OSWEGO, NY — Oct 13, 2016

It’s a relief for SUNY Oswego students to get a day off from classes, but yesterday’s break in honor of Yom Kippur may have allowed them to avoid something besides their professors. On Wednesday morning, the college issued an alert that a black bear had been sighted on Route 104 by the college’s main entrance.

The University Police said the bear posed no immediate threat, though students and staff were advised to keep their distance and contact university police in the event of another sighting.

Although the sighting may have surprised students, these incidents are not unique to Oswego. Black bears have been a common sight across Oswego County over the past few months, with several seen in July alone. Bear sightings have increased across upstate NY, with some towns reporting over three times as many than usual.

Though the actual cause of this increase in sightings is unknown, black bears are not uncommon in upstate NY. Oswego may fall outside of their primary range, but that does not rule out the occasional sighting: according to the Department of Environmental Conservation, 10-15 percent of the state’s population of 6,000-8,000 black bears live in the central-western region of NY

Even with the increase, the odds of an actual attack remain extremely low. Black bears are responsible for the deaths of less than one person per year across North America.

For more information on what to do in the case of a bear encounter, visit the Oswego State University Police Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Oswego-State-University-Police-90985222236/.

By Chelsey Moore

Oswego, NY- A new plan is in motion to help make the state of New York more energy efficient. Governor Andrew Cuomo announced early Tuesday that twelve million dollars will be used to enhance energy efficiency in industrial and multi-family buildings. This plan coincides with the real time energy management initiative launched last year.

Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Real Time Energy Management Initiative was first launched last year with the goal of improving efficiency in commercial buildings, including office buildings, hotels, universities, hospitals and retail stores. This energy management system continuously monitors the energy use of different buildings through sensors meters and other equipment. These systems can pinpoint a building’s operational inefficiencies and help to identify conservation measures and help justify capital improvements.

This initiative is crucial to the success of Governor Cuomo’s plan to enhance the state’s overall energy efficiency because about 60-percent of greenhouse gas emissions in New York come from buildings.

According to Governor Como, the state will continue to invest in “state-of-the-art clean energy solutions to create a greener, more sustainable future for all.”

For more information, go to http://www.ny.gov/.

by Lauren Toscano, WTOP10-TV

Wednesday morning, SUNY Oswego students took to the campus grounds to protest issues regarding Tuesday night’s presidential results. The protest began in the quad on campus around 10 a.m. Students held signs and chanted, walked across campus entering dining halls, residence halls, the Marano Campus Center, and ending back in the quad mid day. University Police was not involved and there has been no official email regarding the incident.

Following the protest, students met in a Marano Campus Center classroom to continue their talk on the election results. The meeting was led by SUNY Oswego’s Black Student Union and African Student Organization. During this open forum, many students were outraged with Tuesday night’s results and expressed their concerns for their future. An anonymous protestor commented on Donald Trump’s upcoming presidency stating, “Allowing him into office is policing us not only as people, but as a nation.”

This has been a trend across the United States in the past 24 hours. According to CNN.com, protests have broken out in major cities across the U.S. since the final polls were released Tuesday night. From New York City to Los Angeles, thousands of people have taken to the streets in protest of Donald Trump and in promotion of social movements.