OSWEGO, NY — Earth Day 2019 marked a time of service for SUNY Oswego. Students from all across campus had united to take part in the “Shining Waters” Lakeside clean-up in celebration of the preservation of the earth. The Department of Community Services had sponsored the Lakeside cleanup, which took place at the very edge of Lake Ontario itself. Students collected trash and non-recyclables on the ground to dispose of and help to make a difference on campus.

“I feel like a lot of more people need to get involved, it needs to be put out there more,” student David Hagen said. “It’s actually pretty good that we’re actually helping our environment on its most important day.”

SUNY Oswego has already attempted to promote sustainability and proper disposal of materials on campus. The students hope that those on and off campus can still contribute to improving the campus community and the world for the better.

“We can all do, like, little cleanups like this. Like, this only takes about an hour to clean up just a little bit,” student Kristie Reitz said. “There’s parts in Oswego that need cleaning up that other students may not know about. Everybody could just do a little bit in their own area and that’ll make a big difference.”

For more information about sustainability on campus at SUNY Oswego, visit oswego.edu/sustainability.

OSWEGO, NY — Visiting professor Sara Burch made an appearance on campus in a public lecture to educate students on her research concerning predatory dinosaurs, specifically the evolution of their forelimbs. The students who had attended this lecture were given a new way of thinking about our evolutionary predecessors

“The past of, like, you know, dinosaurs, all this kind of stuff, is more complicated than we thought about when we were kids,” said student Michael Fontana. “But it’s a lot more in-depth than what we previously thought of.”

Professor Burch’s research had started since her undergraduate degree.  Her discoveries were accompanied by the research of her Geneseo students, who had made their own in-depth discoveries about the dinosaurs, and she is hopeful that students may rethink the stereotype of the dinosaurs’ forelimbs

“I think what I would hope to take away is to kind of challenge their ideas of what dinosaurs might have been doing with their forelimbs,” Professor Burch said. “So, you know, the T-Rex, everyone knows they have tiny forelimbs, they weren’t using them, but hopefully, maybe I convinced some people that they were maybe using them, and that there’s a lot more behind the story.”

Professor Bursch’s research with her students at SUNY Geneseo still continues to this day.

OSWEGO, NY — Visiting retired professor Ann Callaghan Allen made an appearance on campus to educate students in a public lecture on one woman who broke the boundaries of gender expectations. The Gender and Womens’ Studies program director, Professor Joanna Goplen, served as the head of the event, and is hopeful that the message of appreciation for women in history resonates with SUNY Oswego students.

“I think it’s really helpful for students to see examples of women in history who have accomplished things and may not have gotten the credit that they were due,” Professor Goplen said. “The connection to the Oswego community, I think,  is also interesting, so hopefully they’ll pull away some local history as well.”

“The Madame’s Business” follows the true story of Malvina Guimaraes, a businesswoman pressing against the conventional roles of women in society, and the subsequent inventor of the sewing machine. Professor Allen reflected on her research and admires Guimares’ bravery and perseverance.

“I know that people who grew up in Oswego or people who come here for school really aren’t exposed to the history of this city, it’s got a remarkable history, really,” Professor Allen said. “If people can be engaged in the life of Oswego in the nineteenth century, I feel as though I’ve accomplished something.”

Professor Allen’s book is available for purchase locally at Oswego’s River’s End Bookstore and online at riversendbookstore.com.

OSWEGO, NY — Veterans’ Day 2018 marked a historic time for SUNY Oswego. The brave men and women who fought for our country overseas were officially immortalized in way of a memorial plaque near Sheldon Hall at SUNY Oswego.

SUNY Oswego President Deborah F. Stanley had expressed her utmost sincerity towards this impactful memento and stressed the importance of gratitude for our rights and freedoms as citizens as a result of the armed forces’ bravery and tenacity.

“These were individuals who did not fight on our soil,” President Stanley said. “They went to represent America. They went to fight to guarantee and defend democracy, and to make our way of life insured.”

The plaque honors twenty brave individuals from the Oswego Normal School, including student Jesse Merle Hewitt, who lost his life in France in 1918. Town Supervisor Rick Kaulfuss shared President Stanley’s sentiment and reverence towards those who died for our freedom.

“I think it’s really important to recognize that veterans have contributed a lot to our society in a lot of different ways, and they keep us free,” said Supervisor Kaulfuss.

The public may visit this plaque along Washington Boulevard, aside Sheldon Hall, at SUNY Oswego.

OSWEGO, NY — The Zonta Club of Oswego has taken their celebration of Halloween to the next level with their second annual Witches Ball at the Lake Ontario Conference Center. According to the Witches Ball chairperson, Tammy Elowsky, the Zonta Club of Oswego serves as a service and advocacy group for women.

“Our friends of ours do a Witches’ Night Out, and they told me about their event. And I thought it was fantastic,” Elowsky said. “And so we decided to do a different spin on it and call it a Witches’ ball, some of the wizards are allowed to come. But we have all kinds of vendors and dancing and fun but it’s all for a great cause.”

The event had supported the Oswego County Opportunities’ Safe Services program to provide aid to survivors of domestic violence. Chairperson Elowsky strives for the Witches Ball to improve and evolve into a bigger and better event than ever before.

“So last year we had about 300 people that attended at our first year. We were absolutely amazed at that. We’ve outgrew our venue and we’ve come to the convention center this year,” Eloswky said. “And we’ve had more people, I don’t know what the final count is now. We’re obviously hoping to grow, looking for more vendors, whatever we can do to raise more money for this awesome cause.”

OSWEGO, NY — Students from Johnson Residence Hall at SUNY Oswego have recently embarked on an overnight trip to New York City. Johnson Hall resident mentor Jerimiah Butler says that this is the first time a member of campus residence life has organized an overnight trip with students.

“It’s an action-packed-like trip. We have no time for, you know, shenanigans here,” Butler said. “But we’re very excited, you know, it’s been a long planning process.”

The journey to New York had consisted of a concert from contemporary worship band, “Elevation Worship,” at the Playstation Theater in Times Square. The group had also made stops at Ellis Island, as well as the Statue of Liberty.

“It’s crazy how, like, it happened, because I wanted to see Elevation Worship for a long time,” student Amber Saint Joi said. “I was like, ‘I don’t know how I’m going to get here.’ And then this trip happened, so it’s like, ‘oh my god,’ so then we’re going to go see the Statue of Liberty, so definitely doing stuff for the residents, especially for all freshmen as well, it’s a new experience since people have never been to New York City.”

Resident mentor Butler hopes for this type of program to be held on an annual basis, with Niagara Falls possibly being the designated location for the next semester.

“We’re just dreaming big,” Butler said. “That’s one thing that my hall director here, Olive, really presses on us, it’s ‘think big.’ She’s been a huge help, as well as Linda, our FYRE coordinator. You know, a lot of meeting across this past month and a half or so, but this trip would not happen without their support.”

With a successful trip like this one, there’s no telling what amazing memories the RMs of SUNY Oswego will help make for students.

OSWEGO, NY — The Marano Campus Center at SUNY Oswego held a recent screening of “Human Again,” a filmed documentation displaying the power of theater on prison inmates. The showing of the film was open to the public, and a discussion panel consisted of professors in various fields of study, such as Criminal Justice, Psychology, Creative Writing and, of course, Theater.

Professor Kristen Eichhorn, the Dean of Graduate Studies at SUNY Oswego, served as the head of the event, and has hopeful feelings on the film’s heartwarming message.

“I think it’s a really interesting topic from a lot of different perspectives, and I hope that students take away a heightened consciousness of prisons and the prison systems,” Professor Eichhorn said.

The discussion panel also included Cornell professor Bruce Levitt, the facilitator of the Phoenix Players Theater Group, which is centered within the Auburn Correctional Facility.

“These people who are incarcerated are human beings and have qualities. They are not a stereotype,” Professor Levitt said. “We start the film with a mug shot, which is the most stereotypical image of someone who’s incarcerated. And then, you get to know them through the course of the film as human beings, and so we’re hoping to push against that stereotype.”

The Phoenix Players Theater Group has continued to operate inside the correctional facility with new members since the film was produced,. For more information, visit www.phoenixplayersatauburn.