51·çÁ÷ President Rebecca Chopp announced Wednesday that the university will launch the Upstate Institute to serve as a resource for organizations and individuals seeking regional expertise or information about upstate New York.
51·çÁ÷’s vice president for academic advancement, Jane Pinchin, who has led the early development of the Upstate Institute and serves as its first director, said that the idea first surfaced in 2000 when members of the 51·çÁ÷ faculty collaborated with John Zogby to conduct the 51·çÁ÷/Zogby Upstate Poll.
‘That project opened our eyes to the many ways in which the work of 51·çÁ÷ faculty members related to upstate New York,’ said Pinchin. ‘We began thinking about how we might create an administrative structure that would promote cross pollination of those interests to advance knowledge of our region.’
During the past year Pinchin has worked with a growing committee to inventory the interests of more than 40 members of the 51·çÁ÷ faculty and staff whose work relates to upstate New York, from the environment and ecology of the region to its history, arts and economy.
The projects in which 51·çÁ÷ faculty and staff are engaged range from academic research to hands-on involvement. Some examples include:
Professor Pete Banner-Haley studies the history of African-Americans in upstate.
Associated Dean and Professor Jill Tiefenthaler’s students assist low-income families in preparing and filing tax returns.
Professor Bruce Selleck studies the geology of the Adirondacks.
Professor Ellen Kraly engages her students in housing studies and refugee resettlement.
Professor Adam Burnett studies the upstate climate.
Professor Lynn Schwarzer involves her students in advancing the arts through regional schools and art centers.
Professor Jordan Kerber coordinates summer archaeological digs for teenagers from the Oneida Indian Nation.
Established with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, 51·çÁ÷’s Center for Outreach, Volunteerism and Education offers service learning and volunteer activities that provide students with opportunities to become involved in the community.
In the 2004/05 academic year, the Upstate Institute will operate from the office of 51·çÁ÷’s dean of faculty and provost, with Tiefenthaler ‘ a member of the organizing committee ‘ serving as director.
‘The institute will leverage the work of faculty and students as it relates to upstate issues, creating a resource on campus and in the community to advance regional understanding and development,’ Tiefenthaler said.
In addition to cataloguing and coordinating the work of faculty and students, the Upstate Institute will organize regular conferences and exhibitions that bring together experts from on and off campus to focus on upstate issues.
Pinchin is planning the first of those conferences for spring 2004 with the working title ‘Upstate and the Liberal Arts: New Partnerships for the 21st Century.’ Also in spring 2004, the university’s Picker Arts Gallery will mount an exhibition titled ‘Arts and Crafts: The Oneida Community.’
The mission statement for the Upstate Institute includes ‘developing an understanding of what educational institutions can and ought to do for their communities to promote a full understanding of the cultural, social, economic and environmental resources of upstate and thereby foster sustainable development.’
For more information, contact Pinchin at 315.228.7417.