Welcome and Congratulations!

We welcome the following new retirees to the Retired Faculty, Professional and Administrators Association (RFPAA): Dennis Banks and Ken Rishel from Secondary Education, Jonathan Bartlett from University Police, Nancy Cannon from Library, R. Neville Choonoo from English and Africana Latino Studies, Holly Deleski and Jean Krueger from Human Resources, Nancy Fiske from English, Janet Frankl from Facilities, John Gardner from Communication and Media, Jim Greenberg from Information Technology Services, Donald Hill from Africana and Latino Studies and Anthropology, Mona Hughes from Instructional Resources, Susan Kenny from Office of Special Programs, Ronald LaFrance from Educational Psychology and Counseling, Daniel Maguffin from SICAS, Ashok Malholtra from Philosophy, Katherine Milavec from Presidents’s Office, David Ring from Economics, Finance and Accounting, Barry Warren from College Advancement, and Ceciia Zapata from Human Ecology. Katherine Angell from Human Ecology will be retiring in December. We wish you well in your retirement.

Planned Events

(Details and reservation instructions, if needed, will be made available prior to event)• December 7, 2016 – Board of Directors Meeting

– 105 Morris Hall, 10–11 am• April 19, 2017 – Luncheon with Program• June 7, 2016 – Annual Meeting and Luncheon

with President Kleniewski’s Campus Update

2016 Spring Luncheon

RFPAA’s spring luncheon, attended by twenty-seven people and organized by Secretary Bill Benedict, Arleen Benedict and President Dick Burr, was held in the Otsego Grille in Morris Hall on April 12. Bill and Dick worked in conjunction with the College Advancement Office for two college seniors to speak about their experiences doing research. They were grant recipients of D’Antonio Undergraduate Student Travel for Excellence Funds. The students and their advisor were freshly back from presenting their research in the field of biology at a conference in the Bahamas. Their advisor also spoke about her research and her mentoring of students’ research.

2016 College Camp Luncheon & Annual Meeting

On Friday, June 10, twenty-two retirees attended a buffet luncheon organized by RFPAA Vice President J. Taylor Hollist at the college camp. President Kleniewski gave her yearly update on the college after the luncheon. She was accompanied by the new Vice President for Student Development, Frank Chambers, who introduced us to programs he had initiated and was overseeing. President Kleniewski reported that the main quad was being renovated, as well as the Health Center. The Center will now be an out-patient facility instead of the mini-hospital as originally designed. Plans are for a new OAS and Book Store to be built adjacent to the Hunt Union. A Center for Faculty Development where faculty could share ideas about teaching will be available in the library.Students who are the first in their family to go to college will receive the same support as the Educational Opportunity Program students. There are also special scholarships for veterans.

number 29 2016

SunY OneOnta

Retired Faculty, Professionals and Administrators

AssociationNewsletter

Dr. Chambers announced that there would be only one orientation for all new students at the beginning of the college year. This way they will be able to interact with the faculty, all will receive the same amount of time and message, and new faculty and staff will be freer to take vacation during the summer.Living Learning Communities have been created in two of the residence halls. This fall freshmen students interested in sustainability or social justice will have the opportunity to live in a hall with other freshmen who share their interests. They will have some classes there and it will be easier to socialize with students with similar goals and values. The program will be assessed and two majors will be added each year until a total of thirty are reached. A faculty mentor will work with each team and be available, for example, to advise how to work with faculty, how to make arrangements with faculty to make up homework, and be available to counsel the students.Bill Benedict asked about connections with Hartwick. The answer was that OH Fest and mental health are two areas where collaboration has occurred.Mary Lou Wendell asked if opiates have been a problem with students. The answer was no, but drinking and smoking are a problem.Dick Burr asked about enrollment. The answer was there has not been any precipitous decline so far. It is consistent and flat.Kathy Paranya asked about retention. The answer was that it has been fairly good but could be better.Loraine Tyler then asked what programs were the fastest growing. The answer was that the college looks at what has market value and is attractive. Computer science may want to create a cyber security program. Biology and business are the largest majors, while education and psychology are falling off.Nelson DuBois asked if there was a college-wide program encouraging student/faculty research. The answer was that money is available for research travel and paper presentations.Other questions were: How is the unrecognized fraternal organization program working? Ans. Eight are coming back.How is having alcohol on campus been working? Ans. The pilot program at Higgins Hall has been successful. There have been no violations, no alcohol in the halls but we don’t plan to extend the program.

Election of 2016-2017 Executive Board

Following President Kleniewski’s and Dr. Chambers’ presentations, the RFPAA annual meeting was held and the following executive board officers and directors were elected: Richard Burr for President, J. Taylor Hollist for Vice President, William Benedict for Secretary, and Muriel Beattie and Susan Smith for two-year terms as Directors. Outgoing directors Richard Staley, who completed two two-year terms, and Roy Bartoo, who completed a recent two-year term, were thanked for their service.

Casual Coffee Hours

The Casual Coffee Hours program, started by President Dick Burr and supported by the Board of Directors, met the first Wednesdays of September and October at 10 am in the living room area of the Hunt

Union located across from Starbucks. Starbucks was open and items from their menu were available for purchase. Reservations were not required. We enjoyed having Dr. Frank Chambers, Vice President for Student Development, and Todd Foreman, Vice President for Finance and Administration, join us in September for casual conversation. Casual Coffees may be resumed in the spring. Come join us for refreshment and conversation then.

Molly Swain and Dick Burr

Todd Foreman, Nelson DuBois, Barry Berman, Rich & Loraine Tyler, Frank Chambers, and Bill Benedict enjoy coffee and casual

conversation in the Hunt Union

Oscar’s “Cruzin’ the East Coast” Luncheon and Tour of Physical Science Building

On October 6, 2016, forty-one retirees, spouses and guests enjoyed dishes from along our East Coast planned, well prepared and served by Oscar Oberkircher’s Restaurant and Catering Class. The event was organized by Secretary Bill Benedict and Arleen Benedict. Tom Rathbone gave a brief update (seven minutes long actually) on college facility improvements, future plans and dreams. He reported the Physical Science building will be open for classes for the Spring 2017 semester. Faculty are moving in now. The Science Discovery Center will occupy a glass enclosed area at the front entrance showing its importance to the Oneonta area and science on display.

Anthropology will now be located in the new building where their finds from digs can be cleaned in the mud room and analyzed in laboratories. The new OAS building will be finished in the spring and the bookstore will be moving there over the summer. MacDuff will be the next residence hall rehabbed in 2018. A coming attraction will be an Emergency Services building which will be started in 2017 and take two years to complete. A Welcome Center will be located at the top of the hill behind Fine Arts overlooking the campus and valley. The Library will be rehabbed. Ideas for what to locate in Hunt Union in place of the bookstore and Auxillary Services are being sought. Locating the radio station there is one possibility. Tom then took twenty-two attendees on a tour of the newly renovated Physical Science building.

Retirees ready for their tour of the Physsical Science Building with Tom Rathbone

Tour of Physical Science BuildingOctober 6, 2016

News From and About Colleagues

Ron Embling (Florida) “Judy and I live year-round in central Florida. We still have our home in Otego and spend a few weeks there in the summer. We are very active in the Inverness Presbyterian Church. Judy volunteers at the local primary school, and I work 2 days a week on the 46 mile Withalacohcee Trail.”

J. Taylor Hollist (Oneonta), was invited to speak at an Art History Conference at SUNY Oneonta in April 2016. The title of his presentation was “Mathematical Symmetries in the Art of M.C. Escher”.

Thank You!

The Board would like to thank the many people who help make our organization function. First of all we want to thank President Nancy Kleniewski and Colleen Brannan, Assistant to the President, for their support; Christina Miller from Community Relations in the President’s Office for keeping our membership list up-to-date and seeing that our notices and newsletters are made available; and Lorin Levins from the Office of Communications Design Studio for setting up the newsletter for distribution. We appreciate your help in making our organization possible.

RETIRED FACULTY, PROFESSIONALS AND ADMINISTRATORS ASSOCIATION2016-2017 EXECUTIVE BOARD

President: Richard Burr Vice President: J. Taylor HollistSecretary: William Benedict Newsletter Editor: Arleen Benedict

Directors: Muriel Beattie, Nelson DuBois, P. Jay Fleischer, & Loraine Tyler

Note: As we have no official or systematic way to obtain information about the death of retirees and their families, the list above may be incomplete. If you know of any recently deceased, please notify Christina Miller (address in “Updating the Directory” article).

In MemoriumMildred Barberio (Education) - 8/10/16John Baskin (Mathematics) - 2/4/16Sanford Gordon (Economics) - 9/24/16Franklin Gould, Jr. (Psychology) - 3/2/16Alvin L. Hall (Administration) - 12/3/15Joan Kingsley (Health & Physical Education) - 1/9/16Frederick Kurkowski (Education) - 3/1/16Peter Macris (Language) - 1/9/16Carol Ryder (Biology) - 5/22/16Robert Simmonds (Earth Science) - 3/13/16

FamiliesCarole Burnsworth - 7/2/16Charlotte Georgeson - 9/12/16Mary Thomas - 4/13/16Judith Weisberger - 12/9/15

ColleaguesDavid Hildreth (Mathematics) - 4/11/16Eugene Obidinski (Sociology) - 6/16/16

Our Website

Visit our website at oneonta.edu/rfpa to find our association’s calendar of events, executive board listing, constitution and newsletter.

Updating the Directory and Membership List

The directory and mailing list for our organization will be continuously updated as Christina Miller is notified of changes. If you would like to have your name, principle address, telephone number or email address changed or removed from the membership list please notify Christina Miller, President’s Office, SUNY Oneonta, 108 Ravine Parkway, Oneonta, NY 13820, or Christina.Miller@oneonta.edu, or 607.436.2748. An Update Directory Information form is also available on the RFPA Association website at oneonta.edu/rfpa. This information will only be used by the SUNY Oneonta Retired Faculty, Professionals, & Administrators Association and SUNY support staff.