SUNY Grad Programs Get High Marks
In addition to graduate programs at Albany recognized for excellence in a survey by the magazine U.S. News & World Report (see story, page 1), other SUNY university centers fared well.
"We are pleased that our campuses consistently do well in these independent rankings," said Chancellor John W. Ryan. "This is more evidence that the State University is continuing to make further strides toward greatness . . . this new survey from U.S. News is the latest in a long line of academic achievements."
In the health disciplines, the graduate anesthesia program at the University at Buffalo (UB) was sixth, according to U.S. News. Two programs in UB�s Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences also received favorable rankings: audiology 21st in its category and speech pathology 29th of the top 50 programs. As with Albany�s highly rated programs in public affairs, this is the first year that U.S. News has provided rankings for graduate programs in these health disciplines.
In the liberal arts discipline of sociology, the U.S. News study ranked University at Stony Brook 24th (Albany was 21st). In the specialty of historical sociology, University at Binghamton was tenth. Stony Brook was ranked 25th among national liberal arts graduate programs in political science.
Out of 191 graduate programs in education nationally, the graduate school of education at UB was ranked 47th by U.S. News (Albany was 49th).
U.S. News bases its graduate school rankings on objective data and reputational ratings. Objective data accounted for 60% of the rankings and included Graduate Record Examination scores, the ratio of full-time doctoral and master�s degree candidates to full-time faculty, the percent of faculty who have received prestigious academic awards, numbers of degrees granted, and research activity as derived from public and privately funded research expenditures.
Albany Affairs for SUNY
On Monday, March 2, in the Terrace Gallery of the New York State Museum, a gala dinner will be held to celebrate SUNY�s 50th Anniversary. Alumni in state government and public service will be honored. Chairman Thomas F. Egan and Chancellor John W. Ryan will host the event.
The following day, in the State Capitol, campus delegations visit Albany during State University Legislative Advocacy Day. Campus delegations will visit state legislators from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. At a luncheon, scheduled are remarks by Chancellor Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, Senate Higher Education Chair Kenneth P. LaValle and Assembly Higher Education Chair Edward C. Sullivan.
New Radio/TV Man
Vice Chancellor Scott W. Steffey has announced the appointment of David M. Henahan to the position of director of media relations in the System Administration Office of University Relations. Henahan will focus his efforts on radio and television media.
Most recently at the New York State Assembly, he produced radio and television for Assembly members, including Speaker Sheldon Silver. Previously, at Broadcast News Networks in Saratoga Springs, he produced documentaries for the Arts and Entertainment Network and helped produce and develop MTV News Unfiltered for Viacom.
Old Westbury President Retires
L. Eudora Pettigrew has announced she will retire as president of the College at Old Westbury effective June 1. Pettigrew�s 40-year career in higher education culminated with her being named Old Westbury�s fourth President in 1986. Prior to that, she was six-year associate provost at the University of Delaware.
During her tenure at Old Westbury, Pettigrew heightened the visibility of the College by forging new partnerships with Long Island�s educational corporate and industrial communities. Enrollment increased and new programs were developed during her administration.
Health Science Center�s $ Impact
According to a recently released report from Appleseed, Inc., an economic consulting firm, the State University Health Science Center at Brooklyn (also known as SUNY Downstate Medical Center) has an impact of $627.1 million on the local economy annually. The study found that for every dollar the state invests, SUNY Downstate returns more than $12 to the economy.
Sudden Infant Death Center Funded at Stony Brook
Governor George E. Pataki has announced the Research Foundation of the State University of New York at Stony Brook has been awarded a five-year grant totaling $407,000 annually to establish a statewide system to help New Yorkers whose infants die unexpectedly. The Center for Sudden and Unexpected Infant Death will provide bereavement support, sensitivity training for emergency responders, prevention education and research about infant deaths. Satellite offices will extend the program�s reach to New York City, Syracuse and Albany.