By Anita Jaggi
The United States Department of Justice has offered colleges a grant to help reduce violence on campus. Many instances have occurred that pertain to women, such as domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking.
The Office on Violence Against Women, which is part of the U.S. Department of Justice, is offering this grant with the intention on creating efficient responses towards violent behavior. Campuses that collaborate with community based organizations, and local criminal and civil agencies, must take on the same policies and procedures that they follow. Not only will colleges have to treat violence against women as a serious offense, but they must also develop victim service programs that help prevent such crimes from happening.
By providing this grant, the goal is to persuade colleges and various other schools to provide better safety for their students. SUNY Old Westbury has taken on this opportunity and is currently involved with many activities on campus that encourage faculty and students to come together. The award is $200,000 for two years. Old Westbury is continuing this program against violence and is applying for another grant. The grant that can possibly be attained is $300,000 for three years.
The Women’s Center is the main division that handles this grant and the victim service programs. However, the entire school is involved with this organization. Some of the other offices include but are not limited to the Counseling Center, Residential Life, Student Government Association and University Police. The grant is given to colleges to create their own programs but require outside associations to become involved. The Nassau County Police Department and the Nassau Office of the District Attorney are also involved in programs pertaining to violence against women.
In addition to linking up with outside enforcement, colleges must also train campus police on how to react to violent crimes. University police are taught to respond in a timely fashion to cases of violence. Colleges are also required to form an education program for all incoming students. The program is designed to teach students how to file complaints on incidents and gives them insight on prevention methods.
A grant is used to help fund programs like these and also gives people the incentive to want to help. It’s a chance for communities to join together and help others. Colleges like SUNY Old Westbury have worked hard to create a better environment for all students and will continue to do so.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Why Are Students Leaving Old Westbury?
By Selena Hill
Administration at SUNY Old Westbury has been taking steps toward improving the retention rates for years. However, recent retention stats released by the Institutional Research Department show that the trends have been progressing since 2003. During a College Council Meeting earlier this year, the college president, Dr. Calvin O. Butts, shared good news about the growth of retention which currently stands at 72.7%. Accordingly, in the Fall 2007 semester, full time enrollment exceeded their goal to register 3,123 students and instead enrolled 3,152. The school also exceeded its goal to enlist 399 first-year students by 10% and, in fact, recruited 439 students. In addition, the college surpassed its hopes for the return of 2,396 students in the Fall 2007 semester by 5% when, in actuality, 2,503 students came back.
However, despite these figures, there are many students that still feel unsatisfied with Old Westbury’s progress as an institution and seek to transfer out. Maria Davila, a sophomore and resident of the campus, argues that the administration “talks and talks, but never fixes anything.” As the SGA Chief Justice, Davila worked one on one with administration but testifies that when she goes “to discussions that the academic departments have…I get fed up and leave.” For this reason, along with others, Davila says she looks forward to transfering to her “dream school,” SUNY New Paltz, next semester rather than continuing her pursuit for change on campus. Likewise, the current SGA President, Maziely Crisostomo, says her frustration with administration also lead to her examination of other schools. Striving to reform Old Westbury, Crisostomo asserts that she has “brought up many issues [with administration],” however “they’re making baby steps.” In reference to the bursar, residential life, financial aid and transportation, Crisostomo claims that “they’re not putting in enough effort to improve non-friendly offices.” She also protests that “res life is trying to make small improvements [when] they could do so much more.”
Over the summer, SUNY Old Westbury’s own psychology professor, Kathy Greenberg, conducted a research study involving students wishing to transfer. From the results, she concluded that female commuters comprise the largest demographic of non-returning students due to time and pressure. She also affirmed that another cause is the level of immaturity amongst the student body. In agreement, Davila contends that, “I feel like I'm in high school with all the drama and stupid stuff…like I'm in the 14th grade! People here don't take their education seriously.” Michael Catatggio, a freshmen from the Bronx who intends to enroll in SUNY Purchase next year, also insists that many of the residents “just chill outside [and] don’t take college seriously.”
To continue the increase in retention rates, administration plans to hold more student events and execute “one-stop shopping” for financial aid, registration, and bursar in the old bookstore in the Campus Center beginning in Fall 2008. This system would allow students to maneuver faster and smoother with better communication. However, administration is also focusing on raising the standards of the admission process to include demonstration of leadership, exceptional volunteer work, and a personal interview. Nonetheless, this strategy was proposed in the December 2000 issue of the Memorandum of Understanding, which attempts to solve the retention problem by “attracting better students” and encouraging “the College to err on the side of higher standards” (p. 7). However, an undisclosed faculty member questioned this method being that it seeks to change the “type” of student entering Old Westbury instead of the administrative problems causing students to leave. It also neglects the fact that “all level students are leaving,” they argued.
Much of the student body have complained that the events on campus, or lack thereof, play a crucial role in making the best of their college experience. After attending Old Westbury for a year and a half, Davila says that her interests are underrepresented by the social activities and events. She exclaimed that, “I feel like I don't belong here, like there's nothing for me here. This is, well, to put it bluntly.... because I'm white. I've gone to parties and tried to have fun but I just feel uncomfortable and leave…. We have a MSA, Persian Club, African Student Union, Caribbean Club, etc.....where is the European Club?” In effective, she says the absence of a broader sense of cultural diversity has contributed to her reasons for leaving the school.
On the other hand, Saachi Creque, a freshmen student who wants to transfer in the fall, proclaimed that the “events are pretty good; but there can be more.” Speaking on the behalf of residential students, she emphasized that, “on the weekends, there’s really nothing to do; that’s why we all go home.” Similarity, Junior Yussuf, a freshmen resident who wishes to transfer to CW Post or SUNY Purchase, argues that coordinators “should do stuff on a Friday and Saturday” as opposed to just weekday events. He also mentioned that the poor food services provided on the weekends which discourages students from staying stating that “If the den was open [regularly], I would feel better…on the weekend.” In addition, Creque confirmed that campus “activities bring us together,” and without them, many students become disengaged with the school and are more liable to transfer. “If they [students] don’t get involved in school activities, then you have no connection to the school.” said Mariana Valle, a resident of Old Westbury who plans to graduate with a four-year degree. Now in her junior year, Valle says that her involvement with the New Orleans relief volunteer group had a great impact in helping her bond with her Old Westbury and fellow students. “It connected me by introducing me to new cultures and people that I encountered on the trip,” she shared. She also developed a greater appreciation for the school being that she “had a lot to do with planning the trip [2006]” which she “wouldn’t have been able to do at a ‘big’ college.” In essence, Valle also attributes her fondness of Old Westbury to the First-Year Experience and director Dr. Laura Anker whom she says has “built a network with [and] helped her meet people.”
Furthermore, many Old Westbury students say that concern towards the academia is their primary motive for transferring. William Kim, a freshman biology major from East Port HS in Suffolk County , confessed that the biology department “wasn’t what I expected…I thought it would be bigger.” In effect, he plans to apply to SUNY Stonybrook because he is “scared that I won’t be able to enter a medical school from Old Westbury…[because] it’s not a well known school for my major.” Now as a junior, the SGA president announced that her main reason for wanting to transfer centers around the apprehension she feels in regards to achieving a Sociology degree from Old Westbury. Crisostomo stressed the fact that her department needs “more faculty than adjunctions in Sociology [and]…don’t have enough [full-time] professors.” In addition, Crisostomo admits that she is “worried about the value of my degree” and complained that adjuncts teach the majority of her classes. She also stated that “I felt like the school didn’t cater enough to my major. [The] classes don’t prepare you enough for grad school.”
Moreover, Crisostomo says that despite everything, she recently decided to stay at Old Westbury for her last year stating “I have pretty good friends and I’m in tuned with faculty.”
Administration at SUNY Old Westbury has been taking steps toward improving the retention rates for years. However, recent retention stats released by the Institutional Research Department show that the trends have been progressing since 2003. During a College Council Meeting earlier this year, the college president, Dr. Calvin O. Butts, shared good news about the growth of retention which currently stands at 72.7%. Accordingly, in the Fall 2007 semester, full time enrollment exceeded their goal to register 3,123 students and instead enrolled 3,152. The school also exceeded its goal to enlist 399 first-year students by 10% and, in fact, recruited 439 students. In addition, the college surpassed its hopes for the return of 2,396 students in the Fall 2007 semester by 5% when, in actuality, 2,503 students came back.
However, despite these figures, there are many students that still feel unsatisfied with Old Westbury’s progress as an institution and seek to transfer out. Maria Davila, a sophomore and resident of the campus, argues that the administration “talks and talks, but never fixes anything.” As the SGA Chief Justice, Davila worked one on one with administration but testifies that when she goes “to discussions that the academic departments have…I get fed up and leave.” For this reason, along with others, Davila says she looks forward to transfering to her “dream school,” SUNY New Paltz, next semester rather than continuing her pursuit for change on campus. Likewise, the current SGA President, Maziely Crisostomo, says her frustration with administration also lead to her examination of other schools. Striving to reform Old Westbury, Crisostomo asserts that she has “brought up many issues [with administration],” however “they’re making baby steps.” In reference to the bursar, residential life, financial aid and transportation, Crisostomo claims that “they’re not putting in enough effort to improve non-friendly offices.” She also protests that “res life is trying to make small improvements [when] they could do so much more.”
Over the summer, SUNY Old Westbury’s own psychology professor, Kathy Greenberg, conducted a research study involving students wishing to transfer. From the results, she concluded that female commuters comprise the largest demographic of non-returning students due to time and pressure. She also affirmed that another cause is the level of immaturity amongst the student body. In agreement, Davila contends that, “I feel like I'm in high school with all the drama and stupid stuff…like I'm in the 14th grade! People here don't take their education seriously.” Michael Catatggio, a freshmen from the Bronx who intends to enroll in SUNY Purchase next year, also insists that many of the residents “just chill outside [and] don’t take college seriously.”
To continue the increase in retention rates, administration plans to hold more student events and execute “one-stop shopping” for financial aid, registration, and bursar in the old bookstore in the Campus Center beginning in Fall 2008. This system would allow students to maneuver faster and smoother with better communication. However, administration is also focusing on raising the standards of the admission process to include demonstration of leadership, exceptional volunteer work, and a personal interview. Nonetheless, this strategy was proposed in the December 2000 issue of the Memorandum of Understanding, which attempts to solve the retention problem by “attracting better students” and encouraging “the College to err on the side of higher standards” (p. 7). However, an undisclosed faculty member questioned this method being that it seeks to change the “type” of student entering Old Westbury instead of the administrative problems causing students to leave. It also neglects the fact that “all level students are leaving,” they argued.
Much of the student body have complained that the events on campus, or lack thereof, play a crucial role in making the best of their college experience. After attending Old Westbury for a year and a half, Davila says that her interests are underrepresented by the social activities and events. She exclaimed that, “I feel like I don't belong here, like there's nothing for me here. This is, well, to put it bluntly.... because I'm white. I've gone to parties and tried to have fun but I just feel uncomfortable and leave…. We have a MSA, Persian Club, African Student Union, Caribbean Club, etc.....where is the European Club?” In effective, she says the absence of a broader sense of cultural diversity has contributed to her reasons for leaving the school.
On the other hand, Saachi Creque, a freshmen student who wants to transfer in the fall, proclaimed that the “events are pretty good; but there can be more.” Speaking on the behalf of residential students, she emphasized that, “on the weekends, there’s really nothing to do; that’s why we all go home.” Similarity, Junior Yussuf, a freshmen resident who wishes to transfer to CW Post or SUNY Purchase, argues that coordinators “should do stuff on a Friday and Saturday” as opposed to just weekday events. He also mentioned that the poor food services provided on the weekends which discourages students from staying stating that “If the den was open [regularly], I would feel better…on the weekend.” In addition, Creque confirmed that campus “activities bring us together,” and without them, many students become disengaged with the school and are more liable to transfer. “If they [students] don’t get involved in school activities, then you have no connection to the school.” said Mariana Valle, a resident of Old Westbury who plans to graduate with a four-year degree. Now in her junior year, Valle says that her involvement with the New Orleans relief volunteer group had a great impact in helping her bond with her Old Westbury and fellow students. “It connected me by introducing me to new cultures and people that I encountered on the trip,” she shared. She also developed a greater appreciation for the school being that she “had a lot to do with planning the trip [2006]” which she “wouldn’t have been able to do at a ‘big’ college.” In essence, Valle also attributes her fondness of Old Westbury to the First-Year Experience and director Dr. Laura Anker whom she says has “built a network with [and] helped her meet people.”
Furthermore, many Old Westbury students say that concern towards the academia is their primary motive for transferring. William Kim, a freshman biology major from East Port HS in Suffolk County , confessed that the biology department “wasn’t what I expected…I thought it would be bigger.” In effect, he plans to apply to SUNY Stonybrook because he is “scared that I won’t be able to enter a medical school from Old Westbury…[because] it’s not a well known school for my major.” Now as a junior, the SGA president announced that her main reason for wanting to transfer centers around the apprehension she feels in regards to achieving a Sociology degree from Old Westbury. Crisostomo stressed the fact that her department needs “more faculty than adjunctions in Sociology [and]…don’t have enough [full-time] professors.” In addition, Crisostomo admits that she is “worried about the value of my degree” and complained that adjuncts teach the majority of her classes. She also stated that “I felt like the school didn’t cater enough to my major. [The] classes don’t prepare you enough for grad school.”
Moreover, Crisostomo says that despite everything, she recently decided to stay at Old Westbury for her last year stating “I have pretty good friends and I’m in tuned with faculty.”
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
2008-2009 EOP Financial Aid Workshop Schedule Student Union Room 326
Monday Tuesday
March 3rd March 4
9:30 am 11:am
and 2:30 pm
March 24 March 11
10:00 am 10:00 am
and 2:00 pm 1:00pm
April 7 March 25
10:00 am 10:00 am
2:30 pm 1:00pm
April 1 10:30am
Wednesdays Thursday
March 12th- 9:30 am March 6- 10:00 am
March 26 11:00am March 27- 9:30 am
April 2- 11:00 am April 10- 9:30 am
If you are taking Summer Classes, you need to apply for financial aid by March 3, 2008. No Extensions of bill payment. Loan and Tap only (minimum 6 credits) Register for the EOP financial Aid Workshop in the EOP office, Room H322 Campus Center Beginning February 18,2008. Bring copies of the Following items with you to the workshop: FASFA will be done on line during workshops.
1-2007 Federal income tax returns for household
2-2007 state and local income tax returns
3-W-2 Forms and other records of money earned in 2007
4-Documentation of 2007 Non-Taxable income, such as social services, social security, AFDC of veterans benefits total amount for 2007
5-Current Bank Statements
6-Current Mortgage information
7- Business and Farm Records
8- Records of stock, Bonds, and other Investments
9-Drivers License and Social Security Card and/or Legal Alien Card
10- Promissory notes or loan Disclosure Statements
11- Bring Date of Birth and Social Security Numbers from Parents
The suggested deadline date for filling is April 10, 2008
If you do not have a federal pin #, please apply for one immediately at www.pined.gov to file your FASFA online. If you prefer a paper FASFA application, call (1800-433-3234) or 1800-4-FED-AID. The Financial AId office no longer has the FAFSA Application in the office
Thursday, February 14, 2008
'Recent Works: Fred Holland' Opens at Amelie A. Wallace Gallery
ransforming discarded materials into meditations on fragility, impermanence and regeneration is the basis of the latest exhibit at the Amelie A. Wallace Gallery at SUNY College at Old Westbury.
In the self-titled "Recent Works: Fred Holland," the artist employs a variety of elements, including discarded canes, crutches, walkers, and wheelchairs often found during his nocturnal solitary walks in his neighborhood. He either copies these objects by carving and gluing blue Styrofoam or converts the things themselves into a cluster of conceptual components or kinetic sculptures (e.g., a motor rotates the wheels of a wheelchair suspended from the wall). Using fragile materials to replicate these discarded objects once used by the elderly and disabled, Holland endows the new, easily breakable, prop-like elements with a ghostly presence, turning them into symbols of the marginalized members of society.
Holland simulates objects not only in industrial materials but also in organic materials, a choice that poses the issue of preservation.
The exhibition opened on January 28 and runs until February 28, 2008. There will be an opening reception and artist's gallery talk held from 4-7 p.m. on February 5. 2008. Admission for the gallery is free and the exhibit will be open from Monday-Thursday from 1-5 p.m. and by appointment.
A diversely accomplished artist, Fred Holland first studied painting at the Columbus College of Art & Design in Ohio, then moved to Philadelphia, where he involved himself in improvisational dance and theatre, working with dancers, poets and actors. In the early 1980s, Holland joined Tanzfabrik, a dance company in West Berlin, where he worked extensively with the singer, composer, and choreographer Meredith Monk, whose interdisciplinary performances made a great impact on the artist. Upon returning to the U.S., Holland choreographed and performed narrative dances at The Kitchen, The Ohio Theater, and Dance Theater Workshop's Bessie Schonberg Theater, using visually charged stage sets that he designed himself. Holland returned to painting and sculpture in the 1990s. His earlier theater experience led him to emphasize the sensory quality of materials he chose. His artwork became, in effect, a theatre of all the senses.
The Amelie A. Wallace Gallery is located in the Campus Center of SUNY College at Old Westbury and is managed under the direction of the faculty of the College's Visual Arts Department. Through courses of study that lead to B.A. and B.S. degrees in Visual Arts, the College prepares its students for careers in the art, publishing, graphic and web design worlds. The program features faculty members of international acclaim, including Guggenheim Fellows and National Endowment for the Arts award winners whose work is represented in the collections of such institutions as the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum, and the Guggenheim Museum in New York.
In the self-titled "Recent Works: Fred Holland," the artist employs a variety of elements, including discarded canes, crutches, walkers, and wheelchairs often found during his nocturnal solitary walks in his neighborhood. He either copies these objects by carving and gluing blue Styrofoam or converts the things themselves into a cluster of conceptual components or kinetic sculptures (e.g., a motor rotates the wheels of a wheelchair suspended from the wall). Using fragile materials to replicate these discarded objects once used by the elderly and disabled, Holland endows the new, easily breakable, prop-like elements with a ghostly presence, turning them into symbols of the marginalized members of society.
Holland simulates objects not only in industrial materials but also in organic materials, a choice that poses the issue of preservation.
The exhibition opened on January 28 and runs until February 28, 2008. There will be an opening reception and artist's gallery talk held from 4-7 p.m. on February 5. 2008. Admission for the gallery is free and the exhibit will be open from Monday-Thursday from 1-5 p.m. and by appointment.
A diversely accomplished artist, Fred Holland first studied painting at the Columbus College of Art & Design in Ohio, then moved to Philadelphia, where he involved himself in improvisational dance and theatre, working with dancers, poets and actors. In the early 1980s, Holland joined Tanzfabrik, a dance company in West Berlin, where he worked extensively with the singer, composer, and choreographer Meredith Monk, whose interdisciplinary performances made a great impact on the artist. Upon returning to the U.S., Holland choreographed and performed narrative dances at The Kitchen, The Ohio Theater, and Dance Theater Workshop's Bessie Schonberg Theater, using visually charged stage sets that he designed himself. Holland returned to painting and sculpture in the 1990s. His earlier theater experience led him to emphasize the sensory quality of materials he chose. His artwork became, in effect, a theatre of all the senses.
The Amelie A. Wallace Gallery is located in the Campus Center of SUNY College at Old Westbury and is managed under the direction of the faculty of the College's Visual Arts Department. Through courses of study that lead to B.A. and B.S. degrees in Visual Arts, the College prepares its students for careers in the art, publishing, graphic and web design worlds. The program features faculty members of international acclaim, including Guggenheim Fellows and National Endowment for the Arts award winners whose work is represented in the collections of such institutions as the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum, and the Guggenheim Museum in New York.
SUNY College at Old Westbury and NYCOM Announce Accelerated B.S./D.O. Medical Degree Program
SUNY College Old Westbury proudly announces the approval of a new seven year, dual degree B.S./D.O. program for students wishing to become doctors of osteopathic medicine. The College has signed an agreement with the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine located in Old Westbury, New York that provides for admission into the medical college upon completion of required coursework and exams at SUNY College at Old Westbury.
"The need for experienced physicians, especially those from diverse backgrounds, continues to grow as the profile of America's population changes," said Dr. James Llana, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at SUNY College at Old Westbury. "This collaboration is a natural extension of our success in attracting and educating students from underrepresented communities into scientific disciplines where they gain first-hand experience in cutting edge research. Now, students can combine those research opportunities with high-quality instruction offered by both the SUNY and NYCOM faculty and take an accelerated path towards the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree."
The program, which requires admission both to SUNY College at Old Westbury and NYCOM, enables students to combine the last year of the Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Sciences with the first year of medical school. To qualify for admission into this program, high school students must have a minimum high school average of 92 percent and a combined SAT score of 1200 (Critical Reading and Math portions).
Upon successful completion of the required coursework, grade point average and MCAT exam scores, students are guaranteed an interview with the NYCOM Admission Committee during the third year of the program. Admission into the first year of medical school will commence at the start of the fourth year, upon acceptance by the NYCOM Admission's Committee.
A separate OW/NYCOM application is required along with three letters of recommendation. For more information, contact the SUNY College at Old Westbury Office of Enrollment Services at (516) 876-3073.
NYCOM, the first osteopathic medical school in the state of New York, has been training osteopathic physicians for a lifetime of medical practice and learning based on established science and critical thinking, as well as integrating osteopathic philosophy, principles and practice since 1977.
"The need for experienced physicians, especially those from diverse backgrounds, continues to grow as the profile of America's population changes," said Dr. James Llana, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at SUNY College at Old Westbury. "This collaboration is a natural extension of our success in attracting and educating students from underrepresented communities into scientific disciplines where they gain first-hand experience in cutting edge research. Now, students can combine those research opportunities with high-quality instruction offered by both the SUNY and NYCOM faculty and take an accelerated path towards the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree."
The program, which requires admission both to SUNY College at Old Westbury and NYCOM, enables students to combine the last year of the Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Sciences with the first year of medical school. To qualify for admission into this program, high school students must have a minimum high school average of 92 percent and a combined SAT score of 1200 (Critical Reading and Math portions).
Upon successful completion of the required coursework, grade point average and MCAT exam scores, students are guaranteed an interview with the NYCOM Admission Committee during the third year of the program. Admission into the first year of medical school will commence at the start of the fourth year, upon acceptance by the NYCOM Admission's Committee.
A separate OW/NYCOM application is required along with three letters of recommendation. For more information, contact the SUNY College at Old Westbury Office of Enrollment Services at (516) 876-3073.
NYCOM, the first osteopathic medical school in the state of New York, has been training osteopathic physicians for a lifetime of medical practice and learning based on established science and critical thinking, as well as integrating osteopathic philosophy, principles and practice since 1977.
SUNY College at Old Westbury Earns Place on President's Honor Roll for Service
The Corporation for National and Community Service named SUNY College at Old Westbury to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. Old Westbury is one of 528 colleges and universities nationwide to be named to the honor roll for its exemplary service efforts and service to disadvantaged youth.
"Our College seeks students of high quality and produces graduates ready to lead at work, in the community, and in life," said College President Calvin O. Butts, III. "A key element in that leadership, however, is the relation they have with the world around them. By challenging students to learn about, and help address, the needs of our community early in their collegiate careers, we are providing them a valuable opportunity to learn about potential career paths, to face issues of social and economic inequity head on, and to experience the power change can make for ourselves and our community."
Launched in 2006, the Community Service Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to service-learning and civic engagement. Honorees for the award were chosen based on a series of selection factors including scope and innovativeness of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.
Old Westbury was recognized for the pilot version of its now mandatory First Year Student Engagement program, an initiative of the College's Community Engagement and Partnership Center. During the spring 2007 pilot, the First Year Experience Student Engagement Program placed 80 students in community service positions with area not-for-profits as part of a required course offered through the curriculum of the College's Office of First-Year Experience.
The program became a mandatory portion of the College's curriculum for first-year students this year and more than 500 students will be engaged in community service placements during spring 2008 with area human service, educational, health care and municipal organizations. Unlike many college programs where service learning is a volunteer effort, the Old Westbury CEPC First Year Student Engagement Program is unique in that it is directly tied to the academic structure of the institution.
Through this program, every freshman student enrolling in the College is required to study the importance of civic engagement in their own lives and in the life of a community. Then, they are each required to take part in between 30 and 50 hours of service with pre-selected regional not-for-profit partners or on campus. Through class discussion, reflective journals, and other assignments, they share their experiences with classmates and faculty.
The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Corps, and the Presidents Council on Service and Civic Participation.
In congratulating the winners, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said, "Americans rely on our higher education system to prepare students for citizenship and the workforce. We look to institutions like these to provide leadership in partnering with local schools to shape the civic, democratic and economic future of our country."
The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Corps, and the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.
The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. The Corporation administers Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America, a program that supports service-learning in schools, institutions of higher education and community-based organizations. For more information, go to http://www.nationalservice.gov.
"Our College seeks students of high quality and produces graduates ready to lead at work, in the community, and in life," said College President Calvin O. Butts, III. "A key element in that leadership, however, is the relation they have with the world around them. By challenging students to learn about, and help address, the needs of our community early in their collegiate careers, we are providing them a valuable opportunity to learn about potential career paths, to face issues of social and economic inequity head on, and to experience the power change can make for ourselves and our community."
Launched in 2006, the Community Service Honor Roll is the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to service-learning and civic engagement. Honorees for the award were chosen based on a series of selection factors including scope and innovativeness of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.
Old Westbury was recognized for the pilot version of its now mandatory First Year Student Engagement program, an initiative of the College's Community Engagement and Partnership Center. During the spring 2007 pilot, the First Year Experience Student Engagement Program placed 80 students in community service positions with area not-for-profits as part of a required course offered through the curriculum of the College's Office of First-Year Experience.
The program became a mandatory portion of the College's curriculum for first-year students this year and more than 500 students will be engaged in community service placements during spring 2008 with area human service, educational, health care and municipal organizations. Unlike many college programs where service learning is a volunteer effort, the Old Westbury CEPC First Year Student Engagement Program is unique in that it is directly tied to the academic structure of the institution.
Through this program, every freshman student enrolling in the College is required to study the importance of civic engagement in their own lives and in the life of a community. Then, they are each required to take part in between 30 and 50 hours of service with pre-selected regional not-for-profit partners or on campus. Through class discussion, reflective journals, and other assignments, they share their experiences with classmates and faculty.
The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Corps, and the Presidents Council on Service and Civic Participation.
In congratulating the winners, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said, "Americans rely on our higher education system to prepare students for citizenship and the workforce. We look to institutions like these to provide leadership in partnering with local schools to shape the civic, democratic and economic future of our country."
The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Corps, and the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.
The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. The Corporation administers Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America, a program that supports service-learning in schools, institutions of higher education and community-based organizations. For more information, go to http://www.nationalservice.gov.
GunStoppers Program Unveiled at Old Westbury
Recently, Suny College at Old Westbury and College President Dr. Calvin Butts, III hosted Nassau County Executive Thomas Suaozzi, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice, New York State Homeland Security Secretary Michael Balboni and Nassau County Plice Department Commissioner Lawrence Mulvey, as they announced the creation and implementation of the Nassau County Police Department's GunStoppers Program. GunStoppers, the Department's latest innovative anti-gun initiative, is an anonymous tip program that offers rewards of up to $2000 to individuals who provide information leading to the recovery of an illegal gun.
The comprehensive plan includes three major initiatives.
The first prong of the strategy involves the police departmen's implementation of "GunStoppers," which will offer anonymous citizens up to $2000 in exchange for information leading to the seizure of an illegal gun. Mulvey said that the goal of the plan is to collect guns used in crimes and that the police department and District Attorney will trace the source of the guns used in crimes in an effort to investigate illeagal gun distribution networks with tentacles in Nassau County.
In 2006, there were 54 reported shootings involving injury in Nassau County. IN 207, that number climbed to 67. According to the New York State Division of Criminal Juctice Services, there were 490 'crime guns' recovered in Nassau County in 2006 and 2007.
"GunStoppers is the Police Department's newest proactive initiative that will help us find and recover illegal guns, arrest and build cases against those who use guns to commit crimes and dismantle illegal gun distribution netwoeks," said Commissioner Mulvey.
The second portion of the strategy revolves around the District Attorney's commitment to aggressively inveestigate and prosecute defendant's accused of carrying a gun illegally. In cases where an illegal gun is recovered, the District Attorney will demand that the defendant be sentenced to three and a half years in prison, explained Rice. Law enforcement will also investigate the source of the guns seized during the course of these investigations and prosecutions.
"Taking illegal guns off our streets is a top priority of my administration," said Rice. "We will continue to push the envelope, toughen prosecutions and attack the networks that bring guns into our communities."
The third component of the strategy is aimed at reducing the recidivism rate of the parolees returning to Nassau County after serving time on gun-related offenses. Rice said that her office, in partnership with the New York State Division of Parole, will provide an additional mandatory condition on the parole of defendants released after serving time for gun-related offenses. The condition will allow the District Attorney to monitor and track their participation in essential behavior modification programs that teach parolees how to live lawfully and productively outside incarceration and within their communities. Rice said that once these essential programs become a condition of their parole, defendants will have no choice but to participate in a positive re-entry process that will keep them from re-offending. "It's another layer of protection the community will have against recidicist offenders, " said Rice.
"This is an example of the kind of thoughtful, long term crime reduction straategy that will make our streets safer by attacking the recidivism rate among these defendants," said Secretary Balboni in response to the announcement of the re-entry initiative.
According to the New York State Division of Parole, 31% of parolees released after serving prision time on violent felony offenses violated the conditions of their parole within three years of being released from prision.
"We are fortunate to live in one of the safest counties in the nation, but we are not immune to gun violence," said County Executive Suozzi. "I urge anyone who knows of an illegal gun to contact the GunStoppers hotline at 1-877-4GUN411. The rewards for calling GunStoppers are safer stretts and compensation for your efforts."
The comprehensive plan includes three major initiatives.
The first prong of the strategy involves the police departmen's implementation of "GunStoppers," which will offer anonymous citizens up to $2000 in exchange for information leading to the seizure of an illegal gun. Mulvey said that the goal of the plan is to collect guns used in crimes and that the police department and District Attorney will trace the source of the guns used in crimes in an effort to investigate illeagal gun distribution networks with tentacles in Nassau County.
In 2006, there were 54 reported shootings involving injury in Nassau County. IN 207, that number climbed to 67. According to the New York State Division of Criminal Juctice Services, there were 490 'crime guns' recovered in Nassau County in 2006 and 2007.
"GunStoppers is the Police Department's newest proactive initiative that will help us find and recover illegal guns, arrest and build cases against those who use guns to commit crimes and dismantle illegal gun distribution netwoeks," said Commissioner Mulvey.
The second portion of the strategy revolves around the District Attorney's commitment to aggressively inveestigate and prosecute defendant's accused of carrying a gun illegally. In cases where an illegal gun is recovered, the District Attorney will demand that the defendant be sentenced to three and a half years in prison, explained Rice. Law enforcement will also investigate the source of the guns seized during the course of these investigations and prosecutions.
"Taking illegal guns off our streets is a top priority of my administration," said Rice. "We will continue to push the envelope, toughen prosecutions and attack the networks that bring guns into our communities."
The third component of the strategy is aimed at reducing the recidivism rate of the parolees returning to Nassau County after serving time on gun-related offenses. Rice said that her office, in partnership with the New York State Division of Parole, will provide an additional mandatory condition on the parole of defendants released after serving time for gun-related offenses. The condition will allow the District Attorney to monitor and track their participation in essential behavior modification programs that teach parolees how to live lawfully and productively outside incarceration and within their communities. Rice said that once these essential programs become a condition of their parole, defendants will have no choice but to participate in a positive re-entry process that will keep them from re-offending. "It's another layer of protection the community will have against recidicist offenders, " said Rice.
"This is an example of the kind of thoughtful, long term crime reduction straategy that will make our streets safer by attacking the recidivism rate among these defendants," said Secretary Balboni in response to the announcement of the re-entry initiative.
According to the New York State Division of Parole, 31% of parolees released after serving prision time on violent felony offenses violated the conditions of their parole within three years of being released from prision.
"We are fortunate to live in one of the safest counties in the nation, but we are not immune to gun violence," said County Executive Suozzi. "I urge anyone who knows of an illegal gun to contact the GunStoppers hotline at 1-877-4GUN411. The rewards for calling GunStoppers are safer stretts and compensation for your efforts."
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