265 Buckley Rd., North Syracuse, New York 13212
When: Sept. 28 through Oct. 20
Admission Fee: Free activities are available; on the weekends, some activities include a fee;�� for more information
Details:��Every day, there are free activities, including a corn pit, giant games, a straw maze, a petting zoo, a ghoulish hole-in-one, a tepee, bowling and a ghost rider speedway. Each weekend has a different theme and includes the following activities: pumpkin decorating, face painting and temporary tattoos, tie-dye, sand art, zombie paintball attack, carnival games and unlimited bounce zone.��The weather won’t spoil the fun—Chuck Hafner’s is proud to host the only undercover festival in CNY, so rain or shine.
(Photo courtesy of their )

Address: 3275 Cold Springs Rd., Baldwinsville New York 13027
When: Through Oct. 27
Admission Fee: Some areas have free admission, while the fun zone is $10
Details: Abbott Farms Fall Fest includes fun for the whole family with free admission to apple picking, the market and Abbott’s Ark. The fun zone includes over 11 activities, a corn maze, wagon rides, pony rides and face painting.

Address:��1850 Rt. 91, Fabius, New York 13063
When: Through Oct. 27
Admission Fee: $14 per person, with seniors/veterans (with I.D.) $12
Details: Harvest your memories at Springside Farm! Admission includes access to fun fall activities like a barrel train, pedal cars, a jump pad, zip lines, a petting zoo, a playground with tunnels and slides, a basketball wagon, a baseball challenge, corn bins, a nature trail, toddler play area, a sound garden, duck races, food court, sweet shop, gift shop, pumpkin patch and gem mining!
(Photo courtesy of their )

Dare to Be Scared

Address: 6092 Route 31, Cicero, New York 13039
Hours: Open Friday and Saturday nights from Oct. 4-26, 7-10 p.m.
Admission Fee:��Tickets range from $15-30/per person depending on what you participate in
Details: The CMC Haunted House is a longstanding tradition in Cicero and was named by Scarycuse.com as the Bronze Medal Winner in 2019 and Best Boo for Your Buck in 2018. This year’s house has been amped up with many scares and new audio and visual features.

Address:��1 Lepage Place, Syracuse, New York 13206
Hours:��Open every weekend in October, Friday and Saturday nights, 7 p.m.-midnight, and Sunday, 7-11 p.m.
Admission Fee:��$30/person
Details: A haunted experience like no other. Between the state-of-the-art set design and talented actors, you’re sure to see why USA Today included Fright Nights in their list of The Best 20 Haunted Attractions in the Northeast!
(Photo courtesy of their )

Address: 7192 Oswego Rd., Liverpool, New York 13090
Hours: Open 7:30-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights from Oct. 4-26
Admission Fee: $20 for adults and $14 for children age 13 and under
Details: Dare to uncover the secrets of Erie Hollows, a town lost to time and terror. This October, brave souls are summoned to Exit 38 for a heart-pounding journey through over half a mile of twisted trails and unspeakable horrors.

Family Fun Places to Visit

Address: 2901 Rose Hill Rd., Marietta, New York 13110
Hours:��Open daily through Oct. 31, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
Admission Fee:��$4-$6 depending on the day you visit
Details: A simple, fun and authentic family-run farm experience offering wagon rides, a u-pick pumpkin field, a corn maze, a hay fort, a crazy maze, an animal barn, skeeball, corn hole, sand pile, bakery and retail shop.
(Photo courtesy of their )

Address:��3735 W. Seneca Turnpike, Syracuse, New York 13215
Hours:��Open daily until the end of October, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Admission Fee:��Free
Details:��A fun family-owned pumpkin patch that has much more to offer including a corn maze, hayride, farm animals and tasty treats to try.

Address: Long Branch Park, Liverpool, New York 13209
Hours:��Open Thursdays through Sundays in October, 5-9 p.m.
Admission Fee:��$25/vehicle
Details: It’s a not-so-scary stroll along a half-mile freshly paved path at Long Branch Park in Liverpool, as you see festive Halloween-themed displays in the wooded trail. Each section includes large wooden structures, LED light displays and more to help them come to life. Every night food trucks will be on hand in the park to grab a treat or dinner!
(Photo courtesy of their )

Address: 7621 Lakeport Rd., Chittenango, New York 13037
Hours: Every Friday and Saturday in October from 6-10 p.m.
Admission Fee: 2 and under are free, Seniors and children ages 3-12: $16.99 and Adults: $19.99
Details: Looking for a spooky yet family fun experience? Check out the Flash Light Safari. Catch the animals at night when they are most active. The lights in the park are dimmed to make it a special experience. Don’t forget your flashlights!

U-Pick Apple Orchards

• ��(Baldwinsville)
• ��(Jamesville)
• (Mexico)
• ��(Lafayette)
• ��(Mexico)
• (Lafayette)
• (Oswego)
• ��(Syracuse)
• ��(Lafayette)
• ��(Weedsport)
• (Cicero)

Fall in CNY means there are plenty of places for apple picking. (Photo by Jeremy Brinn)

When students in the College of Arts and Sciences enroll in Associate Professor class on writing and rhetoric, they likely think, correctly, that they will learn the foundations of good writing across various genres. However, they may not imagine that Berry’s vision for the class involves a less tangible side effect: building community. And that community fostered through the experience of writing and sharing work inspired Berry to found .

This year, for the second time, Berry will be awarded a $25,000 to fund his work with Project Mend, an online and print magazine of works by people impacted by the criminal justice system. This grant recognizes that virtually every participant at Project Mend, including Berry himself, has had their life touched by incarceration.

Project Mend team members (from left) Katherine Nikolau ’24, Michael J. Willacy and Patrick W. Berry giving a lecture at Syracuse Stage.

“We don’t always acknowledge family members in the equation of justice-impacted people, but we have to when we’re talking about impact,” says Berry, whose father was incarcerated while he was growing up. “Project Mend brings a group of people together to work on a national publication called “Mend,” but also, as a part of that, to engage in humanities-based programming.”

“Mend,” whose second issue is currently underway, exists as both a print and open-source publication. Participants, all formerly incarcerated or from incarcerated-impacted families, come to campus weekly to work on it. “We do a range of activities, from reading manuscripts to designing layouts,” says Berry. Activities include meeting publishing professionals, learning how to edit documents, how to work with images and how to make pages. The year ends with a published issue. “It’s gotten popular, so now I have more manuscripts coming in from around the country,” says Berry.

Crucially, the grant funds stipends for all the participants. In addition, the money allows Berry to bring in speakers and guests from the field, and also to offer refreshments—something that he finds to be key for fostering community. The group marks the publication of an issue with a large launch party, both virtual and in-person. “We just had a launch event in February, with a great turnout—even [New York State Senator] Rachel May was there—and it was at the Central Library in downtown Syracuse. People bring their families and friends and it’s really a celebration.”

Project Mend team members at the journal launch party in February.

Notably, this is not your typical prison publication. “You won’t see bars on the cover,” says Berry. There is no prison theme; writers are not required to talk about their experiences in prison or the problems of the criminal justice system. “Those pieces are in here, and they’re welcome,” says Berry, “but for example, one person wrote a love poem. One person wrote a sci-fi piece that’s a little out there.” Beyond pushing participants to stretch their writing skills, Berry says, “People are writing themselves into new identities. We wanted to create a space for that, to not always have their identity trace back to prison.”

In the same vein, Berry insists on the importance of separating the value of each individual’s experience from simple job training. “Sometimes the liberal arts seem like something that only the elite get access to. I think that is problematic,” he says. “We all need to take advantage of the rich opportunities that are available through learning, whether you’re a formerly incarcerated person or a Syracuse student.”

Project Mend is made possible through collaboration with the Center for Community Alternatives and from an HNY Post-Incarceration Humanities Partnership, which is generously supported by the Mellon Foundation. Additionally, the project has been supported at Syracuse University by the Engaged Humanities Network, the Humanities Center, the SOURCE, the Department of Writing Studies, Rhetoric and Composition, and a CUSE research grant.

This story was written by Lesley Porcelli.

This annual event, attended by nearly 2,000 people, is the largest of its kind on any college campus. The program seeks to honor the message and mission of King and is a direct expression of the University’s commitment to advancing academic excellence at a university welcoming to all. This year’s theme was “The Reach of the Dream.”

Talithia Williams, big data expert, math professor and host of “NOVA Wonders,” was the event’s keynote speaker. She spoke on “Becoming an Agent of Change for Inclusive Education”�� and addressed how to close achievement gaps and serve as inclusive agents of positive and profound change.

The program included student and community group performances, and the presentation of this year’s . An art gallery featuring works from local Black artists was also part of the celebration.

Images from the evening:

Cjala Surratt of the Black Artist Collective talks to guests in the celebration’s art gallery. (Photo by Jeremy Brinn)

Artist London Ladd, instructor in the School of Art in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, shares his work with a guest. (Photo by Amelia Beamish)

Students make crafts during the celebration event. (Photo by Amelia Beamish)

Community youth attended the celebration to support Unsung Hero recipient Murjan Abdi, pictured second from right. (Photo by Jeremy Brinn)

Guests enjoy the traditional MLK Celebration dinner. (Photo by Amelia Beamish)

MLK Celebration guests (Photo by Amelia Beamish)

Members of the Adonfo Ensemble perform during the celebration. (Photo by Jeremy Brinn)

Pictured left to right, the 2024 Unsung Hero recipients are Elbethel Berhane (community youth), Murjan Abdi (community adult), Sharon Dotger (Syracuse University faculty) and Mia-Marie Fields ’24 (Syracuse University student). (Photo by Amelia Beamish)

Keynote speaker Talithia Williams, big data expert, math professor and host of “NOVA Wonders” addresses the audience. (Photo by Amelia Beamish)

Cora Thomas leads the MLK Community Choir. (Photo by Jeremy Brinn)

The 39th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Planning Committee is proud to announce the 2024 Unsung Hero Award winners: Murjan Abdi, Sharon Dotger, Elbethel Berhane and Mia-Marie Fields ’24.

The Unsung Hero Award is given to community members, students, faculty and staff who have made a positive impact on the lives of others but are not widely recognized for their contributions. The awards were created to honor Dr. King’s vision of creating positive change in a troubled world. There were a record number of nominations for this year’s award.

The award winners will be recognized at the 39th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration. The 2024 celebration will be held on Sunday, Jan. 21, with the art gallery opening at 4:15 p.m., dinner at 5 p.m., and the event at 7 p.m. featuring keynote speaker Talithia Williams. Tickets for the celebration are available .

The Unsung Heroes are:

Sharon Dotger (Syracuse University faculty)

Dotger is the faculty director of teacher education and undergraduate studies in the School of Education. Over the past year, she has been tasked with redesigning the teacher education program, ensuring that preservice teachers are equipped with the skills, knowledge and compassion necessary to both enter the workforce and thrive in it. This shift will ensure that graduates of the University’s education programs are prepared to work alongside students with disabilities in schools across the nation, bringing the world closer to full inclusion.

Mia-Marie Fields ’24 (Syracuse University student)

Fields, majoring in biomedical engineering and neuroscience in the College of Engineering and Computer Science (ECS), exemplifies the values of scholarship, service, social justice and inclusion. In her time at Syracuse University, she has helped to develop a portable breast cancer detection device addressing healthcare inequities in resource-limited countries; assisted in updating the Dean’s Advisory Panel in ECS; worked with a team to re-design the interior of 119 Euclid; and introduced Kevin Richardson of the “Exonerated 5” at the Black Excellence Gala. Fields is known to be both selfless and humble in her many pursuits.

Elbethel Berhane (Community youth)

Currently a senior at Jamesville-DeWitt High School, Berhane began her work with the Umoja/Kente Club as a first-year student and has continued her service by becoming the co-student advisor in her senior year. Last summer, she became certified and trained through the Student Coalition on Race and Equity, an initiative that accesses the talent and skills of students to eliminate racism in their community, starting in their school district. She currently works with People In Action and teaches Bible stories and lessons in the Amharic language to elementary school children at the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Baldwinsville, New York.

Murjan Abdi (Community member)

A dedicated leader, Abdi uplifts his community with tremendous commitment. A proud graduate of the Syracuse City School District, he joined the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY), serving in the field of workforce development. Prior to his work at MACNY, Murjan was an integral part of Onondaga Community College, significantly impacting the Educational Opportunity Program and the Collegiate Science Technical Entry Program. As a former peer financial mentor at CNY Works, Murjan’s unique ability to connect with young people catalyzed positive transformations in Syracuse. His commitment to community development inspires hope for a more inclusive future in Syracuse.

Locally, the Syracuse City School District (SCSD) is similarly challenged, but a new partnership with the (SOE) and aims to address this dilemma.

People With a Passion

Syracuse has become that latest school district to join the , administered jointly by SOE and the Maxwell School. , the program recruits teacher candidates who are committed to teaching underserved populations and from populations that are underrepresented in local classrooms.

When joining the program, students choose to take one of SOE’s and are offered a hiring commitment by a program partner, subject to a school’s needs and a student’s successful program completion. In addition to Syracuse, other Baldanza program partners are the Baldwinsville, Jamesville-DeWitt and West Genesee school districts.

“Retirements, the typical turnover of an urban school district and the fact that fewer candidates are entering college teacher preparation programs equal the shortages we are seeing,” says Scott Persampieri, SCSD chief human resources officer, noting that his school district typically needs to hire between 200 and 300 teachers per year.

“We have been struggling to find certified teachers,” says Jeannie Aversa G’13, SCSD executive director of recruitment, selection and retention. “There is a teacher shortage due to members of the baby boom generation retiring early, and the coronavirus pandemic didn’t help.”

She adds, “We are looking for people with a passion for urban education. If people have that passion, they will stay longer.”

Go For It

Jasmine Manuel ’21, G’23 was among the first fellows to graduate from the Baldanza program. A Syracuse native who attended Henninger High School, she notes that program applicants essentially interview twice: “Once you sign up, you have a kind of hiring interview with school districts, as well as an interview with the School of Education.”

For Jasmine Manuel, the Baldanza program “was a surprising opportunity” and an offer so good, at first she didn’t believe it was real.

A human development and family sciences graduate from the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics, as a Baldanza fellow Manuel joined SOE’s and received a hiring commitment from Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District, where she did her student teaching and where she now works as a fourth grade teacher.

Manuel admits that the Baldanza program benefits are so good, she thought the offer might not be real.

“I was working as a teaching assistant at Henninger, aiding a visually impaired student,” she says. “The Baldanza program was a surprising opportunity. I wasn’t planning on going for a master’s degree, but then I saw an email about it. My supervisor is getting a certificate of advanced study from the School of Education, so I asked him if the offer was real. He said it was, and that I should go for it.”

Manuel says she enjoyed her mentored student teaching experience at Jamesville-DeWitt. “I learned a lot that way. You hear a lot about theory in the graduate classroom, but it’s different when you do it in your own classroom. You learn what works and what doesn’t,” she says.

All Students Benefit

One of three teachers of color in her school building, Manuel notes that she was a good fit for her school district because of its increasing diversity. “Jamesville-DeWitt has expanded its English Language Learner (ELL) program to all three elementary schools,” she says, “so now students and staff are seeing a highly diverse student population coming in.”

Reflecting on the district’s diversity, Aversa observes that her student population speaks 80 different languages, so ELL is one of the high needs areas into which SCSD is recruiting—”we need teachers who know strategies to work with English as a New Language students”—along with other high needs subjects, such as math, science and special education.

Aversa agrees with national data illustrating that teachers of color and culturally responsive teaching are linked to for students, saying, “Kids will see who they are trying to be, so representation in the classroom matters. The Baldanza Fellows program encourages the recruitment of BIPOC teachers so students can see people who look like them, but all children benefit from a diverse body of teachers.”

The Baldanza Fellows program encourages the recruitment of BIPOC teachers so students can see people who look like them, but all children benefit from a diverse body of teachers.

—Jeannie Aversa G’13

“We know that there is a significant discrepancy between the diversity of the student body and the teaching force. That is true nationally, regionally and it’s certainly true for Syracuse schools,” says Professor G’01, G’07, G’08, director of SOE’s , who oversees the programs along with Professor . “Students benefit from education that is culturally responsive and sustaining, and they benefit from being educated by teachers who make them feel connected to their cultures and communities, and who can provide outstanding role models.”

Continues Ashby, “It’s equally important for white students to be educated by teachers of color, if we want all students to understand inclusive environments. All students benefit from exposure to diverse experiences, cultures and identities.”

Right, Important and Just

Ashby says she is thrilled to have SCSD join the Baldanza Fellows program: “The time and opportunity are right for them to join. After all, Syracuse is our home, and we feel close to Syracuse city schools. Doing this work with them feels right, important and just.”

Pitching their case as an employer, Persampieri cites teachers’ job satisfaction: “A lot of people go into the teaching profession to serve and to make a difference. Few professions have this level of satisfaction, and that’s especially true of an urban district.”

For Aversa, the pitch is two-fold—diversity and professional support. “Our kids deserve people who want to be here and who have a desire to serve a high-poverty urban setting. Our diversity is one of the positive things we offer,” she says. “Plus, new teachers are supported in many ways, and they will learn and grow with seasoned professionals by their side.”

Similarly, mentorship is a key feature of the Baldanza program, along with a tuition scholarship, a stipend to support living expenses and the hiring commitment.

“My host teachers were very good,” says Manuel, recalling her classroom immersion. “They explained a lot about the students to me. They explained about their likes and dislikes, their quirks and what gets them motivated—these are details you don’t necessarily go over in a theory class.”

Adds Manuel, “As a new teacher, all the supports I had as a Baldanza Fellow are still with me.”

Learn more about the , or contact Speranza Migliore, assistant director of graduate admissions in SOE, at smiglior@syr.edu or 315.443.2505 for more information.

True, when you enter the library of Roberts PreK-8 School in the Syracuse City School District (SCSD), you see third- and fourth-grade students sitting at the low tables with graduate students. But in addition to picture books, there are computers, notebooks and even drawing paper. The children are allowed to take breaks in the adjoining playground, and colorful, hand-drawn posters adorn the walls.

It might be more appropriate to call this a “literacy camp,” says School of Education (SOE) Professor , who oversees the clinic and the master’s degree students gaining experience in it.

Literacy clinic graduate students guide third and fourth graders through a research project at Roberts PreK-8 School in the Syracuse City School District. (Photo by Randy Pellis)

Reinforce the Lessons

Why a “camp” and not a “clinic”? For one, it uses a community-based model rather than a commercial or medical one. That is, instead of parents paying tuition and board to send their children to campus for reading intervention, this program is part of Roberts’ Summer School activities. Students take other classes during the day and receive free breakfast and lunch.

Secondly, rather than relying solely on phonics and decoding, the summer program “is an intermediate, asset- and inquiry-based program focused not only on comprehension but also digital reading, writing and research skills,” says Jang.

The program offers two sessions a day across three weeks in late summer. In the first session, third and fourth graders are encouraged to research a topic that interests them, guided by the graduate students toward a creative synthesis of material through a process of reading, analysis and synthesis of printed materials and age-appropriate internet research. This approach adheres to state and national literacy standards, says Jang.

The first session culminates in early August with the students presenting what they have learned in front of their peers, using PowerPoint, posters or even video and podcasts. “Publishing is important for literacy learning,” Jang says. “Sharing what is read and discussed helps reinforce the lessons and strengthen social interactions.”

Gaining Independence

The graduate students are working toward an M.S. in literacy education (birth-Grade 12), which leads to initial and professional New York state teacher certification in literacy education (birth to Grade 6 and Grades 5-12). The summer clinic is the final course of a one-year, three-semester program (there is also a two-year, part-time option).

“Because this is a student-centered, inquiry-based program, the teachers must do a lot of work, with thorough planning and implementation of reading and writing strategies, to help students gain independence,” says Jang, adding that many of the graduates will go on to become literacy coaches or interventionists.

After the early morning session ends, around 10:30 a.m., it is the turn of seventh and eighth graders. The second session offers a different tutoring model, again overseen by Jang and his assistants, Ibrahim Kizil, a reading and language arts doctoral candidate, and alumni Kaitlyn Ertl G’21, a third-grade teacher at Chestnut Hill Elementary in the Liverpool Central School District, and Midheta Mujak G’21, an English as a New Language (ENL) teacher at Nottingham High School (SCSD).

Like the younger children, these older students are still guided in reading and research, but this time two graduate students sit at the table with them: One is the trainee tutor and the other is the tutor’s peer observer/coach. “Team teaching is part of the state standards to be a literacy coach,” says Jang. “Literacy coaches need to know how to collaborate and coach other teachers.”

Literacy clinic student and budding artist Maria shows off her research on how to draw hands and eyes. Research and presentation are critical elements for advanced literacy instruction. (Photo by Randy Pellis)

Self-Motivated

“I like working closely with my peer coach. She helps me to grow,” says Tuyet Nguyen, who graduated from the literacy master’s degree program in August 2023, after the Summer Literacy Clinic wrapped up. “In my school, I only get observed twice a year.”

An ENL tutor at H.W. Smith Pre-K-8 School (SCSD), Nguyen says she chose the program so she could help her students learn to read. “Many of them speak fluent English, but they can’t read,” she says, explaining that her undergraduate degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages emphasized decoding language rather than literacy.

The SOE graduate degree, she says, compliments her knowledge as well as her original certification, for teaching kindergarten through 12th grade. Moreover, the program’s inquiry-based approach compliments her understanding of literacy as “not just about language but also about understanding content.”

In the morning session, Nguyen tutors Maria. Born outside the U.S., Maria is a bright fourth-grade ENL student and a budding artist whose research interest is how to draw hands and eyes. Nugyen says she immediately connected with Maria because she too was born in another country—Vietnam—and didn’t learn to speak or read English fluently until after she immigrated, at age 10.

“Maria speaks a different language at home, and she has learned to read by memorization rather than decoding,” Nguyen says. “Like other kids, she needs breaks and benefits from different approaches, but she is very enthusiastic and energetic. She’s self-motivated.”

Shy at first, by the end of the three-week session, Nguyen says she and Maria were joking together. One particular student-centered research technique seemed to work well. “When she asked a question about her research, I pretended not to know,” says Nguyen. “Maria said, ‘But you’re the teacher!’ She can be afraid to make mistakes, but instead of telling her the answer, we researched together so that I could direct her toward it. That took the pressure off her.”

Although posters of Maria’s research and practice drawings are taped on the walls, for her final presentation she chose PowerPoint slides. “She did great,” says Nguyen. “Maria is growing as a student in her own way. She’s becoming more confident.”

‘Really Wonderful’

Jang notes that the Summer Literacy Clinic is one of several community-based literary services offered by the School of Education. It is joined by at Elmcrest Children’s Center, a literacy and creativity program that empowers youth to share their stories, developed by Associate Provost , and the , directed by Professor Another program is SOE’s Spring Reading Clinic, which offers explicit, phonics-based literacy intervention using the Road to Reading program.

Jang praises SCSD’s literacy partnership with the School and University—“They have really been wonderful in supporting us”—citing a July 2023 Literacy Summit as another example of how the SCSD and University are working together to improve reading in the district and train diverse literacy coaches.

Led by Haddix at the Nancy Cantor Warehouse, the summit featured SOE Dean and Mauldin, who discussed SOE’s literacy initiatives. Also speaking were SCSD representatives (presenting on the “Landscape of Literacy Education in Syracuse”) and the University’s Shaw Center for Community Engagement . Part of America Reads, the Corps sends more than 200 reading tutors into the community each year.

Participants in the event, “ArtStory: Love & Language,” were members of the Breedlove Readers, a young adult book club for middle and high school Black girls in Central New York. Their artwork was inspired by the books as well as their own lives.

“They were able to curate an exhibition, tell a collective story of their experiences and explore themes from our book discussions such as Black girlhood, self-love, identity, hair, friendship, coming of age and societal pressures,” says Mauldin, an assistant professor of educational leadership in the School of Education. Mauldin co-founded Breedlove Readers and for the project. “The value of this type of programming is its power to foster community, bridge literacy and the arts and underscore the impact of creating meaningful spaces for Black girls to be fully themselves.”

Additionally, several makerspace activities, including an indigo fabric-dying workshop, mask-making, creative writing and communal painting and music, were led by Mauldin and Royster, an assistant professor of art therapy in the College of Visual and Performing Arts.

“Making art in a community setting helps our readers make sense of their thoughts and emotions, develop greater self-awareness and find a sense of belonging with other girls. Artistic expression benefits their overall development and helps them reclaim identities that are often misinterpreted or stereotyped,” Royster says. “This interdisciplinary and cross-departmental collaboration let us address community problems and engage with community members while centering the Breedlove Readers as equal collaborators and experts on their lived experiences. Both the community and we as faculty benefit by coming together with shared goals while being inclusive and innovative and empowering community models of care.”

The program was funded by the Syracuse University Office for Strategic Initiatives, which is led by Associate Provost for Strategic Initiatives Marcelle Haddix.

(Photos courtesy Martin Walls, School of Education)

The University’s Trans and Gender Expansive Support Team and allies in the Department of Marriage and Family Therapy helped make Trans Support Day a success.

“It was absolutely heartwarming to see the excitement and support radiating from all who participated to provide such a welcoming, affirming and loving space for the trans community,” says associate professor , Ph.D., LMFT, who teaches in the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics.

The annual Trans Support Day started in 2018 and returned this year after a hiatus due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Coolhart says the 2023 event was a huge success, thanks to the leadership and support of assistant teaching professor , Ph.D., 22 marriage and family therapy students, and marriage and family therapy faculty and staff. This year, Trans Support Day saw a remarkable increase in attendance—from 40 in 2019 to 244. “This is what support looks like!” says Coolhart.

“The current political landscape for trans folks is threatening and scary, making this event so necessary and special,” she says. “In a world that often does not welcome trans people, I could see on the faces of the guests the gratitude, validation and support they felt having a space that was celebrating them and connecting them to the resources they need.”

Coolhart founded the Trans and Gender Expansive Support Team in 2004. The Trans and Gender Expansive Support Team is part of the Syracuse University Couple and Family Therapy Center, housed within the Falk College , located in Peck Hall, just north of main campus on East Genesee Street.

Students on the Trans and Gender Expansive Support Team receive specialized training to provide gender-affirmative therapy for transgender people and their families and assist in the readiness process for medical gender transition. “It is amazing to see how the team has grown in all that it does for the community,” Coolhart says.

In the Couple and Family Therapy Center, marriage and family therapy students gain supervised, hands-on clinical experience while providing free therapy services to families, couples and individuals across Central New York. The Department of Marriage and Family Therapy prepares students to work with marginalized populations, at-risk youth, and the LGBQ and transgender communities.

The Unsung Hero Award is given to community members, students, faculty and staff who have made a positive impact on the lives of others but are not widely recognized for their contributions. The awards were created to honor Dr. King’s vision of creating positive change in a troubled world.

The award winners will be recognized at the 38th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration. Additionally, the 2021 and 2022 Unsung Heroes will be recognized this year since they were unable to be applauded in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2023 celebration will be held on Sunday, Jan. 22, with dinner at 5 p.m. and the event at 7 p.m. featuring keynote speaker Rev. Phil Turner. Tickets for the celebration are available at .

Read more about the 2023 Unsung Hero awardees below.

Nichole Henry (Syracuse University Staff)

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stated that building community requires “a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives.” This powerful proclamation reflects Nichole Henry’s 20-year impact at Syracuse University.

Nichole Henry

Henry has devoted her professional career to welcoming and recruiting students to Syracuse, which is evident through her work within the College of Law, admissions and in her current role as the director of admissions and recruitment in the College of Professional Studies.

Henry has helped hundreds of students gain access to higher education because of her persistence to learn more about supporting post-traditional students and empowering such students to continue their quest of lifelong learning. In addition to her work in admissions, Henry has devoted time, energy and her doctoral research to the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP). She has balanced work and life responsibilities along with her advocacy efforts of supporting those from marginalized backgrounds both through academic studies and her everyday lived experiences.

For Henry, creating a welcoming environment does not focus solely on the process before students arrive on campus or begin virtual classes. Her commitment is evident in her volunteer work as a dialogue facilitator for InterFaith Works, a FullCircle Mentor, as well as being a lead instructor of First-Year Seminar.

Henry’s legacy of leadership extends outside of the classroom and beyond her office, as she currently serves as president and charter member of the Delta Alpha Gamma Zeta Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. Henry has demonstrated engagement within the community as she has worked with her sorority sisters to offer scholarships to local women that aspire to further their education and has expanded ways to engage in the Central New York region. She reflects the ideals of her sorority by engaging in “scholarship, service, sisterhood and finer womanhood,” in all that she does in the community and in her work to continue to uphold, lift up and empower all members of the community.

Candice Ogbu (Syracuse University Student)

Candice Ogbu

Candice Ogbu ’23, a double major in neuroscience and psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences, has worked with different organizations within the Syracuse community to develop a positive lasting bond.

In response to racial injustices affecting Black, brown and Asian individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ogbu sought to work closely with numerous units and organizations to define and impact change in our society.

During her tenure as chair of the Student Association’s Diversity and Inclusion committee, Ogbu created multiple programs and hosted events, including a panel of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) Syracuse professionals to visit with Syracuse University and Nottingham High School students about pushing beyond their perceived limitations and seeking bold opportunities.

She invited speakers like Marc Lamont Hill to discuss racial discrimination in modern society and what we can do as individuals to create positive change. Partnering with the sustainability committee of the Student Association, Ogbu implemented green days where students volunteered to clean Syracuse community parks and gardens. Doing community outreach led her to apply for two separate internships—working as a peer health advocate (PHA) at Planned Parenthood and as a COVID-19 impact analyst with the City of Syracuse.

As a PHA, Ogbu helped develop a mental health retreat hosted by Planned Parenthood. This three-day event involved workshops, mindfulness activities and lectures from mental health professionals. The program is now used as a model for other Syracuse organizations hosting mental health retreats. Additionally, during her time at Planned Parenthood, Ogbu helped implement a city-wide resource list, with each section focused on a category of need within the Syracuse community and lists of possible resources open to the public.

Ogbu is now planning to create a campus organization called PP Generation, focusing on student leaders looking to advocate for sexual, reproductive and gender rights. Her community outreach does not end at Planned Parenthood. She was a key figure during the COVID-19 pandemic in implementing a testing system for essential city workers. Like Dr. King, Candice thinks of what can be done and is not afraid to take the initiative to make her dreams a reality.

Thomas J. Wilson (Syracuse University Student)

Thomas Wilson, a student in InclusiveU through the Taishoff Center for Inclusive Higher Education, embodies Dr. King’s legacy through his love and support for the Syracuse University community.

Thomas Wilson

Wilson is a frequent visitor and friend of many areas across the University community. A senior double majoring in broadcast and digital journalism and political science, Wilson is a news anchor at Citrus TV where “he loves to deliver the news.” Through an internship with Orange Television Network, he is also executive producer and show creator of “Thomas on the Town,” a show where he goes “into the field” interviewing Syracuse University community members on a wide variety of topics.

Wilson’s ability to connect with people and share stories is a remarkable resource for the Syracuse University community. Thomas immerses himself into campus life through internships and his work at Schine Student Center. He often shows his support of and interest in the community by showing up. He cares enough to take the time to learn.

Wilson is highly involved with the Syracuse University Catholic Center. At Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday Masses in the Catholic community, both at Hendricks Chapel and at the Catholic Center’s St. Thomas More Chapel, he puts the books away and makes sure all is set for the next scheduled mass. After Thursday Mass at the Catholic Center, at their “Community Night Dinner,” Wilson’s engaging personality and kind, attentive presence is frequently sought out at whatever table he chooses to sit.

He is a person that individuals naturally gravitate toward because of his generous demeanor, his skill to be an active listener and the confidence he exudes. Wilson’s ability to connect with others through these traits, as well as the professional and educational skills he has developed during his time on campus, will make him a natural leader for our future.

Trinity Brumfield and Camille Ogden (Community Youth)

Trinity Brumfield and Camille Ogden represent a generation of young, Black women who embody the life and legacy of Dr. King through their vision, efforts and commitment to diversity, equality, inclusion and accessibility.

Trinity Brumfield

Brumfield and Ogden seek to be advocates for justice in their high school. Currently juniors at West Genesee High School, they attempt to pursue change with diligence and positivity.

Founding members and co-presidents of Umoja, a student-led group at West Genesee High School that was created to actively unite students of all races around issues of diversity, equity and inclusion, Brumfield and Ogden believe they are beneficiaries of the legacies of previous generations of change-makers. They have been certified and trained through the Student Coalition on Race Equity, an initiative that accesses the talent and skills of students to eliminate racism in their community, starting in their own school

Camille Ogden

district. Over the course of four weeks, Brumfield and Ogden were provided in-depth training in three core topic areas: implicit bias, white privilege and Black history.

Both women were selected to serve on the Superintendent’s Advisory Council and also serve as members of the West Genesee Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Council. They are committed to creating and maintaining change in their school and district, and believe it to be their responsibility to ensure that younger students understand the importance of advocacy for racial justice and equality. They perceive their efforts as legacy in action, as they have been privileged to speak to middle school students in their district about DEI and help grow chapters.

Brumfield and Ogden serve as members of the Restorative Council, which helps determine appropriate consequences when there is an incident at their school; co-chair the Justice, Equity and Diversity Inclusion group that develops ways to make progress; have formed and hosted lunch groups to meet with teachers and staff to have crucial conversations about their beliefs; helped to develop a film dealing with diversity that staff are required to view; and volunteered at church through working with special needs children in the youth ministry.

Oceanna Fair (Community Member)

Oceanna Fair is a Syracuse native, educator and activist who has amplified the issue of childhood lead poisoning in Onondaga County. During her childhood years, Fair’s brother was impacted by lead poisoning, and he suffered debilitating effects which severely compromised his quality of life. Fair has spoken often about her brother, and highlights his lifetime of dependent care directly related to lead poisoning.

Oceanna Fair

In addition to her brother, Fair’s granddaughter would later receive test results for a high level of lead in her blood, which fueled Fair’s ongoing struggle to prevent and intervene on behalf of Syracuse’s most vulnerable community members—children. Her advocacy is to prevent lead poisoning for all, but especially for Black and brown children who are disproportionately affected and who more often than not live below the poverty line in historically red-lined neighborhoods. Her selfless work to bring awareness to the lead crisis in Syracuse has elevated understanding of the issue and was the impetus for the formation of the grassroots organization Families for Lead Freedom Now, which was founded in 2019 by a group of mothers seeking change. She currently serves as Southside branch leader.

Fair has worked at the local, state and federal level to advocate for stronger lead laws and policies that protect families and provide outreach. She has discussed childhood lead prevention at national forums and conferences. This vital advocacy work was instrumental in passing the City of Syracuse’s Lead Ordinance in 2020.

As a change agent, Fair has helped support many families struggling with childhood lead poisoning and provided resources to others for prevention. She has amplified this issue and has fostered partnerships with other grassroots organizations and across state and regional networks. With champions like her, the Syracuse community has witnessed an increase in more families becoming aware. Her vital work has supported those who have been most impacted by historic disinvestment and structural racism. Through her own family’s experience with generational lead poisoning, Fair made a longstanding commitment to eradicating this preventable public health problem.

She writes:

Tracey Reichert Schimpff

“The tragedies that have unfolded in Buffalo recently have many asking ‘why?’ or ‘how could this happen?’ Others, especially those who witnessed such tragedy, may be asking what they can do to help. Offering support assists both those who are suffering as well as those who have witnessed traumatic events.��

Tragic loss and the toll that trauma takes on a community needs to be acknowledged.��No one can change events once they happen, but healing can occur when communities come together.��An outpouring of words of comfort, prayers, and well wishes acknowledges the experiences of loss and the deep feelings of sadness or pain of those who are suffering.��As humans, it is comforting to know that we are not alone.��Individuals and communities can also help those impacted by trauma by identifying needs and contributing resources – whether they be social, spiritual, physical, or financial.

While no community or people deserve to endure tragedy or traumatic events, coming through such experiences builds resilience.��The ways that the Buffalo community has stood together, remained strong, and shown care and compassion for one another is an example of community resilience.��Citizens of Buffalo have found ways to rely on one another in order to move through the most challenging and horrific of circumstances.��The community has garnered strength from within and has reason to believe that they can overcome adversity.”����

You can learn more about Professor Reichert Schimpff by .

Our thoughts are with the Buffalo community.

Organized by the , the Design Awards invited all design-related practitioners and students to send their best built and unbuilt works to the awards category of their choice.

The Learning and Sports Center is a rural community center in Masoro Village, Rulindo, Rwanda, which combines spaces for play and learning for all, especially youth and women.

A jury of architects and industry professionals including Talisha Sainvil, AIA, 40 Six Four Architecture; Louise Braverman, FAIA, Louise Braverman Architect; Joseph Vance, AIA, Joseph Vance Architects; Nicholas Garrison, FAIA, FXCollaborative; and Christian Bailey AIA, ODA, judged each entry based on program solution, site and space planning, construction system, overall design solution and aesthetics, and details and function. They selected over 30 winning projects in the Awards of Excellence, Honor and Merit categories.

The —a 2-hectare campus with seven buildings and sports amenities built by GAC’s group of designers, artists, educators and researchers—received a Design Award of Honor.

The Learning and Sports Center, located among the rolling hills of rural Masoro in Rwanda, where nonprofit architecture firm GAC has been working for the past 14 years, is a collection of interior and exterior spaces that provide a safe and secure environment for learning, play, and wellness. The project provides a library, classrooms, technology education rooms, indoor exercise spaces, community and teaching gardens, outdoor theaters, event seating, a basketball court and a community soccer field, all of which are accessible to community members free of charge.

During the construction period, GAC hired 390 builders from the surrounding neighborhoods, 54% of whom were women. They received pension contributions, breakfast and lunch, as well as safety training and equipment. The site and time of construction offered the community builders training opportunities in sustainable and durable construction techniques, including modern brick construction and screen weaving using local grasses and bark. Off-the-grid infrastructures such as rainwater harvesting and a biodigester were implemented. Unlike typical Rwandan institutions surrounded by fortress-like walls, the center uses parameter buildings to create a sense of security across small courtyards. The surrounding slopes are used to provide seating and define an existing soccer field for sport and community events. Excess soil from excavation was turned into compressed soil blocks for future construction.

The 2-hectare campus with seven buildings and sports amenities, designed by General Architecture Collaborative, was named recipient of a 2022 SARA | NY Design Award.

GAC partnered with community leaders and education and health nongovernmental organizations to ensure that the center became an actively used space for and by the community. After opening, GAC acted as the facilities director and oversaw the hiring and training of local managers. Thanks to this new team of local managers, during the pandemic, the Learning and Sports Center became the hub for disseminating knowledge and supplies necessary for keeping the community safe. The harvest from the gardens was given to the Masoro residents, and books in the library were made accessible to children so they could continue to learn when schools were closed. Community members built the center, gather here today and decide how to use it collectively as a commons.

“Masoro Learning and Sports Center is a unique place. From the planning, through the construction and management phases, the project tried to be part of the community,” says Yutaka Sho, associate professor of architecture at Syracuse University’s School of Architecture and a founder and partner at GAC. “There have been many challenges and errors during the process, no doubt. But because of this process, the residents have ownership over the place and its openness is tangible when you step into the campus.”

For many who live in Masoro, accessing services means making the 40-minute trip into town on a motorcycle taxi, bus or lift on the back of a passing truck. To have an area that is uniquely theirs and equipped to host and support sports and learning opportunities has profoundly impacted rural Rwandans.

“These activities may sound normal to you, but for this community, they are challenging if not impossible to access, and they create significant opportunities for the future,” says Sho. “Most houses in this rural area do not have access to electricity or water, let alone Wi-Fi, further education, training or a free time to play sports.”

Selected among entries from over 80 countries, the Learning and Sports Center was also a jury winner in the “+For Good” and “+Community” categories of the , the largest awards program focused on promoting and celebrating the year’s best architecture.

The 2022 SARA | NY Design Award recipients were celebrated at the annual Design Awards Gala at The Manhattan Manor in Times Square, New York, on June 14. To view the full list of winners and their winning designs, visit .

The space provides a library, classrooms, technology education rooms, indoor exercise spaces, community and teaching gardens, outdoor theaters, event seating, a basketball court, and a community soccer field.

The Fulbright Scholars, hosted by International Programs within the College of Professional Studies, come to Syracuse University from Asia, Africa, Central America, South America and Eastern Europe, and while on campus they will be attending a four-week English for Graduate Studies program that will prepare them for full-time graduate study.

These students will be in Syracuse from July 18 through Aug. 12 before they embark on their graduate, Ph.D. or research programs at universities throughout the country. Fulbright Scholars are selected because of their exceptional leadership and skills, and during their program, they will receive further training that will help them tackle challenges in their home countries when they return.

These students would love to tell their intriguing backstories, and are eager to learn more about Syracuse, the local culture and life in the United States. Please help make them feel welcome in the community. If you are interested in participating, please contact Jackie Monsour, assistant director, international programs in the .

This photo of Clifford Ryan is one of 51 images on display at ArtRage Gallery. Ryan stands by “the tree of life” planted along Cannon Street in memory of his son, Duriel Lamar Ryan. (Photo by Keith Waldron)

In a photo taken by Keith Waldron in 2021, Clifford Ryan crouches next to a tree on Cannon Street on Syracuse’s South Side. He leans alongside the still sprouting “tree of life” planted in memory of his son Duriel Lamar Ryan, who he lost to gun violence in 1999.

This is merely one of the thousands of moments captured for , an annual social photography event designed to highlight and memorialize life within urban neighborhoods.

This year, 51 of the more than 11,000 photos accumulated over the last 12 years are in a retrospective exhibition, “From Where We Stand: Photographs from The Stand’s Annual South Side Photo Walk.”

Ryan, founder and vice chair for OG’s Against Violence, said he loves his community. As a Syracuse native from the South Side, born and raised, he’s happy to have his home shared through the lenses of others, highlighting it as he knows it: a place of love, strength and care.

“Community means everything to me. I love my community,” Ryan said. “And there can be no unity without community.”

The exhibition showcases work from 45 photographers of all backgrounds, from students, Syracuse natives, as well as professional and amateur photographers alike, interested in capturing different aspects of the city.

ArtRage Gallery exhibits art for social change and has practiced progressive social activism in Central New York since 1982.

Community Engagement Organizer for ArtRage Gallery Kimberley McCoy said the Photo Walk is an important way to create a visual history of the South Side.

“This walk is such an important part of documenting Syracuse history,” McCoy said. “I can’t really think of any other project like that that’s been documenting a specific neighborhood for that long.”

The annual Photo Walk initially mirrored a global walk created to bring communities of photographers across the world together. Scott Kelby’s Worldwide Photo Walk was established more than a decade ago, and was held each July before transitioning to the fall. The Stand continued this walk each July on a smaller scale, capturing one Saturday each summer, year after year.

A behind-the-scenes look at participants of the first Photo Walk held in July 2010.

The director of The Stand, Syracuse’s South Side Community Newspaper Project, Ashley Kang, says the Photo Walk allows journalists to find stories the community wants to share.

“I try to find and prioritize stories the community brings to me, not just what press releases come over,” Kang says. “The Photo Walk is a great way to meet people out and about or even directly in their front yard.”

What began as a small group of eight to 10 people walking through the South Side in 2010 grew to 70 plus individuals by 2019. That year, additional South Side walks included a historic walk of the architecture along South Salina Street guided by David Haas, the creator of the well-known Instagram page , and a walk around the neighborhood surrounding the I-81 viaduct.

The event was reimagined in 2020 to avoid large gatherings because of COVID-19 restrictions. In order to still find ways to capture the city in photos, Kang organized a citywide photo contest as a way to still collect images and document this truly unique moment. Winning images from the 2020 photo contest are included in the gallery show.

Solon Quinn, a new volunteer and mentor with the Syracuse Journalism Lab, joined last summer when organized Photo Walks returned after Ryan encouraged him to volunteer. He said people should follow their passion of whatever art form they love but thinks education of and giving back to the community in other ways is just as important.

Photo volunteer Solon Quinn speaks during the April 6 Gallery Talk on how he engages with local communities and builds trust. Displayed behind him are the 2020 Photo Contest winners. (Photo by Mike Greenlar)

“I think [photographers] should be very respectful and aware when that art form is going to utilize human beings from different places of different cultures that you’re not used to being a part of,” Quinn says. He believes people should learn and understand the culture of the community before they participate in the Photo Walk.

“From Where We Stand” is on display through May 14 at ArtRage Gallery, located at 505 Hawley Ave. in Syracuse. The exhibition is available for viewing from 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and from noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays.

Additionally, an is available for those wanting to view the exhibit from home.

“We all know there’s some adversities that we face in the community,” Ryan said. “But [the Photo Walk] is a great way to show the community is a place of love.”

Plans are underway for the 2022 Photo Walk along with additional photo meetup opportunities. This summer’s big .

Story by Darian Stevenson, a graduate student in magazine, news and digital journalism in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications

Group therapy is an excellent way to explore emotional and social wellness, while feeling validated within unique identities.

While group therapy can be a resource to nurture nearly all , groups are an excellent way to explore and , while feeling validated within unique identities.

Why Is Group Therapy Important?
Leading offerings is . Brat strives to not only offer a diverse range of groups but encourages students, faculty, staff, parents and supporters to help promote these free opportunities to support student health and wellness.

“Groups are a microcosm of our world. They are supportive and confidential spaces for learning how to navigate mental health, interpersonal and individual holistic development goals,” Brat says.

How Does Group Therapy Differ From Individual Therapy?
Through daily conversations, media and more, individual therapy often receives more exposure and some may not even know that group therapy is an option—one that may actually be a better fit in comparison.

“Research shows that groups are far more beneficial than individual therapy in college counseling settings,” says Brat. “Group therapy helps individuals realize that they are not alone in facing certain problems and also provides a safe and real-world experience for practicing and improving skills. Additionally, it provides a means to express emotions more freely and have an opportunity to help one another, which can increase self-efficacy.”

A sampling of common issues addressed in group therapy includes the following. For a comprehensive list, .

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Difficulty in social situations and making friends
• Feeling overwhelmed
• Identity exploration
• Loneliness
• Stress management
• Trauma

What Can I Expect From Group Therapy?
Therapists facilitate the groups, enrollment is free and confidentiality is strictly respected. Built on a foundation of community, group therapy respects individual experiences and uniquely supports each participant’s goals. Within this safe space, experiences can include developing insight, working on changing behavior, improving interpersonal skills, sharing and providing feedback.

Upon reflecting on their experience, an anonymous student said, “I was really anxious about joining a group, but it was really helpful. I really enjoyed the exercises and skills we learned.”

Undergraduate and graduate groups, averaging eight to 10 students, meet weekly for 90-minute sessions. Participation may be on a rolling basis or close a few weeks into the semester.

“It felt good to know others have these problems too, and the two [therapist] facilitators were really nice,” shared another anonymous student participant.

Group Therapy Opportunities
Space fills quickly and early action is recommended. To participate, students may schedule an initial consultation to meet with a therapist and discuss group options and possible hesitations, by calling the Barnes Center at 315.443.8000.

For more information or to request accommodations, visit the , email the Barnes Center or call 315.443.8000.

About the Supporting Student Wellness Series
Through a student-focused lens of integrated health and wellness, this series explores a variety of Barnes Center at The Arch resources and services. In the pursuit of enhancing the student experience, topics empower faculty, staff, students, families and supporters as catalysts of health and wellness within their daily interactions.

Free COVID-19 testing is available to the Central New York community at the University’s stadium through Jan. 14.

With access to COVID-19 tests becoming increasingly scarce in and around Central New York, Syracuse University began offering free COVID-19 testing to the Central New York community on Jan. 4.

Announced earlier this month by New York State Gov. Kathy Hochul ’80, as part of a concerted, statewide effort to quickly detect and isolate the presence of the virus and limit transmission, the drive to administer free tests to community members came as COVID cases began to spike in and around Onondaga County at the beginning of the new year.

Through the initiative’s first week, nearly 1,700 Central New Yorkers have taken advantage of these free community COVID tests at the Stadium Testing Center on campus.

“The community response has been overwhelmingly positive so far. It has really been heartening to see so many community members take advantage of this resource, and we feel confident we will be able to accommodate everyone who comes out for a test,” says Adam Hepburn, executive director of operations in the University’s Office of Strategic Initiatives and Innovation.

When the announcement was first made, Hepburn admits he wasn’t sure how the greater community would respond to the free tests. He soon learned just how great of a need there was for complimentary COVID tests. Hepburn says many of the community members who have benefited expressed their gratitude over the University opening up its doors and making these tests available.

“There was a mother of five who brought her children with her to the Stadium Testing Center. As she came through the site, she explained to us just how difficult a time she had in finding tests for her children in the community, and that it would have cost her hundreds of dollars to get her kids tested. She was exceedingly pleased to have access to this testing resource on our campus,” says Hepburn, who credits the campus community for coming together to make this resource available.

Hepburn says the PCR direct saliva tests being administered at the Stadium Testing Center are accurate and reliable, with results known within 24 to 48 hours. Instead of requiring an appointment, interested community members can just walk up to the Stadium Testing Center and receive their saliva test, with very little wait time.

Members of the Syracuse community make their way through the Stadium Testing Center.

“The testing lab has been quite busy with this extra testing; however, we are still able to meet the 24-to-48-hour turnaround time to get test results back to community members,” adds Ramesh Raina, the University’s interim vice president of research and a member of the University’s Public Health Team. “These people who are benefiting from these tests are members of our community. With increased testing needs, combined with limited testing resources, anything we can do to help with testing is a good thing. We’re happy that we can help our community.”

In addition to the Public Health Team members and University staff facilitating the community testing, 10 members of the National Guard were deployed to the Stadium Testing Center to assist with this effort. Both Hepburn and Raina credit the University’s on-campus partners with ensuring the testing process runs smoothly.

Community members can continue to take advantage of free COVID tests at the stadium through Friday, Jan. 14. Testing hours of operation are from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

The University will continue providing testing to its campus community, including students, faculty, staff and the families of employees, at Kimmel Dining Hall through Friday, Jan. 14. Testing for campus members will resume at the Stadium Testing Center beginning on Sunday, Jan. 16. Hours for campus community testing are available on the��.

Syracuse University’s testing available to asymptomatic individuals. Individuals experiencing COVID-like symptoms should not visit the stadium; instead, they should contact their health care provider or visit a local urgent care facility. Individuals who plan to test at the Stadium Testing Center, be advised:

• No appointments are necessary; simply visit the testing center at a time that is convenient for you during operating hours.
• Parking is available at the Raynor Avenue Lot and Irving Garage; handicap accessible parking is available in the Quad Lot. A parking lot map can be accessed by visiting the��.
• Enter the stadium through Gate N.
• Do not eat, chew gum, drink, use mouthwash or use any tobacco products for 30 minutes before testing.
• Deposit enough saliva to reach the line marked on the tube.
• Only deposit saliva into the tube (no mucus or phlegm)!
• Hydrate well earlier in the day to prevent dry mouth.
• Masks must be worn at all times, except when actively depositing the test sample. Surgical masks will be available at the stadium.
• Individuals will receive test results via email with any appropriate guidance.
• Individuals who have tested positive in the last 90 days should not participate in this surveillance testing.

To learn more about Syracuse University’s testing strategy, visit��.

The room was buzzing with energy on a recent Tuesday night at the Clarence Jordan Vision Center on Syracuse’s south side. Eleven local high school students diligently toiled on Macs outfitted with headphones, digital keyboards and Novation Launchpads—digital soundboards used to create drum tracks, beats and other instrumental sounds. The students were putting finishing touches on compositions they’d been working on all semester using the music production software Ableton Live.

A group of seven graduate students in Professor David Knapp’s Assessment and Music Education course served as guides and advisors, answering students’ questions about the software, conducting a lesson on a component of music composition, and offering advice on the musical aspects of their songs, such as structure, melodies, harmonies and beat-making.

Cooper Elizabeth Klares G’21 (left) assists high school students with their digital music compositions.

The high school students’ compositions, ranging in genre from electronic music to hip hop to pop, are the culmination of the 12-week Digital Music Lab, a partnership between the University’s music education program and Mercy Works, a 501(c)3 organization serving Syracuse youth with free STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) programs.

The partnership, which was concepted by Knapp in the fall of 2019, is a win-win-win for Syracuse University, Mercy Works and the students involved at both the K-12 and graduate level.

For Mercy Works, which has historically been more STEM-focused, it expands the organization’s offerings with the addition of arts-related programming. For the K-12 participants, it delivers a rich music learning experience tailored to their own interests and vernacular, exposing them to the digital tools and technologies that facilitate DJing, programming beats and record production in a guided environment.

And for Knapp and his graduate students, the Digital Music Lab is one piece of a larger Music in the Community (MiC) initiative that seeks to reinforce the importance of community music-making and diversify the field experience of future music educators studying at Syracuse.

“Historically, music education programs have a hard time connecting with diverse, dynamic experiences, with our students typically going to suburban schools to observe music education classes that likely reflect their own music education experience,” says Knapp. MiC programming, including the Digital Music Lab, seeks to expose undergraduate and graduate students to diverse students and musics and reflect teaching practices that can be carried forth in any K-12 classroom, especially those located in a rich urban environment like Syracuse.

MiC also encompasses a rock band composed of refugee youth in the Syracuse area, called the New American All-Stars. The band was formed through a partnership between the music education program (which is dually housed in the College of Visual and Performing Arts’ Setnor School of Music and the School of Education) and the Northside Catholic Youth Organization’s Refugee Youth Program.

The Digital Music Lab curriculum takes participants through an inquiry-based music education where they develop music composition and production skills based on essential questions in the Ableton Live software. During each class, participants also reflect on short writing prompts that interrogate the meanings of their produced tracks, encouraging the K-12 students to explore the extra-musical meanings of their vernacular music.

Because the graduate-level class is focused on assessment, the Syracuse students huddle up with Knapp at the mid-point and end of each class to share insights on how participants are learning and being assessed throughout the process of their musical compositions. At the end of the semester, Digital Music Lab participants will present a finished product that includes their completed track and a brief abstract about the meaning that underlies their composition.

David Knapp, assistant professor of music education, huddles with his class of graduate students at Mercy Works.

Nati Torrence, program director at Mercy Works, says that the Digital Music Lab and partners like Syracuse University are incredibly valuable to the students they serve. Running on a vision-based philosophy, Mercy Works offers professional development, personal development and development of STEAM skills to approximately 300 Syracuse youth per year. “We want them to really have a positive outlook on their future, so even as we teach young people about how to build robots, we’re always talking about vision,” says Torrence. If someone gets an idea about an activity they want to try or a passion they may want to pursue, like digital music-making, Mercy Works does its best to capitalize on that passion.

“It’s phenomenal that Syracuse University took an interest in bringing the Digital Music Lab here, where kids can access it so easily and have the one-on-one mentorship and interaction with the graduate students. I couldn’t ask for a better partnership,” says Torrence.

The graduate students teaching and mentoring in the Digital Music Lab share that the experience has been a highlight of their time at Syracuse. “The project has greatly inspired me as a music educator,” says Cooper Elizabeth Klares G’21, who graduated with her master’s degree in music education this May. “In our classes, we discuss creating music classrooms that look like this music lab, but most of us have never have the opportunity to be in one ourselves or see this kind of class operating in the field.”

Nicholas Peta , a graduate student in choral conducting, music education, and audio arts—a dual program in VPA and Newhouse—adds, “Syracuse prides itself on its relations with the community and it also prides itself on inclusivity—and inclusivity also relates to genres within music. Our ability to collaborate with these students is not only a learning experience for us, but a learning experience for them. It’s a really cool symbiotic relationship where we get to learn more about music, together.”

High school student Dhan Dhakal, who goes by her middle name, Maya, is one of the participants in the Digital Music Lab. Having been through Mercy Works’ robotics and coding classes, she was excited to experience the Digital Music Lab because she loves music but has never learned how to create it.

“We learn about how to make beats, we learn about concepts of music and how digital music works. I’m having fun doing it because this is something I’ve always wanted to try,” she says.

Maya, one of the local high school students participating in the Digital Music Lab, works to put finishing touches on her composition.

For her final composition, Maya describes a relaxing track with beats, drums and piano. She says her favorite memory from the Digital Music Lab was when Knapp helped her create a song with a sound similar to K-Pop, her favorite musical genre. “I wanted to learn how to play the music I always listened to and so Dr. Knapp helped me, taught me how to play the piano and we made something similar to the K-pop sound,” she says with a grin.

“One of my favorite things is to help a student whose work I have not heard in a few weeks,” says Klares. “Listening to how far they’ve progressed in just a few classes is such a treat and it feels amazing knowing that they have grown so much through this new musical medium.”

To listen to participants’ final tracks, visit the .

Fairgoers take in the view on the swing ride at the Great New York State Fair in August 2019. (Photo by Michael J. Okoniewski for the Great New York State Fair.)

The pandemic caused events around the globe to be canceled, from concerts to fairs. With vaccines becoming widely available, some events are coming back—although in altered ways or with limited capacity. Here are a few of Central New York’s most exciting events that you can attend this year.

Taste of Syracuse: Picnics at the Park

This is a 13-week event featuring over 80 vendors at Onondaga Lake Park from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Thursday of June, July and August. Several vendors will be featured each week along with live performances. This event is taking the place of the usual Taste of Syracuse event, which usually takes place in downtown Syracuse and draws massive crowds. This smaller event gives people the opportunity to taste local vendors in a safer manner. Check back for weekly updates on vendors and performers on and Facebook page.

New York State Blues Festival

The is planning to return on June 24-26 this year. This free festival brings together local and national blues artists for a celebration of blues music. Any fan of the blues or music in general should check this one out.

St. Sophia’s Greek Cultural Festival

St. Sophia’s Greek Church, 325 Waring Road, DeWitt, holds an annual . However, this year’s Greek fest will be a “drive-thru Greek food fest.” Festival goers can pre-order food online to get a quick pick up, or they can drive up and decide there. The festival is taking place at St. Sophia’s Church from Thursday, June 10, through Sunday, June 13. There is a wide selection of classic Greek foods, including gyros, souvlaki, spanakopita and baklava.

Great New York State Fair

The has been happening every year in Syracuse since 1890, up until 2020. In 2019, over 1.3 million people attended the fair, this year it is making a return from Aug. 20-Sept. 6. Fairgoers can enjoy a wide array of live entertainment options, choose from hundreds of food vendors and see some incredible exhibitions, like sand sculptures and butter sculptures. This year, the fairgrounds was converted into a vaccination site, and in the summer it will pivot to hold one the largest annual events in New York State to celebrate culture, agriculture, entertainment and, of course, food.

ONC Crawfish and Food Truck Festival

The will take place on May 1 from noon to 6 p.m. at the Syracuse Inner Harbor. Festival goers will be able to get food to go from food trucks and enjoy flavorful crawfish. The event is sponsored by Operation Northern Comfort, a nonprofit that brings together organizations from around Central New York to help provide labor, donations and support to communities in need. Entry is free and all proceeds benefit ONC.

Syracuse Arts and Crafts Festival

From July 23-25, Syracuse will host a showcase of 160 of the state and country’s finest arts and crafters at the annual . The festival usually draws over 50,000 visitors, who had to view last year’s festival virtually. In addition to the arts and crafts, there will be dozens of food vendors at the festival.

From fully virtual to part-time in-person and socially distanced, students have persevered through the challenges of learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. But for some, limited access to technology, unreliable internet connectivity and a lack of quiet, designated spaces to work make it difficult to keep up with essential schoolwork. To help K-12 and early college students in Central New York facing these difficulties, Syracuse University has partnered with more than a dozen organizations to coordinate a regional remote tutoring program.

The program was recently featured on , and .

Organized by Brice Nordquist, Dean’s Professor of Community Engagement in the College of Arts and Sciences; Emily Winiecki, community engagement coordinator in the Office of Community Engagement; and Aley O’Mara, A&S engaged humanities research assistant, the program virtually connects local K-12 and early college students with tutors to work one-on-on or in small groups on schoolwork.

The program also facilitates a number of “enrichment” workshops—from creative writing to college application coaching. Most students meet with tutors in a virtual drop-in setting hosted by one of the partnering organizations. Over 200 students have connected to tutors and workshop leaders through the program and over 300 tutors have volunteered to provide support, including a mix of professionals, retired teachers, college students, staff and professors, and experts nationwide.

To support students and families in their communities, local organizations are facilitating connections with virtual tutors, providing students with educational-technology support, such as videoconferencing workstations, where tutors are available to offer help in various subjects. Partnering organizations include La Casita Cultural Center; Catholic Charities of Onondaga County; the Center for Community Alternatives; Dunbar Association, Inc.; Good Life Foundation; Hopeprint; Mercy Works at the Clarence Jordan Vision Center; the North Side Learning Center; RISE; Salvation Army; Syracuse City School District ENL Department; Syracuse Housing Authority; and YWCA Syracuse.

If you are interested in becoming a remote tutor, fill out the . For those interested in receiving help, or becoming a community partner, fill out the or contact Brice Nordquist at banordqu@syr.edu.

Louis Platt ’22 and Seth Martin Jr. ’22 were two members that attended the espresso brewing hands-on workshop with Café Kubal.

“We really try to connect students with off-campus opportunities to connect with entrepreneurs who have a passion for the environment and for food,” says Samantha Jezak ’22, the organization’s president. Jezak, a nutrition major, joined the club her freshman year, and has since enjoyed her experiences as a member and leader of the club.

The club holds several events throughout the semester for its members, as well as events open to the whole University. Additionally, they volunteer on local farms and next semester they plan to help Sustainable SU tend its garden on South Campus.

“We’re trying to make this movement more well-known because we hope that we’re the generation to make the change for bettering our environment,” says Jezak.

Louis Platt ’22, the organization’s community liaison, connects local food entrepreneurs and farmers with the club to coordinate events and form relationships between the University and the local food community.

From left to right: Seth Martin Jr. ’22, Grace Spino, Sabrina Bos ’23, Tajanae Harris ’20. Slow Food members went to Abbott Farms for a cider education tour. After, they went apple picking and enjoyed housemade donuts.

“Every event that I’ve been a part of has been a wild success so far,” Platt says. “The people we bring to campus are really passionate about their profession and the work they do on a daily basis, so it makes our events even more exciting.”

At an event last year, Professional Photographer Alyssa Flood helped students learn how to take food images. Using bread donated by Scratch Bakehouse, students designed their own toast and staged their images.

One of the members’ favorite Slow Food events last year was a “toast workshop” event. Students made their own toast dishes, then learned how to take professional pictures with instruction from a professional food photographer.

The club also partnered with other local food businesses, such as Cafe Kubal and a local chocolate maker, for events where students got to learn about how the businesses source their ingredients from around the world.

The club hopes to hold more exciting events this upcoming semester. Slow Food has been planning to hold a farmer’s market on the Quad, and if it is permitted to take place, vendors will come to campus to offer locally sourced goods ranging from fruits and vegetables to baked goods and much more to the campus community. As of now, the event is set to take place on Sept. 28.

Slow Food has several other events for members scheduled for next semester, depending on public health guidelines in place at at that time. Members will have the opportunity to participate in a “make your own mocktail” event with local restaurant, Brinewell Eatery, and an event hosted by Glazed and Confused Donut Shop.

Olivia Templeton ’22, member of Slow Food, waiting for people to pick up their CSA boxes.

Another exciting opportunity Slow Food is offering to all members of the campus community is its community-supported agriculture (CSA) box program. In partnership with Commonthread farm, Slow Food is giving students the option to pick up fresh, locally sourced vegetables once a week for eight weeks in September and October. Students can buy a small or large share and can customize what vegetables they want each week.

“The CSA boxes are honestly really great. I did it last year, and I split it with my roommate and it’s more than enough veggies,” Jezak says. “It’s definitely something that I would love for more people to get involved in because it’s truly connecting farmers with the campus.” Students, faculty and staff can register for the CSA Box program here.

During the spring semester, when the University transitioned to online learning and over summer break, Slow Food members have been sharing their cooking and gardening experiences from home on their Instagram page, .

The next semester is looking to be filled with exciting events and new opportunities for the club to bring high quality, locally sourced food to campus, and enhance the connection that Syracuse University has with the local food community.

Students from the School of Social Work attended the policy forum addressing lead poisoning of children in New York state.

With a focus on implications for public policy and social work practice, the 21st Annual James L. Stone Legislative Policy Forum brought students together with neighborhood, community and political leaders, and other experts to understand what can and needs to be done about the large number of children exposed to lead.

Any amount of lead in the body can be harmful, causing life-long cognitive and neurological delays and behavioral problems, among other issues. It is caused by inhaling or ingesting microscopic lead dust that comes from lead paint in older homes, the dirt where children play, water flowing through lead pipes into our homes and other less pervasive sources.

Students heard from panelists and speakers including state and county officials and others with political, professional and personal experience. They addressed lead poisoning from many aspects, including:

• social, economic and political forces giving rise to this problem
• implications of poisoning for children, families and communities
• ways social workers, social work services, public health professionals and policy advocates touch families experiencing the lead poisoning of a child
• efficacy of existing laws, regulations and programs
• legislation, administrative changes and advocacy civic efforts
• practical steps for remediating and eliminating lead poisoning of children

Keynote speake Gustavo Rivera, New York State senator representing, District 33 and chairman of the Committee on Health, presented “Legislative Action to End Lead Poisoning of Children in New York state.” Panels included:

Making State and Local Change
Moderator: , professor, Syracuse University School of Social Work
Panelists: Hon. Rachel May, Senator, New York State, District 53, chair, Committee on Aging and chair, Legislative Commission on Rural Resources; Hon. David H. Knapp, Chair, Onondaga County Legislature; Hon. Pamela J. Hunter, assemblywoman, New York State Assembly, District 128; chair, Subcommittee on Women Veterans

Lead Poisoning of Children in New York and Syracuse:
Poverty, Race, & Environmental Injustice
Moderator: , professor, Syracuse University School of Social Work
Panelists: , professor of public health and anthropology, Syracuse University, Research Professor Upstate Medical University; Robert Searing, curator of history, Onondaga Historical Association; Hon. Joe Driscoll, 5th District councilor, Syracuse Common Council, founder, Syracuse Lead Prevention Coalition; Kelly J. Mikullitz, Esq., supervising partner, O’Connell and Aronowitz Lead Poisoning and Toxic Exposure Litigation Group and first vice president, Brain Injury Association of New York State

The Lived Experience: How Lead Poisoning Affects the Lives of Children, Families, and Service Providers
Moderator, , associate professor, Syracuse University School of Social Work
Panelists: Darlene Medley, parent and member, Families for Lead Freedom Now; Oliviere Sekarore, bridging case manager, Refugee & Immigrant Self-Empowerment (RISE), and Ellen Morrissey, grandmother, member, Families for Lead Freedom Now, and founder of an online lead poisoning support group

Public/Private Collaborations to End Lead Poisoning in Syracuse
Moderator, , assistant professor, Syracuse University School of Social Work
Panelists: Peter Dunn, president and CEO Central New York Community Foundation; Stefanie Pasquale, commissioner, Department of Neighborhood and Business Development, City of Syracuse; Debra Lewis, M.S.W., lead program coordinator, Onondaga County Department of Health; Paul Ciavarri, community development organizer, Community Counsel Project of Legal Services of Central New York

The daylong event concluded with comments from Professor Kingson and Ellan Ryan, an M.S.W. graduate student. Ryan served as the student conference coordinator working closely with event organizers Professors Kingson and Carrie Jefferson Smith, along with director of the School of Social Work and chief diversity and inclusion officer at Syracuse University, Keith Alford.

School of Social Work alumnus James L. Stone, M.S.W. ’64 created an endowed fund to support this event into the future and was involved in this year’s event. “Once again, the School of Social Work has brought together an amazing and informative panel of experts, law makers and committed community leaders who bring clarity, understanding and passion to a significant issue that is relevant to social work practice and policy. We are indebted to James Stone for his generosity in endowing this event,” says Diane Lyden Murphy, dean of Falk College.

The Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology in downtown Syracuse.

Students will flood the��Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology (MOST) on Saturday night for late night programming thanks to a new partnership with the University’s program. The museum, located in downtown Syracuse, will be open especially for Syracuse University students. A $3 ticket, purchased through the Box Office in the Women’s Building, includes entry to the full museum, an interactive mystery activity, access to the planetarium shows, food and transportation.

“It’s always fun to do a new event, and it’s always exciting to introduce students to cool places in the community they might not have explored if we didn’t provide the reason and affordable option to do so,” says Courtney Jones, associate director in the Office of Student Activities.”

This new event at the MOST is a part of a newly expanded Orange After Dark that launched this fall semester. Previously, Orange After Dark hosted one to two events per weekend, in addition to the late-night movie and recreation options. The events were both on and off campus, always included food and never costed students more than $3. With those core features holding true, Orange After Dark is now providing three events per weekend through funding provided by Invest Syracuse.

“When you expand programming it’s a leap of faith,” says Jones. “As we have expanded, students continue to show up in the same numbers to even more events. We’re providing programming that is driven by students.”

As Orange After Dark searched for new partnerships in the community to add to its expanded programming, the MOST presented a perfect match. This year, the museum launched��NightLAB, programming designed for adults to enjoy an evening out and explore scientific concepts while having a great time.

Simultaneously, Bea �ҴDzԳ�á�����, vice president for community engagement and special assistant to Chancellor Kent Syverud, was having regular meetings with the MOST to establish a relationship with the University and the museum, understanding how the two could work together. �ҴDzԳ�á����� soon set up a meeting between Jones and the MOST, connecting campus to community.

“I value and am enjoying the opportunity to broker my relationships and expand those relationships to involve others at the University. And to get others in the community to meet folks at the University,” says �ҴDzԳ�á�����. “Orange After Dark is a good opportunity to bring students and the community together and promote local cultural institutions while providing our students healthy, fun experiences.”

This is not the end of the MOST’s partnership with Syracuse University. Gonzalez is continually finding campus partners to connect with the community, so stay tuned.

The hour-long program, which takes place in 114 Bird Library—the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons—will feature local NAACP President Linda Brown-Robinson and Vice President Gwendolyn Muok in a talk geared to University staff members. The program will focus on the local chapter’s history and current initiatives around civic engagement and diversity and inclusion within the Syracuse community. The speakers also will discuss ways that staff can become involved in local diversity and inclusion initiatives.

The NAACP chapter is one of several community organizations that EOIRS is working to partner with for programs and other activities in the coming year.

American Sign Language interpretation and Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) will be provided for the program. For accommodation requests, contact William Myhill, interim ADA coordinator, at ada@syr.edu.

For more information about the program, contact equalopp@syr.edu.

Kimberly Rattley, a renowned organizational development specialist with the Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm Cook Ross, will deliver the keynote address, titled “Understanding Everyday Bias.” Rattley will gear her presentation to staff, supporting them in their efforts toward embracing diversity and inclusion.��She also will examine factors that shape perceptions; explore the science of bias; review the impact of unconscious bias on relationships; and identify strategies to recognize and mitigate bias to improve decision-making and interactions.

“I am pleased that Kimberly Rattley will share her expertise with us,” Alford says. “As I have said before, at Syracuse University our credence in the dignity and worth of humankind is paramount. We champion inclusivity and view it as a dimension of excellence, enhancing who we are as students, faculty, staff and alumni.”

Andrew Gordon, senior vice president and chief human resources officer, says, “Our staff members impact every aspect of University operations every day. This program is designed to support them at all levels and in all they do to help foster a respectful and inclusive workplace for all.”

Rattley has more than 20 years’ experience partnering with clients to bring clarity, focus and cohesiveness to their diverse teams. She has extensive experience working with universities and colleges, and she combines her expertise in business, leadership development, diversity and systems analysis to assist clients with organizational challenges. She has designed more than 100 diversity training curricula, inclusive of culturally competent practices, for such clients as the Smithsonian Institution, American University, University of Pennsylvania and Skidmore College.

Rattley earned a Bachelor of Arts from Georgetown University and a Master of Social Work from Howard University. She also is certified in the areas of life management facilitation and organizational development from Georgetown University.

In addition to Rattley’s presentation, Cook Ross will facilitate two afternoon workshops, titled “Addressing Microbehavior,” for staff with supervisory or management responsibilities. Because space is limited for the workshops, invitations will be sent to invitees. Staff who have a special interest in attending, however, are welcome to contact the Office of Equal Opportunity, Inclusion and Resolution Services at equalopp@syr.edu to secure a seat.

American Sign Language interpretation and Communication Access Real time Translation (CART) will be provided during the Dec. 14 presentation and discussion. For any accommodation requests, please contact William Myhill, interim ADA coordinator, at ada@syr.edu.

There will be no vigil Mass held on campus this year.

Contact: Jeremiah Deep
Hendricks Chapel
315.443.2600
jedeep@syr.edu

The changes now limit parking only to the south curbside of Euclid Avenue between Ostrom Avenue and Westcott Street. This ban on northside parking eliminates the previous odd-even parking regulations and allowed for the addition of new dedicated bike lanes for both eastbound and westbound bicyclists.

In addition, parking along the south curbside of Euclid is prohibited between noon and 2 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays to allow for street cleaning and/or plowing. The midday times were chosen by the city to minimize congestion during the a.m. and p.m. workday traffic rush and to allow students and residents to continue parking their vehicles on the street overnight. City transportation officials say the midday restriction is considered best practice in many snowbelt municipalities.

The restriction does mean, however, that those parking along Euclid during the day on Tuesdays/Thursdays/Saturdays—including game days—will have to move their cars between noon and 2 p.m. or risk getting ticketed.

The parking changes were made as part of the city’s Euclid Avenue improvement project to promote safety for all types of traffic, including bicyclists and pedestrians, along a stretch that is heavily used by students, employees and others entering and exiting the campus via Euclid. The project complements upcoming Waverly and Comstock Avenue improvement projects that together will create six miles of continuous bike lanes from the eastside to downtown. ��

Thornden Park

The city earlier this month also began more strictly enforcing longstanding two-hour parking limits in Thornden Park. The restrictions, which are posted, are designed to ensure parking is available for park visitors, who can face difficulty finding space, especially during the academic year.

Campus employees and students who had been using Thornden Park for all-day parking are urged to make alternative arrangements.

For more information on campus parking options, contact the University’s Office of Parking and Transit Services at 315.443.4652 or��parkmail@syr.edu.

The workshop provided an opportunity for the center’s leadership and the youths to experience and learn more about the AVP program. The children practiced affirmations in pairs and participated in various games and exercises, including a brainstorming session on violence/non-violence and the roots of violence. They also practiced listening skills, which enabled them to learn things about each other that they didn’t know.

The center and AVP are discussing plans to hold other mini-workshops in the fall, as well as a full basic youth workshop for children from the center and two other nearby youth centers.

“I applaud AVP’s efforts to educate about alternatives to violence and empower individuals to develop the personal skills necessary to utilize nonviolent solutions to deal with conflict,” says Syracuse University Vice President for Community Engagement Bea �ҴDzԳ�á�����. “Our children are seeking these skills, and we are committed to assisting them. The lessons they learn now will serve them both now and later as they become adults.”

The South Side Communication Center—located at 2331 S. Salina St., Syracuse—opened in 2011. It is a key asset in the development of a business and cultural district along South Salina Street between East Colvin Street and Brighton Avenue that has been spearheaded by the (SCC), and Home HeadQuarters.

The center offers an open access computer cluster, providing residents with free public access to computers with internet connectivity and on-site assistance, and the center provides a platform for several SCC and South Side Initiative projects, including and Networking Academy classes.

The SU Corporate Duck, decorated by Denise Dowdall, Executive Assistant to the Associate Vice President for Health and Wellness, Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience

Double the “good feeling” when you simultaneously help two great causes. Buy Duck Race to End Racism raffle tickets from one of the Office of Multicultural Affairs’ nonprofit community partners until Saturday, June 9, and you’ll help support the programs and activities of that organization and the Ahmad & Elizabeth El-Hindi Center for Dialogue. Ticket sales are split 50/50. The grand prize for the raffle drawing is a $1,000 shopping spree at Destiny USA. Contact InterFaith’s Gwen Sanders at gsanders@interfaithworkscny.org��or call her at 315.449.3552, ext. 119, for a list of partnering organizations and contacts.

Besides the free family entertainment and free ice cream from Byrne Dairy, here is what you can expect this year for the 16th Duck Race to End Racism, scheduled from noon-4 p.m. on Saturday, June 9, at Syracuse’s Inner Harbor. Returning for the third year is Terra MakerHall, who is providing fun science and technology activities for children and youth, as well as a video booth and roving reporters, thanks to Syracuse Stories.

In addition to the information shared by a diverse array of civic groups and corporate and community duck races, the event also features duck races by youth organizations and school classes and the chance to win an $800 diversity library.

From left: YWCA Syracuse Board Chair Ellen Hemmerlein, the Rev. Brian Konkol, Professor Peppie Calvar, YWCA Executive Director Fanny Villarreal, and James Duah-Agyeman at the 2018 Day of Commitment event.

The Day of Commitment brought together more than 150 community members to participate in a variety of workshops for diversity training and celebrate the accomplishments of the distinguished group. The workshops focused on addressing the barriers to progress and creating solutions to drive community change. Listening and understanding were key themes of event.

, assistant professor and assistant director of choral activities in the and , director of the��, were among nine area residents honored with the award. To be chosen, recipients must have demonstrated they are individuals who embrace diversity; support opportunities for women’s growth and leadership; embody the spirit of peace, justice, freedom and dignity; and work diligently toward the elimination of racism.

“As leaders invited into the ongoing process of bringing order out of chaos, perhaps the most important element in the life of faithful citizenship is the ability to listen. For in listening, we receive the transformative power of vision and voice, and in doing so, the conflicts between humankind are crafted into something new,” Konkol said during his remarks. “For if the arc of history reveals anything, it shows that real conversation requires listening. As diverse people seeking to lead in the midst of conflicting times, real conversation requires listening. How simple, and yet how incredibly difficult. Real conversation requires listening, yet listening seems to be missing in our world today.”

For more information about the 2018 Day of Commitment and other programs visit the YWCA of Syracuse

News and Sports coverage took other honors as well, including Best Spot News Coverage, Best Human Interest Feature Story, Best Sports Story and Best Sports Show.

The “City Limits” website contains all the reporting for the year-long poverty initiative, as well as audio of panel discussions that occurred on air on poverty, how education is impacted, and poverty and the criminal justice system.

WAER’s Maura Sheridan took top honors in the Best Sports Story competition for her story “Paving the Road.”

Meredith Kava took second place in the category for “From the Marines to the Syracuse Sidelines.”

The WAER sports staff was also honored for Best Sports Show. “Countdown to Tipoff,” Syracuse v. Kansas pregame, won first place. The show included contributions from many staff members, including Sean Salisbury, Evan Stockton, Jake Marsh and Maura Sheridan.

“Countdown to Kickoff,” pregame for Syracuse v. Clemson football, took second place in the category. Again, many people contribute to the broadcasts; this one was led by Salisbury, Stockton, Noah Eagle and Tyler Aki.

WAER coverage of the Syracuse Climate March was named Best Spot News Story. The story, “Syracuse Climate March Attracts 1000 for Climate Actions & against Trump Policies” by News Director Chris Bolt, chronicled the event in April 2017, which was part of a national day of actions around the issue.

Bolt was also honored for Best Human Interest Feature, along with Tom Honan of Live Space Entertainment for “Songwriter Jimmy Webb & Glen Campbell’s Family Remember his Music & Struggle with Alzheimer’s.” The story previewed a performance by Webb in Syracuse and included interviews with Campell’s wife, Kim, and daughter Ashley.

The story “WAER Takes EV on the Road: Can Long Range All-Electric Fit Your Lifestyle?” won second place in the category. Bolt told the story of a week-long test drive in the all-electric vehicle, including the realities of driving and getting it charged.

The Black History Month Series “Central New York Unknown Underground” was named second place in the Best Radio Special Program category. The stories, about the numerous area connections to the Underground Railroad and anti-slavery movement, included: “Jerry Rescue Facts, Slaves Hidden at Restaurant, Women’s Rights Abolitionist,” “New York Abolition Efforts, Douglass, Tubman, had Key Benefactor in CNY, who Many Don’t Know (about Gerrit Smith),” and “Syracuse Street Corner Should be Monument to Prominent Abolitionist (Jermain Loguen) and Underground Railroad History.”

All benefits-eligible faculty and staff who meet the J.P. Morgan event are invited to join the SU Team.

Each team participant will receive:

• Syracuse University tech running shirt;
• official 2018 Corporate Challenge event tech running shirt;
• tented pre- and post-race refreshment area offering snacks and beverages, as well as tables and chairs; and
• half of the $37 registration paid for by the University.

Registration is a two-step process:

1. Complete the
2. Bring a check for $18.50 payable to “Syracuse University” to the Office of Government and Community Relations, Suite 2-212 in the Center for Science and Technology (easiest entry is off of the R3 parking lot next to CST on Comstock Avenue).

The check must be delivered by noon on May 8. No late payments will be accepted.

Visit the wellness site for . For a course map and more information on the Syracuse Corporate Challenge, visit .

Questions? Contact SU Team Captain, John Beecher at jtbeeche@syr.edu.

This year’s effort begins Thursday, May 3, and extends through Friday, May 11. Donation boxes will be located in most residence halls, Schine Student Center, Goldstein Student Center and some Greek houses on campus. Donations of non-perishable food items will also be accepted at these same locations. Food donations will benefit the Hendricks Chapel food pantry and local CNY food banks.

Ten Tons of Love would not be possible without the generosity of students, faculty and staff. Throughout its history, the Ten Tons of Love initiative has collected tons of items that have helped thousands of families in the Syracuse area. Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity (FIJI) has partnered with Ten Tons of Love again this year to assist with donation collections.

“This year, FIJI brothers will deliver all of the items donated from participating Greek houses and the larger Syracuse University community to the Boys and Girls Club, located just past the Brewster, Boland and Brockway complex,” says Patrick Fessler ’19, a child and family studies major in and FIJI’s philanthropy chair. “We encourage participation from all Greek houses. Ten Tons of Love is a great way for students and the community to get involved directly with the greater Syracuse area.”

Additional volunteers are also needed to assist. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact Erin Riggs or Joseph Personte in the Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Keith Alford

Alford is chair and associate professor in the School of Social Work, . A former child protective services worker, outpatient family therapist and therapeutic foster care supervisor, he has devoted his professional life to serving and researching the needs of children and families. He became affiliated with InterFaith Works in 1996 when the agency was launching the Communitywide Dialogue Circles to End Racism.

“Dialogue is so important versus debate,” he says. “When you debate, you have winners and losers. But when you engage in dialogue, it is a process of really trying to understand where the other person is coming from and where he or she would like to go. Through dialogue, we are always looking for ways to clear up misperceptions and understand the lived experiences of others. It also provides the opportunity for relationship building. Sometimes lifelong relationships develop across multicultural lines as a result of dialogue circles.”

In addition to his involvement with InterFaith Works, Alford has regularly served other organizations across Onondaga County. For eight years, he served as a trustee of the Onondaga County Public Library. He is a current board member of Access CNY, an organization that serves people with disabilities. In 2014, he was named by “Social Work Degree Guide” as one of the 30 most influential social workers in the nation. In 2015, he was given the Harriet Tubman Spirit Award from Bethany Baptist Church and the Excellence in Service Award from Falk College. His academic writings have appeared in numerous social work journals and he has authored book chapters in “Mental Health Care in the African American Community” (Haworth Press, 2007) and “Educating Our Black Children” (Routledge, 2001). He is co-editor of “Rural Families and Reshaping Human Services” (Routledge, 2015).

Says Alford, “I am humbled by this award. I am aware of others who have received it over the years and they are people I have always admired. It is also a reminder that my work is not complete. There is still much to do. So this award will be an energizer in many ways—inspiring me to persevere in the work I have always done and will continue to do with a renewed sense of purpose.”

2018 InterFaith Leadership Awards will also be presented to Dennis Baldwin, counsel, Mackenzie Hughes; the Rev. Frederick Daley, pastor, All Saints Church; Rabbi Daniel Fellman, Temple Concord; Melanie Littlejohn, regional executive director, National Grid; Peggy Ogden, former president/CEO, Central New York Community Foundation; the Rev. Peter Shidemantle, pastor, Pebble Hill Presbyterian Church; Yusuf Soule, coordinator, OnCampus Program, Syracuse City School District; and the Syracuse University .

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

The New American All Stars practice for their debut concert at Setnor Auditorium.

It’s the debut concert of the Music in the Community program run by David Knapp, an assistant professor of music education in the and . The musicians include music education students in VPA’s Setnor School of Music and the School of Education and members of the New American All-Stars from the Catholic Youth Organization’s Refugee Youth Program. The program includes popular and original songs from the United States, Syria and Rwanda.

“The primary goal is to provide the students at CYO with a feeling of success and accomplishment,” says Knapp. “By doing this, the audience will see the rich diversity and talent within our city.”

Twelve students between the ages of 13 and 18 comprise the core of New American All-Stars. Coming from Congo, Rwanda, Syria, Jordan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, they represent the diversity of Syracuse, says Knapp.

They perform on a��variety of rock band instruments—including electric guitars and basses, a drum set and��keyboard—and will be joined by 14 undergraduate and graduate��students in the Secondary General Music Methods course, who will play their own songs and accompany the New American All-Stars.

The New American All-Stars and students in the methods course wrote or selected all the music on the program, Knapp says. “Once students selected their music, I simply transcribed and taught them��the chord changes. But many of these students at CYO��were already so��musically talented, they were able to figure out the music themselves.”

Music in the Community began in fall 2017 to connect undergraduate and graduate student experiences with community programs, Knapp says.

“In doing so, music education was able to partner with community organizations, like CYO, in providing much-needed services, while also giving our students meaningful pre-service learning experiences with diverse groups in our Syracuse community.”

The performance is made possible by support from the John L. and Dona Lynn Kreischer Scholars Initiative at the School of Education. Jack Kreischer��III ’65 is a Life Trustee of Syracuse University and his wife, Lynn Duncan Kreischer ’66, is an emerita member of the School of Education Board of Visitors and former chair. They set up the fund to support the Teaching English Language Learners program, with preference for literacy collaboration with the music education program on community music.

The Kreischers’ “continued commitment to the university and Syracuse community��has allowed for this kind of opportunity to partner in ways that support student and community outcomes,” Knapp says.

The New American All-Stars concert runs from noon-1 p.m. in Setnor Auditorium of Crouse College, followed by a reception. The events are free and open to the public.

OrangeSeeds volunteers for the 2016 Big Event.

Check-in begins at 9 a.m., with volunteers returning to campus by 3 p.m. The Big Event is put on by a group of first-year and transfer students who connect with local nonprofits to provide service and volunteer work throughout the day.

“The Big Event is a first step in making a more service-oriented student body,” says freshman member Patrick Linehan. “Volunteers will learn about the issues facing our city and the incredible nonprofits doing work to help address those issues. It will be an eye-opening experience, where the volunteers will benefit as much as those they are trying to help.”

Organizers from OrangeSeeds have paired with 14 local organizations to volunteer for the Big Event, including Adapt CNY, Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels and the Ronald McDonald House of CNY. Volunteers will help these organizations by providing different service work for each, such as putting together a community garden at Adapt CNY and helping to organize and execute a cookout for guests at the Ronald McDonald House.

“Volunteering off campus provides an opportunity to expose students to a beautiful, vibrant community full of people with rich and important stories,” says A.J Seymour ‘21.

“Having the opportunity to engage with the community right around us is so rewarding and should be utilized. It’s a wonderful opportunity to make someone’s day and create memories,” says Isabella Falcione ‘20.

Check-in on April 21 begins at 9 a.m. at Hendricks Chapel. A light breakfast will be provided and T-shirts will be given out to the first 150 people to check in.

At the check-in, two speakers will begin the event with welcome speeches. They are the Rev. Brian Konkol, dean of Hendricks Chapel, and Syeisha Bird, the director of the Office of Engagement at Syracuse University.

For more information or to request accommodations, contact OrangeSeeds at orangeseeds@syr.edu.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Ben Russell, “Good Luck (Portraits),” 2017

Due to the 140-minute duration of the piece, the reception will precede the film at 5 p.m. The screening, opening with an introduction by the filmmaker, will start promptly at 5:30 p.m. Russell will join us in person to introduce the film and for a brief a Q&A following the screening. The event is free and open to the public.

This event is held in conjunction with the exhibition of the related new commissioned work “Good Luck (Portraits)” at UVP’s outdoor architectural projection venue on��the Everson Museum Plaza. The exhibition will be projected onto the northern facade of the at 401 Harrison St.��through May 26, Thursday-Saturday, dusk-11 p.m.

ACCESSIBILITY
The screening will take place in a wheelchair-accessible auditorium. The film is subtitled for all spoken dialogue. CART services for the intro and Q&A portions are available upon advance request; call: 315-443-1369 or email: info@urbanvideoproject.com

“Good Luck” takes the audience on a mind-bending journey deep into the unforgiving copper mines of Serbia and emerging thousands of miles away among an illegal band of gold miners in the Suriname jungle.

��GOOD LUCK (PORTRAITS)
Derived from a four-channel installation first presented in Kassel, Germany, in 2017 at the international art biennial, documenta 14, this single-channel looping projection presents a series of intimate black-and-white S16mm portraits of miners, as recorded between a state-owned large-scale underground copper mine in the war-torn state of Serbia and an illegal gold mining collective in the tropical heat of Suriname. Made in the style of Andy Warhol’s “Screen Tests” and filmed on site (both under-and-aboveground), these hand-processed portraits are accompanied by a visceral soundscape drawn from the chaotic working environment of the men pictured. ��In “Good Luck (Portraits),” the film’s subjects briefly pause in the infinite labor of mineral extraction to give us a subjective vision of their inner selves—a vision controlled by their own hand. ��Here is the human foundation of capital, revealed.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

(b.1976, USA) is an artist and filmmaker whose work lies at the intersection of ethnography and psychedelia. His films and installations are in direct conversation with the history of the documentary image, providing a time-based inquiry into trance phenomena and evoking the research of Jean Rouch, Maya Deren and Michael Snow, among others. Russell received a 2008 Guggenheim Fellowship, a FIPRESCI International Critics Prize (IFFR 2009) for his first feature film “Let Each One Go Where He May.” His second feature film, “A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness”��(co-directed with Ben Rivers), premiered at the Locarno International Film Festival in 2013. Curatorial projects include “Magic Lantern” (Providence, USA, 2005-2007), “BEN RUSSELL” (Chicago, USA, 2009-2011), and “Hallucinations” (Athens, Greece, 2017). He currently resides in Los Angeles. In the summer of 2017 he was an exhibiting artist in documenta 14.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Otto and golfers getting ready for the tournament in 2017.

The Third Annual Sport Venue and Event Management Golf Classic��includes 18 holes of golf, lunch and a dinner reception for the $150 entry fee. For those interested in attending the reception, only, $45 tickets are available. This year, the event will also offer a special $25 student ticket to the reception. The reception-only tickets include dinner, raffles, entertainment, a silent auction to benefit Vera House and remarks by former U.S. Women’s National Soccer Player Jillian Loyden, who created a foundation after losing her sister to domestic violence.

“This has been a great experience and I am honored to be a part of this event and support Vera House and the great work they do,” says SVEM graduate student Jessica LaRoussa. “We are really excited for the new additions to the event as well as an amazing keynote speaker.”

The execution of the tournament is part of the sport venue and event management curriculum that requires students to organize an event to gain a direct, hands-on learning experience working in all facets of the sports industry. To date, their efforts have included selecting the community partner, course operations, marketing, hospitality, fundraising and sponsorships.

While students planning the tournament are currently enrolled in SPM 665, Advanced Event Management, taught by Associate Professor Gina Pauline, who also serves as undergraduate program director in sport management, the students begin thinking about the tournament in an event management course taught the previous summer. Students’ efforts were then tied into a Fall 2017 sport marketing course taught by Associate Professor of Sport Management Patrick Walsh, where students focused on marketing, sponsorship, public relations and operations. Their activities included market research and review of the previous year’s event, which resulted in the marketing plan being used for the golf tournament.

This event deliberately connects event management courses, including experiential learning opportunities, with social responsibility, which is a hallmark of all academic programs across Falk College. During March,��the students and many others at Syracuse University joined thousands throughout Central New York wearing a white ribbon or white wristband to raise awareness about domestic and sexual violence as part of the annual White Ribbon Campaign.

“The students have gained so much experience in all facets of event planning while understanding the need for themselves and their peers to go outside of the confines of a classroom and serve as an advocate to end domestic and sexual violence,” says Pauline. “While they came into this course focused on planning an event, it has turned into so much more as they now understand social responsibility. Vera House has been a tremendous organization to partner with this semester. The impact this project has left on each and every one of them professionally and personally is tremendous.”

For more information about the event, including sponsorship and donation of auction items, contact Pauline via email at gapaulin@syr.edu. Details are also available at .

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

All benefits-eligible faculty and staff who meet the J.P. Morgan event are invited to join the SU Team.

Each team participant will receive:

• Syracuse University tech running shirt
• official 2018 Corporate Challenge event tech running shirt;
• tented pre- and post-race refreshment area offering snacks and beverages, as well as tables and chairs; and
• half of the $37 registration paid for by the University.

Registration is a two-step process:

1. Complete the .
2. Bring a check for $18.50 payable to “Syracuse University” to the Office of Government and Community Relations, Suite 2-212 in the Center for Science and Technology (easiest entry is off of the R3 parking lot next to CST on Comstock Avenue).

The check must be delivered by noon on May 8. No late payments will be accepted.

Visit the wellness site for . For a course map and more information on the Syracuse Corporate Challenge, visit .

Questions? Contact SU Team Captain, John Beecher at jtbeeche@syr.edu.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Playwright Hinderaker wrote “The Magic Play” specifically for Schneider. The two have been collaborating since the earliest days of the process and Schneider created all the magic used in the show.

In the play, Schneider portrays a character identified simply as Magician. He is a young and successful entertainer. “The Magic Play” begins with Magician in the midst of a performance of sleight-of-hand tricks. As Magician, Schneider solicits participants from the audience to take part in his act, giving the play the look and feel of a club engagement. A simultaneous live video feed allows the audience to witness the tricks in real time as they unfold.

Another part of “The Magic Play” concerns Magician’s life when he is not performing. Magician is dealing with the fallout from a recent break-up with his lover, a character called Diver played by Sean Parris. Diver is an aspiring Olympian. The question of whether Magician can repair his relationship with Diver becomes the dramatic center of the play.

“In its essence, ‘The Magic Play’ is about love and how you connect with someone. How can you be truthful and trust?,” says the show’s director, Halena Kays. “We see [Magician] grapple with the idea of trust, what real trust is in interpersonal relationships and when dealing with the world as a whole.”

A third character in the play is identified as Another Magician. He is Magician’s father played by Jack Bronis. Though working, the father is less successful than the son, and the two have been estranged for a long time, which leaves Magician with another relationship in need of repair.

“Magician is extremely talented in his craft,” Hinderaker explained. “But when he loses the person he cares most about, he begins to question what is important. What has he given up to be good?”

Hinderaker says he was inspired to write “The Magic Play” because of the impact magic can have on an audience.

“Magic sort of raises the bar for what you can expect from a piece of theater,” he explains. “I’ve been to magic shows where people are gasping out loud, or where they’ve just burst into tears. And I can’t help but ask: why doesn’t theater feel like that more often? My one hope is that people will come away and say, ‘I didn’t know theater could look like that, feel like that.’”

In addition to the potential “wow” it might provide, Kays sees the magic as serving as a kind of metaphor for Magician’s troubled relationships.

“To perform magic, he must be in complete control of the audience—control of what they see, what they think, what they feel,” she says. “What happens if in real life you can’t relinquish that control?”

Tickets are now available at , by phone at 315-443-3275 and in person at the Box Office.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Martin Alberto Gonzalez, left, with children during a Reading Circles workshop at La Casita

More than 160 student volunteers and interns worked this year with La Casita, says Tere Paniagua ’82, executive director of the ’ Office of Cultural Engagement for the Hispanic Community. That number increases by about 40 percent each year, she says.

La Casita volunteers and interns, including about a dozen students seeking practicum opportunities in bilingual education, work with La Casita’s bilingual library and dual language Reading Circles. An annual book project offers learning opportunities in publishing including editorial work, graphic design and marketing.

“La Casita’s bilingual library is a resource for La Casita’s various bilingual programs and for communities that interact with us daily, including local residents and University faculty and students,” Panaigua says.

The organization “serves communities on and off campus, by providing a cultural and language immersion experience that is impossible to come across anywhere in our city and our region,” she adds. “In just seven years, it has evolved into a unique project that positions the College of Arts and Sciences and Syracuse University as a leading Hispanic cultural engagement institute and partner in developing groundbreaking cultural heritage research in the CNY region.”

La Casita currently serves 67 children in its weekly literacy programs—a core mission of the center. Dual language literacy programs continue to grow, with four weekly workshops, including two preschool groups and two elementary school-level groups. Plans are underway to offer a high school program in collaboration with the ’s program.

This year’s “Diversity in Reading” events include:

• 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 11: Martín Alberto �ҴDzԳ�á����� will present a talk on his book “21 Miles of Scenic Beauty and Then Oxnard.” �ҴDzԳ�á�����’s 2017 book is based on personal experiences growing up as a first-generation Xicano in Oxnard, California. He is a doctoral student in the Cultural Foundations of Education program and oversees La Casita’s dual-language literacy program, working with the children of the Spanish Action League youth programs.

Proceeds from book and sticker sales at this event support the annual campaign. Collaborating on this program is Syracuse’s Xicanex Empowering Xicanex (XEX) student organization.

• 1 p.m. Saturday, April 21: La Casita will release its third bilingual children’s book, written and illustrated by the children of La Casita’s weekly afterschool Reading Circles. “Gabi in Her Little World” will be released during the opening reception of the annual Young Art exhibit at La Casita.

This program is supported by the College of Arts and Sciences and the Latino-Latin American studies program. Assisting with the project were Dashel Hernández G’18, who is studying public administration at the , and and Tajanae Harris ’18, an anthropology major at Maxwell. Hernández and Olivia A. Hager ’18, a retail major at the , oversaw the book’s graphic design and composition.

At this event, the children will also present a Spanish translation of Elizabeth Schoonmaker’s children’s book “Square Cat” (La gata cuadrada). Children’s illustrations will be on display.

• Throughout April: Supporters may also donate money or books. . Supporters can .

“Children’s bilingual books are always in demand at La Casita,” Panaguia says. ��“Even the smallest donation will be greatly appreciated.”

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

An image from the 914 Works exhibition “Transitional Refugee Housing.”

An opening reception will be held on Thursday, March 29, from noon-2 p.m. Regular hours for the exhibition are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public.

The exhibition is presented as part of the Community Design Studio, a joint research and studio effort of the EDI program and the construction management program. The Community Design Studio affords students the opportunity to reach out to the community as well as facilitate an understanding of the social and environmental challenges faced by the residents of Syracuse.

Working with various housing organizations in Syracuse, the Community Design Studio learned that approximately 1,800 vacant properties exist within the city of Syracuse, and there is a significant lack of housing for low-income and refugee families. While these organizations are seeking better opportunities to secure homes for refugee families upon their arrival, the students put this challenging project into their own hands and titled it “Transitional Refugee Housing.”

In the Fall 2017 semester, the students selected two potential housing properties of the organizations’ interest in North Syracuse. The EDI students surveyed the existing structures and proposed and delivered design packages, from conceptual drawings to construction documents based on specific housing needs. In the Spring 2018 semester, the EDI students collaborated with the construction management students to prepare cost estimation, construction schedules, value engineering and sustainable construction recommendations. This effort evidenced meaningful collaboration between learners of both design and construction management while creating effective and practical proposals for the local housing organizations to pursue.

For more information about the exhibition,��email��914works@syr.edu.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

More than 50 new citizens will take their oath of allegiance before the Hon. Thérèse Wiley Dancks, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of New York, and 1991 graduate of the College of Law. A number of active duty U.S. servicemen and women will realize their citizenship at this ceremony. Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh and U.S. Representative John Katko (NY-24) will be in attendance. The ceremony will be followed by a reception in Dineen Hall.

The event is free and open to the public.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Students from the College of Engineering and Computer Science drop off equipment for students of the Syracuse City School District.

As part of the Engineering Ambassadors program, College of Engineering & Computer Science students delivered the equipment to Grant Middle School on Syracuse’s North Side. Middle school students who attend Westside Academy, Edward Smith K-8 School, Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection, HW Smith Pre-K-8 School, and Grant Middle School will be able to utilize these new tools, which range from chemistry kits and lab instruments to Apple products and even a drone.

Each week, a team of students from the College of Engineering & Computer Science work with students in the five SCSD partner sites. The college students deepen their understanding of course material as they design and facilitate discovery model lessons centered on engineering concepts.

Now in its 12th year, the Engineering Ambassadors program was developed to increase students’ exposure to STEM and help them discover a passion in those fields. The program helps transition students from middle school into high school, motivating them work toward graduation, and pursue career aspirations.

The Engineering Ambassadors program is a collaboration between SRC Inc., Syracuse University’s Mary Ann Shaw Center for Public & Community Service, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the SCSD and Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection in Syracuse.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Chef Bill Collins works with participants during the “Flavor and Savor” sodium reducation session in the Falk College kitchens.

According to the CDC, nearly 9 in 10 U.S. children eat more sodium than recommended, and about 1 in 9 children has raised blood pressure, which is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Because the majority of sodium consumed is present in foods prior to their purchase and preparation, the Health Department-Falk partnership created “Flavor and Savor” sodium reduction sessions for local agencies and schools to lower sodium intake from prepared foods as well as when making recipes from scratch.

Developing and leading the sessions were Falk culinary specialist Chef Bill Collins in collaboration with Roseanne Jones, a registered dietitian-nutritionist with the Health Department’s Bureau of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention. Collins teaches courses in Falk College’s nutrition and food studies programs and is a professional chef who previously owned and operated restaurants. “Chef Collins helped participants think about all of the places sodium shows up in recipes and how to combat it,” says Jones. “The training helped participants build flavor into recipes without adding any salt.”

Using a simple hands-on approach, participants learned that with only minor adjustments, sodium content can be significantly lowered. “We helped participants understand the sodium content of pre-packaged foods and what approaches they can take to make their food healthier,” says Collins. During the session, Collins compared a store-bought barbecue sauce to one he served in his restaurants for years with 58 percent less sodium. “By changing two ingredients—no-salt-added canned tomato and ketchup—the reduction jumped to 97 percent. The marinara sauce and the salad dressings all had similar results,” notes Collins.

Attendees included cooks, chefs, dietitians, dietetics students and managers, from SUNY ESF, Onondaga Community College, SUNY Upstate Medical University, PEACE, Inc. Head Start and Senior programs, Salvation Army, Lydia’s Lullaby Daycare and the Syracuse City School District. Jones notes that, “sodium reduction changes in each of these venues could impact up to 20,000 people per day in Syracuse.”

According to Jones, 25 percent of adults in Onondaga County have been diagnosed with hypertension. National estimates show there could be another 36 percent of people who go undiagnosed. “Diet is important in this equation. Changing sodium content in our pre-made foods, as well as foods from cafeterias and restaurants, helps people reduce sodium intake without their even having to try,” she says.

When Falk College opened the Susan R. Klenk Café and Teaching Kitchens in 2016, the vision was to create a space that set the stage for industry-leading, forward-thinking approaches to food and nutrition that would benefit students as well as the community at-large. “Social responsibility in the community is a critical part of our mission,” says Falk Dean Diane Lyden Murphy. “This program is another example of how Falk College’s experiential kitchens allow us to train future food and nutrition professionals to work effectively with the community.”

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

“Elf the Musical” is Syracuse Stage’s annual holiday family show. Based on the New Line Cinema film starring Will Ferrell, “Elf the Musical” follows an oversized elf named Buddy on his search for his real family in New York City. Filled with humor and terrific songs, this heartwarming musical will be co-produced with the Syracuse University Department of Drama.

Audition Information

Michael: Buddy’s stepbrother who is excited to have a new friend and brother. Unlike his mother, he doesn’t take much convincing to have Christmas spirit; but like his mother, he wishes his father would spend more time with the family. Auditioners must be no older than 13 years of age by Dec. 31 and convincingly play a 10-12-year-old. Vocal range between F3 and G5.

Little Boy/Swing: Seen sitting on Santa’s lap. This role will also serve as Michael’s understudy. Auditioners must be no older than 13 years of age by Dec. 31 and convincingly play a 10-12-year-old. Vocal range between F3 and G5.

All ethnicities are encouraged to audition. Those auditioning should prepare 32 bars of a song of their choice and sides that will be provided when audition appointments are made.

Auditioners should note that “Elf the Musical” includes a significant number of morning student matinees in addition to evening performances. Children must be available for rehearsals beginning Oct. 23 through the end of the show’s run on Jan. 6, 2019.

For more information or to book an appointment, contact Becca Grady at 315.443.4008 or auditions@syracusestage.org.

Noel �ϳܾ�ñ�DzԱ��

Every Thursday in April from 6-8 p.m., one or more visiting poets will read and discuss their work at the POC Gallery, located on the ground floor of the Nancy Cantor Warehouse in Downtown Syracuse (350 W. Fayette St.). The series is

free and open to the public.

For more information, call POC at 315.443.2169, or visit��.

“Cruel April” coincides with the publication of the 11th volume of “” (POC, 2018), a bilingual poetry journal co-edited by three members of A&S: Jules Gibbs, part-time instructor of English; Tere Paniagua ’82, executive director of the Office of Cultural Engagement for the Hispanic Community; and Kathryn Everly, professor of Spanish.

“Corresponding Voices” features the work of all five visiting poets, among many others.

They are as follows:

Jessica Scicchitano

Thursday, April 5

Noel �ϳܾ�ñ�DzԱ��, a Bronx-based Afro-Buricua poet and performer

Thursday, April 12
Jessica Scicchitano ’11, G’14, a Philadelphia-based writer, editor and educator, and Rohan Chhetri, a Nepali-Indian poet in the M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing in A&S

Thursday, April 19
José �������ᾱ��é�� ’82, G’85, G’90, professor of communication, media and culture at Coastal Carolina University (CCU) in South Carolina

Rohan Chhetri

Thursday, April 26
Safia Elhillo, a Sudanese-American poet and spoken-word artist from Washington, D.C.

On Friday, April 20, POC will host a launch party for the regional arts journal��(YMCA Arts Branch, 2018) at 6 p.m. Called “Upstate New York Verve,” the party is free and open to the public, and is a collaboration between POC and the Y’s Downtown Writers Center.

For more than four decades, POC has elevated the verbal and visual arts through bilingual book series and poetry editions, an art gallery and a multicultural arts education program called El Punto.

“’Cruel April’ is one of POC’s signature programs,’ Paniagua says. “To be able to engage with established poets and rising stars is what makes this series so highly anticipated. The range of talent and styles onstage is unsurpassed, and the level of intimacy [between poets and the audience] is mesmerizing.”

Sara Felice, associate managing director of the POC Gallery, agrees: “’Cruel April’ builds community, while promoting diversity in language, arts and culture. The series makes poetry come alive, and exemplifies POC’s rich literary legacy.”

José �������ᾱ��é��

Indeed, this year’s lineup exudes brilliance.

��is one of the Hispanic Coalition NY’s 40 Under 40 Rising Latino Stars. A veteran of the New York slam scene, he founded Project X, a Bronx-based, grassroots arts organization that sponsors open-mic nights, literary workshops and the popular Slam Series. His poetry has appeared in a variety of outlets, including the Latin American Literary Review, Literary Hub, Pilgrimage Press, The Best of Kweli Print Anthology, Manteca! an Anthology of Afro-Latin@ Poets and Afro Latinx Poetry. �ϳܾ�ñ�DzԱ��’ performances are available online at the websites of the Huffington Post, Vibe, Button Poetry, Latina Magazine and Medium. He has received fellowships from Poets House, CantoMundo and The Watering Hole.

��is the author of the chapbook “Dear Bucolic Landscape.” Her work also appears in Sixth Finch, as well as Potluck and Prelude magazines. Born and raised in Syracuse, Scicchitano earned a bachelor’s degree in English and an M.F.A. in creative writing from the University, where she was the nonfiction editor for the Salt Hill literary journal. Scicchitano has since held various administrative positions at Syracuse and Onondaga Community College, and has worked in New York City as a tutor and copyeditor.

��is a University Fellow known for his literary prowess on both sides of the Atlantic. His first book, “Slow Startle” (The (Great) Indian Poetry Collective, 2016), was the inaugural winner of India’s Emerging Poets Prize. He has received fellowships from the Norman Mailer Center in New York and the Sangam House in the South Indian city of Bangalore. In July, he won Daniel Handler’s inaugural Per Diem Poetry Prize, enabling him to publish the forthcoming chapbook, “Jurassic Desire.”

��is a Bolivian-born teacher, scholar and writer who has lived in the United States most of his life. At CCU, he teaches and studies Latin American literature and film, semiotics of culture and cinema, linguistics and foreign language pedagogy, intermodal and intercultural communication, and new media studies. �������ᾱ��é�� also is president of the CCU chapter of the American Association of University Professors. A polyglot with a knowledge of or fluency in six languages, he is a prolific translator, whose publications include “Strolls on the Horizon: Semiotic Frontiers in Julio Cortázar’s Short Narrative” (Peter Lang Publishing, 1994). He also has authored a variety of stories and poetry, as well as a children’s book.

Safia Elhillo

��is the author of “The January Children” (University of Nebraska Press, 2017), and is co-editor with Fatimah Asghar of the forthcoming anthology “Halal, If You Hear Me” (Haymarket Books). A teaching artist at Split This Rock, Elhillo is a prolific poet whose work has appeared in numerous magazines, anthologies and online platforms (including the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day series and TEDxNewYork). Her poetry has been translated into Arabic, Japanese, Estonian, Portuguese and Greek. She was a founding member of Slam NYU, a two-time collegiate national champion, and a member and coach of the D.C. Youth Poetry Slam Team.

A&S and the Coalition of Museums and Art Centers at Syracuse University co-sponsor “Cruel April,” with support from the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics in A&S and the New York State Council on the Arts.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

“The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” was one of last season’s hits at Syracuse Stage.

“It is a season bursting with dynamic stories and vibrant characters,” says artistic director Robert Hupp, who notes the balance in the season between shows that are welcoming to a broad audience and shows that are not as well-known but are equally engaging. “We want everyone to come to Syracuse Stage, which means producing theater that speaks to people in a variety of ways.”

The 2018/2019 season line-up is “Noises Off,” “Possessing Harriet,” “Elf the Musical,” “Native Gardens,” “Pride and Prejudice,” and “The Humans.”

Artists new to Syracuse Stage in the season include playwright Kate Hamill and director Jason O’Connell. Hamill has been a red-hot writer in New York of late with her adaptations of “Vanity Fair” and “Sense and Sensibility.”�� Her latest adaptation, Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” opens at Syracuse Stage in the spring. ��O’Connell, who appeared in the Primary Stage’s New York City production at the Cherry Lane Theatre of “Pride and Prejudice,” will direct Syracuse Stage’s production. Also new to Stage is Melissa Crespo, who will direct “Native Gardens.” Crespo is a New York-based director of theater, opera and film, best known for the acclaimed opera “¡Figaro! (90210),” which premiered at LA Opera.

Returning artists include former Syracuse Stage artistic director Tazewell Thompson, who will direct the world premiere play “Possessing Harriet” by Stage associate artistic director Kyle Bass. Thompson served as Stage’s artistic director from 1992-95. Since then he has enjoyed a successful career in theater and opera, and has worked frequently at the Glimmerglass Festival. In 2006, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for his direction of a televised production of “Porgy and Bess.” Donna Drake, who scored a triumph in the 17/18 season with the “Wizard of Oz,” returns for the holidays as the director of “Elf the Musical”.

The 2018/2019 season opens with what has been called “the funniest farce ever written,” Michael Frayn’s “Noises Off.” Premiered in 1982, Frayn’s famous comedy follows the door-slamming, prat-falling, comedic mishaps of a company of actors attempting to perform a comedy. As the action shifts from on stage to back stage, the mayhem multiplies and the laughter grows exponentially. Wildly popular with theaters large and small, professional and amateur, “Noises Off” has never been produced at Syracuse Stage.

“You may have seen ‘Noises Off,’” says Hupp, who is slated to direct. “But you haven’t seen Syracuse Stage’s ‘Noises Off.’”

October brings the world premiere of “Possessing Harriet,” a drama that has its inspiration in a chapter of Central New York history. Originally commissioned by the Onondaga Historical Association and written by award-winning playwright and Syracuse Stage associate artistic director Kyle Bass, “Possessing Harriet” imagines a conversation between an enslaved woman named Harriet Powell and a young Elizabeth Cady, the fierce advocate for women’s rights. The conversation takes place in an attic room in the Peterboro home of abolitionist Gerrit Smith as Harriet, having slipped away from a Syracuse hotel and the family who owns her, awaits her departure north on the Underground Railroad. This absorbing drama unfolds in real time, as danger nears and Harriet must make a life-altering decision.

“I am humbled and honored that Bob has chosen this play to be produced at Syracuse Stage,” says Bass, who has previously been represented at the theater with “Cry for Peace: Voices from the Congo,” co-written with Ping Chong, and “Separated,” based on the experiences of Syracuse University students in and out of military service.

The holiday season rings in cheer with “Elf the Musical.” Based on the New Line Cinema film starring Will Ferrell, “Elf the Musical” follows an oversized elf named Buddy on his search for his real family in New York City. Filled with humor and terrific songs, this heartwarming musical will be co-produced with the Syracuse University Department of Drama.

The New Year brings Karen Zacarías’ new play “Native Gardens” to Syracuse Stage. A winner of the National Latino Playwriting Award, Zacarías tackles such hot-button topics as privilege, prejudice and even border disputes and walls with a good natured and light-hearted touch.�� Set in adjoining backyards in the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C., “Native Gardens” pits an older, established white couple against a new-to-the-neighborhood young Latino couple in an escalating�� fracas over two feet of property. Cordial welcome soon gives way to rivalry in a comedy/drama that has been called a play “we need right now.” “Native Gardens” is the first of two co-productions with Rochester’s Geva Theatre Center.

“‘Native Gardens’ director Melissa Crespo, who is a new director for Syracuse Stage, has a keen connection to the playwright’s voice. I look forward to sharing her insight into the play with our audience,” says Hupp.

With Hamill’s adaptation, Jane Austen makes her Syracuse Stage debut. “Pride and Prejudice” is the familiar and beloved story of independent-minded Elizabeth Bennet and the handsome Mr. Darcy. Love and marriage, family and social status get a good workout in this energetic production.

“This is Jane Austen for the 21^st century,” Hupp explains. “It’s fast and funny and it is altogether true to the heart of the novel. Kate Hamill’s brilliance is that she can capture everything that’s great about the novel in a way that is very theatrical and very alive.”

The season concludes with the Broadway smash “The Humans” by Stephen Karam, a contemporary comedy/drama that won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Play. Centered around a family Thanksgiving gathering, “The Humans” also won the Drama Critics Circle, the Outer Circle Critics, the Drama League and the Drama Desk Awards for Best Play. It was named Best Play of the Year by the following media outlets: Newsday, The New York Times, New York Magazine, The Record, The Hollywood Reporter, The Chicago Tribune, Deadline and npr. “The Humans” is the second of the season’s co-productions with Geva and will be directed by Geva’s artistic director Mark Cuddy.

Hupp noted that, as with this season’s “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” “The Humans” will only be produced at select regional theaters next season, including Syracuse Stage.

The Cold Read Festival of New Plays also returns in early March to bring audiences into the process of creating new work. Associate artistic director Kyle Bass again curates the four-day festival, March 7-10, which will feature award-winning playwright, director and choreographer .

“I’m excited and thrilled to announce a playwright of such accomplishment and national profile as the playwright-in-residence for Cold Read: Festival of Hot New Plays 2019,” says Bass.

FastHorse is an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Sicangu Lakota Nation, and her new comedy, “The Thanksgiving Play,” will be produced at Artists Repertory Theatre next season. Her work places an emphasis on cross-cultural community-engaged work between indigenous nations. Other produced works include “What Would Crazy Horse Do,” “Urban Rez,” “Landless,” “Average Family” and “Cherokee Family Reunion.”

Hupp noted the momentum Syracuse Stage has built with a string of critical and popular successes beginning with “The Three Musketeers” and carrying through the recently closed “Next to Normal.”�� He said the new season should continue to engage and entertain audiences with its promise of “passion, power and purpose.”

The 2018/2019 season opens Sept. 12, 2018, and runs through May 12, 2019. Subscriptions and Flex Packs are on sale now.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Seymour Dual Language Academy fifth-grade students visit Manley Field House during 2017’s Shadow Day.

“Shadow Day is a key event for the fifth grade at Seymour School,” says Bea �ҴDzԳ�á�����, vice president for community engagement. “It has become a tradition that the students look forward to as they reach grade 5. The SU students see Shadow Day as an opportunity to give back to their community and pay it forward. That is certainly true for me as an alum of Seymour.”

�ҴDzԳ�á����� says that after meeting with Thomas Rosaschi, the event’s coordinator at Seymour, they modeled a campus visit for the students. The day will start out with a welcome reception in Maxwell Auditorium, where the Seymour students will meet University students and get breakfast. Chancellor Kent Syverud will welcome them, along with �ҴDzԳ�á�����. The Admissions Office will make a presentation, which will be followed by a group photo.

The next couple of hours will be spent touring campus or visiting academic classes. As time allows, the students will visit the following places:

• Schine Student Center Bookstore
• Bird Library and/or Carnegie Library
• Hendricks Chapel
• Crouse College
• Hall of Languages

After lunch at the Schine Student Center, the students will be taken by bus to Manley Field House and the Carmelo Anthony Center. There, they will get a tour of the facilities and meet some of the student athletes.

�ҴDzԳ�á����� says that the day’s activities have changed a little bit over the years, but at its core it has always been about providing the Seymour students with the opportunity to see themselves as college students. “We introduce them to our own undergraduates, many with similar backgrounds, and remind them that they too can attend Syracuse or any other university, especially since the University has given the promise of tuition support via the Say Yes program,” she says.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

]]> /blog/2018/03/16/university-college-student-association-partner-to-help-rescue-mission/ Fri, 16 Mar 2018 17:46:00 +0000 /?p=131009 University College and Student Association are partnering with the Rescue Mission to hold a collection drive to gather toiletry items for those in need. The campuswide initiative will take place from March 19-30 as part of SU’s . Collection boxes will be placed in the Schine Student Center, University College, Day Hall, Flint Hall, Brewster Hall, Boland Hall and Ernie Davis Hall. Collection boxes will also be placed in Graham Dining Hall, Brockway Dining Hall and Goldstein Student Center on South campus.

Items needed include:

• deodorant—men’s and women’s
• razors—men’s and women’s
• shaving cream
• shampoo and conditioner
• toothpaste
• toothbrushes
• shower gel/body wash
• soap
• feminine hygiene products

The is leading the effort as part of its “Spring into Action” campaign. Their hope is that this year’s campaign will encourage future partnerships between university and community entities. “The Student Association is thrilled to collaborate with University College for their 100th year celebration with a collection drive,” says John Beavins Woltman, a member of the Student Association. “We look forward to a successful event with cross-campus involvement, and believe that this is the beginning of a strong collaboration between SA, University College, campus and community organizations.”

As part of this event, on March 27�� restaurant on Marshall Street will donate 50 percent of its proceeds from 4 p.m. to close to the Rescue Mission.

“ has a long history of community engagement,” says Eileen Jevis, communications manager. “As we celebrate our 100^th anniversary in 2018, partnering with the Rescue Mission and the Student Association was a natural way to continue to strengthen our connections across campus and in the community. Syracuse University is a strong supporter of the Rescue Mission and we are pleased to be able to participate.”

“We appreciate Syracuse University’s dedication to helping those in need by collecting hygiene items for the Rescue Mission,” says Glenna Croy, director of Volunteer Services at the Rescue Mission. “Hundreds of hygiene items are given out to our clients each month so we are grateful for the members of the community that help us fulfill this need.”

University College staff will join students on March 30 in the atrium of the Schine Student Center to sort items collected. If you would like to volunteer to pick up or sort items, please contact Woltman at jbwoltma@syr.edu. For more information, contact Jevis at 315.443.3527 or ejevis@uc.syr.edu.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Two world-famous, historic, international films from the Il Cinema Ritrovato in Bologna, Italy, will be shown.

The 1917 silent classic��“Rapsodia Satanica” will be screened on Thursday, March 22, at 8:15 p.m. in the Shaffer Art Building’s Shemin Auditorium.

The uncut four-and-a-half-hour version of the Sergio Leone 1984 masterpiece��“Once Upon A Time In America”��will be shown on Friday, March 23, at 6:15 p.m. in Shemin Auditorium.

Admission is free for both films, with free parking in the Q-4 lot.

The uncut version of��“Once Upon A Time In��America”��was restored and is owned by the Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna.�� Its international coordinator, Guy Borlee, will be in Syracuse to discuss both films.

��In addition to the two historic film screenings, the Syracuse International Film Festival will welcome filmmakers and film lovers to continue the festival experience at a daylong festival competition on��Saturday, March 24, beginning at noon at the Palace Theatre, 2384 James St., Syracuse. Films to be shown were either made by Central New York filmmakers or made in New York state in the last two years.

Twenty films were selected to be screened out of nearly 70 submitted to the festival competition.��Tickets for the March 24 showings—$10 for adults, $5 for student with I.D.—are available at the door. Ticket-holders may leave and return at any time during the festival.��Cash prizes from $250 to $1,000 will be awarded for top films.

Additional major sponsors of the weekend event are CNY Film Professionals, The Palace Theatre, SubCat Studios and Visual Technologies.

The CNY Film Festival 2018 is made possible by a generous grant from Onondaga County through CNY Arts.

For more information, visit .

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Abel Searor

On Friday, March 30,��, who teaches piano in the Rose, Jules R. and Stanford S. Setnor School of Music and is a staff accompanist in the Department of Drama, will lead the DCC Chancel Choir in an English version of Théodore Dubois’ “The Seven Last Words of Christ.” The performance will take place at 7 p.m. in DCC’s main sanctuary (3600 Erie Blvd., DeWitt).

Soloists include soprano����and tenor��, both of whom teach voice in the drama department and the Setnor School.��, who teaches harp in the Setnor School, also is on the program.

The concert is free and open to the public. For more information, call DCC at 315.445.0331 or visit��.

Rounding out the lineup are baritone soloist Matthew Green, flutist Kathy Egloff, oboist Terri Tallman and timpanist Bill Quick ’77.

Searor, who is DCC’s director of worship arts, says the Good Friday concert is a popular local tradition. “It is an opportunity to delve more deeply into the mystery and meaning of Holy Week,” he explains. “By spreading the word of God through music, we hope to inspire longtime [church] members and visitors alike. It is our gift to the community.”

A composer of many religious works, DuBois is a suitable choice to mark Good Friday. “The Seven Last Words of Christ,” dating from 1867, is arguably his best-known composition.

Premiered in Paris on Good Friday, the oratorio highlights the seven last sayings, or “words,” of Christ on the cross, according to the New Testament. The Seven Last Words encompass notions of forgiveness, salvation, relationship, abandonment, distress, triumph and reunion.

Laura Enslin

Dubois wrote the music and the original Latin text, the latter of which came from the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible and various traditional Catholic prayers. This performance features his popular 1899 English-language edition.

Searor says that, while there are no fewer than 15 settings of the Seven Last Words (the most famous of which is Haydn’s), Dubois’ selection of Latin verses and prayers from the New Testament is unique unto him.

“The Seven Last Words help us understand what was important to Jesus, since Biblical accounts suggest He was relatively silent during the final hours of His life,” Searor adds. “Like any good oratorio, Dubois’ is a marriage of words and music—a potent retelling of Jesus’ crucifixion, awash in���ھ���-���-����è��������Romanticism.”

In addition to being a versatile composer, Dubois was an accomplished organist, choirmaster and music teacher. His more than 30 years at the prestigious Paris Conservatoire—nine as director—were indicative of his artistic and political influence. Dubois’ musical circles included Ravel, Saint-Saëns, Franck, Fauré and Dukas, to name a few.

Presenting Dubois’ music is a trio of local favorites.

Enslin has appeared with orchestras and opera companies throughout the Northeast, including the Buffalo Philharmonic, Symphoria and the Syracuse Opera. In January, she sang the role of suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton in the world premiere of “Pushed Aside: Reclaiming Gage,” commissioned by the Society for New Music. Enslin also runs a private studio at DCC called��.

Crawley has performed leading roles with opera companies internationally, including the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, the State Opera of South Australia and the Greek National Opera. He also has sung roles at the Mariinsky Theater in Russia and Teatro Colòn in Buenos Aires. Concert engagements include the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony and Syracuse Symphony, as well as featured appearances at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall and the Washington National Cathedral. Crawley also is an accomplished pianist, organist and choral conductor.

Richard Crawley

A fixture on the regional circuit, Green has sung with the Syracuse Opera Chorus for more than 15 years. He also has enjoyed stints with the Tri-Cities Opera Company in Binghamton, the Cortland Repertory Theatre, the Savoyards Music Theatre Ltd. (formerly Cornell Savoyards) and the Chenango Community Players in his hometown of Norwich. In addition to being a soloist and recitalist, Green is an acting and vocal coach, rehearsal director and beginning piano instructor.

“All three soloists are incomparable talents, as well as beloved figures in the community. We are honored to work with them,” says Searor, whose name is virtually synonymous with local musical theater.

A classically trained pianist and organist, Searor recently has collaborated with the Baldwinsville Theater Guild (in award-winning productions of “Sweeney Todd” and “Les Misérables”), St. David’s Celebration of the Arts and the CNY Playhouse. He previously was music director at St. David’s Episcopal Church in DeWitt, and has been a regular arts contributor to��.

DCC serves nearly 2,000 members throughout Central New York. Founded as a Methodist church in the home of a Revolutionary War hero in 1811, the original building burned down in 1886. Members rebuilt the church a year later, not far from its present site on Erie Boulevard. Today, DCC is a self-proclaimed “Christian church for all people,” providing ministry opportunities in areas of music, worship, education, hospitality and compassion.

An underpass of Interstate 81

“Future Infrastructures” will focus on the choices for renovating or re-routing the I-81 elevated highway in Syracuse from both an urban design and public policy perspective. What separates this forum from many others is the coming together of nationally recognized urban design and planning experts in conversation with voices from public policy and political contingents.

Says Syracuse Architecture Associate Professor and Undergraduate Chair Lawrence Davis, one of the event organizers, “Our hope is to create an interdisciplinary dialogue that reaches beyond the university that will inform both the design of the project and policy behind it in ways that consider as many constituencies as possible. We intend to frame our discussion in a way that takes a broader view by, among other things, looking at other cities that have similar challenges with their automotive infrastructure as we have in Syracuse.”

Panelists for the event include: economist , senior research associate and associate fellow from the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program; , professor in practice of Urban Design at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design; , a social geographer and assistant professor of geography at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs; and , mayor of the City of Syracuse. , director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute at the Maxwell School, will moderate the discussion.

This event is free and open to the public. For special accessibility concerns, please contact Deb Witter-Gamba: dwitterg@syr.edu; 315.443.0790.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh thanks hackathon participants for their work as iSchool Dean Liz Liddy and City Chief Data Officer Sam Edelstein look on.

The hackathon, organized by the iSchool, the City of Syracuse and AT&T, brought together over 90 participants across 36 teams who worked with datasets from the city’s fleet of snowplows. Participants included community members as well as Syracuse University students.

Snow plowing and snow removal issues have been a significant priority for newly elected Mayor Walsh, and the city’s Innovation Team has led efforts to use new technologies to improve how the city addresses these issues.

��“We are excited about the level of engagement that AT&T and the iSchool have stirred in the community,” says Corey Driscoll Dunham, director of operations for the City of Syracuse. “I’ve reviewed creative and promising submissions that we can implement in our communication of routes and priority areas.”

The winners of the hackathon are:

First Place: Dean Olin and Alex Sinfarosa.��Their project allows the city to see where roads have been plowed and the amount of time elapsed since they were last plowed.

Second Place: Michael Phillips.��Phillips’ project provided a way for community members to easily search which streets have been plowed and at what time. Phillips is a graduate student at Syracuse working on his M.S. in computational linguistics in the .

Third Place: Suchitra Deekshitula, Anish Nair, Ashmin Swain, Rahul Sarkhel and Shikhar Agrawal.��This group of iSchool graduate students crafted a project that looked into the analytics related to plowing, focusing on how much work the trucks were doing at different periods of time, and attempted to build a route optimization algorithm for the trucks.

The first-place team received $3,500; the second place team winner $2,000; and the third place team received $1,500.

“The quality of the innovative solutions developed for this challenge is extremely impressive and serves as an example of the strength and creativity of Central New York’s technology community,” says Marissa Shorenstein, president, Northeast Region, AT&T. “AT&T is proud to have collaborated with��Mayor Walsh and Syracuse University to host this challenge. We applaud them for embracing how technology and data can be used for social good��as tools to assist municipalities to address issues��impacting��their��residents, similar to what AT&T provides every day through our Smart Cities solutions.”

“We’re pleased that we could again work with AT&T and the City of Syracuse to make a civic data hackathon happen, and that we had the opportunity to apply the concepts we teach our students here at the iSchool for the benefit of the community,” says iSchool Dean Elizabeth D. Liddy. “I am thrilled that many Syracuse University students took part in the hackathon, and that members of our faculty took the time to serve as mentors to participating teams.”

iSchool alumnus and City of Syracuse Chief Data Officer Sam Edelstein was involved in the hackathon planning as a member of the city’s Innovation Team.

“Smart cities collaborate with the community and their anchor institutions and strive to use data to make decisions,” Edelstein says. “Applying this thinking to snow removal, and seeing the results from this Plowing Through the Data hackathon will help us get better and ultimately deliver better service. All of these projects were impressive and prove that when we release data to the public, people will take it and find creative ways to interpret it to benefit everyone.”

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

“Our current season, including educational touring productions, has showcased some fine local talent in addition to actors cast in major cities around the country,” says Bob Hupp, artistic director for Syracuse Stage. “I am looking forward to seeing how we can incorporate community members into our 2018/2019 season.”

The Syracuse Stage 2018/2019 season contains six selected plays and runs Sept. 12, 2018, to May 12, 2019. The six plays are “Noises Off,” “Possessing Harriet,” “Elf the Musical,” “Native Gardens,” a modern adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice” and a sixth show which, due to licensing restrictions, will be named March 26.

Auditioners should note that these productions include a significant number of morning student matinees in addition to evening performances. For more information, call Becca Grady at 315.443.4008.

Actors of all ethnicities are strongly encouraged to audition. All actors are required to bring a picture and resume, and be prepared to present two contrasting two-minute monologues or one monologue and one song, not exceeding five minutes in total. Singers should bring sheet music; an accompanist will be provided. Auditions for children will be held at a later date.

SHOW DETAILS

��Noises Off
By Michael Frayn
Directed by Robert Hupp
Sept. 12-30

��Possessing Harriet
By Kyle Bass
Oct. 17-Nov. 4

Elf the Musical
Book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin
Music by Matthew Sklar
Lyrics by Chad Beguelin
Directed by Donna Drake
Choreography by Brian Marcum
Musical Direction by Brian Cimmet
Based on the New Line Cinema film by David Berenbaum
Co-produced with the Syracuse University Department of Drama
Nov. 23, 2018-\ Jan. 6, 2019

Native Gardens
By Karen Zacarías
Directed by Melissa Crespo
Feb. 13-March 3, 2019

Cold Read: A Festival of Hot New Plays
March 7-10, 2019

��Pride and Prejudice
Based on the book by Jane Austen
By Kate Hamill
Directed by Jason O’Connell
March 20-April 7, 2019

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

More than 90 student volunteers will distribute White Ribbon Campaign awareness wristbands and collect donations at each Dome entrance. Additionally, representatives from Vera House and Syracuse University will be in the backcourt providing information about the 24^th Annual White Ribbon Campaign and on- and off-campus resources for sexual and relationship violence services and prevention.

The Vera House White Ribbon Campaign is an initiative led by men and encourages all members of the community to “Stand With Us” to end sexual and relationship violence. By wearing a white ribbon or wristband, community members demonstrate their support and commitment in ending violence.

To show your support, students, faculty and staff can purchase wristbands, lapel pins, paper ribbons, chocolates and window clings by contacting Denise Dowdall at ddowdall@syr.edu. Community members can also show their support by using #StandWithVeraHouse on social media, adding their name to the campaign ��and attending the White Ribbon Campaign Walk on Friday, March 23, at noon in Clinton Square. Additional details are available on the .

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an��undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic , with a global footprint, and��, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit .

Community members host English Language Institute students at a meal in their home.

The English Language Institute () is seeking volunteers to invite international students to share a meal in their homes. The students, hosted by University College, are studying at Syracuse University now through fall 2018. The students have 21 hours of English instruction a week as they prepare for full-time study at the University. During the fall and spring semester, most are aspiring undergraduates; during the summer, the majority are graduate students.

These students have few opportunities to interact with Americans, but they have intriguing stories to tell and a lively curiosity about Syracuse and the local culture. Please help make them feel welcome in the community. If you are interested in participating, please contact Jackie Monsour, coordinator, ELI Admissions and Students Services, at jhmonsou@syr.edu or 315.443.2390.

Stephen Mahan, right, director of��the PAL Project, discusses a photo with a Fowler student. (Photo��by John Dowling)

The JGS grant will help Light Work continue to realize a core vision of supporting emerging and under-recognized photographers who are exploring different photographic narratives and technical approaches to the medium. Light Work Director Shane Lavalette stated, “We’re absolutely honored that JGS has recognized Light Work to be among the nation’s most impactful artistic programs, and are thrilled to receive this significant award at a moment in which the support of creative work by artists is as crucial as ever.”

PAL Project Director Stephen Mahan spoke to the opportunity for growth the grant affords the organization. “With this generous grant from JGS Inc., PAL Project’s Syracuse University mentors will continue and expand their ongoing mission to give voice and empower Syracuse city youth through the use of photography and creative writing. Application of this grant towards scholarships, exhibitions, publications and photographic equipment will foster the development of our students’ potential and self-esteem, giving our students greater opportunity to utilize their creativity, energy and voice in self-satisfying and socially relevant directions. This funding allows us to grow the project into a more robust curriculum with a wider reach. We are very thankful.”

In anticipation of the grant announcement, Urban Video Project Director Anneka Herre stated, “UVP is truly excited to receive this recognition and support from JGS to put towards the strengthening of our uniquely public moving image exhibition and events programming. Given both current threats to funding in the arts and the importance of public art in creating dialogue, these funds come at an opportune time and mean a great deal to us.”

Established in 1999 by the late Howard Stein, , is a foundation dedicated to the photographic arts. The Joy of Giving Photographs from the JGS collection are made available as loans to major museums around the world. JGS is also committed to advancing the arts in education. Working in partnership with museums, schools and community organizations across the country, JGS has established scholarships to support students pursuing post-secondary studies in photography or media art. Additionally, through its Resolution program, JGS provides opportunities for teens to publish and exhibit their work in the context of social awareness.

Reflecting on this legacy Light Work Executive Director Jeffrey Hoone states, “Over 20 years ago I worked with Howard Stein to form The Joy of Giving Something, Inc. as a charitable institution to support programs in photography and forward-looking projects in the arts. Before Mr. Stein passed away in 2011, JGS supported a wide range of exhibitions, publications and educational programs. Mr. Stein generously donated his substantial photography collection to JGS and through a series of auctions, the foundation has raised funds to continue the charitable work in the arts that Mr. Stein started so many years ago. As a board member of JGS, it is a great honor to continue the good work of Mr. Stein and to be able to support the next generation of image makers and forward-thinking artists.”

About Syracuse University

Founded��in 1870, Syracuse University is a private international research university��dedicated to advancing knowledge and fostering student success through teaching��excellence,��rigorous scholarship and interdisciplinary research. Comprising 11��academic schools and colleges, the University has a long legacy of excellence��in the liberal arts, sciences and��professional disciplines that prepares��students for the complex challenges and emerging opportunities of a rapidly��changing world. Students enjoy the resources of a 270-acre main��campus and��extended campus venues in major national metropolitan hubs and across three��continents. Syracuse’s student body is among the most diverse for an��institution of its��kind across multiple dimensions, and students typically represent��all 50 states and more than 100 countries. Syracuse also has a long legacy of��supporting veterans and is home to��the nationally recognized Institute for��Veterans and Military Families, the first university-based institute in the��U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of veterans and their��families.

iSchool Professor Jeff Saltz speaks with City of Syracuse Director of Operations Corey Driscoll Dunham and City Chief Data Officer and iSchool alumnus Sam Edelstein at the hackathon launch event..

The partnership between the iSchool, the city and AT&T is the second community-based hackathon in Syracuse that encourages community involvement in support of solutions to city infrastructure issues. In 2016, the city and the iSchool worked with AT&T to run the Syracuse Roads Challenge that brought nearly 30 participants across 13 teams who worked on road quality datasets provided by the city.

The Plowing Through the Data hackathon makes data available from the city’s fleet of 37 snowplows. The plows, responsible for clearing some 400-plus miles of snowy city roads, have been outfitted with GPS tracking devices since early 2015.

Hackathon participants can use the data to create new applications and predictive analyses��that could be used to help the city address snow removal issues and better plan for snow-related weather events.

Syracuse City Mayor Ben Walsh announced a snow safety plan just days after his inauguration last month, and has made issues surrounding snow removal an early focus of his administration.

“It starts with us. We’re excited to involve our community in not just the enforcement, but in the long-term solutions needed to improve the way we handle snow. A better snow plan can improve commuting, safety, and pride in our city,” said Mayor Walsh.

“When the city makes data available to the public, people can see how the city works. For this challenge, when people see where snow plows go, they can help us work better, continue our conversations across platforms, and enable us to come together to tackle this challenge,” said Sam Edelstein ’07 G’15, chief data officer for the City of Syracuse and an iSchool alumnus.

“I’m��excited that the iSchool will again be partnering with the City of Syracuse and AT&T by lending our expertise to the hackathon,” says Elizabeth D. Liddy, dean of the iSchool. “Our faculty and students are deeply engaged in using data to address a wide range of issues, including the use of data for civic good. I am looking forward to seeing the solutions that all of the teams propose.”

“AT&T is proud to collaborate with the City of Syracuse, Syracuse University and Mayor Walsh to provide this unique challenge to students and career technologists across Central New York to come up with innovative solutions to one of the region’s most disruptive winter challenges, snow,” says Marissa Shorenstein, president, Northeast Region, AT&T.�� “This competition is a unique approach to showcase how technology and data can be used for social good and assist municipalities to address issues impacting their residents. As a judge, I am excited to see what the talented local tech community creates to help the City of Syracuse utilize its robust open data platform to address logistical and safety issue associated with winter.”

Challenge Timeline

The challenge is designed to engage technologists, designers, developers and anyone else who is interested to use their skills for social good. No prior experience is needed to participate, and the challenge is open to anyone—students and community members.

Cash prizes of $3,500, $2,000 and $1,500 will be given to first-, second-, and third-place winners.

Feb. 8: Plowing Through the Data, powered by AT&T launch and dataset made available.

Feb. 15:��Snow Safety Summit. The city’s Innovation Team will facilitate��four different stations exploring issues around snow removal. Participants in the challenge are encouraged to attend to better understand the challenges that city residents want solutions to address;��6-8 p.m. at Dr. Weeks Elementary School (Cafeteria),�� 710 Hawley Ave., Syracuse.

Week of Feb. 20:��Virtual Open Office Hours with iSchool faculty members. iSchool faculty members will be available online for virtual meetings and consultation with participants and teams about data and projects. Dates will be communicated to participants who register their teams.

March��1:��Projects due by 11:59 p.m.

March 7:��Winners will be announced at a public ceremony at the iSchool with officials from the City of Syracuse and AT&T present.

More Information:��Challenge details, instructions, a signup form, and downloadable dataset files are available online at the iSchool’s website:��.

About Syracuse University

Founded��in 1870, Syracuse University is a private international research university��dedicated to advancing knowledge and fostering student success through teaching��excellence,��rigorous scholarship and interdisciplinary research. Comprising 11��academic schools and colleges, the University has a long legacy of excellence��in the liberal arts, sciences and��professional disciplines that prepares��students for the complex challenges and emerging opportunities of a rapidly��changing world. Students enjoy the resources of a 270-acre main��campus and��extended campus venues in major national metropolitan hubs and across three��continents. Syracuse’s student body is among the most diverse for an��institution of its��kind across multiple dimensions, and students typically represent��all 50 states and more than 100 countries. Syracuse also has a long legacy of��supporting veterans and is home to��the nationally recognized Institute for��Veterans and Military Families, the first university-based institute in the��U.S. focused on addressing the unique needs of veterans and their��families.