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SUNY Oneonta students will be sent home for the rest of the Fall semester
SUNY Oneonta campus; provided by CNN Newsource ONEONTA, NY- SUNY Oneonta will move to remote learning for the remainder of the Fall semester following an outbreak of 389 COVID-19 cases and counting.
The outbreak began last weekend when just over 100 students tested positive for the virus. This came shortly after Governor Cuomo announced that SUNY schools would close for two weeks if there’s a COVID outbreak of over 100 students or five percent of a given campus population. The number of positive cases has jumped significantly since last weekend.
According to SUNY Oneonta’s COVID-19 dashboard, 389 students and staff members have tested positive since the beginning of the Fall semester.
The same weekend, five students and three campus organizations at Oneonta were suspended for hosting parties, according to SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras.
After the initial two week temporary shutdown, the state deployed a COVID-19 SWAT team to SUNY Oneonta in an attempt to ramp up testing. Students were not required to be tested upon arrival.
Off-campus resident Grace Kinne says she had not been tested prior to her arrival in Oneonta. She left Oneonta last Saturday as a precaution for medical reasons.
“I have asthma that gets really bad when I am sick, so my Mom wanted me home right away,” said Kinne.
Full refunds will be issued for on-campus housing as well as additional allowable refunds for dining plans. Students who test positive will quarantine on campus until they are re-tested negative.
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Focus on Faculty Series: Rob Auler
On October 21st, Award winning and international pianist takes the stage as he plays multiple of well known classical melodies from impactful pianists/musicians such as Mozart, Bach Busoni, Carter Pann and much more.
Rob Auler, currently professor of music and chairperson of Oswego’s Department of Music, explains the significance of classical piano music in today’s society and the importance of the focus on faculty series in the community.
“I have to explain to my own two children that classical piano is terrific, it’s something that we should celebrate, we should listen to. I’ve designed these five pieces to be highly accessible for audiences who have never heard classical piano playing and in fact, I’ve actually got some of my soccer team kids coming to the show and I particularly want kids like that to come to a recital, see classical piano music that they have never seen before and leave with a very great experience.” Auler said.
“One of the neat things that the music department does we provide public recitals. Not only for the college community, not only for our student, not only for our faculty, but just for the community at large. And not only we are an educational provider but we also provide cultural offerings for the entire community.” Auler also said.
For the students who are trying to get into the profession of music, Auler simply said “persistence and keep on trying new things.” Being in a profession like this isn’t easy but it requires practice and perseverance. Students who attended his concert simply said it was “incredible.” Later this year, the series will continue bringing in other musicians.
For more information, you can visit their website. https://www.oswego.edu/music/music-department-0.
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A Word’s Worth
by Stefanie Sciolaro, WTOP10-TV
They say a picture is worth 1,000 words. Well members of SUNY Oswego’s Student Association took that saying even farther in their 1,000 Words Campaign on Thursday. The event was held in room 133 of the Marano Campus Center from 10AM to 4PM with another event later in the night in the Marano Auditorium from 6PM to 7PM. The afternoon event consisted of an activity students could do to help promote positivity and hope on campus.
Students would come in and choose any quote that means something to them. After choosing a quote, they’d decide where they wanted it to be written on them. An event volunteer would then write the quote on the student and a picture of them would be taken in front of a black back-drop. The student would then fill out a form with their information, and a member of the Student Association would email those pictures to them after the event. If a student did not want to have their picture taken, there was also a white board that students could write their quotes on.
Allif Karim is one of the students who took part in the event. He explained the reasoning behind why he chose the quote, “ Don’t change to be, be the change”.
“Growing up I used to be the typical kid trying to change myself, you know trying to see what fits, what’s hip. Now I understating that you don’t really have to do that, be someone who influences others,” said Alif.
Later that night the event held in the Marano Auditorium showcased all the pictures of students that had participated, along with guest speakers who explained the stories behind their quotes.
With evident tension between people within society today, this event was aimed at bringing the people of SUNY Oswego back together again. The student body has become separated, to a concerning degree, by views over recent events that have occurred in the United States. The 1,000 Words Campaign event was a way for students to positively express themselves through the inspiring words they each individually stand by, and share them with each other.
