08/18/2009
SUNY Cortland will open its 2009-10 academic year with an Academic Convocation on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 30, in the Park Center Alumni Arena.
All first-year and new transfer students, along with the SUNY Cortland faculty, librarians and professional staff, are invited to participate in this hour-long event, which will begin at 4 p.m.
“SUNY Cortland has a longstanding reputation of being a friendly institution,” said SUNY Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum. “It is most fitting, then, that from the moment our students set foot on campus, we formally welcome them into the College community through our Academic Convocation ceremony. I am proud that Academic Convocation has become an integral part of the SUNY Cortland academic experience.”
The Academic Convocation processional begins with the all-college gonfalonier, who leads in the faculty, followed by the Schools of Arts and Sciences, Professional Studies and Education gonfaloniers. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Mark Prus will carry the all-college gonfalon, while the gonfalons representing the College’s three schools will be carried by the respective deans/associate deans: Marley Barduhn, associate dean of the School of Education; R. Bruce Mattingly, interim dean of the School of Arts and Sciences; and John Cottone, interim dean of the School of Professional Studies.
The processional concludes when the mace bearer brings in the platform party, which consists of members of the College’s administration and faculty leadership, the College Council, visiting dignitaries and honorees. Jack Sheltmire, director of the Center for Environmental and Outdoor Education and a 1973 graduate of SUNY Cortland with an M.S.Ed., will carry the mace, a ceremonial staff used as a symbol of authority.
Timothy Davis, assistant professor of physical education, will offer a welcome. Sharon Steadman, associate professor of sociology/anthropology, will deliver the Academic Convocation address. Speakers will include Bitterbaum; Prus; junior Jesse Campanaro, president of the Student Government Association; junior Nicole Chodkowski, student researcher; senior Daniel Pitcher, a student-athlete; and Robert Howe, representing the Cortland College Foundation.
The SUNY Cortland Rock, Jazz and Blues Ensemble will perform the pre-ceremony music, followed by a photographic and video montage of SUNY Cortland created by Rebecca Job, a 2009 graduate in communication studies. Performing Arts Department Professor Stephen Wilson will provide the processional and recessional music. Senior musical theatre major Rebecca Rozzoni will sing the National Anthem and the Alma Mater. Several returning students have volunteered to serve as student marshals.
The concept for an opening academic convocation, modeled after a ceremony of the College’s earlier years, was developed from a recommendation by the College’s Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee. The tradition was restarted in 2003 and is coordinated through the President’s Office. An academic convocation Web site at http://www2.cortland.edu/events/academic-convocation/ features more information about the event.
For more information, contact Darci Bacigalupi, special events coordinator, at (607) 753-5453.